On Demand Education Sessions

Join bestselling author and Grammy Award-winning recording artist Alicia Keys in conversation with Donya Craddock co-owner of The Dock Bookshop in Fort Worth, Texas, as they discuss Keys’ new graphic novel, Girl on Fire; the complex ways race shapes the realities that young people, especially young women of color, face today; and the importance of the written and illustrated word.

With Girl on Fire, Keys shines a light on the challenges of growing up in a world that seems intent on making young Black women feel powerless, and gives voice to a generation ready to stand up for what they know is right.

Alicia Keys is a 15-time Grammy Award-winning singer, songwriter, musician, producer, an accomplished actress, a New York Times bestselling author, a film/television and Broadway producer, an entrepreneur, and a powerful force in the world of activism. Since the release of her 2001 debut album, Songs in A Minor, Keys has sold over 65 million records, scored six Top 10 singles, and built an unparalleled repertoire of hits and accomplishments. Her eighth album, Keys, was released on December 10, 2021. Girl on Fire was co-written with Andrew Weiner, founder and CEO of Inner Station, a multimedia entertainment company focused on the creation of comic books, graphic novels, and motion pictures, and illustrated by Brittney Williams, a Joan Mitchell Foundation grant recipient and a Luminarts Fellow.

Join a panel of booksellers as they examine the intersections of race, literature, and entrepreneurship. The panelists will explore the importance of their contributions to the bookselling ecosystem, activism, and what is required to create diverse, equitable environments.

Led by author and expert Jason Thompson, this session will help stores be effective in their commitment to representation, equity, and access. A DEI audit checklist will help stores look at every aspect of their business — from hiring and training to signage, social media, and inventory — through a DEI lens, and a discussion of goals and metrics will help ensure measurable success. Jason Thompson is a successful and experienced diversity officer that has developed and led diversity programs in higher education, sports, healthcare, and tech. He has been quoted by the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Guardian, USA Today, and CNN. His education session for the ABA Board was extremely well received with some directors calling it the best session on this topic they’ve participated in.

Download the handouts for the session here.

Join us for a once-in-a-lifetime conversation between bestselling authors Hanif Abdurraqib (Random House), Tiffany D. Jackson (Katherine Tegen Books), and Jason Reynolds (Atheneum/Caitlyn Dlouhy Books), moderated by Tami Charles (Scholastic Press). During this keynote, the bestselling authors will discuss the intersection of music and books, representation, and the powerful impact on a young Black person when their experiences and belief system are mirrored by the words of Black artists.

Bestselling authors, Nicola and David Yoon, share the inspiration behind their imprint Joy Revolution. The imprint is a celebration of love stories written by people of color about people of color, with its first titles being published in fall 2022.

Led by Donnay Edmund, Community Upstander Coordinator for The Center for Anti-Violence Education (CAE), this workshop will unpack microaggressions that are racist, ageist, transphobic, xenophobic etc. Participants will be asked to dive deep into the oppressive legacies that lead to microaggressions and reflect on how we disrupt these systems in our workplace and everyday lives. We will learn strategies for calling people in, to acknowledge and shift their behavior. The workshop leaders will be available post-workshop for booksellers who would like to address specific concerns.

Attachment	Size
CAE Calling In Strategies pdf	113.74 KB
CAE Terminology Sheet pdf	110.96 KB
Bystander Intervention pdf	208.56 KB

The romance genre has been a longtime reader favorite and can often turn a romance reader into a repeat customer for bookstores that invest in curating a romance selection for their stores. This session will celebrate LGBTQ+ romance with some of today’s essential young adult and adult LGBTQ+ authors, who will discuss the importance and value of creating stories about love, talk about the importance of representation, and look at how everyone can work to expand readership of these titles outside of the LGBTQ+ community to drive sales.
Panelists: Mariana Calderon, Second Star to the Right Children’s Books (Denver, CO); Jenny Cohen, Waucoma Bookstore (Hood River, OR); Rebecca Speas, One More Page Books (Arlington, VA); Amanda Toronto, WORD Bookstores (Brooklyn, NY); Dahlia Adler, author of Cool for the Summer (Wednesday Books); Alyssa Cole, award-winning and bestselling author of How to Find a Princess (Avon); David Levithan, VP, Editorial Director, Scholastic Press and author of bestselling queer YA novels; Casey McQuiston, author of the bestseller Red, White, & Royal Blue and the upcoming One Last Stop (St. Martin’s Griffin); Paul Rudnick, award-winning play and screenwriter and author of Playing the Palace (Berkley); Phil Stamper, author of The Gravity of Us and As Far as You’ll Take Me (Bloomsbury); Aiden Thomas, Indies Introduce and bestselling author of Cemetery Boys (Swoon Reads);

Led by Amber Cabral, author of Allies and Advocates: Creating an Inclusive and Equitable Culture (Wiley Press), in conversation with Dr. Stephanie Pinder-Amaker and Dr. Lauren Wadsworth, authors of Did That Just Happen?!: Beyond “Diversity” ― Creating Sustainable and Inclusive Organizations (Beacon Press), this session will guide booksellers in recognizing harmful practices and creating necessary steps around dismantling a culture of white supremacy in the workplace.

