Reservations Open for ABA Celebration of Bookselling, Publicists Speed Dating, Kids’ Author Lunch & Tea at BEA

Reservations opened on Wednesday, March 16, for several of the American Booksellers Association’s programs at BookExpo America 2016. The trade show will be held at McCormick Place in Chicago, from Wednesday, May 11, through Friday, May 13.

Programs that require reservations or registration include the Celebration of Bookselling and Author Awards Lunch; Publicists Speed Dating; and both the Speeding Dating Lunch With Children’s Authors and the Tea With Children’s Authors and Illustrators, co-sponsored by the ABC Children’s Group at ABA (ABC) and the Children’s Book Council (CBC).

The Celebration of Bookselling and Author Awards Lunch will be held from noon to 1:30 p.m. on Thursday, May 12, in the Special Events Hall at McCormick Place. The lunch, which is free and open to booksellers at all ABA member stores who are registered for BEA, will feature the presentation of the 2016 Indies Choice Book Awards and the E.B. White Read-Aloud Awards, as well as the introduction of Indie Next List authors and award nominees. Seating is limited, and there is a maximum of three booksellers per store location. Seat assignments will be e-mailed prior to BEA. Booksellers are invited to the ABA Member Lounge after the Celebration for exclusive signings by many of the Indie Next List authors, award winners, and nominees.

Make a reservation for the Celebration now; send questions to ABA Development Officer Mark Nichols.

Publicists Speed Dating, which was a hit at BEA 2015, makes a return to the trade show on Friday, May 13, from 9:45 a.m. to 11:55 a.m. The program will feature approximately 12-minute conversations between one bookstore and one publicist at a time. During the “dates,” ABA member bookstore owners, managers, and event coordinators have the opportunity to promote their stores and discover what publicists look for when planning author tours.

Register your store for Publicists Speed Dating now; send questions to ABA Senior Program Officer Joy Dallanegra-Sanger.

The ABC/CBC Speed Dating Lunch With Children’s Authors will be held on Friday, May 13, from 12:15 p.m. to 1:45 p.m. ABC Group members and friends of CBC who purchase tickets will enjoy a lively lunch with more than a dozen children’s book authors as they pitch their new projects. Preregistration and prepayment are required. Tickets are $30 each. Space is limited, and registration is first-come, first-served. Booksellers will receive their table assignments via e-mail prior to BEA.

This year’s participating authors include:

• Juan Carlos Alonso
• David Arnold
• Andrea Beaty
• Aaron Becker
• Jeffrey Bennett
• Tricia Brown
• Lauren Castillo
• Michael Dante DiMartino
• Elizabeth Eulberg
• Olivia Fu
• SJ Kincaid
• Arthur Levine
• Rich Lo
• Jennifer A. Nielsen
• Ridley Pearson
• Ami Polonsky
• Jewell Parker Rhodes
• Frank Viva
• Booki Vivat
• Lisa Yee

Purchase tickets for the ABC/CBC Speed Dating Lunch With Children’s Authors now.

The ABC/CBC Tea With Children’s Authors and Illustrators will also be held on Friday, May 13, from 3:30 p.m. to 4:45 p.m. ABC Group members and friends of CBC who purchase tickets are invited to sit down and share an intimate and relaxing teatime with a beloved author or illustrator. Booksellers will choose four authors or illustrators from the list of participants and will meet with three. Preregistration and prepayment is required. Tickets are $25 each. Space is limited, and registration is on a first-come, first-served basis.  Booksellers will receive their author assignments via e-mail prior to BEA.

Authors and illustrators participating in the Tea include:

• Jeffrey Brown 
• Matthew Cordell
• Melissa de la Cruz
• Grace Lin
• Tahereh Mafi
• Marissa Meyer
• Matthew Reinhart
• Adam Silvera
• Duncan Tonatiuh

Purchase tickets for the ABC/CBC Tea With Children’s Authors and Illustrators now.

ABA programming begins on the first day of the trade show, Wednesday, May 11, with an opening plenary session on the New Localism featuring Stacy Mitchell, the co-director of the Institute for Local Self-Reliance. From 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m., Mitchell will discuss the current state of the localism movement, especially regarding how booksellers and other independent businesses can work to initiate changes to public policy to benefit all locally owned businesses and their communities. At breakout sessions, from 11:15 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., booksellers will have the opportunity to share ideas for making the most of ABA’s New Localism Toolkit.

In addition to the Celebration of Bookselling and Author Awards Lunch, ABA programming on Thursday, May 12, includes author signings exclusively for members in the ABA Lounge, following both the BEA Adult Author Breakfast and the Celebration.

At 3:15 p.m. on Thursday, all ABA members are encouraged to attend the ABA Town Hall, followed by the Annual Membership Meeting. The Membership Meeting will feature a report from the Board of Directors and executive staff on the association’s activities over the past year, as well as updates on new and ongoing initiatives. The Town Hall provides booksellers with the opportunity to express opinions and share ideas with the Board and staff in a less formal setting than the Annual Meeting. To provide an opportunity for as many members as possible to speak during the Town Hall, a sign-up sheet will be displayed beginning Wednesday, May 11, in the ABA Lounge.

The ABA Lounge will also feature autographing by some of the BEA Children’s Author Breakfast speakers on Friday, May 13.

For details about all ABA programming, as well as BEA education sessions and special events of particular interest to booksellers, visit BookWeb.org.

On May 10, just prior to BEA, ABA will be hosting the IndieCommerce Institute (ICI), a one-day, interactive learning experience for IndieCommerce stores only. Registration for the institute is now open. Learn more.

On Tuesday, May 10, Penguin Random House is throwing an opening-night party exclusively for all ABA indie booksellers from 9:00 p.m. to midnight in The Drake Hotel’s International Club.

Due to logistical difficulties related to the show’s Chicago location, there will be no Children’s Art Auction this year.