The 2026 Audio Publishers Association Conference (APAC), held virtually on Monday, March 30, 2026, gathered publishers, distributors, retailers and suppliers, narrators, and other professionals in the audiobook industry. As a nonprofit organization, APA has the ability to bring the industry together to share ideas, discuss challenges, and make the most of formidable growth opportunities in the spoken word market.

The new Executive Director of APA, Jim Dinegar, brought together panelists from some of the biggest publishing houses—as well as Spotify—to discuss trends and “What’s Next in Audio?” for the keynote. Everything from children’s literacy rates and access, to format switching (audio to physical) mid-book, to transparency in AI usage was discussed. Rapid technological advances are happening in real time. Voracious listeners reward both experimental programming and also beloved narrators who can pierce through cultural noise. It’s a great moment to be a book professional in the age of audiobook momentum.

Models and Methods—Adapting to Trends and Change in Audiobook Marketing

NetGalley’s Director of Client Acquisition & Success, Darcy Piedmonte, moderated a discussion with Allison Carney, Executive Director of Marketing, HarperCollins;  Corrin Foster, Vice President of Book Promotions and Marketing, Advantage Media Group; and Anna Goolsby, Content Marketing Manager, Dreamscape Media LLC. 

This session was a perfect segue to the keynote. Panelists gave the audience a behind-the-curtain look at how marketing compares between a Big 5, an audiobook-specific, and a hybrid publisher. Allison shared HarperCollins’ approach to format agnostic marketing goals, while simultaneously illustrating how they quickly respond (and proactively create) audiobook viral moments. Anna spoke of diving deeply into niche audiences, particularly on Reddit, to bring her own social acuity and recommendations to the right people in the right moments. Corrin spoke of helping authors develop their own “authority” and how audiobooks pave the way for speaking gigs, drive rapid consumption of books, and garner enthusiastic, additive feedback.

Other session themes included audiobook production, how to manage the format as a self-published author, and many narrator-specific professional sessions. If you attended the conference, it’s not too late to access the recordings of sessions you missed!

Next year’s conference will be live in New York! If you’re a professional in the audiobook space, you won’t want to miss the resources APA delivers. 

Additional Audiobook News:

• 2026 Community Spotlight: Audiobooks
• NetGalley France partners with La Plume de Paon for the Audiobook People’s Choice Award