Religious book sales jumped from $588 million to $876 ...



Religious book sales jumped from $588 million to $876 million during the same period. Just-released sales figures for Feb. 2006 to Feb. 2007 show that religious book sales increased 33 percent.

The inspirational fiction market is growing by leaps and bounds and expects to be a $4 billion industry next year! This is evidenced by the recent acquisitions 'secular' publishers have made of Inspirational houses.

Random House bought Waterbrook

Penguin created Penguin Praise

Harper Collins created Avon Inspirational

Harper Collins also acquired Zondervan

Time Warner acquired Warner Faith which then created Center Street and Faith Words

Simon and Schuster acquired Howard Publishing

InterMedia Partners acquired Thomas Nelson

And bringing up the rear is the one mentioned in the post: Harlequinn has Steeple Hill

Inspirational fiction is no longer your mothers fiction. The Left Behind series sold more than 600 million books and spawned its own industry.

Frank Peretti's The Visitation was made into a movie. And Robert Liparulo's fist book Comes a Horseman is being made into a major motion picture by the same producer that did Sahara.

The christian inspirational true story, "Why I Jumped" by Tina Zahn as told to Wanda Dyson was featured last Tuesday on Oprah!

But I digress...to answer the original question: There are many christian fiction agents out there, I met a number of them at the Christian Writers conference in Philadelphia this August. You need to frequent christian sites to find them.

Start with ACFW-Amer. Christian Fiction Writers This is a national organization with a huge website

Or you could come to theCFBA- Christian Fiction Blog Alliance, of which I am the Director. We presently have 75 members and are growing daily! Weekly we give blog tours for christian fiction and regularly put the book as #1 on Technorati's Popular book list Our tour this week put Violette Between in that #1 slot.

Or you could always buy or borrow from you local library, Sally Stuart's Christina Writers' Market Guide. There are at least a 100 Christian agents listed in there!

Christian books on the rise

 

Friday, Aug 10, 2007 - 01:20 PM 

By Linnea McClellan

E-mail

The annual International Christian Retail Show (ICRS), held in Atlanta last month, brought together more than 9,000 industry professionals and retailers, and the buzz was clear:  the market for Christian fantasy and Christian romance is hot.

With the Book Industry Study Group reporting that the current estimated $2.4 billion per year in Christian book sales is expected to increase by 6 percent annually until 2009, both secular and Christian publishers are targeting those readers with a barrage of new titles in both categories.

CHRISTIAN ROMANCE

 

For years, women have been drawn to half-clad muscular men seducing buxom women on the covers of paperback romances lining grocery store aisles.  Sales of these tawdry tomes have created a $1.35 billion a year business.  What may surprise some is that Christian romance, or "inspirational fiction" as it is often called, makes up more than 6 percent of that market.

For three days of the trade show, Karen Kingsbury, the woman Time magazine called the "queen of Christian romance" reigned over legions of fans.  Lines snaked through the Georgia World Congress Center with those waiting for an autograph from the author of more than 30 novels, none of which carry even a single steamy sex scene.

"Readers can become desensitized by too much information," says Kingsbury.  "I try to take what's good and right and true in my life and put it into an art form.  Hopefully, readers see that in my writing and relate to it."

During ICRS, the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association awarded Kingsbury the 2007 Christian Book of the Year award for her novel "Ever After" (Zondervan, $14.99).  This was the first time a fiction novel has won the coveted top prize, and also the first for a woman.

Well-known romance publisher Harlequin will print more than 100 titles this year under its Christian fiction imprint, Steeple Hill.  Steeple Hill stories include those of romance, suspense, historical fiction, and relationships.

HarperOne, a HarperCollins imprint, launched Avon Inspire, a publishing house for a new line of women's fiction/romance novels.  Author Linda Windsor believes these stories can cross-over into secular success.

"Today's readers want more than a two-dimensional, page-turning, emotional ride," said Windsor, author of "Wedding Bell Blues" ($12.95), the first installment in her Piper Cove Chronicles and the second book published by the new imprint.

"I'm thrilled and honored to write for Avon Inspire by penning uplifting stories that will appeal to readers on both sides of the market lines."

Kingsbury also dismisses the notion that the lack of sexual activity in Christian fiction will bar these books from mainstream success.

"Seventy percent of my books are sold in the secular market," says Kingsbury.  "I think the reason (the inspirational fiction genre) is growing is because of the spiritual element.  We are all spiritual beings, and these books speak to the soul."

The top selling category in the industry is Christian Living, which accounts for 32% of the sales. Inspiration follows with 16%, Fiction at 13% and Children at 12.5%

- Christian Retail Trends Report 2005-06

Christian book sales generate over $2 billion in sales per year. ECPA publishers hold the largest share of that number.

The entire Christian product industry is approximately $4.2 billion with over $2 billion sold through Christian retail, $1.1 billion sold through general retail, and $725 million sold direct-to-consumer, and through ministry sales channels.

- Book Industry Trends 2004, CBA (trade association for Christian Retail)

What is the Christian publishing industry’s market share as it relates to book publishing in general?

Christian books account for one of the fastest growing genres, out of all other categories in book publishing, enjoying continued double digit growth in recent years.

The U.S. market for religious books in 2004 was 11.4% of the overall market share. 85.6% of those titles were Christian in content.

