Each July, I travel to New York City with Carolyn Bess, the DMA’s director of programming and Arts & Letters Live, to meet with publicists at all the major publishing houses. We get a sneak peek at which authors will have new books out during the Arts & Letters Live season and who will be touring to promote their book. Arts & Letters Live relies heavily on author tours to create the best possible season line-up. Once we return from New York, we sift through our notes and prioritize a wish list of authors for the upcoming season. This past week, we were in New York for this annual planning trip. It is always a complete whirlwind. Here is a by-the-numbers look at this year’s Arts & Letters Live season planning trip (along with a few photos from our journey):
2 tickets to New York
5 days
30 meetings with
50 publicists
97 pages of notes
380+ books pitched
1 unforgettable season (check the DMA’s website this fall for the season announcement!)
At the airport with our tickets in hand
A view of New York City from the airplane window
The lobby of Random House
Another view of the lighted bookcase in the lobby that showcases some well known-Random House books.
Carolyn checking in at Random House offices
A waiting area in the Hachette offices features book covers and quotations from some of their well-known authors (visible in this photo are Jon Stewart and Nicholas Sparks)
Our meetings on Tuesday morning were in the iconic Flatiron Building, home to Macmillan Publishers
Carolyn chatting with a publicist from W.W. Norton
Carolyn looking through a catalog at the Penguin offices
In spite of the hectic pace of the week, we did find a little free time. On Thursday night, we went to see Horton Foote’s THE TRIP TO BOUNTIFUL on Broadway
Even our free time was filled with books. I visited an incredible exhibition at the New York Public Library called The abc of it, Why Children’s Books Matter
The exhibition included original drawings from ALICE’S ADVENTURES IN WONDERLAND c. 1885 by John Tenniel (Henry W. and Albert A Berg Collection of English and American literature)
P.L. Travers’ umbrella (author of MARY POPPINS), Rare Books Division, NYPL
A look at financier Pierpont Morgan’s library, on display at the Morgan Library and Museum
To go with our book-themed week, even the windows of Saks were decked out with books!
Just a few of the dozens of books sent to us to consider
Katie Hutton is the Program Manager of Arts & Letters Live at the DMA.
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