BEA 2014 Notes and Photos

Below is a short collection of notes that was taken from BEA 2014. Hopefully you can find one or two bits of interest. Pictures can be found at the end of the blog post.

Mystery/Crime readers  – From Nielsen’s Book & Consumer Survey : Average reader is 50+, 39% use the library for some of their books, 18% use the library as their sole source for books, 1 in 5 own a Kindle, prefer to read on an…

BEA14: Nicky Hilton - May 29, 2014

I missed the Blogger’s Session on Thursday due to work; really was disappointed in that.  Missed out on meeting lots of good people, including the redoubtable women from down under of Cuddlebuggery- Kat Kennedy and Steph Sinclair.

Day One kicked off as usual except for one small thing: they changed the layout of the exhibitors.  Harlequin, Hatchett, Romance/Horror Writers booths were relocated to the wing on other side of the hall, near the autographing tables.  Didn’t know why at first…

  Can’t quite put my finger on why this bugs me…

  What’s in a name?

  The key points this year were all about YA/NA (New Adult), especially with a certain author’s presence for the lecture series.  Was pretty much business as usual: lots of interesting new titles coming out and authors debuting.  And as usual there was so much stuff going on you’d inevitably miss some of it.  Really need to partner up with some people next year to cover more ground (hint, hint).  Some of the lectures I’d missed included Patrick Brown’s Goodreads 201 presentation on how authors could market themeselves on the site.  So many people crammed into the room it was closed off before it became a fire hazard.  Would really liked to have been present for that one.  John Scalzi and some friends of his made up for it with a satirical session about everything not to do on social media.  Sorry to say it rang all too true- which was the underlying point.  The funniest running joke was Scalzi pontificating that as a SWM- Straight White Male- he’s the epitome of everything, therefore anything he says on any subject is automatically correct.

Another fine lecture I missed out on was Tom Doherty speaking about DRM.  Whatever side of the issue you fall on, it’s a good talk.  And I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the We Need Diverse Books campaign, which made an appearance as well.

Celebrities of note were Anjelica Huston and Carey Elwes, both promoting memoirs; Elwes’ was directly related to Princess Bride and his experiences on the set.

Day 3 was all but a disaster.  The last day was open for BookCon, which was a one-day pass on the cheap ($15) to the expo.  They’d also been there last year to the tune of about 2000 people, which blended in pretty well to the point you barely noticed them.

This year once the word got out attendance was estimated at 4x that and what made it really ridiculous was they were all restricted to one side of the floor… guess which one?  You got it: the one where everything was happening.  All the autographing tables, signing sessions, vendor booths, etc- were suddenly swarmed by new attendees.  And they weren’t allowed on the main side of the floor- and by this point little was happening over there so really no reason to go- so nearly every living soul was crammed into that one side.  It was a fucking disaster.  As a full attendee you’d have had access to all the BookCon sessions on the lower level as well, including the lectures by YA authors such as (that other) John Green, but honestly, there was no point in even trying; lots of people simply left early rather than fight their way through the throng.  You couldn’t even get to any booth sessions; the lines were insanely long an hour ahead of time while current sessions were still ongoing.  I understand the idea behind BookCon and fully support it, and understand the idea of moving the most marketable and in-demand sessions to that side to let them have access, but that was the whole problem.  This thing really needed to be planned out better than it was.  Mabye they could’ve split time between BookCon and regular attendees or something, but there was no good reason for this fiasco.  Regardless, managed to get hold of some titles I can’t wait to get to.

Three days- 150 books. Think I did ok.

This was my third year attending BEA and the BEA Blogger Conference as a book blogger.   It was also the first year of BookCon (more on that later).

BEA BLOGGERS

Maureen Johnson BEA Bloggers 2014

I started by BEA 2014 adventure Wednesday morning with author Maureen Johnson’s keynote to BEA Bloggers.  Maureen was funny, engaging and supportive of book bloggers.  I then attended back to back panels for bloggers with 1-3 years experience, DESIGN 101: CREATING A PICTURE PERFET BLOG and SOFTWARE 101: BEST BLOGGING TOOLS.  I found both of these sessions informative and helpful since I am still a blogging novice.  You can expect to see some changes here at the Polished Bookworm thanks to what I learned!

Afternoon sessions included an introduction to video blogging (“Vlogging”) and podcasting, both interesting ways to add variety to blog content.  I missed the controversial panel that was supposed to focus on “How Bloggers Have Changed the Game” and instead focused on a “vlogger” and her relationship with a publisher.  I’ve heard it was rather dismissive of traditional book blogs and was not well received.  During all that kerfuffle, I was happily attending ENGAGING YOUR READERS: TAKE YOUR WRITING to the NEXT LEVEL, which was as interesting and engaging as all other sessions I was fortunate to attend.

BEA Bloggers 2014 was the most informative book bloggers conference BEA has held that I have attended.  That being said, I’m not certain I will be attending BEA Bloggers next year. My attendance with depend on the proposed panels and what I can personally gain from them.  The highlight of BEA Bloggers was, as always, meeting and interacting with other book bloggers.

Book Expo America (BEA)

BEA began in earnest on Thursday at 9am.  There were highs, there were lows, there were plenty of sore feet.

BEA Survival Pack We’re not kidding when we say where comfortable shoes!

