On December 4, the third annual Global Kids Connect conference will bring together industry professionals to discuss international trends in children’s book publishing, and areas for future growth. Produced by Publishers Weekly in association with the Bologna Book Fair, GKC is the only U.S. conference devoted exclusively to children’s publishing.
This year’s conference will feature panels with a number of professionals—both from within the children’s book industry and from other media—speaking on the theme of “Publishing in an Unpredictable World: transforming challenge into opportunity.” During the opening session, attendees will hear from Kristen McLean of The NPD Group/NPD BookScan about the latest bookselling and retail data, including breakdowns on which formats, topics, and categories are thriving.
The conference will also provide a look at big picture trends in books for young readers. In “The Professionals Perspective: Sales & Acquisitions in a Changing World,” Ginger Clark of Curtis Brown Ltd. will lead a panel of literary scouts and foreign rights professionals in a discussion of the international rights marketplace. In another panel, Daniel Nayeri, publisher of the new, as-yet-unnamed imprint at Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group, will join digital media experts in exploring ways of harnessing creative content and technology to reach readers. Kate Wilson, president of Nosy Crow, will lead a closing discussion on “Publishing in an Era of Perpetual Change,” focusing on both the challenges and opportunities facing today’s publishers.
The half-day event is followed by Celebration!, a cocktail party honoring the authors, illustrators, translators and editors who participated in the making of the books featured in PW’s 2017 Children’s Starred Reviews Annual.
This year’s GKC conference will take place at the Grand Masonic Lodge in New York City. For more information, click here.
