Articles

Praise for Book Geared to Support Families of Deployed Soldiers

Wed, 20 Jul 2011 00:07:00 GMT

“When a soldier serves, so does the family.”

Donna Mull saw that statement on the shirts some military wives were wearing at a Fourth of July parade as they marched with their husbands. Suddenly, that statement had become personal. She had heard stories about mothers whose faithful prayers had changed lives. When her son received his orders for deployment to Iraq, she wanted to be one of those mothers. Equally motivated by love and pain, Ms. Mull embarked on a year-long journey of prayer, writing weekly devotionals that focused on the specific needs of soldiers and their families. She then forwarded them to friends and family, who used them as springboards for their own prayer times.

Due to the enormously positive response to her devotionals, Donna took a step to help others; in 2010 she published, A Prayer Journey Through Deployment, a compilation of these emails to bless other soldiers and their families outside of her circle. Since published in 2010, Donna’s book has been greatly praised by fellow military and their families. A review was printed in the March 2011 edition of Military Spouse magazine, Family Magazine (distributed to military commissaries) featured it, and several bloggers weighed in to praise her uplifting work. The most recent compliment comes from Jim Greenwald, the Lead Book Reviewer at Military Writers Society of America, otherwise known as MWSA.

Donna Mull is a brilliant writer; but, that alone would not have made A Prayer Journey Through Deployment, the gem that it is.

What makes this collection of prayers, commentaries and trenchant insights so special is that it flows from a powerful force of inspiration, faith, passion and pain that cause it to soar. Written primarily for the soldier deployed during war and his or her loved ones, it achieves, perhaps even unwittingly by Ms. Mull, a universality that makes it a valued guide to life for young and old, soldier and civilian, believer and non-believer, alike. This intricate interweave of biblical passages with thematic prayer, poetry and prose is a work of art.

You can order Prayer Journey Through Deployment by calling 1-877-421-7323 or visit our website at www.winepressbooks.com.

Author Explores the Importance of Words in the Ongoing Battle against Bullying

Sat, 18 Jun 2011 03:07:00 GMT

Connect with the Author at ICRS

Book Signing

Tuesday July 12
1:30 PM - 2:30 PM
WinePress Book Signing Booth #439

An estimated 20% of high school students reported being bullied on school property in 2009, according to research conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. On a worldwide scale, the CDC conducted a study in 27 countries and discovered the majority of school-aged children had encountered bullying at least some of the time.

Practicing lawyer, Wendy Starr, discusses the power behind words from a biblical and practical position. Bullying, she says, begins with our words.

“Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me, is a lie. Just look at the rate of suicides from bullying in our society. How-to-stop-bullying.com reports that 77% of students are bullied mentally, verbally, and physically. In 2008, Dr. Judy Fisher-Blando’s research determined that 75% of employees have experienced or witnessed workplace bullying. Whether we like it or not, words affect others.”

Starr’s book, Your Words, emphasizes the impact our words can have on our lives. As evidenced by bullying statistics, words can and do hurt. Starr teaches the counter impact of words, the possibility of words used to build, encourage, and empower.

“Words can destroy you or they can transform you because they are your words or the words of another, produce either faith or fear. Your words come from your heart. What is in your heart is what you have sowed and what you have allowed others to sow there.”

ICRS Author Provides Irrefutable Evidence About Life After Death

Sat, 18 Jun 2011 02:59:00 GMT

Connect with the Author at ICRS

Book Signing

Tuesday July 12
9:30 AM - 10:30 AM
WinePress Book Signing Booth #439

The atmosphere in his truck was so thick that December day in 1980 that Dallas/Ft. Worth homebuilder Alan Youngblood could barely breathe. Then he heard these words: “Ask God to reveal Himself unto you.”

In Voice of Many Waters: Irrefutable Evidence of Life after Death, Youngblood describes his amazement. He obeyed the directive, but asked himself, am I going to see God? Is there going to be a big sign in the sky, ‘I’m God’?” Exactly how would God reveal himself?

