Our roving reporter Jami Kelmenson is attending Book Expo America this week…and sharing all her adventures exclusively with Shelf Pleasure readers. You don’t need to leave your couch (or book for too long) to feel like you were there. Here’s a sneak peek at to what she’ll be up to.
What is BookCon you ask? Well, as far as this roving reporter can tell, it’s a rebranding of the Saturday agenda of Book Expo America (BEA) in which the three-day trade festival at NY’s Javits Center billed as “North America’s premier publishing event” opens its doors to the public to stand in line to meet their favorite authors and get their autographs – and then talk about their books before they are released in order to generate essential make or break buzz. Only now, the event is being produced by the same folks that bring you Comic Con, a big comic book convention for comic book nerds. I hope I don’t get confused and dress as Wonder Woman by mistake.
According to their web site, BookCon “is the ultimate celebration of books, where your favorite stories come to life”. Maybe that means I should dress as Bridget Jones in that case.
When I first looked at the web site for BEA this year, I was a little put off by how many celebrities they were touting – and I don’t mean just book celebrities. It seems that everyone from Neil Patrick Harris (Author of Untitled Memoir not to be confused with “Unchained Melody,” which is a song) to Jason Segal (Author of NIGHMARES!) to Tina Fey (Author of Bossypants although she’s at BookCon promoting a movie) has a reason to be at BEA/BookCon this year along with Grumpy Cat, Jodi Picoult, John Grisham and a host of other “real” authors. Yes, I just called Grumpy Cat a real author, are you sure you really want to read what I have to say about BookCon?
So like I was saying, while I think Neil Patrick Harris is a fine actor and awards show host, I’m not exactly running to a book conference to stand on line and meet him. However, when I saw that Lena Dunham was going to be on an Author Panel with Alan Cumming and Martin Short to promote her book, Not That Kind of Girl: A Young Woman Tells You What She’s “Learned,” I quickly got over my “they’re not real authors” snobbery and resolved to make a beeline to her signing and savor every single word of what this young woman has to tell me about what she’s learned. So check back here and I’ll tell you how the panel was and hopefully I will get a chance to ogle her in person and make this whole BookCon experience worth waking up for early on a Saturday morning.
I will also attend the BookCon kickoff event billed as “a special panel and sneak peek of the upcoming film adaptation of Jonathan Tropper’s best-selling book This Is Where I Leave You. The Panel discussion will feature stars of the film Tina Fey and Jason Bateman” (did I mention that I LOVE the fact that celebrities will be at BEA/BookCon this year?) “along with Director Shawn Levy and Author Jonathan Tropper. The This Is Where I Leave You Panel will be followed by an exclusive Happy Hour to celebrate the debut of BookCon, giving Fans the ultimate interactive experience.”
Books, celebrities and booze – BookCon here I come!!!
Read more about Jami’s adventures at BookCon, including her brush with soon-to-be literary great Lena Dunham and her sneak peek of the book-to-movie This is Where I Leave You, starring Tina Fey and Jason Bateman!
Jami Kelmenson is a freelance writer and blogger living and loving in New York City. She is currently seeking representation for her first novel, Crossing Paths. See more ShelfPleasure posts from Jami, including her roving reporter coverage at BookExpo America (BEA) 2013, and read of her ongoing tales of travel, life, love and the pursuit of getting published in NYC at her blog, www.jamikellywriter.tumblr.com.