About ABA

The American Booksellers Association held a Booksellers Forum and Education Program, in conjunction with the Southern California Booksellers Association (SCBA), at the Long Beach Hilton in Long Beach on Wednesday, February 16. "The format was excellent," said SCBA Executive Director Jennifer Bigelow. "I love the way the ABA forum offers an educational opportunity, a chance to network with other booksellers, voice concerns, and learn firsthand what the ABA is doing."

At this month's meeting of the American Booksellers Association's Board of Directors, the Board approved the report of the ABA Nominating Committee, chaired by ABA Board member Suzanne Staubach of UConn Co-op in Storrs, Connecticut. The Committee presented the Board with the names of three candidates for three-year terms (2005 - 2008) as directors on the Board. (Under the current ABA bylaws, each year three members of the nine-member Board come to the end of their terms.)

Next Friday, February 25, the American Booksellers Association will hold a Booksellers Forum and Education Program in conjunction with the Southeast Booksellers Association (SEBA) and Bargain Books News' Spring Book Show in Atlanta. ABA/SEBA programming will be held in the Da Vinci Room of Atlanta's Renaissance Concourse Hotel.

ABA will be holding a Booksellers Forum and Education Program in conjunction with the New Atlantic Independent Booksellers Association (NAIBA) at the Tudor Bookshop in Kingston, Pennsylvania, on Sunday, March 6. All area bookstore owners and staff are encouraged to attend the event, which includes a substantive educational component and an update on ABA programs and initiatives, as well as an opportunity to meet with association senior staff to ask questions and to offer comments.

ABA held a Booksellers Forum and Education Program on Tuesday, February 15, in conjunction with the Northern California Independent Booksellers Association (NCIBA) at the regional's offices in the Presidio in San Francisco. NCIBA Executive Director Hut Landon described the event, attended by 36 booksellers, as "really upbeat. People raised a lot of good issues, questions, and concerns.

As a helpful reminder to member booksellers, ABA has begun producing a "3-Month Bookseller Action List," highlighting important dates and deadlines related to ABA and Book Sense activities and events. The list for February through April 2005, which was included in the February Red Box mailing to stores with Book Sense, is also provided below and is available in pdf format.

The New Year brought a significant change to the Book Sense Marketing Program -- an easier way for more independent storefront bookstores to become a store with Book Sense.

The changes reflect the discontinuation of the Book Sense paper gift certificate program and the minimum participation level now required to receive the Book Sense White Box (the monthly mailing filled with advance readers copies, galleys, and other special promotional items from Book Sense Publisher Partners).

Every week dozens of booksellers seek and share advice and information about bookselling and the book industry on BookWeb's Idea Exchange Forums. Here BTW presents a look at some of this week's topics, with the hope that more booksellers will join in.

Next week, ABA will be holding a Booksellers Forum and Education Program in both northern and southern California. On Tuesday, February 15, ABA will conduct a Booksellers Forum and Education Program in conjunction with the Northern California Independent Booksellers Association (NCIBA) at its offices in the Presidio in San Francisco. On Wednesday, the program will be held in conjunction with the Southern California Booksellers Association (SCBA) at the Long Beach Hilton in Long Beach.

The American Booksellers Association Board of Directors, senior staff, and representatives from the regional booksellers associations held meetings at the Embassy Suites Hotel in Austin, Texas, from Thursday, February 3, to Sunday, February 6.

On Wednesday, February 2, approximately 25 people attended a daylong American Booksellers Association Booksellers Forum and Education Program, held in conjunction with the Mid-South Independent Booksellers Association (MSIBA), at BookPeople in Austin, Texas. According to those in attendance who spoke with BTW, both the morning's educational session and the afternoon forum provided much food for thought.

On Friday, February 25, the American Booksellers Association will hold a Booksellers Forum and Education Program in conjunction with the Southeast Booksellers Association (SEBA) and Bargain Books News' Spring Book Show in Atlanta. ABA/SEBA programming will be held in the Da Vinci Room of The Renaissance Concourse Hotel. All SEBA and ABA member booksellers are invited to attend the events, which run from 8:30 a.m. - noon.

Every week dozens of booksellers seek and share advice and information about bookselling and the book industry on BookWeb's Idea Exchange Forums. Here BTW presents a look at some of this week's topics, with the hope that more booksellers will join in.

Book Sense is now in its sixth year as the national marketing program for independent booksellers, and because of the widespread participation of booksellers, it has had significant success in raising the awareness of independents among the book-buying public, publishers, authors, media, and literary agents.

Today, a new online, book-industry trade publication makes its debut. VNU's The Book Standard (www.thebookstandard.com) aims to be a one-stop information center for book charts, market analysis, news, reviews, community information, and extensive database resources. In an effort to bring its publication to the computer desktops of independent booksellers, VNU is offering ABA bookstore members a free one-year subscription to The Book Standard.