Soon after, Youngblood had an out-of-body experience. He was carried to heaven, He didn’t see God, but he heard Him as “the voice of many waters.” He talked with a friend who had died in a plane crash, noting with surprise that the man wore not a white robe but a suit his mother-in-law had made for him years ago. These clothes became irrefutable evidence of life after death.

Sharp Author Compiles True Stories of Prayer Experiences

Sat, 18 Jun 2011 02:41:00 GMT

Connect with the Author at ICRS

Book Signing

Tuesday July 12
9:30 AM - 10:30 AM
WinePress Book Signing Booth #439

The compilation of true stories in Hurray God! Hope, Pray, Believe, detail answers that ordinary folks have received to their desperate prayers. Jeanette Sharp, who compiled the stories, desires to let readers know that God is concerned about them, whether they seek quiet direction in their daily life, or something more urgent such as needing rescue from fire, drowning, attack, injury, freezing weather, or other desperate situations.

The author’s interest in prayer began when she was ten years old and her father had just died. All alone on a dark street in freezing weather, she whispered a desperate prayer, unsure if God even heard it. However, the answer came just moments later. Awestruck, the little girl ran home to tell her family. “That experience convinced me that God saw me, knew me, and loved me,” says Sharp. “I compiled this book to encourage people to discover the power of prayer and to inspire them to journal their prayers and watch what happens.”

Jeanette Sharp’s writing has appeared in Chicken Soup for the Soul: Answered Prayers, Cup of Comfort Book of Bible Promises, and A Scrapbook of Christmas Firsts. She is president of Hurray God! LLC, and lives in Texas with her husband, Jim.

Beautifully Illustrated Story Expands a Christmas Retelling

Sat, 18 Jun 2011 02:37:00 GMT

Connect with the Author at ICRS

Book Signing

Tuesday July 12
3:00 PM - 4:00 PM
WinePress Book Signing Booth #439
Also featured at the WinePress Retailer's Connection Event and the CBA Children's Trends Workshop

Clark Burbidge’s A Piece of Silver presents the Christmas story in a new way, taking readers beyond the typical Nativity scenes. This new children’s book from WinePress Publishing features a homeless boy named Daniel, who takes refuge in a Bethlehem stable and witnesses the birth of the Savior. Wanting to present the child with something, Daniel offers his only possession—a tiny silver ring. The story follows Daniel as he grows up on the fringes of society, to his darkest, loneliest hour when he meets Christ again face-to-face.

“Daniel's experiences speak to the heart of every person who has struggled, felt alone, wondered how they got on such a rocky road, asked themselves ‘Why me?’ and questioned if God and others even knew they were alive, let alone cared,” Burbidge says. He believes that there is something in the story for all ages, including teens and adults, and hopes that it will bring all ages closer to the Savior as they make it part of their Christmas, or even Easter, traditions.

A Piece of Silver is illustrated by Annie Henrie, a gifted artist who started selling her paintings in galleries at age 16 and graduated from BYU with a degree in Illustrations in 2010. When a friend referred Burbidge to Henrie, he immediately saw the faces of Daniel and Mary in her work. There is no question in his mind that A Piece of Silver was meant to be illustrated by Annie Henrie.

“My message is to take heart during life's greatest struggles,” Burbidge says. “You are never alone. God knows you; He loves you with a perfect love and is always there.”

ICRS Author Explores Hope After an Abortion

Sat, 18 Jun 2011 03:00:00 GMT

Connect with the Author at ICRS

Book Signing

Monday July 11
9:30 AM - 10:30 AM
WinePress Book Signing Booth #439

Gladys Billups, author of Chosen (WinePress, 2011) shares her personal experience with abortion, and the emotional devastation that ensued. She also details other painful moments and sins in her past and how God was able to redeem those and restore peace in her life. Billups’ message to readers:

“You can find forgiveness and healing in Christ after the most life-altering sins. The mistakes we make in life can lead us back to God. You are not the first person to love God and sin against him - look at the lives of people in the Bible, look at me. Stop running from God - He wants you to get to know him. God, the creator of everything, has chosen you to be in relationship with Him.”

