June 17, 2019 Edition
Industry News
ECPA will testify in Washington on Chinese Tariff issue
One of the most critical issues facing the book publishing industry is the strong possibility that a tariff of up to 25 percent will be placed on goods imported from China, including books and Bibles. Because this would affect many of our members, ECPA is working with the Association of American Publishers (AAP) to express our concerns to the United States Trade Representative (USTR) in Washington.
Read More...Christian Book Distributors, CBD, and Christianbook.com announce all branding will move to Christianbook
Christian Book Distributors, also known as CBD and with a website of www.christianbook.com, will consolidate all various company brands to Christianbook.
Read More...New industry Sales Award will recognize sales of more than 250,000
ECPA has added a new level to the ECPA Sales Achievement Awards for titles reaching the sales milestone of more than 250,000 sold. The Bronze Award for 250,000 in sales will abide by the same rules as the Gold (500,000), Platinum (1 million), and Diamond (10 million) sales award levels, with the addition that the Bronze Award will only be eligible for titles published January 2000 or later.
Read More...New PubU track has the emerging publishing leader in mind: Training and connection for those newer to the industry
The ECPA PubU 2019 program will feature more than 40 sessions in six tracks for training and connecting the Christian publishing professional on November 5-6 in Nashville. Tracks include Editorial, Digital Marketing, Design, Reader Engagement & Publicity, and Data, Delivery & Workflow. In addition, a brand new track will be featured with the emerging publishing leader in mind. Track leader Randall Payleitner, Moody Publishing’s Associate Publisher, states: “If you’ve been in Christian publishing (or publishing at all!) for fewer than five years, our goal is to connect you with others in your same stage, to train you to be on mission, and to encourage you for the bright future ahead.” The track will be offered the first day of PubU, so that on the second day attendees can go to sessions related to their publishing discipline.
Early bird registration for PubU is now open.
Emerging Leader diversity scholarships available.
Media Announcements
Steven Curtis Chapman and daughter Emily Chapman Richards discuss a father’s love on Jesus Calling podcast
Just in time for Father’s Day, the Jesus Calling podcast welcomed Steven Curtis Chapman and his daughter Emily Chapman Richards to the show, where they discussed the tender place dads hold in our hearts. Steven and his daughter share some of the special moments they have had, along with the faithful legacies they’re working to pass on to their children and grandchildren today. Chapman’s book, “Between Heaven & the Real World: My Story” is available from Revell/Baker Publishing Group.
The Good Book Company launches Spark Wonder campaign
The Good Book Company is launching Spark Wonder, a new campaign to put storybooks at the heart of how Christians commend God’s works to the next generation. This comes as a recent survey of 1,000 parents revealed that while nearly half of them aimed to read books to their children before bed every night, over a quarter regularly turned to Amazon’s Alexa and other technologies for storytime, with work and being ‘too busy’ as the main culprits.
Read More...Netflix to premiere powerful story of Kara Tippetts’ cancer journey on June 23
The documentary, “The Long Goodbye: The Kara Tippetts Story” following the powerful story of a wife and mother thrust into the national spotlight through a terminal cancer diagnosis, will premiere on Netflix. Tippetts’ book, “The Hardest Peace” (David C Cook), won the 2015 Christian Book Award® in the Inspiration category.
Read More...Husband of wife murdered in Charleston Church shooting interviewed about new book “Called to Forgive”
While the murder of his wife June 17, 2015 devastated Rev. Anthony Thompson, he and three other relatives of victims chose to privately and publicly forgive the shooter. Today, the church and community still struggle to understand the family member’s deliberate choice to forgive the racist murderer. But as Charlestonians have witnessed these incredible acts of forgiveness, something significant has happened to the community—black and white leaders and residents have united, coming together peaceably and even showing acts of selfless love. Bible Gateway interviewed Rev. Anthony B. Thompson about his book, “Called to Forgive: The Charleston Church Shooting, a Victim’s Husband, and the Path to Healing and Peace” Bethany House, 2019).
Bible Gateway interviews Michael and Lauren McAfee, authors of “Not What You Think”
Do you see the Bible as intolerant, outdated, out of step with societal norms at best, and a tool of oppression at worst? What if you cleared the deck on your preconceptions of this book and encountered it anew? What if you came with the understanding that your questions are welcome? And what if you approached the Bible as less of a system to figure out and more of a story to step into; a story with more surprising plot twists than you might think? Bible Gateway interviewed Michael (@MichaelMcAfee) and Lauren (@LaurenAMcAfee) McAfee about their book, “Not What You Think: Why the Bible Might Be Nothing We Expected Yet Everything We Need” (Zondervan, 2019).
Other News
INDUSTRY
- Four Decades of Christian Publishing: PW Talks to Dave Lewis
- New Books Draw on Faith to Help Redefine Masculinity
- May Religion Bestsellers: The Rational Bible is Back
- PW Fall Religion Announcements for books published Aug 2019 - Jan 2020
- Indies missing out by failing to fill Christian bookshop gap, publishers say
- Christian Rock Band-Inspired Graphic Novel Goes Back to ‘Eden’
- 2019 Christopher Awards Honor Books on Family, Freedom
- Died: Lloyd John Ogilvie, Celebrated Preacher and Senate Chaplain
PUBLISHING
- Free NPD Webinar with Kristen McLean on “The State of the Book Market”
- With No New Bid, Elliott's Offer for B&N Stands
- Ingram Explores West Coast Fulfillment Options
- Bookstore Sales End Slide in April
- Company connecting Hollywood and Publishers launches online platform
- Worldwide Sales of Licensed Material Surpasses US$280 Billion in 2018
- HarperCollins UK unveils new digital-first division One More Chapter
- What Are the Top Strategic Issues Facing the Book Value Chain?
- Fifth of book buyers consume audiobooks
- How Has the Internet Changed Book Culture?
- NEA announces $1 million to support community reading programs
- B&N: Most Readers Plan to Break Electronics Habit and Focus on Reading
- Lack of female/ethnic characters in picture books' central role, is a concern
- Canadian literary award for YA books written in an Indigenous language