Charlotte, NC, April 24, 2017—Christian Small Publishers Association (CSPA) is pleased to announce the winning titles for the 2017 Christian Small Publisher Book of the Year Award. Christian Small Publisher Book of the Year Award honors books produced by small publishers each year for outstanding contribution to Christian life.

Book lovers and retailers selling Christian products voted on the nominated titles in each of thirteen categories. “We are proud to continue to recognize outstanding Christian books by small publishers and independent authors,” states Sarah Bolme, Director of Christian Small Publishers Association, the sponsor of the award.

The winners in each of the thirteen categories are:

Fiction
Always With You, Elaine Stock, Elk Lake Publishing, 978-1942513841

Historical Fiction
Dawn of Liberty: Short Story Collection, Amber Schamel, Vision Writer Publications, 978-0692698488

Romance
Forgiveness, Marianne Evans, Pelican Book Group, 978-1611168600

Christian Living
Frankly Speaking, Janet Dash-Harris, CLM Publishing, 978-0996550116

Bible Study / Theology
Stuff Jesus Never Said, Paul Ellis, KingsPress, 978-1927230398

Devotional
Getting To Know Jesus: An Invitation to Walk With The Lord Day By Day, Eric Kampmann, Beaufort Books, 978-0825307904

Biography / Memoir
The Party’s Not Over Until God Says So, V.Lynn Whitfield, Professional Woman Publishing, 978-0996580960

Relationships / Family
Handing Out Life: The Simple Way to Rewarding Relationships in All of Life, Rev. Dr. Todd A. Biermann, Halo Publishing, 978-1612444512

Children’s (age 4 to 8)
Fireflies, Ginger Sanders (author), Tracy Applewhite Broom (illustrator), 978-1498469791

Children’s (age 8 to 12)
Paul the Apostle: A Graphic Novel, Ben Avery (author), Mark Harmon (illustrator), Beartruth Collective, LLC, 978-1945128004

Young Adult (age 12+)
Healing Rain, Katy Newton Naas, Clean Reads, 978-1621354079

Gift Book
Jesus Loves You, Christine Topjian, Lighthouse Publishing, 978-1519489104

Christian Education
Examine Your Faith! Finding Truth in a World of Lies, Pamela Christian, Protocol, Ltd., 978-0990942108

The winning titles can be viewed at http://www.bookoftheyear.net.

The Christian Small Publisher Book of the Year Award is sponsored by Christian Small Publishers Association (CSPA). A total of 120 titles were nominated for the award categories.

About Christian Small Publishers Association (CSPA)

CSPA represents, promotes, and strengthens small publishers and independently published authors in the Christian marketplace. CSPA represents a membership of over 135 small publishers and independent authors producing materials for the Christian Marketplace. CSPA is a supplier member of CBA. For more information about Christian Small Publishers Association visit http://www.christianpublishers.net.

Contact:  Sarah Bolme, Christian Small Publishers Association
cspa@christianpublishers.net  704-277-7194

 

ASHLAND, Ohio (April 24, 2017) – Bookmasters, one of the largest providers of customized book publishing services in the United States, has expanded its book manufacturing services with the addition of new inkjet digital book manufacturing equipment to its Ashland, Ohio facility.

Bookmasters has added the following:

• An Océ VarioPrint i300 (with ColorGrip) color sheet fed inkjet press, making Bookmasters only the second U.S. book manufacturer to offer this technology
• An Océ ColorStream 3900 monochrome inkjet press for high production one color
• An upgrade to its toner equipment with the addition of two Océ VarioPrint 6320’s

Bookmasters’ investment in this digital book manufacturing equipment complements its existing digital printing capabilities for short-run digital book printing and print-on-demand (POD).

This multi-million dollar investment increases Bookmasters’ digital production capacity by 90%.

“This improvement to our digital print platform brings us up-to-date technologically, adds capacity, improves our SLA’s, and improves our service levels to our customers,” said Ken Fultz, general manager at Bookmasters. “We’re very proud of this expansion to our partnership with Canon Solutions America.”

Click here to view a 3-minute video from Canon that explains why inkjet is the latest innovation in book manufacturing technology.

About Bookmasters
Bookmasters, based in Ashland, Ohio, is one of the largest providers of customized publisher services in the United States. For more than 40 years, Bookmasters has offered services to publishers and authors such as book manufacturing, print sales and distribution, warehousing and fulfillment, eBook sales and distribution, and editorial and design services. To learn more, visit www.bookmasters.com.

Bookmasters is owned by Follett Corporation and is a strategic partner with Baker & Taylor, premier worldwide distributor of books, digital content, and entertainment products.

Media Contact:  Kristen M. Steele, Director of Marketing & PR
419.281.5100 x1410, desk

Times Square Billboard Helps Reach Victims; April is Sexual Abuse Awareness Month

HopefortheHeart.org

DALLAS – April 18, 2017 – A Times Square electronic billboard—four times an hour, April 17-30—is one highly public salvo in the There is Hope campaign from Hope for the Heart, a Dallas-based international counseling ministry, aiming to reach victims of childhood sexual abuse.  April is Sexual Abuse Awareness Month.

