Meet the Sponsors

Sponsorship opportunities

Friends of Chicago Pride Book Fest – Any amount

Slay the Lake will put your logo or name on the Chicago Pride Book Fest’s website on our sponsors and supporters list. This option is great for friends and allies who want to support our event.

Patron of Chicago Pride Book Fest – $100

Slay the Lake will put your logo or name on the Chicago Pride Book Fest’s website on the Sponsors and Supports list and create a dedicated post on our event Facebook and Instagram accounts.

First 12 sponsors at the Advocate and Patron level also can include promotional materials in the official event tote bags for attendees. 100 items needed by 6/19 to be packed in time for the event.

Advocate for Chicago Pride Book Fest – $200

Slay the Lake will put your logo or name on the Chicago Pride Book Fest’s website on the Sponsors and Supports list, create a dedicated post on our event Facebook and Instagram accounts.

We will feature your business name on signage on the day of the event.

First 12 sponsors at the Advocate and Patron level also can include promotional materials in the official event tote bags for attendees. *100 items needed by 6/19 to be packed in time for the event.*

Friends of Chicago Pride Book Fest

Katrina Jackson

Romance Author

KATRINA JACKSON has a PhD in African American and African Diaspora history. She’s a professor by day who writes erotica, erotic romance, women’s fiction, and historical fiction in her spare time. She writes racially diverse and often queer stories that show love and the world in all its beauty and colors. Katrina will be a signing author at Chicago Pride Book Fest.

Mark Jonathan Runte

Urban Fantasy Author

Sometimes the full-time nurse to an epileptic shih tzu bichon and a somewhat eccentric Havanese. The Havanese hasn’t been tested yet, but it is suspected she may be schizophrenic. Or a genius, no one’s really certain which.

Mark is a Canadian writer who enjoys urban fantasy and blending folklore with historical fiction. He can often be found in a corner of the living room with a laptop and headphones over his ears, music may or may not be playing along with it.

He is the writer of the Mythos set of urban fantasy books and the Eve series, both under his own name so far. Fears of pennames may play a part in that. His next (and more limited set) books may be the Echoes of Eternity series.

He is recently the adopted uncle of a third dog, and Dewie is a welcome addition to the family.

Derelict Books

Author Michael J. Adams

Michael was an imaginitive child (okay, maybe he still is). Most of that stemmed from an early introduction to tabletop roleplaying games like Dungeons & Dragons. He would huddle around a table with his high school friends whenever an opportunity presented itself. Following college, eight-hour binge sessions became an every weekend thing.

One by one, his friends got married and started having children. Maintaining a consistent schedule became impossible.

Following a rather vivid dream, he realized the creative outlet offered by table top RPGs could be chased another way. Said dream became my first novel (PLAGIARISM). You could say the rest was history.

Michael lives in the Chicago suburbs with his wife and two sons. Presently, he plays Dungeons & Dragons with his son and a bunch of other pre-teens through the park district (and having way more fun than he thought possible).

He believes if you’ve never tried TTRPG’s, you owe it to yourself to give them a shot.

Patron of Chicago Pride Book Fest

Spooky Frog

A Horrifying Book Fair

Spooky Frog Books is your gateway to a thrilling world of horror literature and alternative culture. Their next event is Saturday, May 16, 2026 11AM-4PM at the Sheraton Brookfield Milwaukee. All ages event. $5 admission. Learn more here.