Making Waves Newsletter 7/25/25

7/25/2025

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GLIBA Regional Newsletter: July 25, 2025

REGIONAL BESTSELLERS

PUBLISHER PROMOTIONS

ARC PREFERENCE FORM

JOIN OR RENEW MEMBERSHIP

Important Links & Deadlines

Board of Directors Nomination Voting -- closes July 28th
Heartland Fall Forum Attendee Registration
HFF Hotel Booking Link -- September 20th, 5pm EST
HFF Author Pitch Submissions -- July 31st

HEARTLAND FALL FORM

Heartland Fall Forum Registration is Now Live!!

Join us in Indianapolis, Indiana for a three-day celebration of independent bookselling, including awards celebrations, author events, bookstore tours, education, networking, and a vibrant trade show floor where booksellers and our industry partners can do business together and get to know one another. Heartland Fall Forum is hosted collaboratively by the Great Lakes Independent Booksellers Associatio n and the Midwest Independent Booksellers Association. We can't wait to see you all in Indy!

Hotel Booking Information

Heartland Fall Forum has a block of rooms reserved for attendees at the location of the conference:

The Indianapolis Marriott Downtown:

350 W Maryland, Indianapolis IN 46225

View Heartland's booking link

$239 per night, booking deadline September 20, 2025 at 5pm EST

Subject to availability, our group rate is available to attendees for three days prior to, and three days after the dates of the show.

Hotel Booking Link

Exhibitor Registration is Open!

Thank you for supporting this event! We have lots of info on the way for exhibiting at and/or attending Heartland Fall Forum 2025 in Indianapolis. Click HERE for a full list of exhibitor table cost and options. If you have any questions, please email Larry Law [email protected] or February Spikener, [email protected].

Exhibitor Registration Form

HFF Author Submissions Form

Voice of the Heartland Nomination Form

ASSOCIATION NEWS

GLIBA Board of Directors Nominates Uriel Perez of Penguin Random House

Please vote to confirm our incoming board member, who will begin their term prior to the annual membership meeting on at Heartland Fall Forum in October 2025 in Indianapolis, IN. Click here for the link to the voting form.

Monday, July 28th is the last day to vote! If you have any questions, please reach out GLIBA Executive Director Larry Law at [email protected].

About Uriel Perez

Uriel Perez is a native Texan living in Chicago, IL. He has been working in books since 2016, holding various positions at BookPeople in Austin, TX and later in the marketing and events department at the University of Texas Press. He has been serving indie bookstores in the Midwest as a sales rep for Penguin Random House since 2023.

BOARD MEMBER VOTING FORM

REGIONAL NEWS

Cover to Cover Children's Books (Columbus, OH) Featured In USA TODAY!

Every week, USA Today spotlights an independent bookstore on theUSA Today Books page!For an opportunity to be featured, ABA member bookstores can fill out this google form and pitch your bookstore to USA Today. Read the profile on Cover to Cover here and enjoy the preview below!

What’s your store’s story?

Cover to Cover Children's Books is one of the oldest children's bookstores in the United States. Founded in 1980, the bookshop has a long history of serving children, families and educators. We are a welcoming bookshop located in a historic, 100-year-old building, and we have hosted many unique events with internationally recognized authors and illustrators.

What makes your independent bookstore unique?

Cover to Cover is proudest of fostering a love of reading over generations. Children who grew up going to Cover to Cover events with legends like Eric Carle and Helen Oxenbury are now parents who instill a love of stories in their children. Customers love our welcoming and inclusive shop, and they appreciate our active involvement in the community through our kindness initiative and events like the Columbus Book Festival, which draws tens of thousands of people.

What book do you love to recommend to customers and why?

We absolutely love "The Green Kingdom" by authors Cornelia Funke and Tammi Hartung with illustrations by Melissa Castrillon. This middle grade novel for ages 10 and up has it all – mystery, history in a contemporary setting, a beautifully diverse cast of characters and a satisfying ending.

Read the Full Profile on Cover to Cover in USA Today

Heartland Fall Forum Virtual Office Hours

Below are the sessions for August 2025:

August 5th & 19th, 10am & 4pm CST: Attendee and Exhibitor Registration

Click here for the Google Meet link for sessions, or click the button below to the Events page on the GLIBA site. For any questions, reach out to Executive Coordinator February Spikener at [email protected].

INDUSTRY NEWS

Professional Bookseller School: Bookstore Year One

The Professional Booksellers School has a great new project in development: Bookstore Year One!

This will be year-long learning community for new store owners; new members can join any month and stay for the full year. Each month they'll cover a different topic, with videos and other learning materials created by experienced owners, then host meetings via Zoom to ask questions and get advice.

The course will go live in the fall of 2025. By signing up now you are expressing interest and ensuring you'll be the first to get news about costs and registration dates. Sign up now and you'll be given a private, pre-enrollment period!

EARLY INTEREST LIST REGISTRATION

BIPOC BOOKSELLER AWARD NOMINATIONS OPEN

The annual Duende-Word BIPOC Bookseller Awards nominations are open through July 31. This award celebrates three booksellers whose dedication to supporting the economic success of storytelling from the margins has positively influenced the industry. Awards are issued in the categories of Activism, Innovation and Leadership. Everyone is welcome to nominate! It doesn't matter whether you are a colleague, a bookseller, a community member, reader, customer, author - all are welcome, including self-nominations. The winners will receive honors during #MarginsBooksellingMonth, a plaque, and a $1000 prize.

4th Annual Black Lit Weekend

The 4th annual Black Lit Weekend will be held in Newark, NJ from August 14th - 17th, and be a weekend of community building, development, and empowerment. Register today!

Early bird registration pricing ends on June 30th, and space is filling up fast. Additionally, if you’re planning to book your stay in Newark, be sure to reserve your room under our discounted hotel block at Tryp Hotel by July 23rd. Rooms are first come, first served, and availability is limited. Use Group Name: Black Lit Weekend or code: 081425BLA Read More

Interested in being a sponsor for Black Lit Weekend 2025? This is a fantastic opportunity for brands and organizations to support and gain visibility and build relationship with Black-owned bookstores. For more information on sponsorship, tabling or other activation opportunities, please reach out to [email protected].

Apply for the Sisters in Crime

"We Love Bookstores" $500 Award

Sisters in Crime, an organization of crime writers and readers, has a long-standing commitment to supporting and partnering with bookstores. In addition to publishing the We Love Bookstores Newsletter, the organization also gives six bimonthly $500 We Love Bookstores Awards to bookstores in the United States, Canada, the UK, and Europe, where Sisters in Crime has local chapters. Find the easy online application on SinC's website here .

Please send questions about Sisters in Crime or the WLB Award application to Susan Hammerman, [email protected].

Bookstore Romance Day is a day designed to give independent bookstores an opportunity to celebrate Romance fiction—its books, readers, and writers—and to strengthen the relationships between bookstores and the Romance community.

Mark your calendars for Saturday, August 9, 2025 -- the seventh celebration of Bookstore Romance Day! Click here for information and to sign up to participate!

Indie-to-Indie Playlist:

Women in Translation

Publisher members of the Independent Publishers Caucus have curated a lists of titles to help populate and distinguish your displays this month. The theme for August is Women in Translation. Click here to View the list in Edelweiss!