CAROL STREAM, Ill., April 24, 2020 — In its annual publishing awards livestreamed on April 21, the Evangelical Press Association (EPA) honored Christianity Today with 29 publishing awards chosen by journalism peers across the country.

These annual awards honor member publications through two contests: the Awards of Excellence for publications as a whole and the Higher Goals for individual pieces that were produced during the 2019 calendar year.

For the sixth straight year, ChristianityToday.com won the top Award of Excellence for General Publication (Digital). Additionally, Christianity Today magazine won an Award of Merit in the General (Print) category.

Of the 27 Higher Goals awards the ministry received, Christianity Today had six first-place winners, including:

Cause of the Year Article – Biblical Literacy
The Greatest Story Ever Animated – Paul Pastor.

Cause of the Year Illustration/Photo – Biblical Literacy
Your Bible Translation is Imperfect. It’s Also a Miracle. – Casey Fritz, Sarah Gordon.

Editorial
Who Owns a Woman’s Body? Not Who You Think – Andrea Palpant Dilley.

Personality Article
The Forgotten Female Preacher – Grant Wacker.

Reporting
Amazon Sold $240K of ‘Liturgy of the Ordinary’ Fakes, Publisher Says – Kate Shellnutt.

Standing Column
Beginnings of Wisdom – Jen Wilkin.

“We are so proud of the journalistic and artistic excellence recognized by these awards, and the ongoing commitment by our editorial talent,” said CT editor in chief Daniel Harrell. “The passion and conviction exhibited in our work will continually have as its aim informing our readers with thoughtful, engaging and beautiful content to encourage our faith and strengthen the church.”

A full list of EPA 2020 awards, including the other Christianity Today awards, can be found at the association’s website: Awards of Excellence and Higher Goals.

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 4.5 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, 630-260-6200 ext 4220, cwhitehead@christianitytoday.com

FROM THE CENTER FOR PUBLIC JUSTICE:

The President signed into law today the Paycheck Protection Program and Health Care Enhancement Act, providing extensions and modifications of the Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and the EIDL emergency loan and grant program. This action gives nonprofits, including churches, small businesses, and self-employed individuals and independent contractors another opportunity to receive federal support designed to counteract the economic crisis caused by COVID-19. Organizations and individuals needing this help should act quickly. The PPP program is likely to begin again on Monday, April 27.

About the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP)

• This is for small organizations and self-employed individuals and independent contractors.
• Includes a total of $310 billion more for loans.
• $60 billion is set-aside for loans made by mid- and small-sized community banks, credit unions, and institutions that serve underserved or low-income communities.
• Originators of these set-aside loans include minority depository institutions, which are predominantly led by and serve minority communities, and community development financial institutions (CDFIs), which are dedicated to promoting economic development and providing education and other supports to borrowers.
• Action: Applicants not already working with a willing financial institution may consider local community banks, including including minority-led banks; credit unions with whom they have a relationship; or CDFIs serving their community.
• The SBA in a new question added to its general FAQ document has stressed that, to qualify for a loan, applicants “must certify in good faith that their PPP loan request is necessary”; larger companies that have other resources they can tap are warned away from PPP loans.

About the EIDL loans and Emergency Grants

• Apply through the SBA website.
• Additional $50 billion for the Disaster Loans Program Account.
• Additional $10 billion for the EIDL emergency grants.
• Makes small agricultural enterprises eligible for EIDL loans and grants.

If you have any questions, please email inquiries@CPJustice.org.

Recently ECPA president Stan Jantz had a conversation with Don Nori, a second-generation publisher and the CEO of Nori Media Group, which includes Destiny Image, Harrison House and Sound Wisdom. Here are five questions Stan asked Don about what his company is doing in response to the COVID-19 crisis.

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SJ: About six months ago, without knowing what was coming, you initiated some changes in the way you publish books. How did that help you prepare for this moment we are in?

DN: Recently, we decide to take our publishing processes nearly 100% digital using collaboration platforms and Google drive. I became proficient largely from learning Google Drive through my two children who are in middle school and high school.

