Joy Dallanegra-Sanger, the American Booksellers Association’s chief operating officer, joined the organization in 2011 after working in bookselling and at major publishing houses. She talked with PW about where her love of books and bookstores comes from, her role in the evolution of Winter Institute, and her most memorable Winter Institute keynote.
How has your background in bookselling for a chain and your experience working for major publishing houses informed your work as an industry advocate for indie booksellers?
When I was growing up on the Ohio–West Virginia border, there were no local bookstores until a Waldenbooks opened at the local mall. After college, I moved to Miami and started working at Waldenbooks as a stocking clerk and quickly moved into a store manager position. Many of my staff were Latinx, and we worked together to develop the largest Spanish-language section of the Walden chain. The home office noticed and hired me as a buyer in Stamford, Connecticut.
There, I developed strong relationships with many publishers, especially Vintage Books. Every year at ABA—this was before BookExpo—Vintage hosted a party for indie booksellers to which I was always invited. It was at those parties that I met many indie booksellers. When I was offered a marketing manager position for Vintage and Pantheon, I thought I’d found my dream job, as the Knopf publishing group recognized the value of independent booksellers and focused much of their efforts on working with the indies. For me, it’s always been about the books and a love of reading. My years on both sides of the business have provided insight that helps when I’m advocating for indies now at ABA.
What has your role been since you came on board as ABA program officer in 2011, in terms of planning and executing this annual gathering of indie booksellers?
My role is conductor, or ringmaster, depending on your point of view. I coordinate all of the teams that pull off this fabulous event. So much has changed since 2011. The prime example is the amount of preparation that goes into it. We literally start planning the next year’s institute the moment this one ends. We are also committed to creating an institute that is representative of the increasing diversity of our members and the demographics of our country.
How has Winter Institute changed since 2011?
Winter Institute used to be known as an intimate gathering, and for a number of years we—meaning ABA staff, board, and advisors—talked about whether or not to increase the event’s size. Inclusivity won, and we decided the more booksellers who could attend the better it would be for all, even though we still cap the number of booksellers per store. We now have a significant increase in first-timers compared to the earlier years, which requires a broader range of education sessions. In the past year we’ve started using instructional design to create our sessions, and we have committed to bringing in more outside experts to teach topics that booksellers request, like HR training and de-escalation training. We are also committed to featuring keynote speakers who focus on some aspect of the business of bookselling.
What has been the most memorable moment from any of the conferences for you?
There are so many memorable moments, but Roxane Gay’s opening keynote in Minneapolis on Jan. 28, 2017—a week after the Women’s March in Washington, D.C., and a day after Trump’s travel ban was announced—was when everything for ABA began to shift. So much of the change that’s followed since her talk was welcome and needed, and ABA is better because of that.
Besides that specific keynote, each opening day of Winter Institute over the years stands out as a bright, hopeful moment in the beginning of each new year. I have strong memories of greeting old friends and meeting new ones in New Orleans, Kansas City and the blizzard, Memphis and the music, Asheville, Denver, Seattle, Albuquerque, Minneapolis, Baltimore. With over 40 years in the business, what stands out the most is the friendships with booksellers all over the country. Winter Institute’s annual gathering is like the best party with friends.
