Bookselling This Week: Live From BookExpo America -- Day 3

The American Booksellers Association's Town Hall Meeting, held on Friday, May 30, at BookExpo America in Los Angeles, was dominated by discussions of IndieBound, as well as ABA's e-fairness efforts. The informal meeting, designed to allow booksellers to ask questions and share views on any industry-related topic, was led by outgoing ABA President Russ Lawrence of Chapter One Book Store in Hamilton, Montana.

The meeting began with a brief convention update from BEA Show Director Lance Fensterman, after which Lawrence opened the meeting up to booksellers. Hut Landon, executive director of the Northern California Independent Booksellers Association, kicked off the dialogue with a sales tax update. "I have a piece of news, but first I want to acknowledge the excellent work that New York booksellers and ABA did to pass" the Internet sales tax provision in the New York State budget in April, said Landon. "As you know, we've been fighting in California for a long time.... We have pushed the Board of Equalization to go after Barnes & Noble for nine years." He then reported that last night, the BOE accepted and affirmed settlements in two sales tax cases involving the bookstore chain, meaning B&N will have to pay the state of California approximately $9 million in back taxes.

Lawrence also thanked New York booksellers for their e-fairness efforts, and added: "It's all part of the puzzle; it's made a difference in New York. And public sentiment is on our side when we make our case properly. This is not a new tax; it is a way to collect tax that is already due."

Following the update on the campaign for e-fairness, the topic turned to IndieBound, ABA's new initiative. Lawrence provided a brief history of how the concept came about, and in the process, had great praise for the Book Sense program. "IndieBound is continuing what was great about Book Sense -- [for instance] the Picks list has become the Indie Next List. I love that! It's the next big thing, man! It carries on all those things that keep us in the publishers' eyes. But what was missing was the connection with the customers, the community. IndieBound gives you a way to go out and talk to other businesses in your community.... [It] is a movement; we can all contribute to it."

Jean Brace from Brace Books & More in Ponca City, Oklahoma, asked if, as part of the IndieBound movement, the association has had any conversations with other trade organizations.

"That's a big part of it," Lawrence said. "We've met with other trade associations ... Some of these groups [have only independent members], and they love what we're doing."

Mitchell Kaplan of Books & Books in Miami, Florida, extended congratulations to the whole Board for putting the initiative together. "I heard about it for the first time last night," he said, "and it really revealed itself in the ABA Lounge today," where there were samples of the "Literary Liberation Box" and the new IndieBound collateral materials

Kaplan also thanked the association for its handling of the copyright infringement claims brought by the Rev. Herman Douglas, Sr. against various distributors and retailers as having no merit. The judge, who had already dismissed the Rev. Douglas' claims against author Joel Osteen and his publisher, Hachette, ordered the case closed this week. A number of ABA bookstore members of were among those who had received a summons in the civil action.

Maryelizabeth Hart of Mysterious Galaxy in San Diego, said that, following ABA's festive announcement of IndieBound at Thursday night's Celebration of Bookselling, she still "didn't know really what it was, other than a renaming of Book Sense."

Incoming ABA President Gayle Shanks responded that, when rolling out a new initiative, it's tough to know exactly how much to talk about at the initial launch, but she stressed, "We could not be more excited about this program. We did tease the program a lot but a decision was made that booksellers could [find out more about the program] at the Book Sense Lounge and the information session on Saturday at 3:15 p.m. in Room 511."

"It's a legitimate comment," ABA CEO Avin Mark Domnitz stated. "Thursday night was very much the launch of the program, the presentation of an idea and the outline of a painting, and, now, we have to do the painting," he said, adding, "We knew, number one, you'd come to the lounge and the information session, and next week, you will be receiving your Literary Liberation Box." The box is the start-up kit that all ABA members will receive, and it will include explanations of the program, posters, bookmarks, book plates, buttons, and other collateral material.

Lucy Kogler from Talking Leaves Books in Buffalo, New York, had high praise for IndieBound. "It gives us the tools to do this in our own way, in our community. I'm so excited about this."

Following the Town Hall, ABA President Lawrence called the association's Annual Membership Meeting to order. Board member Beth Puffer of Bank Street Bookstore in New York City delivered the Report of the Nominating Committee, which noted the election of new Board members Ken White of SFSU Bookstore in San Francisco and Dan Chartrand of Water Street Bookstore in Exeter, New Hampshire, and the reelection of Michael Tucker of California's Books Inc. to a second three-year term on the Board. The association membership also ratified the Board's choice of Gayle Shanks of Changing Hands Bookstore in Tempe, Arizona, to serve a one-year term as ABA president and Tucker to serve a one-year term as vice president/secretary.