I teach at a local University where I recently also enrolled in an online teaching certification course. Following that I taught an online marketing course during the first 3 months of 2020.

When the quarantine hit, we had a company sales conference for our staff using Zoom and Google Drive, followed by a conference for our authors/speakers with over 1,000 attendees online! Just last week, we held an 18-person group presentation meeting with our largest business partner. Everyone was in their own homes (with the exception of myself).

I feel like during the months leading up to quarantine, we unknowingly prepared for business on a digital basis. Coincidence or God? I vote God.

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SJ:  Shortly after the COVID-19 crisis began, you started the Emergency Publishing Initiative. Can you describe what that is?

DN:  In short, we hastily contacted authors and asked for content. Contract-to-publication was challenged for quick-turnaround. This is the email directive sent to ALL staff on March 20:

Please execute Emergency Publishing directive to acquire new, strategic content.  

Goal: Go from written & video formats – to market, within DAYS.  What can go LIVE next week?

What do we HAVE?  What can we GET?  What can we RELEASE?

Even facilitating online conferences for authors through our platforms.

Only consider what we can execute in the timeframe of 1 week up to 3 weeks.

“Let’s leverage crisis into innovation and strategy!” – Larry Sparks, Publisher, Destiny Image

Go, Go, Goooooo!

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SJ:  You have been able to publish a dozen titles with special relevance to the coronavirus crisis in two weeks or less, and that includes print. How did you do it?

DN:  We enlisted the help of everyone in the product chain to expedite. And, everyone enthusiastically jumped-in! However, it was our digital sales director that kept things on track, knowing that most sales would occur through online customers.

Contracts were signed digitally. Designers, editorial, and pagination worked through weekends. Sales and marketing quickly shifted focus of campaigns and ad spending. Books began to be released within about a week.

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SJ:  You are referring to people at Nori Media as “Media Engineers.” What does that mean for your company overall?

DN:  It is our philosophy that we are not just publishers of “books” but of “messages.” We strive to convey each message in as many forms of media as possible: ebooks, trade paper, hardcover, large print, audiobooks, video, and other forms of media as identified. This makes us “media engineers.”  This is something my father believed in so much that he printed it on our first business cards in 1983.

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SJ:  In what ways is the COVID-19 crisis an opportunity for Christian publishers?

DN:  Christian publishers were born for moments like this! We provide hope, love, encouragement, and positivity. The messages we share will help bring people closer to Jesus. It also gives us the opportunity to shine as Christian examples to the world.

Looking inward, this crisis forces us to change. It forces us to reevaluate, reset, and innovate. It can be scary. It can be uncomfortable. Hopefully a stronger and better company emerges on the other side of this.

LARGO, Fla.— While funds are being given for all kinds of businesses affected by the coronavirus closures, Christian Retail Association (CRA) is supporting independent Christian bookstores who carry products that are vital in these challenging times.

“The products our stores have to offer are just what people need in times like this. They bring hope and encouragement, reminding us we are not alone, because God promises He will never leave us or forsake us,” said Sue Brewer, Chief Operations Officer of the Munce Group, a working partner of CRA.

“While we know that the government’s $2.2 trillion bailout will help our independent Christian bookstores, they are going to need more help than that,” Brewer adds. “Our goal of $10 million will give 200 independent Christian bookstores $50K each to pay their suppliers, their rent and for other essentials needed to re-open or keep their stores open to spread the gospel to their communities.”

Bob Munce, president of CRA, said that most people will give to a good cause, but only Christians will give to spread the gospel. In a grassroots approach, CRA is sending information about the giving page to all vendor partners, asking them to share this initiative on their personal social media sites in order to reach outside the industry.

Donations can be given by visiting www.christianretailassociation.org and clicking on “Give Now!” Since CRA is a non-profit organization, all donations are tax deductible. Net proceeds will be collected by May 30, 2020 and distributed to approximately 200 CRA member stores. Stores who joined CRA in 2019 will have their annual membership extended through July to benefit from this collection.

