ALA Conference Recap Part One

Although the major reason I attended the American Library Association annual conference in Chicago from July 10-14 was to do the first signing for my new book Living in More Than One World: How Peter Drucker’s Wisdom Can Inspire and Transform Your Life, the conference was a valuable professional experience as well. I’ve been a librarian since 1987, and a longtime member of ALA, but this was my first ALA annual conference. The size and scale is considerably bigger than the Special Libraries Association annual conference, which I’ve attended four times. I was prepared to be overwhelmed, but I managed OK.  There was more than one session at a time of interest, and the exhibit hall was huge, with vendors I would have liked to have investigated in more depth. There were many writers at the ALA’s LIVE! @ your library Reading Stage, as well as others who signed books at various booths. A major example of the latter, complete with huge lines, was Neil Gaiman. I knew I couldn’t do it all, and planned out my schedule each day before I left my hotel. The conference was mainly held at the massive McCormick Place complex. The signage was generally good, and it was relatively easy to get around. Friday was devoted to getting to Chicago and settling in, registering at the conference and getting the lay of the land. Saturday revolved around my book signing, with the rest of the day spent touring the exhibits and networking. (The latter activity was all-pervasive during my entire time in town.) Sunday and Monday were mainly devoted to attending sessions. I met friends who live in or were visiting Chicago — not for the conference — for meals on Friday, Saturday and Monday. Although it was tempting to go to the author readings, I couldn’t justify doing that when there were so many educational sessions that I wouldn’t be able to attend otherwise. More on the latter in my post tomorrow.