Chosen, an upcoming novel by Patricia Haley, is based on the biblical kings David and Solomon. Xavier Knight's new novel, God Only Knows, is about a divorcée who finds redemption in becoming superintendent of a Christian elementary school. And in Beverly Jenkins's forthcoming Bring on the Blessings, most of the characters reference God often. However, none of these three commercial novels is being published by faith-oriented imprints. Instead, the publishers—Grand Central, Avon A and Pocket—are mainstream, well-known brands. Along with other publishers, they're finding it makes economic sense to market books with Christian undertones to a mainstream market—even if the company has a faith-oriented imprint in-house.
Louise Burke, executive v-p and publisher of Pocket Books, which will publish Chosen as a $14 paperback in January, said Pocket—and not S&S's Christian/inspirational imprint, Howard Books—acquired the book because “we felt that although it appeals to a Christian audience, there is a mainstream audience that would enjoy [it].” Pocket has had success with similar authors, including ReShonda Tate Billingsley and Jacqueline Thomas. “I don't know that publishing in a Christian imprint necessarily sells more books to that market,” Burke said. Chosen author Haley is an Essence bestselling author, and Pocket's national publicity campaign includes outreach to mainstream as well as Christian audiences.
Grand Central senior publicist Tanisha Christie, who is working on God Only Knows by Xavier Knight, said, “GCP is open to all genres if we feel that they are commercially viable.” To that end, Grand Central (not imprint Faith Words) will publish the $13.99 paperback in March. Like Pocket, Grand Central is covering all the bases, targeting national newspapers, African-American blogs and African-American Christian blogs, and advertising in Essence and Christian magazine Charisma.
Pam Spengler-Jaffee, director of publicity at Avon Books, said much of today's popular African-American women's fiction has a Christian theme to it. That's the case with Bring on the Blessings by Beverly Jenkins, which Avon A will publish as a $13.95 paperback in January. Spengler-Jaffee said the house will publish the book—which has a crossover appeal to the inspirational market—under its Avon A imprint because “While Avon Inspire has wide distribution, Avon A is known, and Beverly Jenkins is such a name, especially among mass merchandisers.” Avon A is taking a very mainstream approach with publicity.
Even religion publisher Thomas Nelson is promoting some of its books as mainstream fiction. It will publish A Hundred Years of Happiness by Nicole Seitz, a “spiritual fable of life after war,” as “general fiction” in March. Allen Arnold, senior v-p and publisher for fiction at Nelson, said just “because an author is Christian, that doesn't automatically make their novel 'Christian Fiction' in terms of classification. We determine how to code each novel based on the content and themes of that story—and where the primary reader of that novel would expect to find it on the shelf.”
The trend coincides with remarks Simon & Schuster president and CEO Carolyn Reidy made earlier this month, when she noted that the Christian demographic has expanded. “By limiting our choices in publishing and retailing to only those books that have a direct Christian message, we are effectively driving [readers] to buy from the competition.” Reidy called for publishers, retailers, agents and authors to “expand the universe of what's possible in the world of Christian publishing and retailing.”
Sara Nelson's column will return next week.
