Episode 205: The Epic BookExpo Recap — 2018 Edition

by Gabriela Pereira
published in Podcast

Hey there word nerds!

Welcome to the 2018 Epic BookExpo Recap episode!

If you don’t already know what BookExpo is, it’s the big industry trade show that takes place in the United States every year, and today it’s going to be just me talking to you about this awesome event!

This year, the big thing was the idea of the Reimagined BookExpo, so I wanted to give you a rundown of what’s new, what’s still the same, and what I think all these things say about the book industry as a whole.

Listen in as I chat with you about what the Reimagined BookExpo looks like, and some new and exciting trends I saw in the publishing industry.

In this episode, I give you an inside look at:

  • Then and now, how BookExpo has changed over the years.
  • Knowing your audience, BookExpo vs. BookCon.
  • New trends and themes in the publishing industry that jumped out at me.
  • The broadening definition of diversity.

Plus a teaser about the types of books I was most excited to check out, and why.

The Reimagined BookExpo

BookExpo has changed a lot over the many years of this trade show, and this year might be it’s most drastic change yet. Check out the recap episode if you would like the full rundown of my hot and not list for BookExpo 2018, but here’s a little sneak peek of some of the biggest things I saw at this year’s show:

  1. The show was much smaller than it has been in years past, and while I did enjoy the more civilized and professional air (and not getting mauled in a stampede for free ARC’s), the ever decreasing size of BookExpo does have me a bit worried.
  2. Many of the smaller presses, along with the literary magazines, I had seen in the past were not present at all this year.
  3. There was a definite shift in the BookExpo vibe away from book bloggers and other media, and towards booksellers and librarians.
  4. There were not as many people with media badges, and this allowed for more business talk to be had and streamline the focus of BookExpo.

Links and Resources

Learn more about BookExpo and BookCon by visiting their websites.

Check out my interview with children’s author Jen Calonita mentioned in this episode here: DIYMFA.com/087.

And if you want to learn more about diversity in publishing listen to my interview with Patrice Caldwell on the Writer’s Digest Podcast here: writersdigest.com/ep5.

Also, here are links to some of the books mentioned in the episode:

Remember pre-orders help build buzz for the authors so please consider ordering these books before their release dates. If you do check out the books, we hope you’ll do so via the above Amazon affiliate links, where if you choose to purchase via the link DIY MFA gets a referral fee at no cost to you. As always, thank you for supporting DIY MFA!

 

Link to Episode 205

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