Christian Retail Association is a non-profit ministry founded by Munce Group President Bob Munce in an ongoing effort to better serve independent Christian retailers. The Munce Group was founded in October 1991 and currently serves nearly 200 member retailers across the US. The mission of the Munce Group is to provide member retailers with the highest quality Christian materials and services to equip independent Christian retailers for the work of their ministry and business. For more information, visit www.christianretailassociation.org or call 800-868-4388.

Contact: Andrea Stock, andrea.stock@munce.com

Completed well before the COVID-19 pandemic began, Airborne will now release as an e-book on April 28 in response to growing consumer interest, with print editions releasing in September as originally scheduled.

CAROL STREAM, ILL. (April 15, 2020)—When bestselling author DiAnn Mills began writing a novel about the shocking outbreak of an unknown airborne virus, she had no idea just how relevant it would become, coinciding with the real-life spread of the novel coronavirus pandemic. “The story line for Airborne came to me three and a half years ago,” she explains. “All I had was a what-if: a virus unleashed on an international flight.” Airborne was originally scheduled for publication in September 2020. While print editions of Airborne will release in the fall as planned, Tyndale will release the e-book on Tuesday, April 28, 2020.

Airborne follows the story of Houston FBI agent Heather Lawrence as she works under quarantine to find the person responsible for deliberately unleashing a deadly virus on a plane full of people. The prime suspect? Dr. Chad Lawrence, an expert in his field . . . and Heather’s estranged husband. As more victims fall prey days after the initial outbreak, time’s running out to track down the killer, one who may be closer to the victims than anyone ever expected.

Mills, whose romantic suspense novels have won two Christy Awards, asserts that her vision for Airborne is to champion the selfless service of first responders during times of crisis: “My mission is to show a story that weaves together hope, reality, and the sacrificial work of first responders when a deadly virus spreads among innocent people.” As the world faces an unprecedented time of uncertainty and fear, Mills aims to be a source of encouragement. “My prayer is that people will experience God’s presence during our current global crisis.”

DiAnn Mills writes well-researched novels with accuracy and attention to detail, crafting riveting tales of intrigue for romance and crime drama fans alike.

DiAnn Mills is a bestselling author who believes her readers should expect an adventure. She creates action-packed, suspense-filled novels to thrill readers. Her titles have appeared on the CBA and ECPA bestseller lists; won two Christy Awards; and been finalists for the RITA, Daphne du Maurier, Inspirational Reader’s Choice, and Carol Award contests. Firewall, the first book in her FBI: Houston series, was listed by Library Journal as one of the best Christian fiction books of 2014. Connect with DiAnn at diannmills.com.

Airborne by DiAnn Mills | Tyndale House Publishers | tyndale.com

e-book release: April 28, 2020
ISBN 978-1-4964-2718-2 | Kindle
ISBN 978-1-4964-2715-1 | ePub
ISBN 978-1-4964-2716-8 | Apple

print release: September 8, 2020
ISBN 978-1-4964-2717-5 | Softcover
ISBN 978-1-4964-2714-4 | Hardcover

Since its founding in 1962, Tyndale House Publishers has been a voice to trust for generations of readers. Today, Tyndale is one of the largest independent Christian publishers in the world. Tyndale’s mission is to make the Bible accessible to as many people as possible in language that they can relate and respond to. Tyndale publishes the Holy Bible, New Living Translation (NLT) and offers nonfiction books that equip readers with Christ-centered insight, counsel, and life-improving stories. In addition, Tyndale publishes fiction from fresh new voices and celebrated authors alike, capturing the imagination of millions of readers. With a deep understanding of the importance of nurturing future generations, Tyndale also publishes children’s products that make God’s Word and wisdom come alive. Tyndale’s independent status allows it to follow its founding model, giving a majority of annual revenue—more than $100 million throughout its history—to charitable missions. With every book purchased, Tyndale readers help meet the physical and spiritual needs of people around the world.

PORTLAND, OR–Illuminate Literary Agency hosted a free live workshop, “Crisis-Proof Book Marketing During COVID-19” for clients of the agency on Tuesday, April 14.

