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-__//**Readers’ Advisory Seminar March 2023 Minutes**//__
-//Chair morning session: Yasmin//
-//Acknowledgement of Country//
-**Hsu-Ming Teo:**
-The study of the romance genre – there is a huge output in this genre and it changes so rapidly
-Romance renaissance
-Generates $1.5 billion in revenue each year
-BookTok is bringing in new readers – authors like Colleen Hoover, Emily Henry and TJ Klune have created massive fan bases
-Romance is the original genre of popular fiction
-It draws from Epic fiction – long-form format drawing on poetry
-The Quest – adventure, love, truth, transcendence
-Plot – marvellous, mysterious, unrealistic
-‘Superior hero’/protagonist – courage, endurance
-Nostalgia
-Other genres can be romanticized
-The Hero with a Thousand Faces by Joseph Campbell – the hero’s journey (departure, initiation, return)
-The Writer’s Journey by Christopher Vogler – the inner journey should match the outer journey (there must be a change in the protagonist, or the reader won’t care)
-Quest for love, adventure of courtship
-A Natural History of the Romance Novel by Pamela Regis – definition of society (corrupt), meeting, attraction, barrier, point of ritual death, recognition/revelation, declaration, betrothal (these elements can be moved around)
-Heroine’s journey and how it connects to the above) – ordinary world (defined society), call to adventure (meeting), ordeal (barrier), threshold (attraction), reward (declaration), ordeal (ritual death), road back (recognition), return (betrothal)
-Happily Ever After vs Happy For Now
-More literary for couples not to end up together!
-Definitions: central love story, emotionally satisfying/optimistic ending, any tone or style, any place or time, varying levels of sensuality
-Romance as a genre, but then ‘romantic’ fiction is a better term – it can be part of another genre or story
-Subgenres – contemporary romance, fantasy romance, supernatural romance, etc.
-Tropes – enemies to loves, friends to loves, reformed playboy, forbidden love, etc.
-Gender bias within the romance genre is being challenged
-Genre competence/market – writers, publishers, sellers, reviewers, readers, organisations, fans
-Problems – cliches, stale characters, originality, representation
-Diversity and social issues are becoming more prevalent within the field – using the form of romance to comment on other things
-The social and historical impact of romance
-Australian history and culture represented in rural romance
-https://sl-nsw-gov-au.zoom.us/j/81918255479?pwd=a1dPS21MMk9ZTDI3NjZMZllGand6QT09
-**Ian McCallum:**
-Sherrie Quinn contributed to the Libraries Alive paper, which also discusses the Readers’ Advisory conversation
-RA and membership
-Rewarding Reading workshops – training the trainer
-Library membership has slowly dropped – Readers’ Advisory training doesn’t affect this, but may have slowed the decline?
-Covid may be to blame, and online resources may have also affected membership
-How do we measure effectiveness – loans, visits, satisfaction, outcomes, membership? We can measure in either a qualitative or quantitative way
-Behavioural insights project – polling regarding library visits
-The quality of the relationship with the customer is key to rescuing membership, and Readers’ Advisory is the way to do this
-Over 30 years, state and national membership are down, and loans are down
-Money, facilities, collection, training may help recover membership
-Focus on customer experience
-Passionate staff involved with the community
-Investment in staff training and support
-Building relevance for new residents
-What is our single most important membership message for retaining existing members and creating new members? Explore your library, community hub, serving community needs, accessibility, trained/helpful staff, optimal customer experience, family/home, something for everyone, discovery, connection, comfort, safety, inclusivity, etc.
-//**Five-minute talks**//
-**Sarah Garland (Blacktown):**
-Book Match service
-List of engaging questions – format, themes, age, etc.
-Patron’s responses can be unhelpful
-**Suzanne Micallef (Ryde):**
-Summer Showcase
-RA display revamped
-Posters – colourful, punchy, professional, consistent, inviting
-Poorer circulated items can be targeted
-Themes – explore another lifetime, know your world, step into character, etc.