Celebrate the representation of Black girls in middle grade and young adult science fiction and fantasy stories as well as the Black female authors who create these characters and works. Authors Ebony Elizabeth Thomas, Dhonielle Clayton, and Tracy Deonn will be in conversation to discuss the fandom, world-building, stories, and characters that inspire and excite them as artists and readers.

This year, the American Booksellers Association is partnering with Well-Read Black Girl founder Glory Edim to bring book club meetings to independent bookstores nationwide with the goal of amplifying diverse voices and supporting emerging writers of color. Booksellers are invited to sign on to serve as ambassadors and host Well-Read Black Girl book clubs in their stores throughout the year. Learn more about the partnership.

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Well-Read Black Girl Book Club Chapter 1 (PDF)	461.44 KB
Well-Read Black Girl Workshop Presentation (PDF)	1.13 MB

Divisive political commentary and ongoing reports of cultural and social misconduct continue to be highlighted in both national and local media. Because bookstores are both unique meeting places and businesses, many booksellers are struggling with how to navigate the resulting personal and professional pressures. What are the questions that owner/managers and staff should be asking that can lead to fruitful discussions and solutions? If you have found yourself thinking about this and discussing it with colleagues, please join the conversation. Facilitated by a professional moderator, this is an opportunity for booksellers to participate in this important discussion.

As part of the pilot program of the Open Discussion project, five independent bookstores will be launching reading groups in the fall of 2018 with the goal of bringing liberals and conservatives together to discuss the issues that divide them. The Open Discussion Project is sponsored by the National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) in partnership with ABA. NCAC and ABA are inviting booksellers to join the Open Discussion Project when it goes national next year. A panel of booksellers who are participating in the pilot will discuss their experience.

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Open Discussion Project Information pdf	89.77 KB
Open Discussion Project Book Suggestions pdf	198.2 KB

What if everyone read James Baldwin? He’s one of our most acclaimed 20th century thinkers, his writing exploring countless facets of American society and diving into subjects like sexuality, politics, marriage, police brutality, the Church, race, and love. He observed and critiqued humanity in a way that still resonates with so many of us in 2018 because his words and voice are timeless. Baldwin's groundbreaking work has inspired generations of fervent readers and fans, but what if we could widen that audience? Spread Baldwin's texts even further? Sell his work better, recommend him more frequently alongside other literary giants? We believe we can. Join the National Book Foundation for its new Author in Focus program featuring the work of James Baldwin, a four-time National Book Award nominee. The Foundation will be joined by two dynamic authors at Winter Institute as they help to answer the question of why James Baldwin's work has, does, and will always matter. This event was made possible by the Ford Foundation and Velvet Film.

Join your colleagues for a discussion on creating events and opportunities to highlight women's voices in the store and larger retail community. Hear from booksellers who are fostering women entrepreneurs, cross-promoting with women-owned businesses, creating dynamic in-store programming, and more. ABA members know that a diverse business district promotes a thriving local economy, and they are finding ways to ensure their stores, their communities, and their business districts are as dynamic and profitable as possible.

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Bookshop Santa Cruz Women's Voices pdf	1017.14 KB
Yes She Can: Programs and Partnerships to Empower Women Presentation (PDF)	3.69 MB

Never has there been a greater need for diverse and international voices in the American market. In this session, panelists will discuss practices they have brought back to their stores from their experiences with Bookselling Without Borders, a fellowship program that sends U.S. booksellers to foreign book fairs as part of a book industry professional exchange program. Among other things, the Bookselling Without Borders program seeks to help booksellers develop concrete ideas for increasing sales of diverse and international literature in the indie market.

