ABOUT EMILY 

Emily Austin (she/her) is a bestselling Canadian writer.

​

Her debut novel, "Everyone in This Room Will Someday Be Dead", was published by Atria Books and Simon & Schuster Canada in 2021. The novel was shortlisted for the 2022 Amazon.ca First Novel Award, longlisted for the 2022 Stephen Leacock Memorial Medal for Humour, and shortlisted for the 2022 Ottawa Book Award.

​

She released her second novel, "Interesting Facts About Space", and her debut poetry collection, "Gay Girl Prayers", with Brick Books, in 2024. "Interesting Facts About Space" was nominated for the 2025 Forest of Reading Evergreen Award, long listed for The Stephen Leacock Memorial Medal for Humour, and named the #1 bestselling LGBTQIA+ book in Canada, and became the most circulated LGBTQIA+ book in Canadian libraries in 2024. "Gay Girl Prayers" was a CBC Best Book of Poetry in 2024, and a finalist for the 2025 Archibald Lampman Award.

​

She published third novel, "We Could Be Rats", in January 2025, and her fourth novel, is "Is This A Cry For Help?" in January 2026. Both were instant national best sellers.

Her writing often centres lesbian characters and explores themes of mental health, religious trauma, and neurodivergence.

She was born in St. Thomas, Ontario, Canada. She earned her B.A. in English Literature and Religious Studies at King's University College, and her master's in Library and Information Science at Western University. She has a background in libraries, teaching, and working as an information architect. She currently resides in Ottawa in the territory of the Anishinaabe Algonquin Nation. 

​​

She is represented by Heather Carr at The Friedrich Agency. 
 

Connect with Emily on Social Media: 

Instagram/Threads: @EmilyRAustinAuthor, TikTok: @EmilyAustinAuthor, BlueSky: @EmilyRAustin.bsky.social, & FaceBook: EmilyAustinAuthor

Subscribe to Emily's SubStack
 

Subscribe to "Not a Real Newsletter", 
with Leanne Toshiko Simpson & Emily Austin.