- STATS+, Book Industry Trends Report 2004

Thursday - Late Night Chats - (you may choose one of the following)

Thursday: 8:30-9:30pm

|You Had Me at Hello |

|Hosted By: Krista Stroever - Steeple Hill | |

|Description: | |

|Bring the first 2 pages of your manuscript to this fun and interactive workshop. The pages will be read aloud and | |

|evaluated on the spot by Steeple Hill editor Krista Stroever, giving you insight into what happens when a manuscript | |

|lands on an editor’s desk. Find out what makes us read further. Ms pages must be typed, double-spaced & stapled. Please | |

|bring 2 copies. | |

Friday - Late Night Chats - (you may choose one of the following)

Friday: 9:00-10:00pm

|Why We Write for Steeple Hill |

|Hosted By: Lenora Worth, Debbie Clopton, Valerie Hansen, Irene Brand and Margaret Daley | |

|Description: | |

|This panel discussion will give the inside scoop to the joys and challenges of writing for Steeple Hill (as we celebrate| |

|SH’s tenth anniversary!) We will answer all questions regarding guidelines, story ideas and how to break into Steeple | |

|Hill. | |

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Friday - Elective Workshops - 2:15 pm – 3:15 pm - (you may choose one of the following)

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|Workshop Title: WS2) Professionalism and Publishing |

|Track: Industry/Business | |

|Hosted By: Sue Brower | |

|Description: | |

|Novelists usually think of writing as a creative endeavor, but it’s just as important to look at your publishing career | |

|from the professional standpoint. How do you present yourself as a new author? Is networking valuable? What can you | |

|expect from the publishing experience? What does the “dream” author look like? What should you expect from your editor? | |

|This workshop will provide a guide for writers on what editors value in their authors, and what authors should expect | |

|from their editors. We will also cover the publishing process from acquisition to publication. | |

Friday - Elective Workshops - 3:30 pm – 4:30 pm - (you may choose one of the following)

|Workshop Title: WS13) Are You Ready to Propose? |

|Track: Career | |

|Hosted By: Virginia Smith and Krista Stroever | |

|Description: | |

|You’ve pitched. You’ve queried. You’ve received an invitation to submit a proposal. Now what? In this session, Virginia | |

|Smith will identify the elements of a successful book proposal using examples from published books. Krista Stroever, | |

|Senior Editor at Harlequin/Steeple Hill/Silhouette, will provide an editor’s perspective. At the conclusion of this | |

|workshop, you’ll be ready to propose! | |

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Friday - Elective Workshops - 4:30 pm – 5:30 pm - (you may choose one of the following)

|Workshop Title: WS20) A Hero is Like an Onion |

|Track: Craft | |

|Hosted By: Susan May Warren | |

|Description: | |

|Once you know your character’s likes and dislikes, how do you translate him or her onto the page without making him feel| |

|plastic, or a cardboard cutout? How do you make a reader see your character as you do? Characters are like Onions (or | |

|Parfaits!), they have layers. This class will look at the five layers of character, and how to peel back his/her layers | |

|so that your reader will fall for them as you have…including the crying. | |

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Saturday - Elective Workshops - 3:00 pm – 4:00 pm - (you may choose one of the following)

|Workshop Title: WS21) 300 Pages in 30 Days |

|Track: Craft | |

|Hosted By: Susan Meissner | |

|Description: | |

|This class is all about pre-writing, planning and removing obstacles to pounding out a manuscript. Focus will be on high| |

|concept, plot and character-development, setting, fact-gathering and goal-setting. | |

|Workshop Title: WS22) The 10 K’s of a Good Book or How to Earn 10K on Your Next One |

|Track: Industry/Business | |

|Hosted By: Steve Laube | |

|Description: | |

|Writing is a matter in inspiration, persperation, organization, qualification, anticipation, accumulation, | |

|administration, capitalization, collation, declaration, enumeration, fertili-zation, and innovation. And yet, none of | |

|these are a part of the 10 K’s of a good book! We will explore the fundamental aspects of good non-fiction book writing.| |

|Using a clever mnemonic we will cover a broad range of topics. When these elements work to-gether you can almost be | |

|guaranteed to earn the 10K promised in the title. | |

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|I am not about to list the 10 K’s here, because then you won’t be motivated to attend the class. Instead I will list | |

|just the numerals. See you there! | |

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Saturday - Elective Workshops - 4:15 pm – 5:15 pm - (you may choose one of the following)

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|Workshop Title: WS28) I’ve Got a Bite! How to Hook a Reader |

|Track: Craft | |

|Hosted By: Susan May Warren | |

|Description: | |

|In today’s competitive book market, a writer needs to capture their reader in the first paragraph, if not the first | |

|line. A good hook sets the tone for a book, it gives voice to the character and immediately draws the reader into the | |

|story. This class will reveal how to use Theme, 5 Ws, Voice, Actions, Stakes and Story Question to teach participants | |

|how to create a hook that will catch your reader and won’t let go. | |

|CE Session - D - Suspense |

|Track: D - Suspense | |

|Title: The Suspense Thickens | |

|Hosted By: Colleen Coble | |

|Status: | |

|Description: | |

|Step through the doorway of adventure with best-selling romantic suspense author Colleen Coble as she teaches you the | |

|key elements of writing a successful suspense. Colleen will cover key elements such as setting, tone, red herrings, and | |

|plot. Come prepared with your current WIP and expect plenty of class participation. | |

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