Getting a feel for BEA day by day

Looking forward to BEA (which is only 18 weeks away!) I get to experience what goes on from behind the curtain as planning unfolds across each constituency from booksellers to publishers to librarians to tech companies to authors to the conference program.  It is genuinely a living breathing thing.  A day at BEA is like a gift, with the wrapping paper being torn away to reveal the contents as each day is packed starting from early with meetings and sessions that eventually turn into drinks or dinner with the grand company only the publishing industry could produce.  Each show day is unique, with the sum of the week defining BEA and each person’s unique experience from their 3 or 4 days around Javits and NYC.

BEA is a mammoth event by nature - not just in physical size, but most importantly in what it presents.  It is the big tent and with SO much going on, I think of BEA as a day by day evolution, growing into something that in its sum, leaves a mark in time, indeed in history.   There is a feel and anticipation about each day at BEA, which for many people ending in a heap of exhaustion and exhilaration that is not unlike finishing a marathon.   Each BEA day has its own texture and with it, unique opportunity…..

Wednesday is ALL anticipation.  It’s the countdown, as the industry “rocket” is about to take off.  It’s a day for education (Publishers Launch, IDPF Digital Book 2013, BEA and ABA sessions for 2000+ people); a day for final booth set up as the show floor takes on a special look all its own; a day that celebrates the international world of books through the Global Market Forum; a day when networking and personal contact with industry peers begins in earnest; and MOST of all, a day that culminates with the BEA Buzz Panel which gives us genuine “lift off”. 

Thursday is ALL excitement.  The show debuts with the first Author Breakfast; the show floor opens with thousands of people rushing in to see the most important thing for them; etc, etc. 

Friday is ALL business.  We are in the “heart” of the show cycle, everyone has said their first hello, the parties are in mid-swing, and the author activity abounds, etc. etc.  

Saturday is ALL satisfaction.  The doors open for Power Readers as we welcome consumers to our wonderful world of books; the show has been a success for many authors, as books have been launched, etc., etc.

BEA has its meaning for each and every person who comes to the show.  This is what makes it so special.  There is something for everyone at BEA!  I look forward to seeing you there and making every day count! 

The Early Views from Digital Book World

I am here at DBW despite the elements (3 inches of snow in Connecticut this morning) and glad I got to enjoy the opening session and remarks.  A quick welcome by David Nussbaum was followed by remarks from the always insightful Mike Shatzkin.  Mike highlighted the five keys he sees for the near term of publishing, that included:

1. The Random House/Penguin Merger:  this is going to be transformative both for the industry as a whole and for publishers.
2. Growth of Vertical publishing.  This is going to be audience specific - publishing for communities.
3. Changing the way publishers market, the line between editorial and marketing will continue to blur, being less title centric and now be audience centric with a intense focus on audience engagement 
4. Illustrated children's books, their future is unwritten at this point in time, but they will face competition from new sectors.
5.  Globalization- for big publishers, there are new markets with low barriers of entry, because of low selling and distribution costs.  For small pubs, there is increased opportunity and appetite for their content.

James McQuivey delivered DBW's continued research that they have done since the DBW began four years ago and shared some really interesting data.  I will post a link if they make it available but I thought it was enlightenting.  The most amazing stat was that since this survey began, it is the first time results had changed when publishers estimated when digital would be 50% or mor of their revenue.  For the last 3 years, the research showed December 2014.  This year the research indicates pubs will reach that by June of 2014.

Lots of people to see and sessions to listen to, hope there are not too many typos here.

2013 Is a BIG Year for BEA

I hope people enjoyed a wonderful Holiday Season and the New Year brings an optimistic outlook for 2013.  With 2012 in the rear view mirrow that was fill with tragedy, an election full of rancor and an unfathomable hurricane.- it felt awfully good to turn the calendor to 2013.

There will be a lot of details coming as we ramp up for the 2013 show every week from now straight through June 1st.  Still I want to share some of the highlights for BEA you can expect in 2013 :

• Expansion of Power Readers at BEA.  BEA opened the door to consumers for the 1st time in 2012, we are expecting 4X more with 2,000+ Power Reading book lovers in '13
• BookBliss - running in beta mode since late summer, BookBliss is going to have loads of cool content for readers, video from BEA events, orginal interviews and access to great industry info from BEA
• BEA Book Bloggers Conference (BBC) - 2013 welcomes the BBC Confernce Adivsory Board to direct the program content and insure the BBC is blogger centric
• BBC Reg goes live in the next 2+ weeks and we are still taking submissions for panels
• A First Time to BEA FAQ page so first time attendees will have a better experience.
• uPublish University: now on Saturday with a jam-packed day of intensive learning about the best ways to publish a book. Filled with tips, tactics, tools and technology to allow indie authors to take advantage of the main opportunities in the exploding world of self-publishing!
• How about using your phone to connect with EVERYONE at BEA because:  
• Attendees will be able to scan other Attendees 
• Attendees will be able to scan exhibitors 
• Exhibitors will be able to scan Attendees (limited info)   

• Improved location for the Digital Discover Zone (D2Z) in the middle of the show floor.
• Adding another Author Stage and providing opportunities for exhibitors get noticed
• Expanded live converage of BEA from the BEA Livestream

There is tons more news coming.   I am quite excited to be spending tomorrow at the Author Selection Committee meeting.  I thought we had one of the best groups of authors ever in 2012 - after reveiwing the submissions, I am prepared to be wrong about 2012. I can not wait to start sharing some of those names - it is going to be incredible.