“It’s natural for authors to feel isolated, burdened and fearful during an uncertain time like this,” said Jenni Burke, president of Iluminate. “They need to keep selling books, but they don’t want to seem insensitive. Tawny (Johnson) and I wanted to bring our clients together, to encourage and equip them with practical tools and insights so they can feel empowered to share their words and serve their readers.”

The Zoom event was a collaboration with marketing guru Caleb Peavy of Unmutable. Burke began with a welcome and prayer, then the discussion moved into topics including “myths & truths” of book sales during the global pandemic, what authors should be doing now, and specific advice for building a diverse platform to promote one’s backlist, new release, or future campaign. The meeting wrapped up with a Q&A session addressing the authors’ most pressing concerns, such as which retailers are shipping books quickly, publisher acquisition appetite, and digital marketing trends. The event was well attended, with 24 agency clients present, and the recording was sent to those who weren’t able to attend live.

Illuminate Literary Agency is a boutique agency helping authors publish well, succeed faithfully, and thrive. They specialize in adult nonfiction and are on a mission to light up the world with life-giving messages. www.illuminateliterary.com

Best-selling author Joel C. Rosenberg to share how to Live by Faith, Not Fear During Exclusive Webcast

Tyndale, LifeWay Event Hosted Live from Jerusalem on April 29

CAROL STREAM, Ill., April 16, 2020 — Tyndale Publishers has partnered with LifeWay to host an exclusive free webcast live from Jerusalem featuring New York Times best-selling author and Middle East expert Joel C. Rosenberg. The event titled “How Can I Live By Faith, Not Fear, Amidst Worst-Case Scenarios?” will take place April 29 at 7 p.m. CDT.

During the webcast, Rosenberg will share a message of hope and encouragement from the Scriptures that will help bring peace during these difficult global situations. He will also draw from his own life experiences, including the impact coronavirus has had on him, and answer attendee questions.

“We are living in extremely difficult and unique times as we grapple with the effects of the world-wide COVID-19 pandemic,” said Rosenberg. “People are anxious, and understandably so, but God’s Word provides wisdom and peace on which we can all lean.”

Rosenberg is a dual U.S.-Israeli citizen residing in Jerusalem and a New York Times best-selling author known around the world for writing about – sometimes even seeming to predict – worst-case scenarios. He is no stranger to grave danger and distress. He runs a ministry that has invested more than $50 million in strengthening the Church in Israel and the Arab world. Rosenberg also regularly travels the world speaking to audiences and meeting with religious leaders and heads of state.

When the coronavirus pandemic began, Rosenberg was in the United States for a six-week national book tour for his newest best-selling political thriller, “The Jerusalem Assassin.” He ended the tour early to return to his home in Israel, where he was mandated to spend 14 days in complete quarantine apart from his family and friends.

“Social isolation has changed the way we live and work, but we have seen positive aspects of this through the fact that individuals are turning to God now more than ever,” Rosenberg said.

In late-March, Rosenberg commissioned McLaughlin & Associates to survey 1,000 Americans to understand how COVID-19 had affected views on spiritual beliefs and practices. The results revealed 22% of self-identified non-Christian respondents and 40% of Christian respondents indicate the global coronavirus pandemic and economic chaos have resulted in more interest in God and spiritual matters.

“A return to God and the Bible may be the most important silver lining in this crisis so far,” said Rosenberg. “I’m excited to speak with individuals around the world about this through the upcoming webcast and discuss how we can find hope even in these difficult days.”

The April 29 LifeWay webcast is free of charge but attendees must register to receive access. Registered attendees can also view the replayed content after the original live event.

For information, visit https://bit.ly/RosenbergWebcast.

