For the January webinar, Minnesota Book Publishers Roundtable hosted a virtual lesson on how to make InDesign files accessible from the beginning of a project. Keynote speaker Kris Tomes explained how and why to implement accessibility features such as alt text, navigation landmarks, bookmarks, hyperlinks, file metadata, and HTML export tags. She also provided an overview of best practices in writing alt text.

Kris Tomes is a freelancer and consultant who provides print and digital production services to publishers throughout North America and New Zealand. She spent nearly 10 years at Lerner Publishing Group, most recently as a senior digital product manager, and led the company’s accessibility team. Kris is an international speaker who has presented at several eBookcraft and Tech Forum conferences over the years. She also served as the MBPR vice president and social media manager from 2014 to 2016. A proponent of elastic assets, clean code, and future proofing, Kris is especially interested in accessibility features that serve all readers.