Indie Author Day
Only the morning session (9:15 AM - 2:00 PM) requires registration to attend.
The afternoon session (2:00 PM - 4:00 PM) is open to the general public to browse tables and attend panels and presentations.
Both sessions are free to attend.
Check this space as we approach the event date for any changes or further updates!
Celebrate local and indie literary voices at Indie Author Day 2025!
Saturday, November 15th, 2025 at the Buffalo & Erie County Public Library, Central Library, 1 Lafayette Square, Buffalo, NY 14203
Indie Author Day is part of a nationwide celebration connecting independent writers with their local libraries and writing communities. Whether you’re a published author or just starting your journey, this free event is for you!
This year’s program includes expert-led presentations, networking opportunities, and a vibrant afternoon tabling session featuring local authors and literary professionals.
Morning Session
9:15 AM – 2:00 PM in the Mason O. Damon Auditorium of the Central Library, entrance on Clinton Street.
Registration is required to attend the morning session. This registration is for audience members only—not for the afternoon tabling.
9:30 Welcome and opening remarks
9:45 Beta Reading: The Inside Scoop by Valerie Gee & Katelin Pickard, co-owners of Writer Island
10:00 When to Trust Humans Over Machines: Understanding What Editors Can Do and What AI Cannot by Jennifer Borgioli Binis of Schoolmarm Advisors
10:30 Demystifying the Publishing Landscape: Traditional, Hybrid, and Self-Publishing by H.R. Gordon of Gordon Publishing
11:15 Break
11:30 HONEST GHOST! Authentic Writing and Fantastic Subjects by Mason Winfield of Haunted History Ghost Walks, Inc.
1:00 Morning Session closing remarks, closing of Auditorium.
1:00-2:00 (Second Floor) Break, Social Hour, and table set up for the Afternoon Session. Please note: Downtown dining options are limited on Saturdays. Attendees attending the full day are encouraged to bring a brown bag lunch or plan their meal in advance. No food will be provided during this break.
Afternoon Session
2:00 PM - 4:00 PM on the Second Floor of the Central Library.
Attendance to these events is free and open to the general public, registration is not required. Note that multiple events will be occurring at the same time in different areas.
Second Floor, Exhibit Space
2:00 - 4:00 Book Fair tabling and networking
Second Floor, Central Meeting Room
2:00 Writing Together: Finding Accountability, Motivation and Connections with Shut Up and Write Buffalo by John Bowers, Tediyra Barton-Harris, Elaine Grant, Dr. Chirantana Mathkari, Michael Neumann, and Annette J. Wacha
2:30 Transforming Buffalo into the Multiverse by Travis Carlson of Pan-American Film Division
Second Floor, Collections Gallery Conference Room
2:00 Finishing Your First Novel (Turning Your Idea Into a Story) by Evangeline Williams
2:45 How to Get Away With (Writing) Murder by Gary Earl Ross
3:15 Horror: It's Not Just Teens Getting Killed by Liam Burke, Rebecca Cuthbert, Pauline Chow, and Dr. Jack
Second Floor, TechKnow Lab
2:00 Branding Your Empire by Tori Einher of Unscripted Chaos
2:30 Creating Your Literary Magazine (As an Extension of the Self) by J.B. Stone of Variety Pack Zine
Table requests are now closed.
Thank you everyone who requested a table for Indie Author Day 2025. We will be finalizing the tables soon, so if you applied, keep an eye on your inbox.
We're bringing back indie author book sales! Tabling is open to local and indie authors, artists, designers, marketers, influencers, publishers, editors, and others connected to the local and indie literary community. Only book sales by local and indie authors are permitted.
Register to attend the morning session.
Program list
Beta Reading: The Inside Scoop
Valerie and Katelin, the co-owners of Writer Island, are professional readers. During their session for you, they will entertain with some sisterly banter about just what is beta reading and how indie authors can teach their friends to perform prepublication reading for them. Or if they prefer, how to build a time machine to beta read their work. (Warning: results of time machine may vary.)
