This is my second year going to BEA and I am so excited! It is seriously the best time. If you are thinking about going in the future, stop thinking, and JUST GO! It is completely worth every penny you have to spend on travel costs. I thought that since I am now a BEA veteran (LMAO) that I would share some tips for those of you who will be joining me there this week. I will also share my top ten books I am looking forward to grabbing.
~TIPS~
1. Dress Comfortably - I didn't know what the dress code was going to be like when I went for the first time last year so I packed mostly business casual outfits. I figured it was going to be a little bit of a dressy event since your meeting authors and publishers, but when I got there I saw that everyone was dressed very casual and for good reason. You are going to be on your feet all day running around or sitting in long lines so you might as well skip the dress pants or skirts and wear jeans and a t-shirt. If you want to dress to impress wear a nice blouse.
2. Bring Tennis Shoes - Again, since I didn't know the dress code I wore dressy flats for the first two days and my feet were KILLING me. Make sure to wear comfortable shoes, because you will be on your feet literally the whole time you're in New York.
3. Get there early - Make sure to get to everything early. You will thank yourself in the long run if you make sure to get to all the signings a half hour early. I did this last year and was front of the line almost every time. Also make sure to get to the Javits Center as soon as you can, because people line up at the door as soon as they can and you wanna make sure you don't miss out on some awesome arc drops when the doors open.
4. Make friends - The best thing to do is to turn around and introduce yourself to the people standing in line with you. They are all book lovers and are your kind of people. Conversation will come easy since you obviously have similar book interests since you're in the same line. Not only will you make fast friends, but you will be introduced to new blogs to check out. Also you can save each others spots in really long lines so the other can go look for more ARC's to grab for the both of you.
5. Bring Snacks - The lines are long and you probably have your entire day planned to go from signing to signing. If you can't sneak in a real lunch make sure to bring snacks to keep your energy up until you can get some real food. Your stomach will thank you.
6. Have Business Cards - Literally everyone there will have them as well and will want to trade cards with you. Make sure to not only include your blog URL, but also your Twitter, Pinterest, Facebook etc., so that everyone can easily follow you. It's also really cool to trade business cards to get inspiration for your own business cards.
7. USE those Business Cards - Ok, you have the business cards, but now what? PASS THEM OUT! Make sure to get your blog's name out there. I didn't only trade business cards with other bloggers and attendee's, but I also made sure to give them to the authors I was getting books signed from and to publishers that I was meeting. You want to make as many connections as possible to not only help your blog, but possibly help you out in the future.
8. Be Polite and Kind - There are so many people attending that you never know who is around you. Make sure to always be on your best behavior in case an author or publisher is around watching. You don't want to make a fool of yourself. Also if you are kind, others will be kind back and everyone likes good karma.
9. Make time to look around - There are books being constantly handed out. Make sure to leave some room to explore the floor between signings to grab some really awesome ARC's.
10. Have Fun - Make sure to enjoy your time there. If you are a true book lover this is like book heaven and should be treated as such. If you don't get a book you wanted, it's ok you can buy it, get it off NetGalley, or win it in a giveaway. Just remember to enjoy the books and connections you make to make the most of your trip.
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Top Ten Books I am Excited to Grab
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Look For Me
Here is what I look like so make sure if you see me to stop me and say hello. I love talking about books and such so make sure to make friends with me and we will gossip lol. Also I will be at the BEA Book Blogger Picnic that is being held in central park on Friday. Make sure to attend that also and say hello =D
