Once again, my sister Gwen and I found ourselves at Book Expo America, located at the Jacob Javitz Center in New York City. If you have anything to do with books – read, write, sell, publish, lend, stack or otherwise handle, this is it, folks, an action-packed book and publishing extravaganza, meant to pull the forces of the written word in every available direction. It’s not for the faint of heart or feigning writers, either. If you’re serious, you’re here. No argument. Every May this trade show and convention takes place, attracting literally anyone and everyone who has a connection to the written word. If you think I’m kidding, just click here to see who showed up. Wheeler-dealers haggle over contracts, agents meet editors to sell the next big thing, authors sign books and everyone checks out the free swag.
Gwen and I went to meet up with our agent, Marisa Corvisiero, but also to wander the aisles in search of our genres (Gwen – Women’s Fiction, me – Sci-Fi). Even more, though, are the trends that surface during these events. China, holding the Guest of Honor position, displayed every single genre from children’s to serious modern literature. In the back of the floor, many digital publishing and other services commanded a large swath of space. It seems as if writing the actual story is only a tiny portion of what digital services offers. It’s getting the word out about everything surrounding that book that counts here. All business regarding the writer’s craft, folks!
Of course, there’s always room for a bit of fun, natch.
Our friend Sam Bremekamp, a Young Adult agent and writer, couldn’t make it this year, so we photobombed her way in…sort of…
I made a couple of friends, too.
And, of course, visited the latest in Sci-Fi. I tweeted a few of these, but for some reason my Twitter app shamefully didn’t recognize the term “sci-fi” and instead put either “sci-on” or “sci-it.” Kind of odd, but then again, so is the genre, so I suppose it’s okay.
We ran into a few acquaintances during our travels…
…and we couldn’t quite determine what the message was here, other than magenta and black is a must-have color for a young woman.
As we glanced around the swirl of activity throughout the ginormous floor, gazing at whole booths devoted to famous writers, outsized signs blasting their names while long lines queued up to obtain autographs from hot bestselling authors (books were free, too!), the thought crossed both of our minds: that’ll be us, one day.
Not “some day…” as in waxing wistful.
ONE DAY…as a very achievable goal.
So keep your eyes open, folks! We’re coming to a bookshelf near you.
Moon, Stars and Beyond 