I was all set to write my March update when I looked up and suddenly it was April. How did that happen?
Here are some of the things that have been happening in the last month.
Christian Book Expo in DallasAs you may have heard, the consumer event in Dallas didn’t come off as planned. Organizers hoped for 15,000 people, but ended up with 1,500. Time of year (Spring break in Dallas), venue (downtown convention center), cost ($20 a day to come hear authors and buy books!)… all combined for an event that was, well, embarrassing for many. WordServe, however, was well represented by having many authors in attendance to either speak or sign books (or both):
• Calvin Miller
• Steve Farrar
• Jill Hubbard (a finalist for book of the year in the youth category for
The Secrets Young Women Keep, co-authored with Ginny McCabe, who was also in Dallas)
• Jim Burns
• Joan Webb
• Kathy Lipp
• Catherine Martin
• Marylu Tyndall
• Richard Mabry
• Julie Ieron
• Cheryl Scruggs
Also around were Texas WordServe authors Jane Jarrell, David Murrow, James Pence and Anna Clark.
Christy Award Finalist!
For the third year in a row, novelist Athol Dickson is a finalist in the suspense category, which he has won the last two years. His latest is a Bethany title,
Winter Haven.Writers Needed …
Author James Bell needs contributors for a new 8-book series of stories on God answering prayer in incredible ways. Guideposts is publishing the series for their continuity line. Please contact James directly at
incredibleprayers@earthlink.net for the full scoop. He’s paying for published contributions. Please pass this info along to any writer you know in need of some paying gigs. He’s got hundreds of stories to find, so he needs your help.
New Submission GuidelinesThis does not affect you much as a WordServe author, but we have changed our guidelines for submissions to the agency. We can no longer guarantee a response to queries if we are not interested (and we say yes to about 1 in every 200 queries). If people are asking you how to get an agent or how to submit their project, just send them to the website so they can read our guidelines. However, if you are referring a friend or someone that we ought to give a careful look, have them put “Referred by... [your name]” in the subject line, otherwise it goes to Cathy for a first look.
Google Mess
You may have heard that Google is scanning and copying all public domain or out-of-print books. All... as in, ALL. Naturally, this is causing no small amount of ruffled feathers by authors and their estates. There was a class-action suit and some sort of monetary figure was awarded, but the ruling and rules are more complicated than we can tell you. We’re compiling a file full of articles on the issue, so if you have concerns or want more info, email Cathy (admin@wordserveliterary.com) and she’ll forward what we have so far.
Books Recently Signed to PublishersTerror by Night, a book by Terry Caffey, with James Pence writing, will be published by Tyndale in September. A fast track book due to the high level of media attention (Greg has personally talked with producers from Oprah, Dateline, Inside Edition, 20/20 and many others), it’s a modern-day real-life story of Job.
A week after his father died, Terry, his wife, and two sons were sound asleep when gunshots and screams filled the night. Intruders had broken into his home and killed his wife, his two sons and filled him with a dozen bullet holes. As the house was burning down, he crawled out a bathroom window and made it 400 yards to a neighbor, so he could tell them who the murderers were: his teenage daughter, her boyfriend and another teen couple. Months later, after his physical wounds had healed, Terry returned alone to his now empty property. Everything that he had known in life was gone. In one of the trees, however, Terry noticed a piece of paper. He pulled it off the tree only to discover it was one page of a novel.
The torn page spoke right to the heart of his situation. The first completely visible paragraph says: "I couldn't understand why You would take my family and leave me behind to struggle along without them. And I guess I still don't understand that part. But I
do believe that You're soveriegn; You're in control."
Instead of giving up on life, Terry took this as an (obvious) sign from God that his life wasn’t over. He started speaking at churches, holding up this framed parchment. He didn’t know the book or the author, but in one small Texas church, someone did. It was a page from a James Pence novel called
Blind Sight. Terry and James met, and surprisingly had another connection. Terry’s daughter Erin, one of the killers, had been in James’ home as a friend to his own daughter.
Those who witnessed the sentencing at the end of the trial say it is the only time anyone can remember the victim and the felon holding hands as the judge passed down (a 42-year) sentence. Terry has forgiven his daughter and the other killers. Now James is writing Terry’s story! A story that has a Job-like ending: Terry has remarried and his two new sons are now about the same age as those who were killed. (And yes, we have some movie interest.) We should be seeing his story in
People magazine in the next couple of weeks.
* * *Signing with Berkley/Caliber (Penguin) was Marcus Brotherton’s
Gone But Not Forgotten. It’s a remembrance from 20-40 family members of the original men from the “Band of Brothers,” featuring untold stories of the time during and after WWII, how they fought and how they finished their lives. Publication will be May 2010.
* * *Signing with Kaplan Publishers is Col. Susan Luz for a memoir
A War to Care (with Marcus Brotherton). Susan earned a Bronze Star from the Army in Iraq for her efforts in a MASH unit during her long tour of duty; but more than that, she has lived a life of service amidst great personal sacrifice; a lifetime of caring for her fellow man has been her constant theme. Publication will be in the Spring of 2010.
* * *Tim LaHaye and Craig Parshall are teaming for the
Endgame series that Zondervan will publish. The storyline starts with non-stop action about the use of a sophisticated military defense technology that is capable of returning nuclear missiles to their place of origin. This causes a series of events to unfold that eventually leads to the prophesied Rapture of the Church and the Last Days of mankind. The first book will be published in the Fall of 2010. WordServe co-agented this series with Joel Gotler at Intellectual Property Group.
* * *Debut novelist Karen Witemeyer signed a three-book contract for a historical romance series with Bethany House. Her first title is
The Dressmaker's Proposal, and you can read Karen's story about her road to publication
here on Rachelle's blog.
NEXT POST: WordServe Authors' Recent Releases
Born into an aristocratic Russian family, Nonna Lisowskaja fully expected to enjoy a cultured, privileged life. Her family had many advantages at a time when other Russians struggled to buy food. By her sixth birthday, Nonna spoke four languages. She had a good life.
For a child, so many things can happen in one day. Sometimes the world outside is a scary place. There is so much to be discovered and understood and at times the adventure is simply overwhelming. This story reminds kids that God is always present. He is a protector who never stops caring for all children, each day. With an engaging message and comforting pictures of lovable critters that seem to have similar feelings, these books assure children that God is always near. Julie Cantrell authored both of these books, and ZonderKidz published.
Bounty hunter Nick Shepherd is fearless when it comes to chasing down criminals. It’s his difficult ex-wife, rebellious teenage daughter, and dysfunctional siblings that keep him awake at night. In charge of the family business, the Prodigal Recovery Agency, he thinks of himself as a shepherd of sorts. When his “flock” is out of his control, Nick’s well-ordered universe falls into chaos. A new novel by Wanda Dyson and published by WaterBrook Press.
What happens when an ordinary girl finds the extraordinary love of God? Near a well in Samaria, one girl found out when she came face to face with Jesus. Today’s young women may be in a different culture, but they have something in common with that girl by the well: Sometimes they go looking for love in all the wrong places. Just as the Samaritan woman carried an empty jar to the well, they carry their empty, two-dimensional hearts, looking for one person, one more award, one glowing accolade, to fill it up and make it whole. True love is waiting at the well. In the eyes of the One, the woman at the well had infinite worth, meaning and purpose, and there’s a secret waiting for girls who take the time to listen to what Jesus had to say to her that day: When an extraordinary girl fills up on the love of an extraordinary God, unforgettable things happen. Written by former Brio columnist Natalie Lloyd and published by Regal Books.
