Literary Texas is growing: indie bookstore expansion, horror fest and 40 library programs

Across Texas, the rooms where people gather to read, browse, and talk about books are growing. In Austin, an independent bookstore is turning a former church into its second location with a café. In Grapevine, a Main Street shop is staging its second horror book festival. And in Laredo, five library branches are running more than 40 programs in October alone.

First Light Books, the independent store in Austin's Hyde Park neighborhood, plans to open its second location in fall 2027 in the former St. Luke United Methodist Church at 1306 West Lynn Street in Clarksville. The building closed at the end of 2024 and has sat vacant since.

The new shop is expected to include a café serving coffee, light fare, beer, and wine, along with more room for books and possible additional genre sections. The project would preserve the former church's sanctuary and stained-glass features, turning the sanctuary into the bookstore and café while keeping First Light's author events, book clubs, and children's programming.

Robin Bruce, co-owner of First Light Books, said the opportunity "shared so many of the qualities that have made Hyde Park so special, which is a space that was originally a sort of neighborhood spot." She called the church "an incredible old building, great architecture, great bones, in the middle of a neighborhood that's designed for community."

The original Hyde Park store at 4300 Speedway opened in August 2023 in a former neighborhood post office and runs from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. seven days a week, with a 7 a.m. coffee window. A $450,000 interior remodel of the church property into a bookstore and coffee shop is filed with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, with construction projected from January through July 2027 — estimates rather than a confirmed schedule.

Horror grows in Grapevine

Talking Animals Books, the independent Grapevine bookstore, hosted its second annual Horror Book Fest the weekend of October 16–18 at its Main Street location, 909 S. Main St., Suite 104. Now in its second year, the festival expanded from its debut to a full three-day weekend.

Friday's kickoff features an author panel with horror writers Katie Bernet, Chelsea Conradt, Shaun Hamill, and C.L. Montblanc. Saturday brings author and vendor activities plus an evening open mic for ghost stories and horror short stories, and Sunday offers additional author programming. The weekend also includes flash tattoos, specialty themed drinks, gore face-painting demonstrations, and a vendor fair. Admission to the vendor market is free, and the Friday panel requires a $6.66 ticket.

Talking Animals Books, co-owned by Katy Lemieux and Valerie Walizadeh, operates two Grapevine locations: its original store at 103 W. Worth St. and the newer 909 S. Main St. shop, which opened in November 2025 with a broader selection and a coffee bar.

40-plus programs in Laredo

Laredo Public Libraries announced more than 40 October events across its five branches: Joe A. Guerra Laredo Public Library, McKendrick Ochoa Salinas Branch Library, Barbara Fasken Branch Library, Inner City Branch Library, and Bruni Plaza Branch Library.

The calendar spans children's storytimes, teen programs, adult craft activities, and all-ages events, including the Banned Books Club, Magical Realism Book Club, Grim History Book Club, Fright Night Book Club, Halloween parties, and a Day of the Dead altar-making program. Joe A. Guerra Laredo Public Library has a Halloween party scheduled for October 21 as part of the seasonal programming.

Dora Gonzalez, a librarian at Laredo Public Library, said: "This is a space for people to come together. We want the library to feel like a place that belongs to everyone."

A former church sanctuary becoming a bookstore and café, a Main Street shop turning its weekend into a festival, and five library branches filling a month with more than 40 programs — the next literary outing in Texas is already concrete. The only thing left is to walk in.