It’s that time again. The time where writers, publishers, editors, bloggers, reviewers, etc etc begin to prepare for BEA (
Book Expo America). And because of this, I’ve received a good handful of questions about BEA—so I figured I would just make a post about it.
First, I want say that I’m
not the expert. I’ve only been once last year. But at the same time, I totally learned a lot of things from my experience. I’m definitely going again this year.
Also, another good reference (and someone I’ll be linking up throughout this post) is
Kristi from
The Story Siren. She has written NUMEROUS posts about BEA, and they are all super informative. Also, she’s really great about answering BEA questions on her
formspring.
I’ll divide this beast up into sections so it’s easier to navigate. So HERE WE GO.
What is BEA? It's best you know what BEA is before you start reading. To get a basic idea of what goes on at Book Expo America, I suggest reading Kristi's
Intro to BEA blog post. She does a great job at explaining!
Finances
A huge part of planning for
BEA is the expenses. And trust me--for most people it’s not going to be cheap. So keep that into consideration.
Hotel
If you’re considering staying in a hotel, I would definitely book it now. Prices are only going to get more and more expensive. If money doesn’t matter, you can check out the
Book Expo America website and choose from one of the
hotels they suggest. It’ll be pretty close to the convention center.
However! If money is an issue (which it is for most people. Like me) you’re better off trying to find a cheap hotel from websites like
Priceline or
Travelocity. The only downside to those is that although they’re several hundred dollars cheaper, you have to pay upfront and I’m pretty sure there isn’t any refunds. But if you were to book a hotel through their main website, you pay when you check out and are able to cancel reservations. So it’s really up to you.
Also, you’re better off rooming with people. Last year 3 friends—plus myself—split a small hotel room in Queens and it ended up being $800 total, which was about $200 per person. So yeah. Just to give you a realistic example. NYC is not cheap.
Also! Couch crash if you know people in NYC. You’re only going to be in the hotel to sleep and shower, basically. So if you know people it’s best to ask if they can help a brotha/sista out!
BEA Ticket
How much does BEA cost? How can I get a ticket? Do I have to be invited? I’m not exactly sure on who is able to go, but you can refer to the
BEA Ticketing and Pricing page to see what category you fall under.
If you’re reading this, chances are you’re either a blogger or writer. By clicking that link above you’ll be able to see ticket prices for each and how to buy them.
Food
Here’s the thing. You’re not going to want to eat at BEA. I didn’t believe it at first, but
Kristi has said the same thing. There is SO MUCH going on. You’ll either a) not want to eat in fear of missing something cool or b) forget to eat because you’re so busy. Seriously. So the times you’ll want to eat are breakfast and dinner.
If you have a hotel that offers complimentary breakfast—you’re in luck! You get to save money! YAY YOU. This happened with us later year. We’d hit the breakfast room by 6 am, grab coffee and bagels, and eat it on the subway. We brought water bottles and granola bars in our purses in case we got hungry or thirsty. After, we would go out to dinner with bloggers/writers at cute little NYC spots—like pizza or sandwiches. Luckily, I spent some time with Anna and Rachel, two lovely ladies who knew some awesome eating spots in NYC.
But don’t worry—there are TONS of places to eat in NY. You are not going to starve, but I’d suggest bringing $100-$150 for food.
Travel
Driving? Flying? What about navigating NYC? Cabs? Subways?
Here’s what I suggest: If you’re going to fly, buy your ticket ASAP. Tickets are cheaper the farther out you buy them. And if you’re like me and live on the west coast, it’ll be quite an expensive flight. I know now a round trip is about $300—BUT that’s coming from AZ. So I’d check up on flights now to get an idea on what you’re likely to spend. I’d guesstimate between $200-$500 for a plane ticket depending on where you’re flying from and how far in advance you’re getting your ticket.
Last year the group of us used a week long subway pass. This pass is about $30 something dollars per person and allows you to have unlimited subway access for a week. DO NOT LOSE THIS PASS. If you do, you’re going to have to buy another one. But it’s the most economical choice.
Also, there are really awesome subway apps for iPhones. I had two on mine for the week. One told me what time trains came and the other was a useful map of the the lines. I’d suggest either getting a map or getting helpful apps.
You can take cabs, but they are going to be a pricier option. I’d guess around $30 per ride. If that’s the thing for you—sweet! Do it. If not, the subway is the way to go.
Also! If you plan on driving remember that this is NYC. It’s very snuggily. And there’s not a lot of parking. Make sure your hotel offers parking (some don’t) and . . . perhaps practice parallel parking before your trip?
Also see Kristi's Tips and Tricks to saving money while at BEA by reading her
BEA finances post.
What to Pack
NYC in May/June is generally great weather. But when I went last year, the weather told me it was going to rain. A lot.
It didn’t. But we were prepared anyway.
The dress code is sort of tricky. If you plan on attending FANCY things while at BEA (like, idk, meetings with editors or publishers or agents or whatever) I’d pack a nice skirt, top, and cute flats. Perhaps a cardi.
Here's an example of a nice, professional outfit I wore to BEA last year:
But if you’re a blogger or someone going for fun and don’t have any FANCY meetings or anything, I’d suggest jeans, a nice top, comfortable shoes, some kind of sweater/cardi/sweatshirt (the temperature can vary from hot to cold in the convention center, so I’d be prepared)
Also, BEA likes canvas bags. They like to give them to you, so don’t worry about bringing a GIANT PURSE. BUT I WOULD bring a small suitcase if you’re prepared to get a lot of books. Trust me, you don’t want to be carrying those babies around all day. You’re able to check your suitcase in at BEA (so you’re not rolling it around all day long) for a small fee. And you can drop your books in it from time to time.