In the Report of the President, Lawrence praised association members, and ABA Board members and past presidents, for the progress the association has made on many fronts, including providing the education and the tools booksellers need to succeed. "New stores are opening again. The '90s were tough, but in the last few years we've seen new stores open." He also praised outgoing Board member Collette Morgan of Wild Rumpus in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and thanked her for "what you have brought us with your cheerfulness, thoughtfulness, and creativity." Lawrence welcomed White and Chartrand to the Board and told ABA members at the meeting, "The association is in tremendously good hands."

Incoming ABA President Shanks reported on ABA's membership figures, which, as of April 2008, numbered 2,117, down from 2,209 the year before. However, she noted that, in addition to losses in membership, ABA had for the third year in a row seen more than 100 newly opened stores join the association, noting "we have started gaining new stores.... I think we're on the way up."

In his report, ABA CEO Avin Mark Domnitz said, "It's been a good year, an exciting year. There are a lot of good things happening here, part of which you saw last night [at the Celebration of Bookselling]. With IndieBound, there are no rules. The one problem with Book Sense is that there were rules to participate. With IndieBound, any independent can participate.... I came into the business in 1979, and the '80s were good for booksellers. Then there was a dark age where bigger was [considered] better, and national was good. Today, things have changed. A window has opened, an appreciation for independents is palpable -- you can feel it in the air.... Consumers are looking for you in their shopping."

Domnitz also reported that, based on feedback from its members, the association has, over the past few years, developed an annual calendar of education events, which includes the highly popular Winter Institute. He noted that the Day of Education yesterday had over 700 booksellers.

"And advocacy is also extremely important, and we've been active in the pursuit of measures to ensure e-fairness," Domnitz said, noting how New York State booksellers and ABA were successful in their e-fairness efforts in the state. "It means that the day after tomorrow (June 1), Amazon.com will start collecting and remitting sales tax in New York State. That's a huge victory." Domnitz saluted the efforts of the New Atlantic Independent Booksellers Association and its executive director, Eileen Dengler, and president, Joe Drabyak, for their efforts in encouraging the state's independent booksellers to write their elected officials to urge them to approve the Internet sales tax provision.

Domnitz also noted that the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression has been very active this year.

Addressing the association's finances, Domnitz said, "ABA is a healthy fiscal organization.... ABA is quite healthy." Referring to the weak national economy and its effect on the association's investment portfolio, he added: "We are wending our way through stormy seas very, very well."

There were no items raised under Old Business, and under New Business, former ABA President Ann Christophersen praised outgoing president Russ Lawrence. "I just want to say you have been a terrific president."

The Friday morning Children's Book & Author Breakfast, presented in cooperation with the Children's Booksellers and Publishers Committee, the American Booksellers Association, the Association of Booksellers for Children, and the Children's Book Council, was a hot ticket at this year's BEA. The event brought together four of today's bestselling children's authors, whose works often have adult appeal -- Sherman Alexie (The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, Little, Brown Books for Young Readers), Judy Blume (Going, Going, Gone! With the Pain and the Great One, Delacorte Press Books for Young Readers), Eoin Colfer (Artemis Fowl: The Time Paradox, Hyperion Books for Children/Disney Book Group), and Neil Gaiman (The Graveyard Book, HarperCollins).

Jon Scieszka, National Ambassador for Young People's Literature, who started off the morning by welcoming the 1,200 attendees to the "ass-crack of dawn" breakfast, set the tone for the event, which featured nearly nonstop humor.

Eoin Colfer said that being a writer meant you "do not have to do breakfast," and that the event, by its very nature, served to subvert thousands of years of literature. He also talked about growing up in Ireland with his brothers and without some of the luxuries kids have today. "We didn't have hair gel back then," he said. "We had to sneeze on each others' heads."

Colfer then introduced Sherman Alexie by listing some of his numerous awards, including Alexie's 2007 National Book Award. Mixing humor with the more serious purpose of children's lit, Alexie started by telling Colfer that he'd trade half of his awards for half of Colfer's sales. He then talked about how books can buffer kids and adults from the isolation they often feel -- an isolation that he experienced growing up in poverty on an Indian reservation. "I write books about childhood for people who didn't get to have a childhood," Alexie explained.

Blume talked about attending her very first convention 30 years ago, when it was still called the ABA. Like today, she was at the Children's Breakfast, but then her co-panelists were Dr. Seuss and Maurice Sendak. A photo, which flashed on the ballroom's large screens, showed her 40-year-old self between the two kings of children's lit.

About writing for children, Blume told the audience, "If you don't catch them early, you're never going to catch them at all." In closing, she said that she intended to keep writing "as long as it works and comes naturally ... and as long as the creative bug keeps biting."