Joel C. Rosenberg is a New York Times best-selling author of 14 novels and five nonfiction books, with nearly 5 million copies sold. His newest book, “The Jerusalem Assassin,” was released March 17 and landed on the Wall Street Journal, Publishers Weekly, and USA Today best-seller lists in its first week. He has been interviewed by, or written articles for, hundreds of media outlets and has been profiled by The New York Times, The Washington Times and The Jerusalem Post. A graduate of Syracuse University with a BFA in filmmaking, he is a dual U.S.-Israeli citizen and lives with his family in Jerusalem, Israel. For information visit http://www.joelrosenberg.com.

Tyndale House Publishers, founded in 1962, is the world’s largest privately held Christian publisher of books, Bibles, and digital media. Tyndale products include many New York Times best-sellers, including the popular Left Behind fiction series by Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins, novels by Francine Rivers, Karen Kingsbury and Rosenberg, plus numerous nonfiction works.

CONTACT: Kristin Cole, 972-267-1111 ext 217, kristin@alarryross.com

Related Links:
https://bit.ly/RosenbergWebcast
http://www.joelrosenberg.com

The coronavirus pandemic has left most of us feeling unsettled, concerned, and very aware of human frailty. It has driven many of us to our knees; we know that as Christians we should pray. But this is such an overwhelming crisis that it leaves many of us feeling unsure how to pray, or what to pray for.

Rachel Jones, author of Is This It? and other books in the award-winning 5 Things to Pray series, wrote 5 Things to Pray in a Global Crisis specifically to help Christians in this season. Each spread takes a passage of Scripture and suggests 5 things to pray from it so that readers can pray in line with God’s will. These prayer prompts will help them to pray for comfort in loneliness, peace in anxiousness, patience in frustration, wisdom in uncertainty, and hope in grief. There are also prayers for family who cannot be visited, those who are sick and those looking after them, their church, community, and government, and the opportunities that this crisis presents for God’s kingdom to grow.

In praise of the 5 Things to Pray series, theologian and pastor Sinclair B. Ferguson commented that “these books take an old idea, tested and tried throughout the ages– a prayer list – and turn it into a thought-provoking, vision-expanding, prayer-stimulating tool. They are small enough to fit into your pocket, but big enough to change your life. Simple, but brilliant.”

Carl Laferton, EVP Publishing at The Good Book Company, said, “Wanting to pray may come easy in this time of crisis, but praying well may not. This book will not only help Christians to pray in ways that really change things—it will also encourage them with biblical truth in the midst of very uncertain times. I’m going to be using it myself as I seek to pray well in this season.”

About Rachel Jones:  Rachel Jones is the author of Is This It? and the award-winning 5 Things to Pray series, and an editor at The Good Book Company.

About The Good Book Company: Founded in 1991, The Good Book Company (TGBC) is an international Christian publisher. Their Bible studies, books, devotionals, videos, tracts, evangelistic courses, and training materials are used throughout the English-speaking world, and in translation in over 35 languages worldwide. Everyone at TGBC is passionate about the Lord Jesus, His word, His church, and His gospel of grace. They create and publish biblical, relevant, and accessible resources that will encourage Christians to keep going, keep growing, and keep sharing their faith.

Media contact: Eleanor Elms eleanor.elms@thegoodbook.com

April 13, 2020 — New York Times and CBA bestselling author Tosca Lee has spent the last three weeks offering entertainment, comfort, and encouragement to the public during a nightly “Story Time with Tosca” at 9 Eastern on Facebook live. It started March 20 with a promise to read until shelter-in-place guidelines are no longer necessary… which means she currently has no idea when she’ll stop.

Lee has been reading from her 2014 ECPA Christian Book Award® winner in Fiction, Iscariot—her bestselling novel about the life of the infamous disciple and ministry of Jesus Christ. The perennial Easter season favorite is read annually by some of her fans and was chosen in a vote the day before “Story Time with Tosca” began on March 20. Story Time happens on Tosca’s Facebook author page at www.facebook.com/AuthorToscaLee and everyone is welcome to check out past installments of Story Time live recordings plus take part in the live episodes.