See the Times Square Video Outreach

“Victims blame themselves for what’s been done to them,” says June Hunt, Hope for the Heart’s founder, herself an abuse victim. “We want every man and woman, boy and girl to know There Is Hope, and counselors who can give it are a phone call away.”

“Our presence in Times Square is a reminder that all kinds of people in the U.S. and abroad carry the scars of sexual abuse. And no matter how liberated our society becomes, there is no excuse for abuse!” Hunt said.

On that subject, RAINN.org (Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network) delivers daunting stats:

• Every eight minutes, Child Protective Services substantiates or finds evidence for a claim of child sexual abuse.
• From 2009 to 2013, CPS agencies substantiated or found strong evidence to indicate that 63,000 children a year were victims of sexual abuse.
• 82 percent of all victims under age 18 are female.

In its There Is Hope campaign, Hope for the Heart sends people to a dedicated page on its website. Anyone affected by sexual abuse may call for counseling or reach out anonymously by email.

Founded in 1986, Hope for the Heart is a Texas-based, international Christian counseling ministry giving biblical hope and practical help through counseling and coaching—drawn from Hunt’s 100-topic Biblical Counseling Library.

“There are no hopeless situations, only people who have grown hopeless,” Hunt says. “In life’s struggles, the Bible has real solutions.”

Hunt’s message broadcasts on Hope for the Heart’s flagship radio programs Hope for the Heart and Hope in the Night—on more than 250 radio stations with some 1.5 million listeners. In publishing and radio, the organization’s message goes out in 30 languages in 60-plus countries on six continents. More than 30 Hope-sponsored walk-in counseling centers operate internationally.

National Sexual Assault Awareness month sprang from the 1970’s Take Back the Night movement to protest violence against women. April 2001 marked the first U.S. Sexual Assault Awareness Month nationally. In 2017, the month’s national activities focus on helping faith leaders, athletic coaches, college Greek systems and others identify and report sexual assault.

For interviews, contact:  Michael Conrad, Michael@Lovell-Fairchild.com, 214-616-0320

For press material, visit www.Lovell-Fairchild.com:

• Media Tip Sheet
• Suggested Interview Questions

Contact:  Michael Conrad 214-616-0320
Michael@Lovell-Fairchild.com

Carol Stream, IL April 17, 2017 – Chicago was the home of The Evangelical Press Association’s annual convention April 9-11, 2017 and Christianity Today won 32 Awards of Excellence and Higher Goals Awards across multiple ministry brands.

The two annual contests honor EPA-member publications, the Awards of Excellence for publications as a whole and the Higher Goals for individual pieces that were produced in the past year.

“I am continuously grateful to God for the gifted women and men he calls to our ministry,” said Harold Smith, president and CEO of Christianity Today. “And these awards are but another affirmation of that giftedness and of the staff’s overall commitment to excellence in all things.”

Particularly noticeable was CT magazine honored with the Award of Excellence in the General category for both Print and Digital—the first time ever. With over 30% of CT’s audience coming from outside of the United States, the nonprofit ministry also was grateful to be honored for their unique global coverage, particularly a Reporting first place award for the November 2016 cover story, “Outpacing Persecution: Incredible Indian Christianity.”

Below is the full listing of Christianity Today’s 2017 EPA awards:

Awards of Excellence
Honors overall excellence of a publication. Judges in this category evaluate a number of criteria, including writing quality, content choices and design.

Christian Ministry (Digital)
Excellence: SmallGroups.com
Merit: ChurchLawAndTax.com
Merit: ManagingYourChurch.com 

General
Excellence: Christianity Today

General (Digital)
Excellence: Christianity Today Online
Merit:  The Behemoth 

Newsletter
Excellence: Church Finance Today 

Higher Goals Awards
Honors individual aspects of a publication, such as reporting, column writing and design.

Article Series: First Place: Christianity Today Online, “Theology of Political Candidates Series: The Theology of Donald Trump, The Theology of Ted Cruz, Is Bernie Sanders Religious?”

Biblical Exposition: Second Place: Christianity Today, “Saved Through Child-Bearing”

Blog: Single Post: Second Place: ManagingYourChurch.com, “What Would Repealing the Johnson Amendment Actually Mean for Churches?”

Blog: Website: First Place: Christianity Today Online, “Gleanings”; Third Place: ManagingYourChurch.com 

Cover: Fourth Place: Christianity Today 

Critical Review: First Place: Christianity Today Online, “What ‘No Man’s Sky’ and C.S. Lewis Tell Us About the Spirit of Our Age”; Second Place: Christianity Today, “Does Protestantism Need to Die?”