Valerie Gee and Katelin Pickard
We're Valerie and Katelin, two sisters who share a lifelong love of books and storytelling. As avid readers and passionate supporters of the writing community, we understand the importance of transforming a good story into an unforgettable one. We specialize in beta reading and author support, offering thoughtful and constructive feedback to help bring your vision to life.
When to trust humans over machines: Understanding what editors do and AI cannot
In this session, authors will be provided an overview of the services freelance editors provide including when to seek out a copyeditor versus a developmental editor and how to work with a book coach or a fact-checker. In addition, the session will explore example scenarios where it's always better to go with a human editor, instead of ChatGPT or AI. While there are good arguments for saving money or time by leaning on AI, this session will lay out in plain language where and how ChatGPT leads authors astray and how trusting humans is the better approach.
Jennifer Borgioli Binis
Jennifer Borgioli is president of Schoolmarm Advisors, a freelance editing, research, and fact-check service for authors who write or create content about K-12 education. She is also moderator on Reddit's AskHistorians.
Demystifying the Publishing Landscape: Traditional, Hybrid, and Self-Publishing
Publishing a book can feel overwhelming—but it doesn’t have to be. In this practical, jargon-free workshop, publishing professional H.R. Gordon will break down the key differences between traditional, hybrid, and self-publishing, explaining the pros and cons of each model from submission to launch. Attendees will gain a clear understanding of costs, timelines, and creative control, as well as the right questions to ask before signing with an agent, publisher, or service provider. Whether you’re finishing your first draft or rethinking your publishing strategy, this session will leave you empowered to make informed, confident decisions about your author journey.
H.R. Gordon
H. R. (Hannah) Gordon is the founder of Gordon Publishing Collective, an independent publishing collective based in Buffalo, New York, encompassing imprints such as Beach Bum Books, Spilt Ink Press, and Luna Moth Press. A writer, editor, and publishing consultant with over a decade of industry experience, she specializes in helping authors navigate the complex and ever-evolving publishing landscape. Hannah is also a Ph.D. student in Global Gender and Sexuality Studies at the University at Buffalo, where her research explores trauma, storytelling, and the body.
HONEST GHOST! Authentic Writing and Fantastic Subjects
The real reason more people aren’t published is not that they couldn’t write well enough. It’s because the writing business is a hard one. For most people, making the connection between their talents and inclinations and the situations that could help them is not easy, and the signals the industry sends are often incomprehensible. Mason Winfield can’t make your ticket to fame or success, but he might be able to help you sort out the logic of the business. Join him for “Honest Ghost”: a candid, informative, and light-hearted trip through his own journey from a prep school English teacher to a full time writer, speaker, touring company founder, and NPO director.
Mason Winfield
Mason Winfield is the upstate’s premier paranormalist–a popular lecturer, a frequent media guest, and the author of 20 books. His most recent book, Buffalo’s Occult Architecture, Volume I (2024), is a shocking analysis of some of the Niagara’s grand builders and buildings from perspectives of mysticism, geometry, archaeoastronomy, geomancy–“occult geology”–First Nations spirituality, and, yes, supernatural folklore. Mason is also a journalist and fiction writer whose tales and articles have been widely published.
Writing Together: Finding Accountability, Motivation, and Connections with Shut Up & Write Buffalo
Sometimes finding time and head space for writing is the biggest challenge. The power of writing together in an open group might be one of the best solutions. Shut Up & Write Buffalo is a Meetup.com group with over 800 current members, founded in 2019 for the sole purpose of getting together to write. Not a critique group, we meet to encourage each other and to work. It's great to compare notes with writers for all types of projects, novels, poetry, journals, academic papers, dissertations. We meet in coffee shops, libraries, and sometimes online. Meetings are open to all writers in the region and always absolutely free.
John Bowers
John Bowers has self-published three science fantasy satire novels under the name J.S. Bowers.
Tediyra Barton-Harris
Tediyra Barton-Harris is an aspiring author with an interest in historical fiction. Her stories focus on weaving character-driven narratives that explore memory, identity, language, and the meaning of human connection. When she is not writing and world building, Tediyra works as a voice instructor and local musician.
