Workman Sponsors Drabyak Fellowship to Wi8

For the third year, Workman Publishing is sponsoring the Joe Drabyak Frontline Fellowship to the Winter Institute. The fellowship was launched in 2010 with a three-year sponsorship from Workman to honor Joe Drabyak, Chester County Book Company’s master bookseller and a past president of the New Atlantic Independent Booksellers Association, who died of cancer that year.  The fellowship provides airfare, lodging, and the meal fee for one bookseller to attend Winter Institute 8, which will be in Kansas City, Missouri, from February 23 - 25, 2013.

“Joe Drabyak was a unique force in bookselling. Everyone wanted to know what Joe was recommending. And, if your book was lucky enough to be named a ‘Joe’s Pick,’ you knew it had received his ‘magic touch’ and would soon appear on Chester County Book Company’s bestseller list,” said Steven Pace, director of sales for Workman. “He was also generous with his time and had boundless energy for teaching the art and craft of bookselling. That legacy is the inspiration for the Frontline Fellowship.”

Booksellers, publishers, and sales representatives are encouraged to nominate booksellers for the fellowship. Nominations should include the following:

• Bookseller’s full name and complete contact information.
• Store where the bookseller is employed. Both full-time and part-time booksellers can be nominated.
• A brief letter of recommendation explaining why the bookseller is being nominated for the fellowship.

Nominations for the Joe Drabyak Frontline Fellowship must be submitted by Friday, October 12, 2012. Nominations should be e-mailed to mark@bookweb.org.

The winner, to be chosen by Workman and ABA staff, will be announced in early November.

Registration for Winter Institute 8 will open on Thursday, September 27.