Chosen emphasizes God’s grace in the face of our darkest moments and ugliest sins. Billups dedicated her book “to those who have made mistakes in life and wondered if they were worthy of God’s favor, forgiveness, and restoration.”

Gladys Billups is a Missionary at Oak Grove Baptist Restoration Ministries (OGRM), a volunteer counselor at Comfort Care Women's Health, and she also leads Bible Study groups both at her church and other churches in the community. Gladys graduated from Georgia Institute of Technology and Clark Atlanta University in Georgia. She has been married for 15 years and has two children. She is a member of the Greater Augusta Regional Chamber of Commerce, the Shenandoah Valley Emmaus community, and the American Society of Safety Engineers. Gladys and her family make their home in Shenandoah Valley.

ICRS Author Examines Church Trends

Sat, 18 Jun 2011 02:26:00 GMT

Connect with the Author at ICRS

Book Signing

Tuesday July 12
11:00 AM -12:00 PM
WinePress Book Signing Booth #439

Post Cards from Another Gospel takes a insightful, humorous, and thought provoking look at post modernism and the church. By examining church trends going back 30 years, Post Cards identifies how post modernism has been introduced through culture and through steady, subtle compromise. Babb’s intent is to draw lines of clear distinction by re-establishing the Word of God as the standard of truth to a culture who far-too-often blurs the difference.

James Barry Babb is founder of TruthCulture Ministries, dedicated to proclaiming biblical truth to a post modern church and culture. He has over 25 years in ministry service, with the last 19 years as a pastor heading the counseling and worship ministry at New Covenant Fellowship, in Knoxville, Tennessee and as Pastor of Ministries for Shepherd's Gate, a ministry to homeless and addicted women and their children in the Bay area of California. Educated at Memphis State University and Liberty University, Babb holds a Bachelor of Science in Education degree and a Master of Arts in Counseling. Babb recently moved back to the Nashville area with Camille, his wife of 27 years, and his two children, Lori and Brian, who are in college.

Book on Kingdom Living Sparks Evangelism Interest

Thu, 05 May 2011 02:10:00 GMT

Steve Schaefer, the author of Living in the Overlap was recently showcased on Overflow Today, an online podcast outreach ministry site. Steve joined us in 2010 for the National Outreach conference where he had an opportunity to share the message of his book and conduct this interview. Watch the video below.

Building Strong Author/Retailer Relationships

Tue, 22 Feb 2011 18:28:00 GMT

By Carla Williams

How many times have you felt pressured by a local author into putting his or her book on your shelf? Dozens of times, right? An author comes into your store holding his or her baby up for you to kiss and admire. “It’s going to be a bestseller.” Okay, admit it. Often authors can create a real dilemma, especially those without name recognition. What’s a retailer to do?

As an author, publicist, and the mother of a bookstore manager, (The Salt Shaker Christian Bookstore) I’ve experienced all sides of this issue. It’s not that retailers don’t like authors; they simply don’t want to give them false hopes. No one likes to make promises they may have to break. Yet, as a Christian retailer you know authors are important to your success. You know that without authors, there are no books, and no “bookstores.” You need authors, and they need you. Therefore establishing a strong partnership is vital.

A Partnership

Many large communities of authors work hard at supporting bookstores and retailers would do well to take advantage of such groups. Think of every positive contact with an author as free promotion for your store. Here are a few suggestions for building strong author/retailer relationships:

Invite authors to teach short writing workshops in exchange for a special display of their books.
Designate a “Local Authors” shelf. Local authors have local friends who want to buy their books—and other products.
Consider social networking. Many authors have designated author pages on Facebook and Linkedin, making this a great opportunity to connect with authors.
Join a local Christian writers group. Or if you have the space, open a corner or a room of your store for critique groups.
Recruit local authors for support. Ask them to help with inventory, moving boxes, and working sales in exchange for shelf space.
Suggest authors provide flyers or bookmarks that you will stuff in bags announcing their book or upcoming events in the store.
Offer to share the expense of a small ad in the local paper for book signings.
Ask several local authors to have a co-op signing event.

