BEA Forms Conference Advisory Board

By Lynn Andriani -- Publishers Weekly, 10/8/2008 1:08:00 PM

Hoping to foster connections and more interaction between publishers, booksellers and authors, BEA has formed a Conference Advisory Board made up of about a dozen book industry executives. It is the first of several advisory boards that BEA will form going forward.

Lance Fensterman, BEA v-p and show manager, said he created the board because “involving industry professionals in our overall planning is critically important.” Fensterman acknowledged that BEA does already involve industry members—namely, booksellers—in some of its planning. But he said the advisory board will include people from all facets of the industry. The 2009 board includes Harold Augenbraum of the National Book Foundation, Richard Pine of Inkwell Management, Tina Jordan of AAP, Jon Karp of Twelve, Richard Nash of Counterpoint Press, Neal Strandberg of Tattered Cover, Barbara Genco of the Brooklyn Public Library, PW editor-in-chief Sara Nelson and other industry players.

The board will meet at the end of October in New York and focus on a discussion of past BEA education programs and a discussion of new programs and formats for 2009. Each member will be asked to participate in or moderate one panel at BEA, which will be held in New York May 28 to 31. BEA will also be forming a Strategic Planning Advisory Board that will seek input on all aspects of the BEA convention experience. BEA executives are working on ways to make the convention more relevant for publishers, some of whom are concerned about the payback they receive compared to the costs.

BEA is soliciting suggestions for individual conference sessions. Ideas may be submitted at http://www.bookexpoamerica.com/en-us/745.cfm; the deadline is January 1, 2009.