Mel Barton from Australian online retailer Bookworld raised the issue of inconsistent book covers in a digital marketplace. Led by Beth Driscoll (University of Melbourne) with Mel Barton (Bookworld), Lou Johnson (Simon & Schuster) and myself. Panel on book cover design and the challenges of designing for online retailers. A recurring conversation was how publishers can help authors develop and maintain their brand. Angel argues authors of YA fiction need to extend their writing skills to include managing content “horizontally” across platforms and consider how their readers will interact with and expand the content.Īuthors are increasingly expected to develop and maintain an online “ brand” for themselves. Teens still read longform books alone, but want to share their experience in networked, highly social environments. “ Prosumers.”Īn example of this was given by Khyiah Angel, who addressed ways digital natives (specifically young adults) read and interact with novels. Aaron Mannion described a more participatory literary culture developing, in which readers move beyond being consumers of content to contributors or producers of content. Part of the system of publishing and writing now includes reader participation. In her proposed bibliodiverse publishing ecosystem, there is a complex and self-sustaining system of publishing and writing. Hawthorne likens independent presses to the rings of fungus growing around the base of trees, feeding the literary soil and maintaining socio-cultural diversity. Susan Hawthorne’s keynote drew from her new book Bibliodiversity: A Manifesto for Independent Publishing. Independent presses contribute to the publishing ecosystem like fungi enriching the soil at the base of trees.

Bibliodiversity by Susan Hawthorne