Book Friends Forever Podcast

Grace and Alvina wrap up the year of 2024 by looking back on the year, sharing some highlights and lowlights, and also taking stock of how successful they were at keeping their new year's resolutions. They also talk about the favorite things they consumed in 2024! See complete show notes at www.bookfriendsforever.com . Click here to become a Patreon member: https://www.patreon.com/Bookfriendsforev...

Grace and Alvina are joined by special guest Alison Morris to talk about various topics, including the industry's efforts to help encourage children to read, especially in the middle grade space. They discuss end of the year "best of" lists and how authors should try to remember the reason they write. And, they talk about some of their favorite holiday books. See complete show notes at www.bookfri...

Grace and Alvina talk about the concept of deep work, and our diminished attention spans. They discuss the books Deep Work by Cal Newport and Attention Span by Gloria Mark, and share takeaways and how they've incorporated deep work into their lives, including tips and techniques. For the Fortune Cookie segment they talk about the Taylor Swift book and how it was self-published. See complete show n...

Grace and Alvina give some holiday gift recommendations for readers, editors, authors, illustrators, kids, and more! For the Fortune Cookie segment, they talk about two bits of publishing news regarding Artifical Intelligence. See complete show notes at www.bookfriendsforever.com . Click here to become a Patreon member: https://www.patreon.com/Bookfriendsforever1 . See info about Grace Lin's books...

Grace and Alvina continue their "publishing curriculum" series and welcome special guest Danielle Cantarella, Executive Director of Sales at Hachette Book Group. They discuss everything from how she got her start in publishing (it's a surprising path!), how she used to sell in to Barnes & Noble, what she thinks about preorders, and what her least and most favorite parts of her job are. For the For...

Grace and Alvina have an odds and ends episode where they discuss what they think the trends for next year will be, they discuss a new site for discovering writers called The Black List, and they talk about the concept of "house trust" and how that might relate to authors and publishing. And then Alvina shares some recommendations from the LBYR list for potential holiday gift giving. See complete...

Grace and Alvina continue their "publishing curriculum" series and welcome special guest Katie Tucker, Senior National Account Manager at Hachette Book Group. They discuss everything from how she got her start in publishing, how she works closely with the School and Library Marketing department, if she pitches every book on the list, and her favorite part of her job. For the Fortune Cookie segment...

Alvina and Grace are back from vacation and have been dealing with transitioning back to work mode. They also talk about how it was transitioning to vacation mode from work! They share some tips on making the transition as well. For the Fortune Cookie segment, they discuss a Publishers Weekly article about four children's book imprints that are celebrating their 5-year anniversaries. See complete...

Grace and Alvina and their friend and special guest Anna Alter are in Bermuda celebrating turning 50 this year! They talk about the past, present, and future in terms of how they feel being a half-century old. They discuss how they felt before turning 50, how they feel now that they're all 50 years old, and what they're looking forward to in their next decade of life. For the Fortune Cookie segmen...

Grace and Alvina have an odds and ends episode where they discuss hybrid work vs full remote work, the controversy surrounding the company Bobba and actor Simu Liu, and how they would use the money if they won the MacArthur Genius Grant. Then Alison Morris joins to share some book recommendations. See complete show notes at www.bookfriendsforever.com . Click here to become a Patreon member: https:...

Grace and Alvina continue their "publishing curriculum" series and welcome special guest Julie Isgrigg, Independent Bookstore Representative. They discuss everything from how she got her start in publishing (Julie, Grace, and Alvina have all worked in the industry for 25 years!), her philosophy for selling books into bookstores, what she feels authors can do to help sell their books, and her favor...

Grace and Alvina discuss longevity in the publishing industry, both as an author and illustrator and as an editor, using a recent podcast episode and a Publishers Weekly article as a jumping-off point. They discuss the two main qualities authors (and editors!) need to survive in in the industry, and they also discuss how publishing jobs have diminished in the last 30 years, and how to increase you...

