Put 23rd June in your diaries! That is the day that the Oxfordshire Publishing Group will be holding the first of what it hopes will be an annual conference. The conference is open to publishers from around the UK and with a star-studded line-up is sure to appeal to a wide range of BookMachine fans.

The theme of the conference is the highly topical ‘Creating Value in an Age of Disruption’ and the keynote speakers will be coming to this subject from a range of perspectives.

Author Philip Pullman, who is also Chair of the Society of Authors, will be talking about ‘Authorship in a Time of Intolerance’. Using his own experience as author of the Dark Materials trilogy and drawing on the problems faced by Salman Rushdie, Charlie Hebdo journalists and others, he will explore the problems met by authors who try to challenge controversial issues.

Pullman’s opening session of the conference will set the tone for what is sure to be a fascinating day, with a range of industry leaders speaking, including Charlie Redmayne, CEO of HarperCollins, Eric Huang, Development Director at Made in Me, and James Daunt, MD of Waterstones.

With the early bird discount of £75 extended until the end of May, now is the time to book if you want to guarantee your place.

And just look what you get:
• Keynote talks by leading industry speakers
• Breakout sessions covering key themes in publishing, led by top publishing names including Eric Huang, Anthony Cond of Liverpool University Press, Michael Bhaskar of Canelo Digital Publishing, and Ashley Lodge of Pearson
• A panel discussion with Charlie Redmayne, Nigel Portwood, CEO of OUP, and Rebecca Smart, CEO of Ebury Publishing
• The opportunity to meet other industry professionals looking for new ways to create value in the digital age
• A sit down lunch. Then a wine reception, sponsored by OUP and Taylor & Francis, at the end of the day