On Demand Education Sessions

Join Native authors Cynthia Leitich Smith, Traci Sorell, and Danielle Greendeer in a conversation about how reader awareness and shifts in publishing have affected the way they create new stories with native characters at the center, and share stories of the past.

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.

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.