Lee, the first runner-up to Mrs. United States 1998, jokes that she hasn’t worn makeup this many days in a row since her tenure as Mrs. Nebraska. She says the time has been heart-warming, with readers calling the time their favorite part of the day and a much-needed escape from the news and rigors of quarantine. “It’s been an unexpected blessing for my family in return,” Lee says. “A much-needed marker in days that otherwise feel as though they’re running together.” From days that, by her own admission, are a little extra surreal given how closely the news has mirrored her 2019 bestselling thriller, The Line Between.

Tosca Lee is the award-winning, New York Times, and CBA bestselling author of 11 novels including The Progeny, Firstborn, Iscariot, The Legend of Sheba, and The Books of Mortals series with New York Times bestselling author Ted Dekker. Her books have been translated into 17 languages and been optioned for TV and film.

Tosca received her B.A. in English from Smith College. A lifelong world adventure traveler, she lives in Nebraska with her husband and three of four children still at home. To learn more about Tosca, please visit ToscaLee.com.

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FICTION MEETS REALITY IN “THE LINE BETWEEN”

An outbreak in Washington… a run on essential supplies… schools closed… quarantined towns… borders shut down.

The spate of recent headlines is also the plotline of Lee’s medical thriller, The Line Between, which released January, 2019 from Howard Books/Simon & Schuster—a year before COVID-19 arrived in the U.S. The book’s sequel, A Single Light (September, 2019, Howard Books/Simon & Schuster) comes to paperback August 17.

Watching the news one year after the release of The Line Between—a Goodreads Choice Awards semifinalist for best mystery/thriller of 2019—Lee calls life “eerie and surreal.”

“Every now and then my husband and I just look at one another as we listen to the news—including the day the Canadian border shut down,” Lee says, of yet one more event she wrote about two years ago before the books went into print. “It’s a little eerie,” she admits.

Another one of the reasons Lee, herself, finds solace in Story Time with her readers.

The Line Between has been optioned by Radar Pictures (Jumanji) and Ed Burns’ Marlboro Road Gang Productions (Public Morals) and is in development for television as first reported by Deadline Hollywood: https://deadline.com/2019/01/edward-burns-radar-developing-the-line-between-thriller-novel-for-television-1202538907/

The Line Between (Book 1)
When Wynter Roth escapes New Earth, a self-contained doomsday cult on the American prairie, she emerges into a world poised on the brink of madness as a mysterious outbreak of rapid early onset dementia spreads across the nation.

Struggling to start over in a world she’s been taught to regard as evil, Wynter finds herself face-to-face with the apocalypse she’s feared all her life—until the night her sister shows up at her doorstep with a set of medical samples and she realizes there’s something far more sinister at play. As the power grid fails and the nation descends into chaos, Wynter must find a way to get the samples to a lab in Colorado. She is aided by former military man Chase Miller, who has his own reasons for wanting to get close to the samples in her possession, and to Wynter, herself.

Filled with action, conspiracy, romance, and questions of whom—and what—to believe, The Line Between is a high-octane story of survival and love in a world on the brink of madness.

THE LINE BETWEEN by Tosca Lee / HOWARD BOOKS / ISBN: 1501169092 / Pages: 384

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A Single Light (Book 2)
Six months after vanishing into an underground silo with sixty others, Wynter and Chase emerge to find the area abandoned. No sign of the others who were to greet them when they emerged—the same people Wynter was counting on to help her locate the IV antibiotics her gravely ill friend, Julie, needs in order to live.

As the clock ticks down on Julie’s life, Wynter and Chase embark on a desperate search for medicine and answers. With food and water in limited supply and their own survival in question, Chase and Wynter come face-to-face with a society radically changed by global pandemic. As hope fades by the hour and Wynter learns the terrible truth of the last six months, she is called upon once again to help save the nation she no longer recognizes—a place so dark she’s no longer sure it can even survive.

A Single Light is a thriller of nonstop suspense about the risks of living in a world outside the safe confines of our closely-held beliefs and the relationships and lives that inspire us.

A SINGLE LIGHT by Tosca Lee / HOWARD BOOKS / ISBN: 9781476798646 / Pages: 384 Paperback On Sale: 8/18/20