Informative, Entertaining Program Key to Successful MBA Show

By Lisa Baudoin of Main Street Books in Pella, Iowa

Community, Politics, and ... Potatoes. I left the Midwest Booksellers Association Trade Show and the city of St. Paul on Sunday thinking about these three things. I'm sure the first two make sense, but potatoes? If you have been attending the Children's Author Breakfast for the past three years, you may understand why potatoes were on my mind. A few years back that wonder of a teacher and writer Esme Raji Codell explained the epiphany she received while staring at an old potato. While contemplating this potato she wondered how she could teach an entire classroom of children with just a potato. A feat she managed to do. This year at the Children's Author Breakfast that wonder of a writer Alice Hoffman read to us a letter her grandmother wrote. Her grandmother had many words of wisdom to share, but it was her declaration about potatoes that struck me. She said you just need a potato, because you can do anything with a potato. Well, I'm thinking that reading is a lot like a potato. Think about what you can do, the places you can travel, the worlds you can visit, the communities you can share just by reading. It's truly a wonderful thing. That's what I left with, but it all began on Friday with the educational sessions.

If you are new to the trade show, the "First Timers' Orientation" helps to maximize the experience. Thanks in part to MBA Executive Director Susan Walker's Grand Tour (more on that later) and to many owners bringing employees along, we had a good number of first timers at the show. Paz and Associates held their Booksellers School, co-sponsored by the American Booksellers Association, in conjunction with this show, but we wouldn't be bumping into these new booksellers until Saturday when they were let loose on the trade show floor.

The buzz this year was about the expanded "Pick-of-the-Lists" that ran from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. and were divided into Children, Adult, Regional Publishers, and University Presses. Publisher reps were given 10 minutes to present their favorite books for the season. Honestly, I don't know how they do it. Ten minutes equals about 10 books if they talk fast and don't wax too poetic on their personal favorites. Rick Stark from HarperCollins not only completed the task but sang to us, ending with a lovely rendition of "Happy Trails." I saw many booksellers with the "Pick-of-the-Lists" sales sheets in hand on the floor Saturday, and I heard from reps that several orders were placed as a result. These presentations are immeasurably valuable to the booksellers handselling the books. I may have to do my own in-store version for my co-workers who could not attend.

As hard as it was to pull myself away from the entertaining and informative "Pick-of-the-Lists," I had to participate in the other educational sessions. This year Arthur Frommer spoke to booksellers about travel books, and Max Lenderman spoke about innovative marketing techniques. I look forward to reading his book, Experience the Message: How Experiential Marketing is Changing the Brand World (Carroll & Graf).

There was enough time to grab lunch and move onto the afternoon panels and ABA's "2% Solution." The problem for many was trying to decide which session to attend. I, for one, wanted to hear "The 2% Solution" again. This year, BookSense.com Director Len Vlahos had the honor of providing many booksellers with that beacon of hope -- the two percent solution. There is something very comforting in the information presented. Where I once felt lost, alone, and confused (you know, why can't I make this business profitable?) I now have a map to remind me of where I should be going.

I had the honor of sitting on a panel with two amazing booksellers, Peggy Bieber from Little Professor Book Center in Aberdeen, South Dakota, and Collette Morgan from Wild Rumpus in Minneapolis. We discussed the many things we do to connect with our surrounding community at large and to create an extensive community within the store. Oren Teicher, ABA's COO, moderated and provided insight into the efforts made by communities across the country to establish Shop Locally initiatives and Independent Business Alliances. When not speaking about my own experiences, I took extensive notes.

In other sessions, booksellers had the opportunity to learn how to create and use e-newsletters; increase their sales outside of the bookstore; begin or enhance their relationships with their publisher reps; and take advantage of the many possibilities that audiobooks provide. The ABA folks seemed extra busy on Saturday talking with booksellers and demonstrating [e-mail newsletter solution] Constant Contact [http://reseller.constantcontact.com/index.jsp].

We finished our day of education with the Minnesota Crime Wave, a group of four Minnesota mystery writers who have joined forces to tour together and promote their books. We were entertained by Carl Brookins, Ellen Hart, and William Kent Krueger. Deborah Woodworth was unable to attend.

The beautiful, classy 317 on Rice Park was the location for the first Midwest Booksellers' Choice Awards Ceremony. The food was fantastic, and the company was just as wonderful. Outgoing MBA Board President Joci Tilsen was our emcee for the evening. The 2005 Children's Literature winner, Blue Balliett (Chasing Vermeer, Scholastic), and the 2005 Nonfiction winner, Thomas Frank (What's the Matter with Kansas?, Henry Holt), were our honored guests. Both authors left us proud to be booksellers, who, perhaps, are changing the world one book at a time.