Elaine Grant
Elaine Grant is a retired music teacher who taught vocal/general music for 30 years for the Ken-Ton UFSD. She holds a BS in Music Education from Nazareth College and an MM in Vocal Performance from Ithaca College. She is a widowed mom of three adult sons and enjoys writing, kayaking, gardening and reading. A prolific writer as a teen, she is rediscovering her passion for writing, mainly essays and memoir.
Dr. Chirantana Mathkari
Dr. Chirantana Mathkari is a veterinarian who writes ecofeminist short fiction. A PhD in animal sciences, she works as a professor of human-animal interactions at Canisius University and many of her short stories revolve around animals, both human and non-human. Her work has been published in anthologies including Of Dry Tongues and Brave Hearts and literary journals including The Criterion.
Michael Neumann
Michael grew up in northern California, but has lived in western New York for over thirty years. He has written extensively about film and music, and is currently transcribing the multi-volume chronicle of his journey through dementia care.
Annette J. Wacha
I was born in rural Nebraska then I joined the Army right after high school. Traveling from coast to coast, I eventually settled in WNY. I write romantasy and enjoy various musical interests.
Transforming Buffalo into the Multiverse
What if the drama and storylines of a football season were set in a fantastical multiverse where anything could happen? What started as a fan-fiction blog with a dozen readers took on many experiments and marketing hurdles before the self-published hardcover reached thousands around the world.
Travis Carlson
Travis Carlson is an award-winning filmmaker & writer based in Buffalo, New York. He worked for five years with the Buffalo Bills and Sabres as a cinematographer before co-founding Pan-American Film Division. Pan-Am's original work include the one-shot feature film Mother's Day, as well as dozens of shorts; three of which earned screenings at the Cannes Film Festival SFC.
Finishing Your First Novel (Turning an Idea into a Story)
“Finish Your First Novel” is for beginning fiction writers who want to learn writing craft techniques to help them turn their notebooks full of great ideas and partially-written drafts into a complete story. If you feel as though you’ve been “winging it” then hitting a brick wall, or are needing some direction to get you from “Chapter One” to “The End,” this program is for you.
Evangeline Williams
Amazon All-Star Author, Evangeline Williams writes books with heart, heat, humor, and a touch of suspense. She makes her home in Western PA with her husband, children, and two sassy dogs. As a neurospicy and physically disabled writer, she loves bringing a diverse mix of characters to life on the page.
How to Get Away With (Writing) Murder
If you have ever considered writing a mystery, this is the place to start...
Gary Earl Ross
Retired UB Professor Gary Earl Ross is a novelist and playwright. He is the author of the Nickel City mysteries with Buffalo PI Gideon Rimes and the Edgar Award-winning play Matter of Intent.
Horror: It's Not Just Teens Getting Killed
The horror genre has undergone many transformations over the years. From grand sweeping gothic tales to Penny Dreadful serials; body transformations on the screen we thought impossible, and yes teenagers getting stabbed in the woods, so many teens. Horror has always been with us, as we peek into the dark places of the world and our hearts. But in recent modern artistic circles, the genre carries a kind of near pariah status, one which is finally being shed. This panel will discuss how horror can be so much more than the silliest of its forms, and why.
Liam Burke
Liam Burke is an independent author with dozens of publications ranging from anthologies and podcasts, to collections and an illustrated faery tale. Spec fic by choice, horror by nature, his stories juxtapose biting humor along with the sharp teeth of horror, razor code of cyberpunk, and back alley deals of urban fantasy. His most recent publications include 'Sanguine' in the upcoming Season 4 of the Kaleidocast Podcast, ‘Revenant’ in the Punch a Nazi anthology, and ‘Fjäril’ in Loki’s Torch Volume VII. He is a member of the BSFW, the SFWA, and the HWA(NY Chapter).