Remember the goal is to build community and lasting relationships. Authors understand these are hard financial times and are willing to partner with retailers. In these difficult times, retailers would do well to open their doors to authors. So welcome authors into your store and pick up their new babies. Retailers play an important role in helping authors grow their ministries, and they look forward to becoming part of your family as well.

Author Groups

The following organizations actively partner with retailers:

All of these groups work hard at supporting their local bookstores through events, specials, book signings, and service. Contact them to make your store a designation place.

Carla Williams is a freelance writer and author and has been active in Christian Publishing for over 25 years.

5 Reasons Your Retail Store Needs a Website

Fri, 18 Feb 2011 01:18:00 GMT

For retailers, it may seem strange to mention a website as a necessity. For most stores, inventory is comprised of tangible items customers flip through or explore, and advertising comes mostly through foot traffic or word-of-mouth referrals.

But a website truly is a necessity. Here are five ways a website can boost your business:

1. Widen Your Sphere of Influence

Unlike word-of-mouth referrals or your store’s signage, information on the web is instant. Share your store's latest events online and the news can spread to hundreds—or even thousands—of individuals within minutes.

Along the same lines, a website allows you to reach customers who may not discover your store otherwise.

Let’s say a vacationing family arrives in your city. They hop on Google to find the best restaurants, hotels, and stores. With good Search Engine Optimization (SEO) practices implemented into your website, the door opens for these people to find you.

2. Connect with Your Customers

With a website, you can connect with your customers multiple ways. Integrating blogs, contact forms, or forums are just a few avenues which provide customers the means to get in touch with you.

Integrated within your website, customer management modules are an excellent way to track your customers’ activity and optimize your marketing efforts.

3. Create Repeat Interest in Your Store

These days, customers want information fast. Your website efficiently meets that need.

Plus, a website draws attention to your establishment time and time again. Integrate a news feed, for example, and customers who browse your site can keep up-to-date with your latest sales, events, promotions, and information.

When you add an e-newsletter subscription form to your website and customers sign up, they are giving you permission to send them regular specials, coupons, and information. This serves as an additional reminder for them to keep coming back to your store.

4. Stand Out from Other Retailers

Many retailers still do not have their own website. Having a website developed for your establishment will help you compete and grow during this trying time for retailers.

A website also enables your store to establish a strong brand recognition. When you advertise in newspapers or local directories, referring to your website address strengthens that brand recognition.

5. Bring Your Store to the Web

When you integrate an online store into your website, you take your potential customer base from local to worldwide. Combine your online shop with specials, promotions, and sales; and merchandise can move faster than ever before.

Conclusion

Even if the bulk of your business previously has taken place face-to-face, now is the time to accommodate the needs of today’s technologically-savvy customer. A website will help you do that.

What Do You Think?

How vital do you think a website is for a retailer? Is it necessary for a thriving retail business? Feel free to comment on this article to let us know your thoughts or experiences.

Additional Resources

Author of the Month: Alan Youngblood

Wed, 16 Feb 2011 21:04:00 GMT

Alan Youngblood is a native Texan, the youngest of three children of an immensely close family, who served God and loved one another intently.

As a young lad, his love for athletic sports burned like a fire within him, forging an iron will that refused to be defeated.

He enrolled in the University of Texas at Arlington to pursue a higher education in the field of psychology with the ambition to become a psychiatrist.

This pursuit quickly became side-tracked when he met the girl of his dreams, resulting in a two year engagement and a lifetime commitment through marriage. Together they were blessed with four daughters, raising three to adulthood and releasing one shortly after birth into the loving hands of God.

His drive to accomplish success in life, along with his talented and devoted wife, helped them to establish a highly respected custom home building corporation. Alan was pleased with the accomplishments that he had engineered, with everything in his world seemingly perfect.

When he was 38, Alan’s life was invaded by an unseen and uninvited visitor from the spiritual world, who confronted him with the life altering statement, “Ask God to reveal himself unto you.” Not long after, he was translated into the presence of the eternal majestic God. There in heaven, Alan’s life, endeavors and nature was changed forever.