Devotional: Second Place: Christianity Today Online, “Why Lent is Good for Bad Christians”

Fourth Place: The Behemoth, “My New Life as a Chimera Living with two sets of DNA”

Fiction: Fourth Place: Christianity Today Online, “Closing Windows”

General Article: Long: Second Place: Christianity Today, “Grapes of Wrath”

General Article: Medium: Fifth Place: ChurchLawAndTax.com, “Responding to the Transgender Bathroom Access Controversy”

General Article: Short: Fourth Place: The Behemoth, “His Hand Feeds Us Both: Thoughts on Bears from an Alaskan Fisherwoman”

Original Art: Traditional: First Place: Christianity Today, “Life After Prison”

Photo Feature: Fourth Place: Christianity Today, “Charleston: A Fragile Forgiveness”

Photography Use: Fifth Place: Christianity Today 

Poetry: Third Place: The Behemoth, “Bright Angels”

Reporting: First Place: Christianity Today, “Outpacing Persecution”

Standing Column: Fourth Place: Christianity Today, “Bodies & Souls”

Titles: Second Place: The Behemoth, “The Week the Sun Reached Out and Touched Us; The Pitch Goes On; What Color Is North?”; Fifth Place: Christianity Today, “Consider Civil Disobedience; The Shaken Conscience of a Pro-Life Activist; Charleston: A Fragile Forgiveness”

Two-Page Spread Design: Third Place: Christianity Today, “Life After Prison”

Typography and Lettering: First Place: Christianity Today, “The Books & Arts”

Website Design: Second Place: The Behemoth 

A full list of EPA 2017 awards can be found at the association’s website: https://www.evangelicalpress.com/

Christianity Today is a nonprofit, global media ministry centered on Beautiful Orthodoxy—strengthening the church by richly communicating the breadth of the true, good, and beautiful gospel. Reaching over five million people monthly with various digital and print resources, the ministry equips Christians to renew their minds, serve the church, and create culture to the glory of God.

Contact: Cory Whitehead 
Phone: 630-260-6200 x4220  E-mail: cwhitehead@christianitytoday.com

 

 

Features Entries by More than 140 Contributors on Over 450 Key Terms, Theories, Individuals, Movements, and Debates

Grand Rapids, Mich., Apr. 21, 2017 — Zondervan is pleased to announce the release of the Dictionary of Christianity and Science, a unique reference work that provides, in one volume, entries on over 450 key terms, theories, individuals, movements, and debates at the intersection of Christian faith and contemporary science.

Edited by Paul Copan, Tremper Longman III, Christopher L. Reese, and Michael G. Strauss, the Dictionary of Christianity and Science (on sale Apr. 25) features a top-notch lineup of over 140 contributors in the fields of biblical studies, theology, philosophy, history, and various sciences. Contributors include Francis Beckwith, Michael Behe, Darrell Bock, William Lane Craig, Hugh Ross, Craig Keener, Davis Young, John Walton, J. P. Moreland, Rodney Holder, and James Hannam.

“This is an invaluable resource that belongs in every Christian’s library,” said Lee Strobel in an endorsement. Strobel is author of The Case for Christ and the Elizabeth and John Gibson chair of apologetics at Houston Baptist University. “I will be keeping my copy close by when I’m writing.”

Because certain topics such as the age of the Earth and the historicity of Adam and Eve provoke disagreement among Christians, the dictionary includes multiple-view essays that advocate for the views most commonly held among evangelicals. Representatives of leading perspectives present their arguments vigorously but respectfully in these advocacy essays, allowing readers to compare options and to draw their own conclusions. The dictionary is also fully cross-referenced, and entries include references and recommendations for further reading.

“This book has been in the works for four and a half years,” said Stanley N. Gundry, SVP and publisher, Zondervan.  “We are very pleased by the breadth and expertise of the general editors and contributors to this project and by the quality of the articles they have produced. I am confident the Dictionary of Christianity and Science will be a useful reference work for scholars, pastors, students, and any Christian wanting to better understand the most relevant issues at the intersection of Christian faith and science.”

To learn more, visit www.ChristianityandScienceBook.com.

About the General Editors:

Paul Copan (PhD, Marquette University) is the Pledger Family chair of philosophy and ethics at Palm Beach Atlantic University in West Palm Beach, Florida.
 
Tremper Longman III (PhD, Yale University) is the Robert H. Gundry professor of biblical studies and the chair of the religious studies department at Westmont College in Santa Barbara, California.
 
Christopher L. Reese (ThM, Talbot School of Theology) is a writer, editor, and independent scholar; he is cofounder of the Christian Apologetics Alliance.
 
Michael G. Strauss (PhD, University of California, Los Angeles) is David Ross Boyd professor of physics at the University of Oklahoma in Norman, Oklahoma.

About Zondervan: Zondervan is a world leading Bible publisher and provider of Christian communications. Zondervan, part of HarperCollins Christian Publishing, Inc., delivers transformational Christian experiences through its bestselling Bibles, books, curriculum, academic resources and digital products. The Company’s products are sold worldwide and translated into nearly 200 languages. Zondervan offices are located in Grand Rapids, Mich. For additional information, please visit www.zondervan.com.

Contact:   Trinity McFadden, Senior Manager of Publicity
616-698-3514 | trinity.mcfadden@harpercollins.com