Grace and Alvina are recording together in Brooklyn! They discuss the difference between cynicism and skepticism, and which one is "a poison pill" and why it's important to stat hopeful. For the Fortune Cookie segment, they discuss a recent article in Publisher Weekly related to Banned Book Week, about the impact of book bans on authors. And, of course, they end with what they're grateful for. See...

Grace and Alvina have an odds and ends episode where they're joined by Children's Literature Specialist Alison Morris to catch up with each other's lives and see what her life has been like since leaving First Book! Alvina and Grace discuss the Court of Appeals ruling on Hachette vs Internet Archive, and a recent essay about a bestselling author self publishing. Then Allison rejoins them and they...

Grace and Alvina continue their "publishing curriculum" series and welcome special guest Savannah Kennelly, Senior Digital Marketing Manager at LBYR. They discuss everything from how she got her start in publishing, what digital marketing actually means, and tips for authors about social media, including some of the specific challenges of marketing middle grade books. She also reveals how long it...

Grace and Alvina continue their "publishing curriculum" series and welcome special guest Bill Grace, Senior Marketing Manager at LBYR. They discuss everything from how he got his start in publishing, what trade marketing actually means, if publishers can "make" a bestseller, and how marketing has changed over the years. Plus, he gives some advice to authors about social media and working with your...

Grace and Alvina continue their "publishing curriculum" series and welcome special guest Cheryl Lew, Associate Director of Publilcity. They discuss everything from how she got her start in publishing, to what goes into the decision to send authors on tour or to festivals, to how books and authors are pitched to media, and how important preorders are. For the Fortune Cookie segment, they talk about...

Grace and Alvina have an odds and ends episode where they answer some listener questions, including a couple about the middle grade market. They discuss a TedTalk about the four stages of retirement, and they talk about a New York Times piece where author Curtis Sittenfeld challenged ChatGPT in writing a short story beach read. And then they give some book recomendations. See complete show notes a...

Grace and Alvina celebrate their 25 years in the publishing industry and share their top ten career highlights so far, including how they got their starts. For the Fortune Cookie segment, they talk about what they've been eating lately!  See complete show notes at www.bookfriendsforever.com . Click here to become a Patreon member: https://www.patreon.com/Bookfriendsforever1 . See info about Grace...

Grace and Alvina continue their "publishing curriculum" series and welcome special guest Christie Michel, Senior Marketing Manager, to talk about School and Library Marketing. The discuss everything from how she got her start in publishing, to how authors are pitched for conferences and what Christie's favorite conference is. For the Fortune Cookies segment, they talk about what they've been readi...

Grace and Alvina talk about what they envision their eventual retirement will look like (don't worry, it's still a long time away for both of them), including some of the things they need to do to prepare. They were inspired to talk about this topic because of the recent retirement of some long-time editors. For the Fortune Cookie segment, they talk about their favorite moments of the Summer Olymp...

Grace and Alvina have an odds and ends episode where they discuss a bunch of publishing news, including publishing imprint closures, new imprints, moves, and changes. The talk about the firing of a literary agent due to social media, soft censorship, Authors Against Book Bans, and Barnes & Noble. And then Alison Morris shares some big news involving herself, and gives some book recommendations. Se...

Alvina is back from her 50th Birthday vacation to Banff! Grace and Alvina talk about how their present selves inform their future selves. For the Fortune Cookie segment, they talk about at what age they'd want to freeze themselves. See complete show notes at www.bookfriendsforever.com . Click here to become a Patreon member: https://www.patreon.com/Bookfriendsforever1 . See info about Grace Lin's...

Grace and Alvina discuss two different podcasts on similar topics: how to bring sparkle back into your life, and how to experience awe.  For the fortune cookie segment, they talk about the last thing they've purchased. See complete show notes at  www.bookfriendsforever.com . Click here to become a Patreon member: https://www.patreon.com/Bookfriendsforever1 . See info about Grace Lin's books here:...

Grace and Alvina look back at their new year's resolutions to see if they've made any progress (spoiler alert--they have!). For their fortune cookie segment, they talk about what song best represents their graduation. Also, hear about Alvina's mega family reunion trip to Puerto Rico! See complete show notes at www.bookfriendsforever.com . Click here to become a Patreon member: https://www.patreon....