Rebecca Cuthbert
Rebecca Cuthbert is a dark fiction and poetry writer living in Western New York. She loves ghost stories, folklore, witchy women, and anything that involves nature getting revenge. Notable publications include the story “The Taste of Other People’s Teeth” in Shadows in the Stacks: a Spirited Giving Charity Anthology (Shortwave Publishing), nominated for a 2025 Pushcart Prize; “I Won’t Call it a Monster” in Self-Made Monsters. Rebecca is an Active Pro Member of the Horror Writers Association and part of the HWA NY chapter. Additionally, she is proud to be a Moanaria Fright Club alumna and a co-conspirator in Lindsay Merbaum’s Study Coven. She is the Editor-in-Chief of Undertaker Books, a new publisher of dark fiction.
Pauline Chow
Pauline Chow is a writer, coach, and ancestral magic practitioner, crafting alternative histories and optimistic futures. She is a Pushcart Prize nominated author with words in Cosmic Monthly Horror, Space and Time Magazine, Apocalypse Confidential, and more. Not your average data scientist, she once sued slumlords and advocated for affordable housing in Southern California. Now, she lives in the woods and is planning her next trip to a historical (hopefully haunted) hotel. Sign up for updates from her newsletter and Substack for notes on publishing and ancestral magic.
Dr. Jack
A high school dropout turned historian, I hold a PhD focused on working-class resistance, and I have worked in homeless services, mental health, and community advocacy. My fiction explores small-town alienation, illicit desire, and transgressive identity. I live in Buffalo, New York, with my brilliant wife and an e-bike named Veronica.
Branding Your Empire
From general branding concepts, like logos and mood boards, to author presence and merch, author, Tori Einher, will be providing some insight on branding yourself as an author in today’s market. Whether marketing yourself or creating an entire empire, her program will help provide insight and resources.
Tori Einher
Einher is a self-published author, designer, and owner of Unscripted Chaos, a fantasy bookshop. Drawing from her own journey she created a unique fantasy series, Wings of Alchemy, and strives to bring magic to her audience.
Creating Your Literary Magazine (As An Extension of the Self)
In this presentation, Founding EIC at WNY’s own literary magazine, Variety Pack, J.B. Stone will discuss the ins and outs of what it takes to create your own publication, through the lens of one’s own style and voice. Much like writers, editors, too have their own style, their own preferred aesthetic. What does it take to run a literary magazine? What routes can I take? How do I approach theme and design? Who is on my team? How big does my team need to be? Are our mission statements and aesthetics aligned? These questions and more will be answered in what will be a lively and necessary discussion on what it takes to run one's own publication. Not only will this be a great opportunity to learn for the aspiring editors, but for writers that submit to literary magazines, or want to submit, providing some necessary perspective from the source themselves.
J.B. Stone
J.B. Stone (he/they) is a Neurodivergent/Autistic spoken word poet, teaching artist, amateur playwright, writer, critic, and editor from Brooklyn, now residing in Buffalo, NY. They’re the founding Editor-in-Chief at Variety Pack, and they have read and edited for multiple publications over the years including, Coffin Bell, Uncharted Magazine, and Split Lip Magazine. Nominated for both the Best of the Net and Best Small Fictions, J.B. 's poetry and prose has appeared in Folklore Review, Blue Earth Review, The McNeese Review, The Citron Review, Button Poetry, Vol. 1 Brooklyn, among other spaces.
Plan your trip
There is free weekend street parking around the library, and several paid lots in the area. Be sure to read the parking signs carefully.
The Auditorium main entrance is on the Clinton Street side of the Central Library building, which is where the Morning Session will be taking place.
The Afternoon Session is on the second floor of the Central Library. Please note: the Washington Street entrance opens to the first floor, while the Ellicott Street entrance opens to the ground floor. The second floor can be reached by stairs, or by selecting "2" on the elevators.
Questions? Please contact TechKnow Lab Librarian Jacqueline Hovey at 716-858-7384 or email hoveyj@buffalolib.org.
Individuals in need of an accommodation may contact the ADA Coordinator at access@buffalolib.org within 7 days of the program.