{"id":2315,"date":"2016-06-29T09:47:34","date_gmt":"2016-06-29T17:47:34","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.tavbooks.com\/?p=2315"},"modified":"2016-06-29T09:50:06","modified_gmt":"2016-06-29T17:50:06","slug":"rare-books-and-manuscripts-galore-we-get-a-low-down-of-last-weeks-rbms-conference-from-our-very-own-attendee","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/blog.tavbooks.com\/?p=2315","title":{"rendered":"Rare Books and Manuscripts Galore! We Get a Low-Down of Last Week’s RBMS Conference from Our Very Own Attendee!"},"content":{"rendered":"

Vic, how many years have you attended RBMS for now?<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

My first RBMS Conference, then called the Preconference for the conference precedes the big ALA event, was in San Francisco, 2002.\u00a0 I was the local ABAA rep to the RBMS Local Affairs committee, and helped with things like stuffing the book bag, helping arrange the ABAA hosted reception, etc.\u00a0 The conference hotel was the Fairmont, which is a lovely hotel at the top of Nob Hill.\u00a0 I confess I don\u2019t remember too many specifics of the conference itself, just have an overall impression of enjoying the week.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"IMG_3096\"<\/a>What are some of your most favorite past locales where it has been held?<\/span><\/p>\n

Having just returned from Miami, I can definitely say that locale was one of my favorites, though one prior that does stick out was a number of years ago [2009] when the conference was held in Charlottesville, VA to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the event.\u00a0 Always like travelling to Charlottesville.\u00a0 Another that comes to mind was that of 2013, which was held in Minneapolis.\u00a0 The reason this one is memorable is because, even though I was registrered, I had to cancel at the last minute, as I contracted a bout of pleurisy [as you may also remember!].\u00a0 Ouch!<\/span><\/p>\n


\nCould you give us a walk-through of this weekend, or a typical RBMS weekend? Conferences, showcases – give us the low-down!<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

The week is filled with sessions & panels, etc., etc.\u00a0 As you might imagine, as one of the trade, not all issues germane to the librarian community has relevance to my work, however, by better understanding those issues important to my institutional clientele, I can better serve them, which is my job.\u00a0 The bookseller showcase is an adjunct to the conference, which provides the curators attending the conference an opportunity to sample the wares of my colleagues & discuss with those exhibiting booksellers their needs\/wants.<\/span><\/p>\n


\nWhat have you learned at this past RBMS? What conferences did you attend and who struck you as a phenomenally\u00a0great speaker?<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>

The Chairman of Florida’s Welcome Committee!<\/p><\/div>\n

The individual that immediately comes to mind, Pellom McDaniels, was a speaker this year at the\u00a0<\/span>Thursday<\/span><\/span>\u00a0afternoon panel [\u201cA Broad and Deep Look at Outreach\u201d] held at the University of Miami.\u00a0 The intent of the session was \u201cto demonstrate the myriad ways special collections and archives can engage and interact with multiple constituencies.\u201d\u00a0 This fellow from Emory was high energy, engaged & enthusiastic.\u00a0 And you could tell from his presentation, that he had achieved the goal of \u201cengaging & interacting\u201d.\u00a0 It was good to see that, at least in his case, special collections was reaching out beyond the reading room, and showing the community the wonders that lie behind the mahogany doors.<\/span><\/p>\n

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\nWhy do you do the RBMS showcase? Is it to sell? Or is it rather to meet new people?\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

The intent of the showcase is to provide an opportunity for both the bookseller & the librarian communities to interact.\u00a0 It is most definitely NOT a bookfair.\u00a0 Remember, the booksellers are there as an adjunct to the conference, in other words, the showcase is not the main event.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Some<\/a>

Some of the usual suspects…<\/p><\/div>\n

Would you recommend attending RBMS to other booksellers? What about newbie booksellers? Librarians?<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

If institutional clientele are part of your business model, or you wish to add them to your customer list, then yes, the showcase provides an *opportunity* to do this.\u00a0 Granted, it\u2019s not the only way, just one way, especially if you are a new ABAA member, it\u2019s one way to do so.\u00a0 As for the librarian community, if your responsibilites include collection develeopment, then yes, meeting and talking with the exhibiting booksellers can help you with this facet of your job.\u00a0 Afterall, if you\u2019re fishing [for books], why not cast a wide net?<\/span>

In summary, this past week was a great one-\u00a0 both from a program perspective, as well as a venue.\u00a0 The Biltmore Hotel is a grand old lady, whose elegance if fading somewhat, but she still outshines many younger models.\u00a0 Next year\u2019s conference will be in Iowa City.\u00a0 While certainly it\u2019ll be different than Miami, I have no doubt it too will be a success.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"IMG_3070\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"Share\"\/<\/a>