Nominations for the 2015 Christian Small Publisher Book of the Year Award close on November 15, 2014. Any small publisher or indie author can nominate titles for the award, which recognizes books in 14 categories that are produced by small publishers “for outstanding contribution to Christian life.” Books must have been published in 2013 or 2014 by a publisher with annual revenues of $400,000 or less. Christian retailers and readers will vote on the nominated titles in February and March 2015. Guidelines, information on the awards, and the nomination form can be found on the Christian Small Publisher Book of the Year Award website.
The Evangelical Christian Publishers Association (ECPA) announced the winners of its Top Shelf Book Cover Awards at PUBu--ECPA’s annual conference for Christian publishing professionals--on October 21 at Wheaton College in Wheaton, Ill. Top Shelf award winners included Baker Publishing Group (for four titles), InterVarsity Press (4), Crossway (5), B&H Publishing (3), and Abingdon Press (1). See a complete list here.
InterVarsity Press also was honored by the Midwest Publishing Association (MPA) at its 63rd Midwest Publishing Book and Media Show on October 16. IVP won the Award of Excellence in the scholarly/reference category for the Encyclopedia of Ancient Christianity; in the general trade category for Playing God; and in the school publishing category for Christianity and Developmental Psychopathology. In the special trade category, IVP won Honorable Mention for Coffee With Jesus.
Paulist Press has released the Ordo App, providing Catholics with the Order of Prayer in the Liturgy of Hours and Celebration of the Eucharist, the liturgical and necrology information provided for all dioceses in the United States by the Conference of Catholic Bishops. The Ordo App is available for all mobile devices in both Apple and Android platforms.
The Before Amen Prayer Challenge, launched in September by pastor and bestselling author Max Lucado, has drawn more than 100,000 participants who pledge to pray four minutes every day for four weeks. As part of the challenge, Lucado suggests using the brief “Pocket Prayer” offered in his new book, Before Amen: The Power of A Simple Prayer (Thomas Nelson, Oct.). Anyone who signs up online will receive a free e-book, Pocket Prayers: 40 Simple Prayers That Bring Peace and Rest by Max Lucado and his daughter Andrea Lucado. Integrity Music has released Before Amen: A Worship Collection, a musical companion album featuring 13 tracks from popular contemporary Christian artists; Lucado is featured on two spoken word tracks.
Barbour Publishing author Annie Tipton has received a Milligan College Professional Excellence Award for her achievements in writing and publishing. Tipton’s debut title, Diary of a Real Payne Book 1: True Story, won the Old Schoolhouse magazine’s Blue Ribbon Award for Best Children’s Book for 2013. Tipton earned a bachelor’s degree in communications from Milligan College in northeast Tennessee; the award was presented at the Celebrate Milligan Awards Dinner on Friday, October 24, during the college’s homecoming celebration.