The List
Anyway. I’ve come up with a packing list for you. I hope this helps. I also hope I didn’t leave anything out.
- Comfortable shoes
- Socks (7 pair if you’re staying the whole week)
- Undiez. Because hello.
- Both nice and casual shirts, depending on what you’re planning on doing
- Jeans and/or nice pants
- Maybe one fancy outfit (if you plan on doing fancy things)
- A jacket or sweatshirt or cardi, just in case.
- A backpack or large purse
- Toothbrush/toothpaste
- Toiletries (Unless provided by the hotel, like shampoo etc)
- Makeup
- Camera and phone
- Appropriate chargers
- Wallet
- Money to ship books or an extra suitcase to bring books home in
That may be it. You want to bring as little as possible to BEA since you may be receiving many-a free things. The lighter you pack, the better.
Also I would not suggest bringing a laptop. I brought mine last year and it pretty much stayed in the hotel the entire time. I was always too tired by the time I got back to get online.
The Expo
What happens at BEA? What do you do? Is it crazy? Are there a lot of crowds? When should I get there? How do I pick up my ticket? Etc etc.
Tickets
Last year, we picked up our tickets the day before (on a Monday). There was absolutely no crowds and we were helped right away. I would suggest this if you’re getting in early. I’m sure Tuesday, the first day, is bound to be a madhouse when getting checked in/tickets.
If you want tickets to a ticketed-signing, I would suggest arriving about an hour before to buy them. Most signings aren’t ticketed, but if you have an author you really want to meet and it IS ticketed, get there in advance. Last year, the lovely
Heidi got Britney and I tickets to Gail Carson Levine (thank you again! You are so amazing, Heidi!) because we got there too late to get them.
There are huge signs all over that say “REGISTRATION,” so it’s not hard to find WHERE you pick up your tickets.
Panels
You’ll be able to see day-to-day schedules online of different
panels going on, so plan accordingly. Last year I attended a few and they were so awesome and informative! I definitely suggest going to as many panels as you can. As far as I know, they aren’t ticketed. BUT you will want to get there 10-15 minutes early to get good seats.
Booths
There are different publishing booths EVERYWHERE. You can’t miss them, trust me. Especially bigger houses, like Harper or Simon or Scholastic. DON’T BE SHY. Talk to people. Introduce yourself. Give them your card. NETWORK. This is a big part of what BEA is for. TAKE ADVANTAGE OF IT.
Example: Last year networking allowed me to meet the lovely
Michelle Hodkin (author of THE UNBECOMING OF MARA DYER), amazing bloggers like
Kristi and
Jamie, and some big time YA authors like
Meg Cabot. (See picture above!)
Autographing
There are many autographing areas. Some take place at booths, but some others take place in the designated autographing area. If you want to meet a particular author, get there 10-30 minutes beforehand—depending on who it is. And YES: Authors and publishers DO run out of books. In this case, they just close the line (unless you want to say hi, I think.) Don’t get mad. Don’t give them an attitude. They are human too. So be respectful.
No, it doesn’t necessarily cost money to get a book and autograph from BEA. HOWEVER! There are donation boxes in the autograph area. It’s highly recommended, out of courtesy, that you make a donation (it can be just a dollar, really) before receiving your "free" book.
Planning
It’s best to plan your days at BEA in advance. If you get there without a plan, you will feel EXTREMELY overwhelmed just because there is so much going on.
With that said, make a plan!
The BEA website has a schedule of each day, what’s going on, when certain signings and events are, etc. There is most likely going to be times when you’ll want to attend conflicting events. Although that sucks, you unfortunately have to make a choice regarding what one you want to go too. So plan wisely!
The best way I ended up planning was making an Excel spreadsheet for each event’s time and location.
Also, there is a BEA app for iPhones and, I believe, Androids. I remember using it a lot last year but I don't quite remember why it was so helpful. In any case I recommend downloading it for the week. It's free.
And again, the amazing Kristi answers many, many other aspects about BEA I may not have gotten to
RIGHT HERE.
Bookish Things In NYC the week of BEA
(At Books of Wonder for the YA debut author panel, 2011)
(Meeting the lovely Meghan McCafferty at Books of Wonder)There's a lot of different events going on outside of BEA, so be on the lookout for them! Last year I visited The Strand, Books of Wonder for a few YA panels and author meet & greets, and The Scholastic Store for a YA event.
(Exploring NYC, The Hershey Store, and inside The Strand!)
So that’s it! If there’s any questions I didn’t get to, feel free to @ me on twitter (@farrahwrites) or
FORMSPRING ME. I’ll be happy to help. :)
Questions I may not have answered that Kristi may have gotten to:
BEA Q&A.
Also, let me know if I’ll see you there this year!
happy writing<3
So Changing Hands hosted another lovely event at the Phoenix Public Library, which is sort of downtown. I've never been but HOLY BALLS. This library? It's like 5 stories. It looked like a convention center or something. But it was really beautiful!
ound if we could afford a mortgage or something.
ound if we could afford a mortgage or something.