Today, Alan is known by a host of family and friends as a man driven with passion characterized by loyalty and deep devotion to God, family, and hurting humanity. A highly respected business leader and Christian counselor and mentor in the Dallas-Ft. Worth community, Alan is a licensed minister. His resume includes pastoring three churches, building and designing unique homes, hosting “Open Your Eyes” on Daystar television, inspirational speaking, and authoring books.

Alan and his wife, Barbara, have been married for 46 years and have three daughters and eight grandchildren. The family loves outdoor activities and spending quality time together.

Book Description:

Are you ready for a miracle-riddled adventure of irrefutable evidence of life after death? The breathtaking true events within this book demonstrate God’s power in amazing ways.

Unbelievable miracles like:

The supernatural rescue of a woman with Alzheimer’s disease who once again called her loved ones by name
The author’s unexpected reunion in Heaven with a friend burned to death in a plane crash
The astounding healing of a victim of muscular dystrophy

This gripping supernatural saga will create a desire to hear and know God as never before.

Interview Questions:

Voice of Many Waters, by Alan Youngblood, takes readers on a life-changing journey where they see beyond doubt that God’s words hold the power to set every captive free, heal the sick, and restore broken lives. (WinePress Publishing, 2010, $15.99 retail).

1. Briefly explain your experience that led to writing this book.

I was translated into heaven, there to be reunited with a friend, who in a fiery plane crash, died, burned beyond recognition. Standing there looking at him, I was stunned by God’s miraculous restoration but equally bewildered by the clothes he was wearing. These would become irrefutable evidence of life after death of which a world desperately needs to hear.

2. If you could sum up your book’s message in one sentence, what would it be?

This book carries you to heaven so you can experience a personal God and a miraculous life here on earth.

3. Explain the title and why you chose it.

Waiting breathlessly outside the gates of Heaven, I heard the Voice of the great multitudes singing. Then He came near and spoke to me. His voice, resonating with theirs, sounded as the Voice of Many Waters.

4. Do encounter much skepticism to your story?

Skeptics range from the envious, to the foolish unbeliever. These numbers are few compared to believers who bravely wield the shield of faith and unyielding hope . . . who cling to the hand of their miraculous unfailing God.

5. What was the hardest part of writing your book?

The hardest part of writing the book was feeling inadequate to explain the beauty and the wonder of our intrinsic God, whose desire surpasses all desires that we would know him, the One and only true God.

6. You are passionate about the miracles of God. Why?

As a fallen man, to receive such a magnitude of endless mercy and experience God’s boundless grace reduces me to my knees to honor the incomparable God.

7. You have quite a varied career background: pastor, homebuilder/architectural designer, and television host. Do you see writing as a new career? Any other books brewing?

To proclaim the message of this incredible God through the channels of the written word has become not only my passion but my final mission in life. I’m now writing my next book, The Dragon and the Lamb. It is inspired from my near-death experience with West Nile Virus, as I was carried to a literal burning Hell in the mouth of Lucifer, the devil, who is the Red Dragon, then to be rescued by no other than the Lamb of God.

8. (For Retailers) What are your marketing plans for Voice of Many Waters? You are a television host and speaker. Will you speak on the book?

I plan to speak at churches and on radio and Christian television. The book is presently available on Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble.com, Borders.com, WinePressBooks.com and voiceofmanywaters.com.

Recently I had a tremendous book signing at Barnes & Noble/Southlake, Texas and Borders/Colleyville, Texas. A publishing group in Brazil is considering obtaining the international copyrights and PDF files for the purpose of translating and publishing throughout South America.

I am traveling and distributing the book by making personal appearances at conventions. I will be attending the Assembly of God National Convention at Phoenix, Arizona Aug 1-6. The convention has an estimated 30,000 attendees.

9. List some reasons bookstores should feel confident putting your book in their store.

These true stories inspire the reader to such an extent they can hardly lay it down. Through the avenues listed above, word of mouth is beginning to have a life of its own. We have many readers who have purchased from 5 to 45 books to give to others. The author is a man of integrity and is known by hundreds of fans, who not only believe in him but the stories he shares.