-More general than targeting particular days and celebrations
-Book Match service – Including link to online form in catalogue)
-Summer Reading Challenge – mystery packs
-**Sharon Muscat (Castle Hill):**
-Select Reads Zone
-Staff picks plus changing displays
-Australian, positive living – most popular
-Cross promotion – social media, curated online lists
-Grab & Go bags
-**Patt Annetts (Newcastle):**
-Library Lounge
-Online offering of RA services – reviews, lists, discussions, new titles, book clubs
-Author events, trivia nights, etc. all run under the Library Lounge banner
-**Skye Jones (Newcastle):**
-Summer Stories
-Author talks, podcasts and recommended reading
-//Chair afternoon session – Ita//
-**Oriana Acevedo (State Lib):**
-Inclusion diversity equity
-Visibility is so important for LOTE
-Raising awareness of things we’ve had since 1970s
-Multicultural bulk loans – books in 42 languages that can be sent for specific library members on request, or for library staff to use for display
-Quick dispatch
-Work with your community to see what would be helpful to them
-Have empathy, compassion, and intention to help
-Harmony day displays – having a mix of things is important. One community, many languages
-Even including one item in a language other than English in a display shows inclusivity
-Feeling of being included – can give people a connection to their language and their family
-**Joanna Kondaxis and Ngarie Macqueen (Inner West):**
-Adult Fiction Stock Quality Health Check project
-Nine genres within the project – selected based on survey and staff knowledge
-Contemporary fiction – stories loosely set in present time, depicting real life, don’t fit into other categories
-Romantic fiction – tone, style, pacing all vary considerably across the subgenres
-Inclusivity across romantic fiction – enables a diverse audience to maker emotional connection
-**Ellen Forsyth (State Lib):**
-Adult Fiction Stock Quality Health Check – deliberate inclusion
-Reflecting the diversity of population and community
-Sustainable development goals stretch targets for Australian libraries
-Diversity is core business
-Information has been sent to every library service – please read the instructions first on how to complete the spreadsheet, and send the spreadsheet back to Ellen once completed
-This can give you broad indication of how your collection has developed and also how purchasing may need to change going forward
-**Online discussion (ideas to use):**
-Adding LOTE books to displays
-Romance diversity
-Mystery bags for children’s summer reading
-Promotions in high-traffic areas using themed posters
-Community inclusion
-Making marc records more inclusive
-**Kelly Makepeace (Tamworth):**
-CNRL Speech Language Pathology Collection
-Resource for parents, educators and staff – supports early language speech development
-Collection of picture books and information books based on developmental speech and language milestones
-Gentle approach – sharing in a natural space
-Speech sounds, phonological awareness, expand vocabulary, language concepts and grammar forms
-Tips sheets with the books – typical milestones, extension ideas, exposing children to appropriate targets
-Engaging the community – display signage, QR codes, trained staff, clear website information, video, book list, keyword signing, resources
-Connecting with local speech pathologists (SPA Speechies in Libraries)
-**Amy Rake (Tamworth):**
-Disability inclusion
-We saw a need in the libraries to offer targeted programs
-Partnering with local disability organisations
-Sensory resources in the library, which can then be used in programs too
-Programs with clients and carers working together
-Use resources you already have to deliver the programs
-**Sarah Ayoub:**
-Human beings are made for community
-The things that happen when we’re young can be emotionally devastating
-The library was a safe place
-Books have power – I was able to relate to books with girls of migrant heritage as the protagonist
-Writing was liberating – coming to voice, carving out a space in the world
-Sense of pride in identity
-Helps others have empathy and understanding
-Culture is more deeply understood in something other and foreign – we need to step outside ourselves and connect with something different
-Hate is such a strong word, The yearbook committee, The love that grew, The cult of romance, Nice and slow – books by Sarah Ayoub
-The books we read in teen years are especially important – the adolescent brain is forming identity
-Narrative intimacy – relationship between reader and narrator. This helps builds allies for the marginalized
-Fiction gives us an external and internal view of another life
-The power of the written word to humanize and challenge people’s thinking
-The ethnic Other (including indigenous Australians) was absent from Australian literature for a significant part of the 20th Century
-Think about what you’re reading, think about what you’re recommending, diversify your offerings, challenge your patrons
-Everybody is welcome in the library, and librarians have power because of that
-Books open space for conversation
-Sharing my story changed a small part of this world