BC Book and Magazine Week: Coming Soon!

(Cross posted from my Up in Ontario blog.)

The week that runs from Saturday, April 22, 2006 to Saturday, April 29, 2006 is BC Book and Magazine Week in these here parts. I’m working with the folks at the Association of Book Publishers of BC (ABPBC) and the BC Association of Magazine Publishers (BCAMP) to promote BC Book and Magazine Week. So here’s the rundown of events and ways that you can get involved, attend an event and participate in a celebration of the cultures of BC.

The BC Book and Magazine Week website has a listing of the events that make up the BCBMW celebration. There is also the BC Book and Magazine Week blog to keep yourself current on events and to get the latest news and photos.

If you’re into Upcoming.org, all the BC Book and Magazine Week events are listed and you can mark yourself in for attending, or just watch the event to decide later if you want to attend. You can also see who else is attending, and add your own events if you want. But if you’re lazy like me and just want to check it all out, here it is.

BC Book and Magazine Week

• Saturday, April 22: BC Book Prizes Soirée (7 to 9 pm, Crush Lounge, free)
• Sunday, April 23: Book and Magazine Promenade (1 to 5 pm, Vancouver Public Library downtown central branch, free)
• Tuesday, April 25: Sell Your Story: An idea pitching forum (6 to 9 pm, Lamplighter Pub, $10 to pitch a book, $10 to pitch a magazine, $15 to pitch both a book and mag)
• Wednesday, April 26: Magazine Cabaret: Vancouver (7:30 to 11 pm, Alibi Room, $10 to get in)
• Thursday, April 27: Literary Tour of Vancouver (6 pm to late, Burcu’s Angels, 2535 Main St., $3, two options will be presented, tour will depart Burcu’s Angels at 6:15 - don’t be late! And here’s the full schedule of the tour.)
• Saturday, April 29: 22nd Annual BC Book Prizes (5:30 to 11 pm, Marriot Pinnacle Hotel, by invite only)

I’m going to try to attend as many of the events as I can. The Book and Magazine Promenade is a cool way to see the diversity of publishing that goes on in BC. The Sell Your Story forum is an unbeatable way for writers to get the ear of magazine and book editors. If I had anything to sell, you know that’s where I’d be. The Magazine Cabaret is a blast, if only because the mag folks know how to cut loose. I’ve never been to the Literary Tour of Vancouver before, but I know it’s popular because this year they’ve added a second tour to deal with overflow. And of course, the grande dame of the events, the BC Book Prizes gala presents the dishy publishing event of the year. I think gossip columnists even show up.

So if you’re interested in the book and magazine industry, or just our local culture in general here in BC, step out from behind the screen and come out and participate in BC Book and Magazine Week. I hope to see you there. If you do see me, please tap me on the shoulder, tell me to be quiet, or just say, ‘hi.’

Discovering a Circuit Rider

Yesterday I discovered a new term: circuit rider. From wikipedia:

The term circuit rider, which has its roots in Methodist preaching, has more recently been applied to technology assistance providers who travel to small non-profit organizations in a particular sector to troubleshoot or support particular technology needs in those organizations. Another term for these people is eRider.
In this context, a Circuit Rider is part trainer, part management consultant, part computer expert. They provide consulting and assistance with technology strategy development, make multiple visits to the organizations they serve, and provide advice and information by phone and e-mail. They can serve regional constituencies by travel from a central location. Additionally, Circuit Riders can “cross-pollinate” the groups they service, transmitting insights, tools, and tips as they travel throughout the sector. In addition, training materials and resources can be used at multiple sites thereby spreading the development cost out across a number of organizations.
The umbrella term for this field is nonprofit technology.

Hmm. Here at Work Industries, we do that. We just didn’t know it until we had a name for it.

We’re working with some great non-profits right now, like the Pacific Salmon Foundation. They have a vision to create a online source for all things salmon. It’s an ambitious goal, but very achievable. If you’d like to support an organization working at the grassroots level to restore salmon species and habitat, please think of supporting the PSF.