Championing literature as an indie publisher and bookseller
Age: 39
Job Title: Owner of Porch Light Books and Co-publisher of Hingtston & Olsen
Chances are, you’ve read something Michael Hingston has had a hand in over the past 17 years. He was the Edmonton Journal’s book columnist from 2012 to 2016, has authored three books (and co- or ghostwritten several more) and his bylines have appeared in publications across Canada and beyond.
He’s also the co-founder of indie publishing house Hingston & Olsen, known for the beloved Short Story Advent Calendar. And as of 2024, he’s the sole owner of Porch Light Books, a thoughtfully curated new bookstore in Mill Creek.
Hingston moved with his young family from East Vancouver to Edmonton in 2008 and quickly fell in love with the city.
“Everyone was so nice and welcoming, and that’s still my impression. People are pretty open, for the most part,” he says. “And I think it comes from a kind of gratitude for people who stay here, because it’s not a given that people will.”
Hingston says the short stories of Richard Van Camp come closest to capturing the spirit of Edmonton. Though set in a fictional northern town, they’re animated by the same kind of quirky, scrappy, big-hearted and ambitious characters you’ll find across this city — a lively mix of qualities that, for him, define what makes Edmonton so interesting. It’s that same affection that drove his decision to open a brick-and-mortar bookstore on 99 Street — a way of both doubling down on his commitment to the city and giving something back to it.
Hingston loves that his store, which stocks new and used titles, gives people the chance to use their phones a little less. “What I like about reading is that I’m not looking at another screen. People want a break from that, and there’s enough of a turn back towards that tactile print world that a store like this can survive.”
This article appears in the November/December 2025 issue of Edify
