When Charlotte Ashley, owner of Trident Booksellers and Cafe in Halifax, Nova Scotia, learned that Sword and Soul literary genre pioneer and legend Charles Saunders had once lived above her bookstore, she asked, “Why didn’t I know that?”
She’d asked the same question shortly after she moved to the area several years ago, when she met up with a group of Nova Scotian writers and discovered a bevy of hidden talent of multi-published and award-winning authors living in obscurity in her newly adopted province.
As she began work on the Trident Conference for Speculative Fiction, which took place May 15–17, she approached it with the same question: Why didn’t I know that? As authors, what don’t we know? And how can we discover the answers?
The Trident Conference for Speculative Fiction, or TriCon Halifax, blossomed into a space for writers and readers alike to do just that. The conference was the first that Ashley had hosted, taking place in the bookstore itself and in nearby venues, including the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design, which features views of Halifax Harbour. Ashley considered the city to be the perfect place to hold the conference, because, as she points out, the Maritimes didn’t have a convention for Science Fiction and Fantasy authors. Stretching over the course of three days, the event comprised a packed schedule of lectures, workshops, and panels. From the Blue Pencil sessions to the book launches, kaffeeklatches, and readings, stories were shared, encouraged, and championed. Two symposiums focusing on aspects of being a writer in Canada also challenged authors to think of the world beyond their writing desks.
The attendees weren’t just Canadians. Authors came from the UK, the US, and beyond to experience the community that Halifax has to offer and to join in the conversations. In all, around two hundred authors, readers, and aspiring writers were part of the celebration. Together with the range of sessions, panels, and sales opportunities for local indie authors, they helped turn what seemed like a small local bookstore event on paper into a hidden gem of an author conference.
A Spotlight on Storytelling
TriCon Halifax’s opening ceremonies kicked off Friday, May 15, with a Landing Welcome from Director of Inclusion & Accessibility Tiffany Morris, an L’nu’skw (Mi’kmaw) writer from Nova Scotia, who reinforced this idea: “[Halifax] is a place of gathering, and we’re gathering here to tell stories.”
Indeed, stories were told the whole weekend. Outside of typical panels and sessions taking place throughout the event, attendees were invited to join a Halifax Ghost Walk through the city, where tour guides recounted some of the legends of its history, including the tragedy of the Halifax Explosion. The storytelling continued through the book readings that took place at the Trident Booksellers and Cafe, where authors were invited to read snippets of their books to other attendees and the public alike.
A major highlight of the weekend was Saturday’s “Amal El-Mohtar in Conversation!”—a chance for readers to hear from the How to Lose the Time War co-author as she read from her newest collection of short stories, Seasons of Glass and Iron. The guest of honour was around throughout the conference as well, sharing her wisdom—“Approach your own work with kindness,” she responded to one question during the Newbie Writers Q&A session—and encouraging authors during several of her panels.
The event also included The Fabulist Fair, a book and craft fair showcasing works from local artists and publishers in a rather unique way. While authors were welcome to book a timeslot for signings, Trident Booksellers and Cafe, in partnership with the King's Co-op Bookstore, also offered independent authors the ability to have their books sold as part of a pop-up shop. Participating authors’ books were displayed on a bookshelf and available for purchase to attendees throughout the event, with any royalties being distributed afterward, meaning authors didn’t have to miss out on the conference sessions in order to sell to readers.
The setup gave authors more chances for those in-between conversations that are so key for smaller conventions. “Smaller cons are good for meaningful connections,” Nebula Award–winning Fantasy author Vanessa Ricci-Thode says. These connections started even before the first panels as authors gathered for lunch at The Henry House, a British-style pub in a National Historic Site of Canada building. Over local cuisine and pub favorites, authors discussed changes to the publishing industry in recent years, as well as opportunities for Canadian authors to earn more from programs sponsored by the Canadian Council for the Arts.
‘A Place of Gathering’
The idea of conversations and connections came up again and again throughout the weekend as authors caught up with friends over lunch, met in the registration line, or continued discussions after sessions concluded.
El-Mohtar says she loves conventions because of the conversations that take place both on panels and between them. When asked why she attended this conference in particular, the author said that Halifax itself is such a draw, but also, “I’m committed to do anything I can to help get more conventions off the ground.” She also says that she would love more Science Fiction and Fantasy conventions in Canada.
American Game Writer & Narrative Designer Aysha U. Farah says she also jumped at the chance to come to Halifax when El-Mohtar invited her because she loves how welcoming Canadians are.
TriCon Halifax isn’t the only smaller conference to pop up in recent years. Ireland’s Publishing Show, the Toronto Indie Author Conference, and Indie Unconference Europe, as well as past iterations of the 20BooksTo50K® conferences in England, Scotland, Holland, and Spain, are all conferences that started with the idea of offering authors opportunities for smaller events that may be more affordable and accessible, as well as less intimidating, than traveling to the larger conferences in Las Vegas, London, or Frankfurt. These hidden gems are perhaps more valuable in some respects than the inundation of information one experiences at the larger events.
Canadian Horror and Speculative Fiction author Mark Leslie (Lefebvre), who attended TriCon Halifax and moderated a self-publishing symposium during the event, writes that he enjoys the opportunity for more in-depth conversation with attendees at smaller conferences. “You can [have] far more than a passing hallway conversation or quick greeting,” he writes. “Sure, we go to conferences to learn about things from the panels and presentations, but at least 60% to 80% of the value I get from a conference is in the engagement with other authors and with other book industry contacts. A chance to interact in a really human way. And in today's digital and fickle environment, those in person events and connections become more important now than ever.”
Beyond the immediate benefits of education and sales, local events such as TriCon Halifax can provide opportunities to connect with writers' groups or professional writers' organizations. The Writers Federation of Nova Scotia participated in the Fabulist Fair for this very reason. “WFNS is interested in the conference as a way to connect with genre authors in the community as traditionally there hasn’t been that representation,” says Oriana Duinker, executive director of the organization.
Ashley says that the biggest win for her would be to see collaborations between authors coming out of this event. She’s excited to bring TriCon Halifax back next year and is already welcoming ideas for new panels and speakers. Her dream is “to bring the world here, and to introduce the world to us (Nova Scotia).”
Dates have not been set for the next TriCon Halifax, but those interested in learning more about the event and receiving updates can visit https://tricon-halifax.com to sign up for the event’s newsletter. And if you are an author eager to meet up with your fellow wordsmiths, keep an eye out on your own local event pages. You never know until you attend whether bookstore events and conference opportunities near you will turn out to be a treasure trove of connections.
