Remember Your Libraries

As authors, we focus on selling our books to readers, to bookstores, to online bookstores, to reading groups, to whoever will buy them. We sometimes forget that libraries buy books, too. And people check out those books and could become avid readers of other books by that author.

So, not only is it good to remember libraries, we should support them and pay attention to them.

To that end, I read a report in the Library Journal on the recent ALA 2010 in DC. ALA stands for the American Library Association. Like just about all of us, the ALA is having budget problems. Even attendance at ALA 2010 was down. The attendees -- 26,201 in total, with 19,513 attendees and 6,688 exhibitors – were upbeat and focused.

The Library Journal article is a long one and I urge you to read the full report, but here are just a few highlights:

Consonant with findings unveiled at the conference that the most important role for library computers is supporting job seekers, followed by access to online government information, Emily Sheketoff, executive director of ALA's Washington Office, noted that states use LSTA [Library Services and Technology Act] monies to pay for databases used by job seekers.

At the popular Top Technology Trends panel, hosted by ALA's Library & Information Technology Association (LITA), the topics included cloud computing, the impact of the iPad, and the ereader price war. If the latter leads to $50 ereaders by next year, as discussed, that could be disruptive to the book and library worlds.

As for a near-term trend, Dempsey suggested that as search platforms like Cambridge, MA–based Pubget's search engine for life-science PDFs make an increasing amount of a library's collection instantly available electronically, they will come to be seen as the primary way to access a library's materials.

Sacramento, CA–based information technology consultant Joan Frye Williams said libraries should work toward being the place that content creation happens, to "stop being the grocery store, and start being the kitchen," she said.

 You can also read how libraries across the country are multi-purposing their facilities and you can get ideas how you, as an author, could help both your library and yourself.

If you’ve spoken or taught a class or done something with a library, tell us about it here in the comments. It’d be fun to hear the different ways we can support libraries.