  The best way for me to recap the experience is to offer my own “BEST OF BEA AWARDS” (and one worst):

Best Customer Service

Sourcebooks was first booth I encountered on the first day of BEA and they set the bar for customer service excellence exceptionally high.  Everyone working in their booth over the three days of BEA was knowledgeable, engaging, and helpful.  I shouldn’t be surprised, the quality of the Sourcebook representatives match the quality of their books: exceptional.

Best Mood-lifter

Every time I stated to drag, a visit to the smiling faces of the Harlequin booth cheered me up.  I could have stayed and talked with their representatives the entire day.  The autograph lines were organized and everyone was unfailingly polite.  I don’t know if it’s because they all love what they do, or the fact they’re a Canadian company. ;)

Best Combination of Books, Wine and Chocolate

Chocolate Lover’s Dream

Forever Romance hosted a lovely reception at the close of the first day of BEA.  I indulged in a nice glass (or two) of wine and got to meet several wonderful authors, including Cecilia Tan and Kristen Ashley, and partook of the most amazing display of chocolate covered extravagance.  There were chocolate dipped Oreos!

Best Book Drops

One of the most exciting aspects of attending BEA is the opportunity to receive free copies of upcoming titles, either Advance Reader Copies (“ARCs”) of books that have yet to be published or ones that are finished but not yet in stores.  The atmosphere for certain books can be absolute pandemonium!  When handled properly, it’s a painless, satisfying experience.  Penguin did it right.  Penguin provided a list of galley drop times, they opened the, boxes, stacked the books and got out of the way.  People proceeded by in an orderly fashion and picked up what they wanted.  No muss, no fuss, no stampedes.  Kudos for their use of the open Atrium space outside the exhibit hall for extra space.

Best Organization of Author Autographing

Efficiency at it’s best

Random House could teach classes to their colleagues in the publishing industry on how handle author autographing (and book drops). Might I suggest HarperCollins as their first client (chaos!).  Everything at Random House ran smoothly, their staff kept the lines moving and the people waiting were kept informed.  They used a combination of signs and tickets that prevented people from being about to jump into line at a break point.  I really appreciated how the staff communicated with each other, as well as the layout of their exhibit space.  At one point I joined a line that already wrapped completely around the booth yet it took me only 30 minutes to get to the front, meet the author and get my book signed.  Efficiency – one of my favorite things!

Best Fangirl Moment

This one is NOT easy, but I’m going to have to give it to meeting author Loretta Chase.  I was so very lucky to meet many authors I admire and enjoy (Sylvia Day, Tiffany Reisz, Rainbow Rowell top my list).  However, Loretta Chase is going to top my fangirl list this year.  I was listening to the audiobook of her classic romance Lord of Scoundrels on the ride to NYC and I was reminded of the lyrical quality of her work, not to mention the humor and heat; she’s a truly special talent.  Plus: I got an autographed copy of her latest book, Vixen in Velvet, which isn’t in stores until June 24. :)

Best Find

Nails: The Story of the Modern Manicure by Suzanne E. Shapiro (Prestel).  The publisher of this gorgeous book even gave me a custom OPI nail polish with my review copy.  You’ll be hearing more about this book from me!

Best Use of Advertising

The Young World by Chris Weitz (Little, Brown and Company, 07/29/2014).  The surfaces of the ladies restroom featured advertisements for this new book featuring a “post-apocalyptic NYC overrun with berserkers, banditos, and tribes of teenagers.”  The ads were witty and made me look into a book that otherwise would not have been on my radar.  What can I say? I appreciate potty humor. Must stem from having so many boys in the house.

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Best Preparation for BookCon

Macmillan wins BookCon.  The third day of BEA was combined with a new venture BookCon.  I suppose organizers are trying to create a sort of ComicCon for books.  All I know is it added an additional 10,000 attendees to less than half the exhibit space.  It was cramped and chaotic – except in the area set aside by Macmillan for BookCon.  The publisher kept their usual booth in the BEA exhibit space and opened a second exhibit area with interactive events, such as a photo booth and book recommendations.  Honorable mention to Penguin for their use of the open Atrium space outside the exhibit hall for extra space.

Worst Idea at BEA

BookCon. Okay, maybe not the worst idea, just the worst execution of an idea.  The portion of the exhibit hall that was set aside for BookCon attendees was crowded and confusing.  BookCon attendees complained they could not go to entire exhibit space. BEA attendees were offered few galley drops or author interactions on the solely BEA side, with booths all but abandoned.  The sessions were interesting but overcrowded; I know of few BEA attendees who were able to gain entrance to BookCon sessions (nor did many have the patience to try).  Maybe add a separate BookCon day next time?

Best Thing About BEA

The people! Every year I reunite with friends and meet all sorts of amazing people: authors, bloggers, publishers. And the whole time I get to talk about books! Free books, great people and no laundry, my kind of party!

BEA 2014 Exhibit Hall Entrance

Now that the swelling in my feet has gone down and I’m recovered from my post-BEA hangover, I can safely say, “I can’t WAIT until next year!”  I’d love to hear about other attendee’s experiences.  Good or bad, please share!

Only a small portion of BookCon attendees lined up to catch a glimpse of YA author John Green.

Holy aching feet, I’m tired. And that was from just one day of walking BEA (Book Expo of America), one of the biggest publishing dog-and-pony shows in the world. Here are some of the highlights, from an indie perspective:

BEA is clearly pinched for cash…or New York is getting too expensive.From the…