Warm Christmas Greetings!

I hope you are all set in your holiday plans and that they include wonderful times with family, some time off, and a continuing and deep appreciation for Jesus, the reason we live and breathe; the one who gives meaning to our lives.

The whole holiday rush got away from me in the midst of navigating all the rapid changes in the publishing industry this fall. I couldn’t put together normal “mailed” cards—or send gifts, sorry to say. But what I thought I’d do instead is to combine my Christmas greetings with news of the industry and how we're responding to these changes. People ask me all the time how business is going and lately my answer is always, “Not as good as last year, but not bad.”

Here are a few of the 2008 highlights:

→ WordServe's newest agent, Rachelle Gardner—even amidst a down book market—is really doing well. She closed ten deals over the course of the year (including a recent six-figure New York publisher auction deal), and continues to find great authors and great books. Her blog, if you haven’t seen it, is fantastic. In June, Writer’s Digest named it one of the top 100 blogs/websites for authors, and it was the only one on their list by a Christian agent. (Click here for the blog.)

→ We had more than 60 books come out by WordServe authors in 2008.

→ We negotiated 50 publishing contracts.

→ We will have at least 50 new titles debuting in 2009.

→ While many publishers are cutting staff, several others are not (as of yet).

So, amidst the gloom and doom we're constantly hearing about, many WordServe authors continue to thrive.

Now for the bah-humbug (in case you haven’t heard). I would say the changes happening in the book industry are unprecedented.

→ October, November and now December have shown that book sales could be the worst…ever (or at least in recent memory)! Naturally, it’s all a function of the economy. Books are seen as optional to food and mortgage payments, so that’s why the downturn. (And upturn in library patronage!)

→ Publishers (Thomas Nelson, Simon & Schuster, Random House and others) are downsizing to save money, so long-time editors and other veterans are leaving the industry.

→ Publishers are delaying contracted books to subsequent years since the crystal ball for 2009 is another slow year in book sales. They’re also lowering advances, making fewer buys, taking longer to make decisions, cutting marketing budgets…Oh boy, Happy New Year to authors and agents!

→ E-book editions (Kindle, Sony Reader) continue to improve, though only a few are predicting the (eventual) end to hard copy books as we know it. There are still lots of kinks to be worked out before these take off.

→ Retail is struggling, while on-line stores are doing well. It wouldn’t surprise me if Borders goes into Chapter 11 after the first of the year. That would be a huge blow to the industry, as you can imagine.

All this to say, the New Year will bring challenge…AND…opportunity. One of Becky's favorite quotes is “Crisis is an invitation to cross a threshold.” (Sue Monk Kidd)

Authors will have to work harder than ever to build an audience and readership. They will have to become a fuller partner with their publisher to make their books succeed. Even more than in the past, authors are going to have to be as much marketer as writer. Publishers will be looking hard at each author to see how much they are participating—with the publisher and on their own—in selling their works.

What this means for us here at WordServe is instead of entrenching and cutting back, we've made the decision to increase our level of service to our authors. In the weeks ahead, you will be hearing of new initiatives from us that will:

→ Better inform you of changes in the publishing industry; and

→ Better equip you to be the primary marketer of your book through a strong internet presence and PR initiatives after the publisher’s initial marketing plan has been fulfilled.

In this arena specifically, we are seeking to partner with an established PR firm to give authors a discount on continuing PR campaigns.

Now is the time to continue to get better at what we do, and help our authors be better at what they should be doing. So while there are challenges ahead, we intend to meet all of them head on.

The key word for 2009 is “PARTNERSHIP.”

Let's not fret about the future. Nothing has taken God by surprise. It’s comforting to note that so many angel's messages around Christ’s incarnation began with “Do not be afraid” or “Fear not!” and followed by good and encouraging news, “good tidings of great joy.”

The message of Christmas contains all we need to know to experience peace on earth and joy to the world, no matter the state of the economy or the unease in the (publishing) world around us.

May Christ, who IS our peace, enfold and infuse you with hope and good cheer; erasing all fear and replacing it with serenity beyond human logic and reasoning and energy for the work ahead. We stand on a solid rock in a shaking world. That is always cause for celebration.

Christmas blessings to you and those you love,

Greg Johnson
President
WordServe Literary Group