Inside BookCon: where literature lovers give hope to the industry

The convention’s throngs of teenagers prove there’s still an appetite for reading, raising spirits of publishers who are starting to realize the importance of fandomLast Saturday and Sunday at the Javits Center, on the far western edge of Manhattan, the newly popular book lovers’ convention, BookCon, presented a scene familiar to fans of all sorts. Attendees crowded into exhibitors’ booths, arms covered in paper wristbands for entry into top events (people had reportedly queued for some of them since before the sun came up). The autograph hall, where hundreds were waiting patiently across dozens of lines, was deafeningly loud. On the main stage, TV celebrities were being interviewed, and the crowd was going wild. (Such crossover luminaries included BJ Novak, Mindy Kaling, Nick Offerman and Jason Segel.) At the entrance, a big, unmissable sign read: “Cosplay is not consent.” For the uninitiated, cosplay – short for “costume play”, where people dress up like favorite characters – is a staple at fan conventions, and the right to dress how you want and not get harassed is a relatively new and welcome addition. Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2015-06-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
News tagged with: #main stage #mindy kaling #nick offerman #favorite characters

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BookCon 2015: Sweet as HONY

In just five short years, the followers of Brandon Stanton’s “Humans of New York” Facebook page and blog have grown to 12 million. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-05-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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BookCon 2015: The Civil War Through a Graphic Kaleidoscope

Using graphic books to teach, or to lure a more visual reader to books, is nothing new, but "Battle Lines: A Graphic History of the Civil War," by Jonathan Fetter-Vorm and Ari Kelman, seems destined to resonate. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-05-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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BookCon 2015: Julianne Moore and Brian Selznick: From Screen-to-Page and Page-to-Screen: Star Power in Children’s Book

Actress Julianne Moore and award-winning writer and illustrator Brian Selznick have more in common than writing books for children. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-05-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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BookCon 2015: YA Authors: We’re All Hungry for Diversity

As anyone knows who’s read anything by the five authors on today’s diversity panel, none has ever shied away from controversy. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-05-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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BookCon 2015: In Full Bloom

It’s been more than 15 years since Judy Blume’s last novel for adults, Summer Sisters, was published, in 1998, so the publication of her new adult novel is a very big deal, what publishers like to call a rare “publishing event.” Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-05-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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BookCon 2015: Put ’Em Up! Powerhouse Mystery Writers Reveal Secrets on the ‘Pencil Panel’

Don’t tell anyone,” confides bestselling author Brad Meltzer about today’s panel “Inside the Mystery Writer’s Studio,” in which he is participating with fellow superstars James Patterson and Nelson DeMille. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-05-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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BookCon 2015: The Longest Line

Check out this hyperlapse video we took of the huge line to get into BookCon this morning! Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-05-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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BookCon 2015: Mother/Daughter Team

Ask most mothers of teenage daughters if they could imagine spending five days a week cooped up in an office for eight hours a day working on a project together for an entire summer, and the answers you would get might not be printable. Not so for bestselling author Jodi Picoult, who began a... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-05-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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BookCon 2015: Talking Truth, Love, Diversity, and Writing at ‘Reality Bites’ Panel

On a Saturday BookCon panel, Ellen Hopkins, Patrick Ness, Lauren Oliver, and Jason Reynolds discussed the relationships, characters, themes, and settings of their latest YA novels. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-05-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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BookCon 2015: A Bad Apple for the Big Apple

The 700,000+ subscribers to Mamrie Hart’s YouTube series, You Deserve a Drink, already know about the custom cocktails that Hart creates each week in honor of whoever in pop culture needs it most. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-05-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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BookCon 2015: David Duchovny on Spiritual Cows, Circumcised Pigs, but Not Cancer Man

David Duchovny, best-known for his portrayals on TV of Fox Mulder on The X-Files, and Hank Moody on Californication, is finally where he originally thought he would end up: as a writer. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-05-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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BookCon 2015: Taye Diggs and Shane Evans: Joyful in a Diverse World

At 1 p.m. today in Room 1A10, “Mixed Me: A Discussion with Taye Diggs and Shane Evans” will address more than just a new picture book. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-05-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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BookCon 2015: A Classy Canine to the Rescue

Men and fashion? The well-dressed man? Just look around, and you’ll see that it’s a concept reserved for glossy magazines and red carpets, but rarely found in reality. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-05-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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BookCon 2015: Nick Offerman: He’s Got Gumption

Join Nick Offerman in the Special Events Hall today in an hour of conversation, music, and muckraking as he presents his new book, "Gumption: Relighting the Torch of Freedom with America’s Gutsiest Troublemakers." Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-05-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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BookCon 2015: John Green: Multi-Mega Star

Apparently movies would suck without John Green, who is downright effusive about how the movie adaptation of his 2008 novel, "Paper Towns," turned out. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-05-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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BookCon 2015: Mindy Kaling and B.J. Novak Together Again

Mindy Kaling will take the stage in the Special Events Hall to kick off the second annual BookCon today at 11 a.m. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-05-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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BookCon 2015: A New Look for an Old Favorite

More than half a century after he created The Phantom Tollbooth, Norton Juster is here at BookCon to celebrate a new hardcover edition of the enduring classic. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-05-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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BookCon 2015: In Our World and Beyond Fantasy, and Reality

Joe Monti, executive editor for Simon & Schuster’s new Saga imprint for science fiction/fantasy, or SFF, admits that diversity is more than an intellectual exercise. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-05-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Would You Pay to Read Entertainment News Online? Time Inc. Sure Hopes So

Since Time Inc. became an indepedent publicly traded company last June, executives at the nation's large magazine publisher have tried to convince Wall Street investors that it's quickly transforming into a digital-first media company. It's certainly made strides, introducing video series,... Continue reading at Advertising Age

[ Advertising Age | 2015-05-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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