The mix of speakers at the Saturday breakfast is always surprising and delightful. This year, the authors -- Charlene Ann Baumbich (Dearest Dorothy, Who Would Have Ever Thought, Penguin), Jean Shinoda Bolen (Urgent Message From Mother: Gather Women, Save the World, RedWheel/Weiser/Conari Press), Thomas Lynch (Booking Passage: We Irish and Americans, Norton), and Timothy Schaffert (The Singing and Dancing Daughters of God, Unbridled Books) -- spoke to the importance of community, whether it was on a personal level or on a broader societal level. Although I'm sure it wasn't planned, it certainly epitomized the zeitgeist of a broader discussion taking place in our individual bookstores. And, yes, it was sprinkled with just the wee bit of politics that make us booksellers and writers a feisty bunch.

After breakfast, the MBA board and members gathered for our annual meeting. There have been some exciting changes in the past year. The "Upper" was dropped from our name to more accurately reflect our region. Susan Walker has embarked on a Grand Tour of all our member stores. (Stories and photos will be up on the newly revamped MBA website. I can't wait to see all of the photos!)

At last, it was time to get on the trade show floor. I was looking forward to seeing in person two of the many telephone sales reps I have. I am always thrilled when publishers see the value in sending the people behind the voices to the trade shows. I just wish I could put into precise words and dollar figures how that enhances my relationship with the reps and helps me to sell more books, because I am convinced that it does! My time at the trade show was spent taking advantage of the show specials and stocking up on backlist for Christmas. Free freight from Chronicle for all of those nifty decks they publish is well worth it. I can also catch titles that I missed and order for our regional holiday catalog. Honestly though, I love talking to all of the publishers and my fellow booksellers. It is a place for us to strengthen our community. As the dog days of summer pass, and in that brief moment before the holiday craze hits, it is wonderful to be rejuvenated and to wander about in the company of so many books and so many dedicated and interesting friends.

But I had a more immediate situation hanging over my head this year. I was to introduce the evening speakers at the Book & Author Dinner. Ahhhggg! After a very good meal and wonderful conversation, I was introducing James McManus (Physical, FSG), Stephanie Kallos (Broken for You, Grove Atlantic), Octavia Butler (Fledgling, Seven Stories), and Robert Alexander (Rasputin's Daughter, Viking). Robert Alexander shared with us a trailer for Rasputin's Daughter similar to those you see for upcoming movies. There was quite a bit of talk about this for the rest of the evening. Will this be the future? Can you link to them from your website? There may be lots of potential and possibilities with this new technology. But, I was still marveling at the four books I would be selling in the next few months and the tidbits from each author I would share with my customers. I think I could listen to Octavia Butler all night long. I know my husband stayed up most of the two previous nights reading her fantastic new book.

Sunday started with the Children's Author Breakfast. Alice Hoffman (The Foretelling, Warner Books) was joined by Ridley Pearson (The Kingdom Keepers, Hyperion), Ed Young (Beyond the Mountain, Chronicle), and Pam Munoz Ryan (Nacho and Lolita, Scholastic). This is by far my favorite event every year. After breakfast I finished up some business on the show floor and then headed home. I was sorry to miss this year's razzle-dazzle of a lunch and keynote speaker Faith Sullivan (Gardenias, Milkweed Editions). Gardenias has come highly recommended from far too many for me not to have read it yet. And from what I've been told, the Author "Moveable Feast" Lunch was full of energy and excitement. I had to content myself with all the things I had milling in my mind to promote reading and book buying once I returned home.

MBA member booksellers "remained well represented" at the September 23 - 25 show, said Susan Walker, MBA executive director. "The same number of bookstores -- 130 -- attended this year as last. The number of bookseller people was a little lower, but the fact that the number of stores involved held steady indicates that the owners, managers, and buyers -- the decision makers for their stores -- are participating."

Walker also noted, "A number of long-time exhibitors who have attended our show for many years made a point of saying (and doing so repeatedly) that it was definitely one of the best MBA/UMBA shows they'd participated in."

MBA's officers and new members of the board, who will take office in January 2006, were announced at the trade show -- President: Ellen Scott of The Bookworm in Omaha, Nebraska; Vice President: Lisa Baudoin of Main Street Books, Pella, Iowa; Secretary: Diana Cohen of Books & Company, Oconomowoc, Wisconsin; and Treasurer: Tom Leigh of Holtzbrinck Publishers, Minneapolis.

The winner of a scholarship to ABA's inaugural Winter Education Institute is Mary Suelflow of Bound to Read in Marshall, Minnesota. Suelflow was selected at random from booksellers who dropped off a business card at the ABA booth on the trade show floor. The scholarship includes airfare and hotel accommodations to attend the Institute, which will be held on Thursday, January 26, and Friday, January 27, 2006, in Long Beach, California.

The winner of an inkjet printer, also selected at random at the ABA booth, is The Book Vault, which is scheduled to open on October 19 in Oskaloosa, Iowa.