Publishing Industry Leaders Build a Reimagined DBW Event, Which Includes Four Concurrent Tracks for DBW 2017 and the New DBW Indie Author Conference

NEW YORK - The 8th Annual Digital Book World (DBW), the premier event for publishers and their partners, Jan. 17 - 19, 2017 in N.Y.C., is planning two full days of programming that will run in four concurrent tracks (on Jan. 17 and 18). Day 3 (on Jan. 19) will see the launch of DBW Indie Author: The First Conference for the New Professional Author.

Under the direction of Conference Chair Ted Hill of THA Consulting, the DBW 2017 education program is spearheaded by six leading publishing experts, who will all act as "Conference Captains" for their areas of expertise. The event takes place once again at the New York Hilton Midtown, and registration and program details will be available next month at digitalbookworldconference.com.

At DBW 2017 (@DigiBookWorld - #DBW17), publishing professionals and their technology partners will come together to learn about the latest tools and techniques for smarter book publishing in a digital world. Attendees will be able to get up-to-date on key issues and opportunities that will help them get ahead for the coming year; to learn strategies from both familiar faces and new voices; and to connect with the industry's leading executives, experts and innovators. The event will feature Educational Sessions, Workshops and thought-provoking Main Stage Presentations.

DBW 2017 Conference Captains
Four DBW Conference Captains will each curate a specific DBW 2017 educational program. "We've put together a great new team who bring a fresh perspective and a more practical focus to DBW 2017," said Conference Chair Ted Hill. The DBW 2017 Conference Captains include:

---Laura Dail (@LCDail), president of Laura Dail Literary Agency, Inc.

---Bill Kasdorf (@BillKasdorf), vice president and principal consultant of Apex Content Solutions

---Rick Pascocello, marketing consultant and literary agent with Glass Literary Management

---Kempton Mooney (@kemptonm), senior director of research and analytics for Nielsen Book

DBW 2017 Conference Captain Bill Kasdorf said, "Publishers have never had more options for producing and distributing their books --- and making sense of all that is harder than ever. DBW 2017 is here to help. How can your workflows be made to really work, to deliver in all the formats your customers demand? How can you publish faster --- and better --- at the same time? How can you get more mileage out of your intellectual property? How can you do all this more efficiently and economically than you do today? Come to DBW to hear from the people who are making all these things happen, day in and day out - and who will share their strategies and secrets of success with you."

Focused Education for Publishers and Their Partners
DBW 2017's overall education themes and topics include:

---Editorial Acquisitions + Development - In this track, authors, editors, agents and others involved in acquiring, selling and developing books will learn the latest sales trends, debate the important issues, and gain insights into how they can better work together to bring their titles to market. Topics include: What's Working and What's Not; How to Make the Most Effective Use of Social Media; How to Take Advantage of the Growing Market for Audiobooks; Hybrid Authors; Authors and Editors as Business Partners; and When Is It Really Worth the Effort to Create Extra Content and Customized Works. Conference Captain: Laura Dail.

---Production + Distribution - This track will address issues that speak to production, operations and supply chain professionals involved in producing and distributing books. Topics include: Workflows That Work: How to Reduce Friction in Your Products, Processes and People; Tools for Agile Publishing; Accessibility Master Class: It's Not Rocket Science, and You're Closer Than You Think; Case Studies in Vendor Managed Inventory; and Think Platform, Not Product: It's All About the Customer. Conference Captain: Bill Kasdorf.

---Marketing + Sales - For professionals who want to know What Works Now to Sell Books, the Latest in Book Influencer Marketing, and Successful Marketing Skills, this track will look at: Social Media Strategies That Deliver Results; Facebook Masterclass; Measuring Social Media ROI; Social Commerce and How Images Travel Across Social Media; Newsletters and Other Direct Communication Channels; The Current State of Retail; The Modern Marketing Budget; and Today's Top 5 Things to Teach Authors About Book Marketing. Conference Captain: Rick Pascocello.

---Analysis + Reporting - For anyone from the publishing community who wants to make better use of data from multiple sources, analytics and sales reports, this track will cover: Analyzing the Analytics; Pricing Strategies; Forecasting; and How to Bring More Data into the Sales and Marketing Process. Conference Captain: Kempton Mooney.

DBW Indie Author: The First Conference for the New Professional Author
Are you the "new professional author"? If you are, you're driving your own career. You direct your own output. You position your own branding. You coordinate your own production. You execute on your own market strategy. And even if you've published traditionally, you know you're an indie, an entrepreneur, an agent of your own success. The DBW Indie Author conference is the "First Conference for the New Professional Author," and it will cover the landscape for independent and hybrid authors. The Conference Captains for the DBW Indie Author conference include:

---Jane Friedman (@JaneFriedman), editor and publisher of The Hot Sheet, columnist with Publishers Weekly, a professor with The Great Courses, and an award-winning blogger at JaneFriedman.com

---Porter Anderson (@Porter_Anderson), co-founder of The Hot Sheet, editor-in-chief of Publishing Perspectives, and principal of Porter Anderson Media

Porter Anderson said, "In bringing The Hot Sheet's publishing insights to DBW Indie Author on Jan. 19, we're enabling what one key observer has called 'increasingly sophisticated authors' who are ready to benefit from 'increasingly sophisticated consultants,' resources and services. Our speakers know that indie authors are at a turning point. After years of development, the independent movement is coming into its own. The high at DBW Indie Author will be catching a new direction, spotting a new trend, putting together a new approach to access the marketplace with know-how and networking. It's why the 'new professional author' is a winner."

Conference Captain Jane Friedman said, "The DBW program for indie authors offers both a high-level view of the current indie author landscape - its challenges and opportunities --- as well as practical, nuts and bolts information on how to be better, more professional publishers. In addition, the DBW program will offer attendees the chance to talk with some of the most important service providers and get first-hand information that helps them decide how to move forward with their publishing goals."

Friedman added, "The landscape for independent and hybrid authors is ever shifting, and that creates a lot of questions and confusion among people who are very new to the industry, and frankly for those who are experienced as well. There's a proliferation of businesses out there that serve the indie author market, especially when it comes to book distribution and marketing, but not much information or instruction on how to make the best decision for your career, given your book or your goals. DBW's new Indie Author Conference on Jan. 19 will address all of these important topics."