Thousands upon thousands of publishing professionals, writers, and readers descended upon the Javits Center in New York City for the annual Book Expo of America on May 30 thru June 1, 2019. Many amazing Outskirts Press books were on prominent display in a coveted corner showcase on one the busiest aisles.
A representative was on-hand to answer questions and take orders on behalf of the Outskirts Press authors who were unable to attend in person. While orders and deals are often conducted on the BEA floor, promising leads that don’t close at the event are forwarded to authors directly so they can follow-up personally.
The three-day event revealed some staggering trends about the growth of self-publishing, not the least of which were the latest ISBN figures from Bowker, which saw 2017 introduce over one million new self-published titles into the marketplace, a new record.
The CEO of the Independent Book Publishers Association, Angela Bole, said “The future belongs to you [self-publishers],” in an impromptu speech she made in lieu of a Q&A session that was canceled due to the weather. Ms. Bole also remarked on the unsustainable pressure to keep retail prices low even while paper, printing, and shipping costs continue to increase. “As long as consumers insist on low prices,” she said, “vendors will make publishers foot the bill.” But that isn’t sustainable for much longer. In other words, consumers are going to start becoming accustomed to higher cover prices for books — good news for self-published books that often have higher retail prices.
The next Book Expo of America takes place at the same venue on May 27-29, 2020. We hope to see you (or at least your book) there! If you’re a published Outskirts Press author, you can reserve your spot for next year’s BEA by clicking here.