15+ Writers Resources for Your Store

Thu, 13 Jan 2011 03:35:00 GMT

Bookstores need business. It's a fact more relevant with e-book hype, than it's ever been. So, what can you do to vary your customer-base? For starters, expand your inventory. You should have the bestsellers, the self-help books, etc; but what about writing resources? They say writers are readers, so why not tap into the writing market by stocking a few dependable resources for writers.

Not sure where to start, here is a list of topic related book, with a brief description on why each section pertains to the writing craft.

General Reference

Every writer’s style differs, but without a general understanding of what it means to write, and why you write, it’s difficult to do justice to the age-old craft. The following books give an overview of writing and finding a unique voice.

An Introduction to Christian Writing

The Writing Life

Finding Your Voice

Sally Stuart’s Christian Writers’ Market Guide

Editing and Grammar

It’s important to understand the basics of writing, particularly how to self-edit. With a fine message, but poor grammar, a book may end up in the slush pile–not fun.

The Elements of Style

Self-Editing for Fiction Writers

Chicago Manual of Style also online subscription available at ChicagoManualofStyle.com

The Christian Writer’s Manual of Style

Polishing the Pugs

Fiction

Expressive in every way, fiction allows the writer to tell the tale of adventure, salvation, love, and life. Readers won’t stand for poor delivery, so it’s important to master fiction techniques. The small sampling of resources below touch on fiction techniques.

Dialogue

Plot and Structure

Characters, Emotion, and Viewpoint

Description and Setting

Writing a Breakout Novel

Non-Fiction

Excellent resources to train the brain on the techniques of non-fiction.

On Writing Well

Writing Creative Non-Fiction

Keep it Real

Writing Tools

Conclusion

Keep your eyes open for new inventory to keep writers coming back. The truth hurts, but many writers procrastinate and tend to read more books than they actually write. With a steady stream of business, it's up to you to keep the bait fresh and well-stocked.

Seven Keys to Successful Retailing

Tue, 16 Nov 2010 04:13:00 GMT

By Joshua Williams

Despite the current economic downturn, many novice entrepreneurs have begun staking their claims in the retailing industry. What’s the reason for this optimism? Well, new opportunities arising for one. Closed businesses mean new real-estate and a chance for fresh ideas to surface. Small communities make for attractive dream locations and ignited the hope of establishing an ideal shop. Yet the rules have changed and as any seasoned retailer will tell you, it’s important to learn quickly.

My short decade in Christian retailing has taught me that flexibility and humility remain essential to effective shop keeping. We can learn a great deal from those bookstores that are not only surviving but thriving in this bold new world. There are several important characteristics that successful retailers have discovered and that we would do well to examine. My experience has taught me that, among others, there are seven keys to successful Christian retailing.

Don’t worry too much about location. Location is not as important as we used to think. With the decrease in Christian retail establishments, many rural bookshops are finding that customers are willing travel in the hopes of discovering the kind of bookstores they once loved.
Create a wonderful shopping experience. Retailers that are doing well are those who compete on service, quality and create a one-of-a-kind shopping occasion. Capitalize on an inviting and personable retail atmosphere.
Avoid too many bargain sales. With the overwhelming power of internet shopping and large box stores, competing per price tag will keep you running on empty. Instead, focus on product selection and content integrity to keep your discerning customers coming back for more.
Listen very closely to your customers. As pocketbooks shrink, consumers are limiting their purchases to their immediate families and personal needs. As a result, they’re asking for very specific types of books often not widely marketed in the industry.
Connect with your local authors. We all know that book signings can be challenging. Establish good relations with your local writers, educate them for success, and give your customers a since of connection through your local Christian authors.
Provide unique services. Dig out your old DVD collection and establish a family friendly video rental service. Provide a public computer or WiFi access in your store. Create an easy self-serve coffee bar or even a complete espresso café.
Work with the publishers. Most Christian publishers have several special programs and return systems that provide effective inventory turn-around. Often these programs remain unpublicized and require a little probing into a publisher’s sales vault but the results are worth the effort.