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Selling International and Diverse Books Presentation (PDF)	6.6 MB

A Refugee Book Drive will be held during Wi14, beginning on Tuesday at the Welcome Desk, then moving to the Galley Room for the remainder of the Institute. Spanish-language books are being collected to benefit parents and children from Central America and Mexico. Organized by Denise Chávez (Casa Camino Real Bookstore, Las Cruces, NM) and administered by Border Servants Corps. Genres and subject suggestions are posted here on BookWeb.org. Refugees are people who have been forced to leave their homes or their country, either because of war, economic or societal problems, their political or religious beliefs, or natural disaster.

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Top 100 Spanish-Language Books with Terms (Members Only) (Ingram list compiled by River Dog Book Co)	72 KB

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Suggested Spanish-Language Books (Word Up Community Bookshop/Librería Comunitaria) pdf	68.34 KB
Top 100 Spanish-Language Books (Ingram list compiled by River Dog Book Co)	53 KB

While digital accessibility should be at the forefront of every IndieCommerce site, ADA guidelines can be difficult to understand, decipher, and put into practice in a real and meaningful way. In the webinar booksellers will discover how to implement the guiding principles of digital accessibility by learning how to decode the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (the federal standard for digital accessibility) as well as how they can put some of those guidelines into practice on their IndieCommerce and IndieLite websites.

ABA’s webinar on ensuring ADA website compliance was run by Art Frick, who has been designing and developing websites and multimedia collateral for a variety of companies, organizations, and institutions since 2004.

Making hiring decisions for a diverse sales force often requires a new and different approach to hiring — including looking outside your normal sources for candidates and fostering relationships both in the store and in the larger community. Mecca E. Santana will be joining Marc Villa (Politics and Prose Bookstore) in a discussion on how to make your store more diverse and inclusive. Mecca is the Vice President of Diversity & Community Relations for Westchester Medical Center Health Network in White Plains, NY. Prior to this position, Ms. Santana served as the Chief Diversity Officer for the State of New York, and was responsible for the promotion of workforce diversity and inclusion, while also leading new initiatives to increase Minority & Women Owned Business (MWBE) procurement opportunities.

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Hiring for Diversity pdf	419.88 KB

Booksellers who have successfully expanded sections to include diverse books will share resources and techniques for buying, marketing, and handselling these books. Panelists will represent stores from communities of different sizes and demographics.

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Best Practices for Buying Marketing Hand Selling Diverse Books (pdf)	439.32 KB

Marley Dias, in conversation with Suzanna Hermans of Oblong Books, will discuss her journey from New Jersey tween to viral activist sensation—and now to author. Marley’s effort to diversify the characters on her bookshelf by collecting #1000BlackGirlBooks was celebrated by thousands of readers, and by booksellers across the country who supported her campaign in their stores and on social media. At this event, Marley will engage in a lively Q&A about reaching young readers who are equally interested in activism, pop culture, and serious news As she said in an Elle.com interview, “My generation feels the pressure to make things better, but we need more spaces to speak our minds and to make a difference.” Marley will encourage booksellers to make their stores a go-to resource for young people and their varied passions.

Creating an inclusive environment is essential to broadening the goodwill and customer base of any bookstore. Panelists will discuss the social and financial reasons for making your store accessible in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, strategies for educating staff, how to make accommodations for staff and customers with disabilities, ideas for special programming and related outreach, and resources to guide such initiatives.

• Kimberly Cake, Enchanted Passage (Sutton, MA)
• Drew Sieplinga, Wild Rumpus (Minneapolis, MN)
• Susan Kusel, [words] Bookstore (Maplewood, NJ) (Moderator)
   

Attachment	Size
Fostering an Inclusive Environment for Staff and Customers with Disabilities - ADA Resources (PDF)	607.87 KB
Schneider Family Book Awards (PDF)	813.63 KB

Jason Reynolds tells the story of being a reluctant reader as a child, to being a bookseller at Karibu Bookstore, and how all of it helped shape him as a writer.

Bookstores everywhere are resources and gathering places in their communities but underrepresented and disenfranchised students often lack the means to visit your store or are unaware of how much you have to offer.  In these cases, partnering with religious, cultural, and non-profit organizations, as well as underprivileged schools, can help reach new customers.  Learn from booksellers across the country who have been successful in bridging this divide and creatively getting a share of Title I money so books can find a home in diverse households of all income levels.

• Jenny Cohen, Waucoma Bookstore (Hood River, OR)
• Shirley Mullin, Kids Ink (Indianapolis, IN)
• Angie Tally, The Country Bookshop (Southern Pines, NC)
• Sarah Hutton, Village Books (Bellingham, WA) (moderator)

Attachment	Size
Hood River County Reads 2015 Brochure (PDF)	341.05 KB