Author Tim Federle to Be Children’s Institute Breakfast Speaker

Registration underway; booksellers invited to submit names for scholarship drawing

The American Booksellers Association’s 2014 Children’s Institute will kick off in San Antonio, Texas, on Sunday evening, April 6, followed by a full day of educational programming and special events on Monday, April 7. Registration is open to booksellers at all ABA member stores, and all members — whether they are registered or not — are invited to enter their names in a drawing for publisher-sponsored scholarships to the institute.

The program will open on Sunday with an evening plenary session featuring bestselling author Brad Meltzer, followed by a poolside reception (weather permitting). Monday’s full-day schedule will begin with a breakfast plenary session with Tim Federle, author of Better Nate Than Ever and Five, Six, Seven, Nate! (Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers), who will speak on diversity in middle grades. 

Monday’s programming will continue with educational workshops, author talks, a rep picks lunch, roundtable discussions, and a closing author reception. Topics will include managing successful book fairs in-store and off-site, working with publicists to set up author events both in-store and at schools, child development and literacy, and more.

The Children’s Institute conference fee is $79 per person and is nonrefundable. A maximum of three registrants are allowed per member business.

To learn more about the 2014 Children’s Institute and to register, visit BookWeb.org/ci2014.  All registrants will be entered into the scholarship drawing. Booksellers who are not registered should send an e-mail to ABC Group Manager Matthew Zoni with “Children’s Institute Scholarship”  in the subject line and include their name, the store name, and their position in the store. Scholarship winners will be announced in mid-February.

The host hotel is the DoubleTree by Hilton San Antonio Downtown Hotel, located at 502 West Cesar E. Chavez Blvd. in San Antonio. The ABA group rate, which is subject to availability, is $119 for singles and doubles from April 4 through April 11. Reservations must be made before March 7 and must be booked directly with the hotel. The DoubleTree by Hilton’s reservation number is (800) 560-7753, or rooms can be booked online through the hotel’s special CI reservation page. An ABA group code is required; see BookWeb’s Children’s Institute hotel information page for details.

The Texas Library Association will hold its annual conference in San Antonio on April 8 – 11, immediately following the Children’s Institute, and the ABC Children’s Group is exploring opportunities for collaboration. Look for more details in upcoming editions of BTW.