Welcome to May, MiPA Members!
On the last Saturday in April, we celebrated Independent Bookstore Day. My bookstore welcomed many, many visitors — yay! — but also, a lot of conversations with people eager to connect with indie authors and indie presses.
One of my personal goals is to help strengthen the entire independent-book ecosystem. Part of that process is core to MiPA’s mission; we promote best practices that celebrate independent publishing. But publishing has to dovetail with writing, with editing, with designing, with bookselling, and with distribution. A rising tide lifts all boats, so working more closely with friends and colleagues in different parts of the literary revenue cycle is a prerequisite to thriving. You’ll be hearing more about our ideas for strategic partnerships within the industry later in the summer.
Until then, remember … if you want people to read your indie-published book, take the time to buy indie-published books from others. The summer season presents myriad opportunities to meet emerging authors and attend smaller regional literary festivals. What better way to augment your to-be-read pile than by grabbing titles straight from the source?
Best wishes for a happy and productive spring!
— Jason Gillikin
MiPA President
An Update on the Midwest Book Awards
The last few months have been a whirlwind of activity on the Book Awards front, from sending out books to our judges to coordinating with our friends at St. Catherine’s to prepare for the June gala. Here’s the news that you need on that front:
- Our judges are hard at work on their assessments. We had a lot of wonderful entries this year! Finalists are set to be announced in a few weeks. Look for that announcement toward the middle of the month!
- The Midwest Book Awards Gala will be held on Saturday, June 13th. We’ll be announcing the process for securing your tickets in an upcoming newsletter. We look forward to seeing you in St. Paul, where we’ll gather to celebrating independent publishing!
- Our total submissions, despite the shifted submission window, was consistent with submissions over the previous three years. In other words, no change in the number of unique titles submitted. However, because we consolidated categories, there are more books in contention for each category than before. This is good news!
- We’re excited to announce our first-ever “special distinction” awards this year. Some of these relate to books and authors; some relate to publishers. Where relevant, we’ve developed a new seal that can be purchased along with the winner and finalist seals, after the Gala.
May Membership Meeting
We’re excited to announce that we were able to reschedule Dr. Jason Aukerman as our speaker for May’s membership meeting. Dr. Aukerman was unfortunately unable to make his original date, and so we’re pleased to be able to make this reschedule happen. Just in case you’ve forgotten, here are the details for his talk, based on his work with the Ray Bradbury Center:
The Ray Bradbury Center was founded on the belief that a writer’s work does not end with preservation alone. How can authors and publishers best go about preserving and archiving their works? What goes into archival work, and why should authors and publishers consider this stage of the life of a literary work?
This talk traces how the Center came into being and how Bradbury’s ideas continue to move beyond the archive through public programs and festivals that place his work in the hands of new readers and writers. A literary legacy, properly tended, is not sealed away but carried forward through active engagement.
About Our Speaker
Dr. Jason Aukerman is the Director of the Ray Bradbury Center and a Clinical Associate Professor of American Studies and English Literature and Indiana University Indianapolis. He specializes in American literature, popular culture, and the intersection of science fiction, fantasy, and visual media. Dr. Aukerman’s research and teaching explore narrative, imagination, and cultural storytelling, with particular attention to works by Ray Bradbury. He is committed to public humanities engagement and brings literary and cultural scholarship to broader audiences through lectures, podcasts, and interactive programs.
Event Details & Registration
Date: Tuesday, May 12th
Time: Networking “open mic” starts at 6:30 PM CT; program starts at 7:00 PM CT
Location: On Zoom
Registration: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/ysUVRlWdRrCFBZ7Q3SO4ZA
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting, including access online or using one of Zoom’s dial-in numbers to call from your phone.
Past Meetings and Resources Now Available!
As a part of our ongoing website restructure and redesign, we have hidden the recordings and notes for our past meetings behind our membership “paywall.” To access our past meetings, you will need to log in to your account to access the page. If you experience any difficulties, make sure to check that your MiPA membership is up to date! If you still have trouble, please reach out to info@mipa.org, where Allison will be happy to assist you.
Thank you, as always, for being a member of MiPA! We look forward to seeing you at the May meeting and at the Midwest Book Awards Gala in June!