June 26, 2023 Edition
There will not be a Rush to Press edition next week in recognition of Independence Day.
Industry News
Brain Trust named, to develop ECPA PubU Online program
ECPA’s annual training program – ECPA PubU – will be presented as an online event in 2023, delivering daily webinars from October 27 to November 13 in several tracks for publishing professionals: Design, Editorial, Marketing, Production & Operations, Rights, and Children’s Literature. A committee of industry leaders, forming the event’s Brain Trust, are assigned to develop each track, and will be led by Michael Covington, VP of Publishing & Acquisitions at David C Cook.
Webinar on AI, Ethics and Christian Publishing scheduled for July 14
ECPA continues its summer Focus Webinar Series on July 14 featuring Christian ethicist and author Jason Thacker and B&H publisher Dr. Devin Maddox discussing “AI, Ethics, and Christian Publishing.”
Oxford University Press signs US sales and distribution agreement with IPG
Oxford University Press (OUP) has signed a sales and distribution agreement with Independent Publishers Group (IPG) for the exclusive distribution of Oxford Children’s fiction titles in North America and Canada.
Early bird registration is open for industry’s C-Suite Symposium
Early bird rates are in effect for the ECPA C-Suite Symposium until August 4. This annual event will gather the industry’s c-level leaders in San Antonio on September 17-19. Dr. Allen Yeh was just added to the program that includes these sessions and speakers:
- Understanding Global Christianity with Dr. Allen Yeh (Biola University)
- Leading Teams through Hinge Moments with Dr. Michael Lindsay (Taylor University)
- Publishing New Voices, Reaching New Audiences with Alejandro Mandes (Workforce Hope) and Deborah Sáenz Gonzales (NavPress)
- Leadership Succession and Change Management with Kathryn Scanland (Greystone Global)
- New Paradigms in Global Ministry Publishing with Luke Lewis (Langham)
- Forecasts and Opportunities in Christian Publishing with Kristen McLean (Circana)
- Personas, Platforms, Profits and the Church with Katelyn Beaty (Brazos Press)
- Organizational Culture and Remote Environments with Cris Doornbos (Leader Shaping)
ECPA welcomes new affiliate members
- Publishers Storage and Shipping (PSSC) was established in 1974 to provide end-to-end warehousing and fulfillment services for publishers. pssc.com
- Woodland Group provides innovative logistics, e-commerce, and supply chain management services with particular expertise supporting the printing and publishing industry. woodlandgroup.com
Riggins Rights Management celebrates 20th anniversary as Paul Hendrickson joins board
June 2023 marks twenty years since Riggins Rights Management began serving the Christian publishing community. The company was started by Cindy Riggins in 2003 after ten years as Rights Director at Thomas Nelson.
Read More...Milestones
Four books honored for achieving milestone sales: Adventure Bible surpasses 10 million
ECPA recently presented four books with Milestone Sales Awards. Zondervan’s Adventure Bible received the Diamond Award for surpassing 10 million in sales. The Platinum Award was presented to the Rose Book Of Bible Charts, Maps and Time Lines (Rose Publishing/ Tyndale House) for more than 1 million sold. Bronze Awards were presented for 100,000 sold to: Be Still by Cleere Cherry Reaves” (DaySpring) and Supernatural by Michael S. Heiser (Lexham Press).
“Dark Clouds, Deep Mercy” by pastor Mark Vroegop surpasses 100,000 units in sales with Crossway
Crossway is pleased to announce that pastor Mark Vroegop’s “Dark Clouds, Deep Mercy: Discovering the Grace of Lament” (Crossway, March 2019) has surpassed 100,000 units in sales.
Read More...Prophecy Pros Podcast surpasses one million downloads
The Prophecy Pros Podcast, produced by Harvest House Publishers and known for its insightful discussions and expert contributions on biblical prophecy, has surpassed the remarkable milestone of one million downloads, the publisher says.
Read More...End Game Press celebrates wins at Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writer’s Conference
End Game Press, a traditional publishing house releasing family-friendly books in the general trade market, received multiple prestigious awards at the 2023 Selah Awards presentation on May 31st in Ridgecrest, North Carolina.
Read More...Iron Stream’s “By The Sweet Gum” brings home Selah Award and places in Director’s Choice Award
The 2023 Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writers Conference Selah Awards and Directors’ Choice Awards were announced at a banquet on May 31, 2023.
Read More...Media Announcements
Living By Faith with Trillia Newbell launches July 1 on the Moody Radio Network
On July 1, Moody Radio will launch Living by Faith with Trillia Newbell. Trillia will encourage listeners to take God at His Word and live their faith in everyday life. She’ll open the Bible, engage with special guests, and inspire listeners with hopeful stories and truth for lasting change. This live listener call-in program will air Saturdays 8-8:55 am CDT.
Read More...Publishers invite churches to proclaim August 27 as Share the Dream Sunday
HarperCollins Publishing in collaboration with Urban Ministries, Inc., and The K.I.N.G. Movement are encouraging churches around the nation to proclaim Aug. 27 Share the Dream Sunday ahead of the 60th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s I Have a Dream speech, which he gave on Aug. 28, 1963.
Read More...Straight to the Heart, a podcast from New Growth Press, launches July 5
Hosted by Rush Witt, each episode of the “Straight to the Heart” Podcast will include thought-provoking conversations with leading Christian writers and thinkers. New episodes will release each Wednesday.
More…
Former news anchor Leslie Means on Jesus Calling Podcast
Leslie Means recently joined The Jesus Calling Podcast to share on June 29, how she stepped away from her news job and went on to create an online community that helps women in times of need–Her View From Home–and found what she’d been meant to do all along. Means’ book, “So God Made A Mother,” is available from Tyndale Momentum.
Product News
Focus on the Family to launch Focus Fiction
Focus on the Family, in partnership with Tyndale House Publishers, announces the launch of Focus Fiction, a new line of Christian fiction for adult readers, focused on telling page-turning stories about contemporary issues.
Read More...Thomas Nelson announces The Breathe Life Bible
Thomas Nelson, a division of HarperCollins Christian Publishing, announces its partnership with Michele Clark Jenkins and Stephanie Perry Moore to develop The Breathe Life Bible. The project is scheduled to release in February 2024. This is their third Bible project with Thomas Nelson.
Read More...Reformed Free Publishing releases new book on the Apostles' Creed
"I Believe: Sermons on the Apostles' Creed," announced on Friday, June 23, is the newest release from the RFPA. The book is a compilation of sermons from Herman Hoeksema that were delivered via the Reformed Witness Hour in the 1950s.
Read More...Other News
INDUSTRY
PUBLISHING
- AAP: Book Sales Down 7.6% in April, Trade Falls 11.2%
- Circana’s May Report: US Book Sales Down 1.5 Million Units from April
- Census Bureau: Bookstore Sales Slip 0.9% in April
- New Report Finds Mixed Book Sales Trends in Europe
- Simon & Schuster Sale Update: Third Bidder in the Running
- HarperCollins eyeing Simon & Schuster; Not renewing leases in San Francisco, Grand Rapids
- Vivendi says it’s on course to acquire Lagardère and its Hachette Livre
- ALA, AAP Reaffirm Landmark Freedom to Read Statement on 70th Anniversary
- The Shifting Middle Grade Market
- Diversity Is on the Rise in Children's Literature
- AI: How might it affect publishing?
- European Publishers Welcome Parliament’s ‘AI Act’ Draft Approval
- Take the Green Book Alliance Stakeholder Survey 2023
- Free Supadu Webinar: Building your D2C Community on July 13