Get connected to the festival on the web and beyond! Track news stories about the Festival or check out the coverage from our media partners, Isthmus, Wisconsin Public Radio, and C-SPAN's BookTV.
For media inquiries, contact:
- Amy Mertz, Wisconsin Book Festival Media Contact, amy@brickroad-pr.com
- Jane Rotonda, Wisconsin Book Festival Director, jrotonda@mplfoundation.org
- Conor Moran, Madison Public Library Foundation Executive Director, cmoran@mplfoundation.org
The Wisconsin Book Festival features local literary talents alongside national voices to create a unique lineup for all ages, offering free, diverse author programming that contributes to Madison Public Library’s mission to spark literacy, foster curiosity, and support community. Attendees will discover new books, and enjoy unprecedented access to author discussions and great stories. The festival has gradually built a strong reputation for high-quality author events and is considered a leader among U.S. book festivals.
Presented by the library in partnership with Madison Public Library Foundation, the festival hosts stand-alone author events throughout the year, including an author-packed four-day celebration October 17–20. Most programs take place in person at Central Library, with others at Madison partner venues and select events live streamed via Crowdcast. Find the full calendar here.
The annual fall celebration typically draws a local and regional audience of 12,000 people for in-person author events. Learn more about the festival and its history here.
Explore our social media on the top left of this page. Visit our Flickr stream for past festival program photos.
Madison Public Library Foundation privately raises funds to cover everything from author travel to festival staff salaries to free books for attendees, with the library contributing some staff time and event space. Through their gifts, festival sponsors demonstrate their generosity and dedication to the sharing of ideas. Sponsor benefits include recognition in a variety of digital and printed promotional materials, as well as on screen before select online festival programs, and opportunities to introduce authors. For more information about sponsorship opportunities, visit the festival’s Give page.