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Report Says Religious Publishing Down 10%
So What Will We Do About This? The stakes are high—and getting higher. What is Christian publishing going to do to stay relevant, to keep selling, and, above all, to continue to get out God’s message in the various formats that will speak to those who most need it? We welcome your feedback. —Linda Taylor
Smokin’ Hot New Trends in the Christian Fiction Market
Changes Seen in the Christian Publishing Marketplace Sally Stuart, compiler of every Christian writer’s best friend, Christian Writers’ Market Guide, guest blogs about trends she’s seeing in Christian fiction—along with other interesting tidbits she discovers as she compiles each annual writers’ guide. —Linda Taylor
Time Spent on Social Networks Doubles in a Year
Now Let’s Get Back to Work I know I keep Twitter open but Facebook closed all day at work (can’t have the bosses seeing me ON my FB page all day). Twitter might give me some new info; FB is more pesonal and hence more addicting. This article shows me I’m not alone. —Linda Taylor
It is with great sorrow that I read about the demise of several of Christianity Today’s magazines. It’s very sad because, as CT’s building is Livingstone’s neighbor a block away in Carol Stream, that means many of the layoffs affect people I know and love.
And it’s also sad when something that has become an “institution” of sorts has to close its doors. For me, the demise of Campus Life magazine makes me feel both sad and old. I loved that magazine for helping me during my high school years to ground my faith and find humor and fun in Christianity. And, as a high schooler living in with my military family in Europe with no ability to make college visits (and decades before the Internet), I devoured my Campus Life Magazine Christian College Guide, dutifully filling in the handy postcard so that I could receive catalogs and other information by mail for my college search.
And I have similar feelings for Today’s Christian Woman—the subject of Lisa Miller’s article in Newsweek. As I matured in my walk, finished college, married, worked, had a family, TCW was always there to walk me through a tough time with my kids, or with my husband, or with my finances, or simply to offer a dose of encouragement in what at times seemed like lonesome, unfulfilling days (three children born in 33 months will do that to a woman. I know that there are a couple of years of my life that I cannot even recall . . .). So to say good-bye to TCW is difficult indeed.
I know that these are steps CT is taking strategically, and I know that they are based on financial, bottom-line considerations. Every good business has to do that. But I disagree with Miller that this signals the end of Christian publishing. Instead, I’m far more in tune with Mark Kuyper’s take on this whole situation. As Kuyper says, these times are challenging, no doubt. But they also provide great opportunities.
You see, I don’t believe that Christian publishing is no longer needed any more than I believe doctors, plumbers, truckers, and bikers no longer need their trade publications. Christian publishing is where we of likeminded worldviews gather together to share ideas, discuss, disagree, teach, encourage, and figure out how our worldview shapes our responses to an ever-changing society. Christian magazines and Christian publishing provide our “trade publications,” keeping us abreast of current thinking. And there will always be a place for this.
While some mature believers may be able to filter secular material through their Christian worldview (as Don Pape says he does in Miller’s article), I also know that my children (ages 18, 19, 20) are still developing their worldviews—and they are not yet discerning enough to do so completely on their own. They still identify themselves with Christianity, and they still want to know what a “Christian” take would be on world events and on opinions that go largely unchallenged by secular media outlets. They need to know what God’s Word says, and it’s up to us (as my children’s parents), partnering with the church, other mature believers, and the wonderful material produced by Christian publishers, to help them understand God’s Word and how it applies to their lives, their opinions, their very worldview.
You see, we Christians are different. And I for one am glad to be so. I do willingly identify myself with a coherent group that resonates with certain values and beliefs. Of course, Christians have a huge variety of opinions on a huge variety of topics—which keeps us from getting stuck and stuffy and, incidentally, from being “closed minded.” But if we take ourselves back to the Apostles’ Creed, we discover the basic beliefs that do separate us and make us unique.
So maybe some print publishing is dead. And that may be a good thing. Save a few trees, less waste. And I’m glad that Ginger Kolbaba, editor of TCW, is in the process of creating an online magazine. I mean, I still don’t curl up with my laptop at night (magazines are really better), but at least I know the material is available to me and to my kids.
The words of the early church fathers written centuries ago still teach and inspire me. We believers still have plenty of stories to tell, inspiration to give, encouragement to share, insights to teach.
We’re not dead. Not by a long shot.
Acquisition Editors Searching for the Next Big Idea
Authonomy.com by HarperCollins is a good example of a customer-centric, organic, market approach to new surfacing new book ideas. This online community allows authors to post manuscripts that visitors can then review. A HarperCollins editorial board looks at the top five books each month. If you don’t have a program like this, this mini-case study might inspire your editorial team.
How Publishers Can Use Twitter in a Smart Way
As part of your SEO and outbound digital marketing strategy, it’s important for publishing marketers to understand how to profitably use Twitter. This is a concise and helpful article on traps to avoid and best practices to develop when using Twitter as a tactic to help improve your web presence, corporate branding, and sales.
In a Downturn, Ads Should Focus on “Value”
A recent Linked-in poll conducted for AdweekMedia asked, “What is the most effective tone for advertising during a recession?” The top response (52%) was a tone of “value.” The next popular was “empathetic realism.” See how the other responses ranked in this article. What is the tone of your advertising for selling your publishing company to other businesses or products to distributors these days?
A Second Chance for Worthwhile Books On Wednesday, May 13, Amazon announced a new program called AmazonEncore to help books that have great followings and reviews to benefit from Amazon’s marketing power. These may not be the best-sellers, but they’re good books (according to their readers) that deserve a second chance. —Linda Taylor
Against All Odds, Small Presses Prosper
Strategies for Thriving in a Down Market These small publishers from Texas to New York share their strategies for cost cutting and reallocating resources in order to prosper in these difficult economic times. —Linda Taylor
Chick Lit Wins Over Lad Lit We hate to admit it, but the male reading audience is finicky indeed. What do men read, and why? —Linda Taylor
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