A Letter From ABA President Steve Bercu

Dear Fellow Booksellers,

BookExpo America is next week, and there is continuing good news about the health of our indie bookstore channel. I hope that you will join us at ABA’s Annual Membership Meeting, where we’ll share some of that news as well as look forward to even better things to come. The Membership Meeting will start at 4:00 p.m. on Thursday, and it will be preceded by the more informal Town Hall, starting at 3:00 p.m. We hope that you’ll come and share your ideas and concerns. Both will be in Javits’ Room 1E10/11.

As you may know, ABA programming at BEA has grown beyond one day to all four days of the trade show. New this year is an expanded focus on bookseller-publisher interaction. With the input of our Booksellers Advisory Council and the Education Task Force, we have created the Meet the Editor Meetings and One-on-One Publisher Meetings. I know that many of you have signed up and I hope you will take full advantage of these opportunities to develop a greater understanding of how we fit into the bigger book world. I’m told there are a few slots left for the Meet the Editor meetings; if you’re interested, contact Joy Dallanegra-Sanger by 5:00 p.m. this Sunday, and she’ll do her best to fit you in. The One-on-One Meeting schedule is very tight, so we’re asking everyone to please be prompt.

Of course, please go over all the education sessions, so you can be certain to be at every one that interests you.  Don’t forget that we get a lot from the sessions, but we also get a lot from the interaction we have with our fellow booksellers who are there too.

Once again, ABA will have its lounge on the show floor.  This is a wonderful convenience for us all.  Stop by Meeting Room 214 for a snack, to talk to booksellers and ABA staff, to meet authors, or just to relax a little. A great roster of breakfast speakers and award-winning authors are scheduled to sign exclusively for us in the lounge, and on Friday afternoon, we’ll have the chance to meet some of the debut authors whose works we’ll be featuring in our Indies Introduce promotions.

While you are in the lounge, you can also partake in IndieCommerce education. Make sure to check your calendars so you have the right time to be there.

Back again by popular demand are ABC Children’s Group special events, co-sponsored by the Children’s Book Council. Registration for these events is now closed, but if you have not signed up yet, it may not be too late. Give it a try by contacting ABC Group manager Matt Zoni.

And don’t miss the ABFFE auction on Wednesday at 5:00. There’s going to be some amazing art up for bidding and an unusual variety show, featuring some of your favorite illustrators.

Of course, BEA is not only about meetings, the show, and education. On Tuesday and Wednesday two of our publishing partners have generously offered us late evening parties to wind down after the day’s activities. So drop by the Penguin-Random and Algonquin parties to mingle with your peers and relax.

This seems like plenty to go over. I hope to see you all in a few days in New York.

Steve Bercu
President, American Booksellers Association
BookPeople
Austin, Texas