IBPA Publishing University

• This is a facilitated preconference conversation over a hot breakfast. An additional $35 fee is required to participate.
• Online registration closed at 6:00 PM Central on April 2, 2019. Please visit the conference registration table on the 7th floor of the Chicago Marriott Downtown Magnificent Mile beginning at 10:00 AM Central on Friday, April 5, 2019 to register, add to, or change your schedule.

Join other IBPA members for a facilitated conversation over a hot breakfast! Interested in meeting folks interested in the same thing you’re interested in? Join us for our second annual Small Group Breakfast Meetups. We’ll coordinate groups of 10 people around topics of interest such as children’s publishing, diversity in publishing, women in publishing, hybrid publishing, etc. Each group has a leader to guide them and a location to meet in.

Small Group Breakfast Meetup conversation topics include:

• Author Publishers
• Benjamin Franklin Award Finalists - 2019 FINALISTS ONLY
• Chicago Women in Publishing - CWIP MEMBERS ONLY
• Children's Books
• Diversity in Publishing
• Hybrid Publishing
• Women in Publishing
• Young Professionals - under 35 years old

Schools can be a lucrative market for a variety of genres, including children’s books, juvenile fiction, young adult, and even many adult books that are appropriate for older students. Jane R. Wood, a former teacher and author of an award-winning juvenile fiction series, has successfully sold her books to schools across the country for more than 14 years. In this session she will share many of the strategies she has used to sell to this niche market, including how to: contact schools, develop a relationship with educators, create educational resources, and develop dynamic presentations that engage students. Wood will show how both teachers and students can benefit from a meaningful connection with a published author.

Education is one of the book industry’s leading market segments. K-12, life-long learning products, and community and corporate training materials are glimpses into the lucrative and fulfilling world of educational publishing. Richard Lena of Brattle Publishing, Ian Lamont of i30 Media, and Karen Pavlincin-Fragnito of Elva Resa Publishing have had significant experience publishing for different segments of this market and approach learning from their own unique perspectives. In this session, they will share their strategies for entering various facets of the market, instructional design and development practices for products and services and marketing and distribution outlets. They will also spend time answering your questions about this significant portion of the publishing industry. The session is intended for intermediate participants who are seeking to learn about educational publishing and considering expanding into an education segment.

Pulling from their experiences as an author-illustrator indie publishing team, Susan Bernardo and Courtenay Fletcher will talk about the process of publishing a children's picture book from concept development to marketing and sales. Their engaging visual presentation will include the nuts and bolts of formatting picture books, including illustrations, book design, layouts, and editing. They're offer a basic timeline to publication, and demystify the acronyms behind basics such as ISBN, BISAC codes, ARCs and more. They'll share strategies for getting advance reviews through sites like NetGalley and Goodreads, as well as how to approach review journals such as Foreword and PW BookLife. Susan and Courtenay have appeared at libraries, bookstores, children's hospitals, schools, and festivals over a hundred times and will share their favorite ideas for public relations and promotional materials. Whatever your children's picture book question, Susan and Courtenay have you covered!

Crowdfunding can be a game changer for indie creators, giving you the capital you need to get your book printed without going into debt. It's also an opportunity to find your book's marketing groove and make vital connections months before your book is officially released. In a world where only 25% of Kickstarter publishing projects make it out of the gate, Susan Bernardo and Courtenay Fletcher can show you how they've exceeded their crowdfunding goals multiple times, raising over $35,000 for three children's picture books.

Topics in this session will include:

• Understanding Kickstarter tools
• Fine-tuning your budget
• Developing your "tribe" and mailing list
• Coming up with great rewards
• Understanding the elements of an effective campaign video

You'll learn why you should begin your crowdfunding campaign prep at least three months in advance, and how to tap into your "inner used car salesman" in those last days of the campaign.