BEA with Spencer Hill Press

1.) How much planning goes into an event like this for you and your staff?

We start brainstorming a year out, while we're still at BEA. We make notes for what works best and what we want to improve. But we start working out the specifics of which books and authors will be featured about six months out, since we need to make sure that the books are ready in time. It takes months of work, planning, ordering books, SWAG, and stuff for the booth. This year, Jessica Porteous, one of our senior editors, has done the lion's share of the planning. She is made of awesome. 

2.) How would you compare BEA to other book conferences/events?

It's by far the biggest event of the year for us, and it is the one event we never miss. 

3.) Any suggestions for how bloggers/librarians should approach publishers at BEA? (I will admit I just stood around staring at booths until someone approached me because I was shy about it.)

Attendees should bring a LOT of business cards! Please include your name, your email address, and your blog name (or the name of the library, etc.--whatever the book-related info might be). If you are interested in our books, we'd love to have a way to tell you more about them. Feel free to come up and say hi to someone in a booth--we love to talk about our books, and if you have a set question or two, such as, "Do you have any books you'd recommend for kids in junior high who don't like to read?" or "I'm a huge romance fan--am I in the right place?" we'll be happy to steer you right. Even a generic, "Do you have a mailing list?" or "What kinds of books does your company publish?" will work. 

4.) What advice would you offer a first time attendee?

Bring comfortable shoes, a rolling suitcase, a bottle of water, a snack or two, and lots of business cards. Check the signing schedules and make up a list, so you don't miss the ones you really, really wanted to catch. Oh, and pack one of those external batteries to charge your cell phone--there's some kind of weird energy field in the Javits Center that drains cell batteries wicked fast. 

5.) Are there any titles from Spencer Hill Press you're excited will be at BEA this year?

Thanks for asking! right now, we have the following schedule: 

Spencer Hill Press Signing Schedule
Booth 2567 (by the autographing area)

Thursday

10:00 – Colette Ballard (RUNNING ON EMPTY)

1:00 – Elizabeth Langston (I WISH) & Jennifer Murgia (FOREST OF WHISPERS)

3:00 – Kelly Hashway (MONSTER WITHIN) & Lisa Amowitz (VISION)

Friday

10:00 – Danielle Ellison (FOLLOW ME THROUGH DARKNESS) & Alex Kahler (MARTYR)

1:00 – Nikki Urang (THE HIT LIST), Megan Whitmer (BETWEEN), & Erica Cameron (cover reveal)

3:00 – Kelsey Macke (DAMSEL DISTRESSED) & Dahlia Adler (BEHIND THE SCENES)

Time TBD - Rachel Harris (THE FINE ART OF PRETENDING) – main autographing area

Saturday

10:00 – Jennifer Allis Provost (COPPER GIRL & COPPER RAVENS) & Errick Nunnally (BLOOD FOR THE SUN)

11:30 – T. J. Wooldridge (SILENT STARSONG) & Laura Diamond (ZODIAC COLLECTOR)

1:00 – Kell Andrews (DEADWOOD)

Time TBD - Daisy Whitney (BEN FOX, SQUIRREL ZOMBIE SPECIALIST) – main autographing area

Time TBD - Jennifer L. Armentrout (THE RETURN: A TITAN NOVEL) – main autographing area

Please note that times are subject to change.