PLA here I come!
by Shari Randall
Next week I’ll be at the Public Library Association conference in Nashville, Tennessee. I’ll be signing at the Sisters in Crime booth 1745 on Thursday, February 27, at 3 pm. I hope you’ll stop by to say hello!
Writers have to evaluate each conference they attend, carefully consider how precious time and money will be spent. Attending library focused conferences, especially one geared to librarians who work in public libraries, is a no-brainer for me.
Public librarians, like booksellers, have a unique relationship with readers. In polls of most trusted professions, librarians always top the list. They know what we read, what we say we read and don’t finish, and which books come back tattered, water stained, and well loved. They know which books have waiting lists and which award winners are returned time after time unfinished.
Librarians have a sharp eye for breakout writers and popular titles. A year before the whole world went crazy for vampire books, librarians were sharing news of a book called Twilight that they couldn’t keep on the shelves.
That’s why I’m eager to go to PLA – I can’t wait to see what books are on the librarians’ radar for 2020 and beyond. I know I’ll come back with a suitcase full of ARCs and ideas.
What conferences do you enjoy?