Attendees were then treated to a clip of the movie Coraline, based on Gaiman's YA novel. The stop action 3-D film, which will be in theaters this winter, was directed by Henry Selick of The Nightmare Before Christmas fame.

Gaiman, who has written fantasy, poems, children's books, and YA, explained that he hadn't intended to become a crossover author, but that he has a "short attention span." With a self-deprecating sign-off, Gaiman, who has written several of his books for his own children, said: "Authors -- we don't know what we're doing. We write this stuff down, our kids encourage us, and we hope people are going to read it."

Jane Friedman, president and CEO of HarperCollins, and American literary icon Ray Bradbury at the ABA Author Lunch.

As one of the authors described it, today's ABA Author Luncheon -- always a crowd-pleaser -- was a "warm and fuzzy" event. About 500 booksellers, publishers, and other industry pros honored the 40 attending authors whose books independent booksellers handsold throughout the year, as well as special guest Ray Bradbury who got a long and loud standing ovation.

Incoming ABA Vice President Michael Tucker of Books Inc. emceed the event. He began by thanking Levenger for providing the gifts for the Book Sense Book of the Year winners and honorees. Tucker acknowledged the authors who "opened our minds ... and gladdened our hearts with the pages of their work."

In a spirit of literary intimacy, Sherman Alexie (The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, Little, Brown Books for Young Readers) confessed, "I am a writer, yes, but I'm also a huge fan, and I'm losing my mind. I met Denis Lehane before lunch, and I want to make out with him, and I think he sensed it because he backed up." In a more serious vein, he told the booksellers, "You've been my friends and my entourage and posse ... for many years now. Thank you for a wonderful year."

Sherman Alexie, author of The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, a 2008 Book Sense Book of the Year Honor Book, thanked booksellers for their support.

After expressing his appreciation for booksellers' continued support of his work, Book Sense Book of the Year Children's Literature winner Brian Selznick (The Invention of Hugo Cabret, Scholastic Press) gave tribute to Bradbury, which earned another round of applause. "His books have been such an inspiration, and I think I can say that for everyone in the room."

In a moving, short speech, Book Sense Book of the Year winner in the Fiction category for A Thousand Splendid Suns (Riverhead/Penguin), Khaled Hosseini offered a "very heartfelt thanks to all the booksellers who supported me these last five years." He went on to say how badly he wished some of his compatriot writers, struggling unknown in Afghanistan and "far more eloquent" than he, could someday join him and be recognized for their work at BEA. "And if that writer were a woman, it would be so much sweeter for me," he said. "I'll accept this award as her proxy."

Author Susan Richards (Chosen By a Horse; Chosen Forever, Soho Press) observed all the biblio-love around her and said, "The feeling here -- of authors and booksellers honoring each other -- is so wonderful. I'm in awe of it." Leaving the luncheon, Nancy Olson of Quail Ridge Books in Raleigh, North Carolina, said, "I'm so thrilled. I just got to hug Ray Bradbury, and he kissed my hand."

For a full recap of the event, which Linda Barrett Knopp of Malaprop's Bookstore/Cafe in Asheville, North Carolina, called "very moving," stay tuned to BTW.

The ABA Lounge was a beehive of activity on Friday. Here's a look at some of the action:

HarperCollins authors Neil McMahon (Dead Silver) and Marisa de los Santos (Belong to Me) autographing on Friday morning.

Booksellers came to the ABA Lounge to learn more about IndieBound..

Members learn more about ABA Business Solutions, including Bank of America, Constant Contact, LIBRIS, Nielsen BookScan, and PartnerShip.

Judy Blume autographed copies of Soupy Saturdays With the Pain and the Great One to draw attention to the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression.

ABA & Above the Treeline Program Schedule for Saturday
All programming is at the Los Angeles Convention Center.

9:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m.
Above The Treeline -- Publisher Demo (Room 511A/B/C of the West Building)

9:00 a.m. - 10:00 a.m.
Above The Treeline -- Prospective Users (Room 512 of the West Building)

10:30 a.m. - Noon
Above The Treeline -- Users Group (Room 512 of the West Building)

1:30 p.m. - 3:00 p.m.
Premiere of Paperback Dreams: A PBS Documentary on Cody's & Kepler's (Room 511A/B/C of West Building)

3:15 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.
Indie Bound Information Session (Room 511A/B/C of the West Building)

9:00 p.m.
Book Industry Foundation Benefit
Bestselling author and Daily Show regular Lewis Black headlines the BEA Book Industry Foundation Benefit at the Orpheum Theater (near the convention center in downtown Los Angeles). Proceeds benefit the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression and the Association of American Publishers' Get Caught Reading Campaign.