The premiere of the first Fabely Top List Award, the Fabely Challenge, and short sessions for publishers, voice actors, and content creators.
Frankfurt am Main, September 3, 2026 – Fabely, Bookwire’s audiobook recommendation platform, will be represented at the Frankfurt Book Fair from October 7 to 11, 2026, with its own program of professional and entertainment events. At the Imagination Stage, Fabely will present the first Fabely Top List Award, host the Fabely Challenge, and offer several short sessions—called “Sparks”—tailored to various stakeholders in the audio industry. The central hub will be the Fabely booth in Hall 4.0, H37.
The fair program is aimed at audiobook fans as well as publishers, narrators, and content creators. The focus will be on discovering audiobooks, curated recommendations, community building, and the use of Fabely in audio marketing.Premiere der Fabely Challenge
This year, the Fabely Challenge will take place for the first time at the Frankfurt Book Fair. Participants will navigate the fairgrounds and complete small tasks at the booths of participating partners in Halls 3.0, 4.0, and 5.0 using a virtual map.
Participating in the challenge are Saga Egmont, Random House Audio, DuMont, Lagato, BookBeat, MVG, C.H. Beck, dtv, Audioteka, HarperCollins, POLYMORPH AUDIOBOOKS, SCM/Gerth Medien, tolino media and Hugendubel.
The Fabely Challenge will take place from October 7 to 11, 2026, during regular fair hours; on Sunday, it will end at 4:00 p.m.
Fabely at the Imagination Stage (Hall 4.0)
At the Imagination Stage, Fabely will present a variety of formats centered on audiobooks, visibility, and community over the course of the three days of the book fair.
- Wednesday, October 7 | 1:00 p.m. | Fabely-GEO White Paper
Carsten Lambrecht, Senior Product Manager for Innovation & AI at Bookwire, will present the key findings of the Fabely-GEO white paper and explain their significance for the discoverability and visibility of audiobook content. - Friday, October 9 | 11:00 a.m. | Fabely Top List Award
For the first time, Fabely is presenting the Fabely Top List Award to honor three outstanding audiobook lists from publishers. Hosted by Chiara Scherz (Product Manager at Fabely) and Jan Stausberg (Corporate PR Manager at Bookwire). - Saturday, October 10 | 3:00 p.m. | Fabely Quiz
Audiobook fans can put their knowledge to the test in the interactive Fabely Quiz. The quiz focuses on questions about audiobooks, stories, and Fabely.
Sparks & Live Podcast: Short Sessions at the Booth
With the Live Sparks at the Fabely booth, Bookwire and Fabely are offering several 30-minute sessions on current topics for various audiences in the audio industry. The program is complemented by a live podcast with Spotify. All events will take place at the Fabely booth in Hall 4.0, H37.
- Wednesday, October 7, 3:00 p.m. | Fabely Spark for Publishers
In a session titled “Fabely: The Marketing Tool for Your Audiobook Publisher,” audiobook publishers will learn how to effectively integrate Fabely into their marketing strategies. The focus will be on using curated title lists to tailor their messaging to their specific target audiences.
- Thursday, October 8, 10:00 a.m. | Fabely Business Special with Spotify (EN)
In this special business edition of the Fabely Podcast, Jeremy Amsellem, Associate Director of Audiobooks Licensing & Partnerships at Spotify, joins Videl Bar-Kar, Vice President Audio at Bookwire, to discuss Spotify’s evolving role in the audiobook and spoken-word landscape. A central theme will be the future of audiobook discovery, including the role playlists and recommendation apps can take in driving listeners towards new titles, authors and voices.
- Thursday, October 8, 3:00 p.m. | Fabely Spark for Audiobook Narrators
This session shows voice actors how they can bundle their productions from various publishers and present them on Fabely. Among other things, they will learn how to create custom title lists and effectively incorporate them into their own communications.
- Saturday, October 10, 11:30 a.m. | WAY Spark: Ready for some heart-pounding excitement and goosebumps?
Caitlin Gray (Audio Project Manager at Bookwire) offers new and aspiring audiobook narrators insights into the production of romance and thriller audiobooks. She discusses production workflows, title selection, technical requirements, and collaboration in audiobook productions.
- Saturday, October 10, 2:00 p.m. | Fabely Spark for Bookfluencers & Content Creators
Chiara Scherz (Product Manager at Fabely) demonstrates how content creators can curate personalized audiobook playlists based on genres, tropes, seasonal themes, or current trends. The focus is on how authentic recommendations can be shared via social media to strengthen the bond with one’s community.
About Fabely:
Since October 2024, Fabely has been the independent recommendation platform for audiobook fans and an effective marketing tool for the audiobook industry. With curated lists and centralized access to over 310,000 titles available through partners such as Audible, Spotify, BookBeat, and Thalia, Fabely helps listeners quickly find the right audiobook in the growing audio market. For audiobook professionals, Fabely also offers a user-centered platform to build visibility and reach target audiences—with customizable profiles, themed audiobook lists, and direct links to stores and streaming platforms. In addition, Fabely provides further reach through social media, newsletters, podcasts, and trade show appearances.
For media inquiries and interview requests, please contact:
Jan Stausberg
Corporate PR Manager, Bookwire
jan.stausberg@bookwire.de
