The Online Book Fair by LBF will run a series of events over three weeks in June, offering varied content for different audiences throughout the month. The programme will shine a spotlight on key areas of the Fair, creating the opportunity for a larger global audience than ever before to come together in a flexible way to network, learn, and share ideas.
Matt Haig, one of the UK’s bestselling and most popular writers, has been named Author of the Fair. Matt will take part in an exclusive In Conversation… event during the Fair.
Four of LBF’s world-renowned conferences will take place online during the week commencing June 7th. Introductions to Rights (June 7th) will explore how to sell rights, for those looking into a career in rights or who have recently joined the industry; authors and aspiring writers will get the inside track from publishing experts on how to get your writing noticed during The Writers’ Summit (June 8th); What Works? Education Conference (June 9th) will provide educational publishers, EdTech organisations and educationalists with insights into the international developments impacting their industries and markets, with distinguished speakers from across the world speaking about what they’ve learnt from COVID-19 and what the future holds; Research & Scholarly Publishing Forum (10th June) will tackle Open Access, looking at the issues shaping the future of academic publishing and giving participants an overview of the new infrastructure and service developments that underpin research information.
The Online Book Fair by LBF platform will open on June 21st with a mix of talks, panels and breakout sessions. On June 22nd, there will be a full day of Industry Insights sessions, with opportunities to hear the latest thought leadership on a range of issues affecting the book industry today. How to Masterclasses, a series of educational workshops by LBF exhibitors, will also be running.
The focus on June 23rd will be on tech, with a stream titled Digital Technology: What’s Next for Publishing, which will share the latest innovations and case studies for doing business in a digital world. On June 24th there will be content devoted to Children’s & Edutainment as well as The Scholarly Stream. Discussions will also be held around adapting to a new shift in working patterns and demographics in People Development: Re-Skilling Our Industry.
The following week on June 29th, the winners of The LBF International Excellence Awards 2021 will be celebrated with In conversation with… sessions. Authors will also be able to enjoy a range of inspiring content through the Authors: Central to Our Business stream, which will include Author HQ. On June 30th the focus will shift to writing, with sessions programmed in the Literary Translation: Making Words Travel stream, and the English PEN Literary Salon. The final day of the Online Book Fair on July 1st will feature The Business of Books sessions programmed by BIC and the Booksellers Association. The Association of Illustrators Masterclass will offer illustrators the opportunity to network with leading industry art directors.
From July 2nd - 16th all Online Book Fair content will be available on demand. LBF will return to its usual Spring dates on April 5th – 7th, 2022.
