In the coming weeks, the American Booksellers Association and IndieBound will be updating the selected reading list of local first titles, a compilation of informative titles on the importance of building and strengthening a vibrant local economy.

"This year, the buzz around Independents Week preparation and celebration has been palpable," said Jennifer Rockne, director of the American Independent Business Alliance, the event's sponsor.

For Tattered Cover Book Store and indie record store Twist & Shout, neighbors in Denver's Lowenstein "CulturePlex," cross promotions have become a regular, and successful, way of doing business.

Indie bookstores have joined with a growing number of retailers, local independent business alliances, and community organizations to create Independents Week (July 1 - 7) celebrations, aimed at getting the word out about their unique contributions to the local economy.

This week, ABA CEO Oren Teicher gave a presentation at the National Association of Recording Merchandisers (NARM) convention, where he provided an introduction to the IndieBound movement and shared examples of how indie retailers working together could both promote sales and raise the public's awareness about the importance of independent retailers.

Last week's Making Information Pay Conference, sponsored by the Book Industry Study Group, tackled publishing in a world of shrinking markets and increasing digitalization. Keynote speaker Leigh Watson Healy, chief analyst and leader of consulting practice for Outsell, a research and advisory firm focused on the publishing, information, and education industries, gave her take on new publishing models and the structural shifts in the industry.

The Business Alliance for Local Living Economies (BALLE) will hold its seventh annual conference, Rising to the Challenge: Entrepreneurs Building Living Economies, from Thursday, May 21, through Saturday, May 23, in Denver, Colorado.

The American Independent Business Alliance wants communities across the country to take its newly redesigned promotional materials for Independents Week and run with them to create a celebration of indies from Monday, July 1, through Sunday, July 7.

On Saturday, April 18, independently owned record stores around the world took part in Record Store Day, a celebration of the culture of indie record stores and the unique place that they occupy nationally and in their local communities. And, by all accounts, the second annual event, sponsored by the National Association of Recording Merchandisers (NARM), was a huge success.