The Festival Is Just Days Away – Here’s the Latest Info!
September 20, 2025
With less than a week until the 2025 South Dakota Festival of Books (Sept. 26-28 in Spearfish) kicks off, you’ve probably already pored over the Festival guide and drawn up a list of authors you want to meet. But a few things have changed since the guide was printed, so keep visiting SDBookFestival.com for the latest news!
NEW INFORMATION
Changes to the Roster & Schedule
Check out our online Festival Updates Bulletin, which we regularly revise, to see what changes have been made to the author and exhibitor rosters, as well as to Festival sessions. For example, Tommy Orange is no longer able to join us in Spearfish, so his Saturday evening event has been cancelled. Some other sessions have new titles, co-presenters, or venues. In addition to updating the bulletin on our website, we’ll have printed copies available at all Festival locations.
BHSU Swarm Days – Traffic Considerations
Swarm Days, the homecoming celebration for Black Hills State University in Spearfish, happens to fall on the same weekend as the Festival of Books this year. This will impact travel to and from events on Saturday morning, due to a 10 a.m. parade blocking off much of Main Street. It will also increase congestion in the campus area that afternoon due to a 1 p.m. football game.
For those driving to events at Henry’s Books and the Grace Balloch Memorial Library between 9-11:30 a.m. on Saturday, you can avoid Main Street coming from the east by turning left on North 7th Street, and from the west by turning right on North 5th Street; in each case, you will then drive south beyond Grant Street, where the parade ends, to continue toward your destination. North 5th and North 7th streets will also be used in any detours going to/from BHSU, which drivers can still access easily from the south. Consult the maps on pp. 6-7 in your Festival guide for parking options.
Festival Shuttles
Because parking is plentiful at the Spearfish Convention Center, we will be running shuttles from the main convention center entrance to other Festival locations, dropping off and picking up at the turnaround closest to the E.Y. Berry Library on campus (close to Woodburn and Meier Halls) and in front of the Grace Balloch Memorial Library downtown (a two-block walk to Henry’s Books). Throughout most of the day, two buses will be running opposite routes to get you to and from all venues in a timely manner. The only exception will be Saturday morning, when shuttles will continue to run to BHSU, but will not be able to stop downtown due to parade traffic.
Consult the shuttle schedule on our website or pick up a printed version at any Festival venue. We will also include phone numbers for on-call drivers who can pick you up if you miss a shuttle or find yourself stranded for other reasons. In addition, both Uber and Lyft are available in Spearfish.
REMINDERS
You Can Still Get Tickets!
Most Festival sessions are free – just find out where your favorite authors are speaking and walk on in! However, for five events, tickets are available through the “Get Tickets Here” button on our website. Online sales will close late Monday, Sept. 22. After that, you will need to call 605-688-6113, email info@sdhumanities.org, or show up at the door to see whether tickets are still available for purchase
Ticketed events include the Author Reception at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 25 at the historic Matthews Opera House. This is your chance to mix and mingle with Festival presenters and fellow readers while enjoying delicious hors d’oeuvres from Cheyenne Crossing.
The Festival will also feature four in-depth writing workshops, which allow you to join small groups of aspiring authors to learn the tricks of the trade directly from the professionals. These sessions will take place at Henry’s Books, Spearfish’s charming and welcoming independent bookstore.
We Are Still Welcoming Volunteers!
The SDHC staff is mighty, but small, so we need many helpers to make the Festival happen! Would you like to drive authors to and from the airport? Introduce Festival presentations? Welcome Festivalgoers and answer their questions? Just fill out our Volunteer Interest Form or email stacy@sdhumanities.org, and we’ll share our remaining volunteer needs!
Learn more about humanities programming in South Dakota by signing up for SDHC e-Updates!