Interview with Ted Olczak

Ted, I was so proud to be the first expert speaker at your very first BookCamp: 2024, a wonderful three-day book publishing conference in New Jersey. Tell us more of what your vision is for BookCamp: 2025 -- and when is the next one?

Ted Olczak: BookCAMP is designed to provide practical, useful information and strategies, and connect publishing professionals. No BS. Actually Brian, you were among the first individuals I considered when curating this event, as your expertise aligned perfectly with the profile I envisioned. This year’s event is already bringing more star power with ‘teeth’. Publishers will walk away educated and connected.  BookCAMP 2026 will be in April, I’ll be announcing details May 4th. 

Brian Feinblum: Why did you see a need for BookCamp? 

Ted Olczak: Publishers and authors need more education, better direction, and more connections they can rely on for expertise to help them sell more books. BookCAMP accomplishes that: https://www.ipabookcamp.com/ 

Brian Feinblum: You used to sell advertising space at Publishers Weekly and worked later with IBPA. But the last number of years you have been running several book awards. Tell us about those. 

Ted Olczak: Yes, I began with Publishers Weekly in the early 90s, and then again for nearly a decade in the 2000s.  IBPA was my client then. I later worked with them and put together Publishing University for four years. To me, they weren’t delivering like I thought they could. Authors and publishers want results and to sell more books. Vendors want to help. Reviews and awards highlight key titles, but many authors do not leverage its potential. The Independent Press Award, www.IndependentPressAward.com, is designed to help those struggling authors and publishers find a way to break through the clutter, THEN help them sell books.  NYC Big Book Award was created to include the Big 5 publishing houses who were excluded from the Independent Press Award. They saw the value of what I was doing, so we invited them to enter the fall NYC Big Book Award program.

Brian Feinblum: You also sell advertising for the New York Times Book Review and for Times Square billboards. How do those translate into book sales or author branding? 

Ted Olczak: Major exposure and bragging rights. You’re not going to sell enough books during the campaign, but over time it translates. You need to know how to apply compound marketing to drive sales and improve your visibility.

5. You have been involved in book publishing for 30+ years. What changes have you seen over the decades?

Ted Olczak:  It’s even easier for anyone to get published, and to be successful. In the 1990s, some fifty publishers controlled 80% of the industry, with very few channels to get books to readers. This is no longer the case. Now, anyone with a word doc can get a .epub and sell on Barnes & Noble within 48 hours, and be distributed globally more quickly than I have ever seen.

6. What predictions or trends do you see for the book industry? 

Ted Olczak: More use of artificial intelligence; greater distribution channels with the disappearance of other channels, MORE books. BookCAMP as an industry leader.

7. How do you encourage a new author to find his or her way into the publishing world? 

Ted Olczak: We all need help, best-selling authors to first-timers. Come to BookCAMP, and whatever industry or author event you can find. Learn from others and create networks that can help you in the future.  With a great idea and persistence to see it through, anyone can be successful.

8. What’s next for you?

Ted Olczak: Printed Word Reviews will be taking over IPA BookCAMP formally and create greater educational and networking opportunities. Printed Word Reviews currently reviews University Presses, Independent Authors and Small Press books, https://www.printedwordreviews.com/magazine and makes them available through the Independent Press Awards, https://www.independentpressaward.com/falconreviews. We will continue to push the boundaries of book advertising and marketing with creative and innovative methods to reach readers.

Feel free to contact Ted Olczak directly at Ted@PrintedWordReviews.com.