HAR I MA IA CHRISTIAN RETAILING MAY 2011 $7.00 The industry at your fingertips at www.christianretailing.com Voicing their concerns Write what you know Jason Crabb and fellow Dove Award winners share their thoughts on the changing Christian music world, For her latest thriller, Over The Edge, novelist Brandilyn Collins draws on her painful, personal experience with a debilitating sickness, page 36 page 16 READ BY THE SUPPLIERS AND RETAILERS OF THE $4.6 BILLION CHRISTIAN PRODUCTS INDUSTRY headaches and wonderful The nine key trends in international Christian publishing, page 44 INDUSTRY NEWS 15 BOOK NEWS 24 TOP SELLERS 26 BOOK REVIEWS PRODUCT BRIEFING YOUNG ADULT MKT MUSIC INDUSTRY BIBLE FOCUS: AWARDS 42 COMPETUITION 44 INDUSTRY FORUM 46 VIEWPOINT POD moves to help set stores apart service on out-of-print titles grows as reliance on distributors increases A NDY UTCHER STL Distribution North America President Glenn Bailey (right) and Jeff Brewer, vice president and general manager of systems company GBR, with the new print-on-demand operations in Elizabethton, Tenn. Rob Bell book sparks controversy Best-selling views on heaven prove divisive RIC IANSAY Best-selling author Rob latest book has sparked a with some Christian stores refusing to stock it due to its controversial view on heaven and hell. The author of Sex God and presenter of the popular video series discussed Love Wins?which critics say promotes universalism?in an interactive, live streamed event on the eve of the release date in March in New York City. conversation with Newsweek Senior Editor Lisa Miller at the New York Society for Ethical Culture, which also fea- tured the author answering questions from the audience and Web viewers, drew hundreds to the venue and more than 6,000 people on the Internet. HarperOne brought forward publication of the book? subtitled Hell, and the Fate of Every Person Who Ever March 29 to March 15 because of interest in the title. Reporting on the surrounding the book, CNN said that the furor centered on concerns that Bell was towards universalism?a dirty word in Christian In a pre-publication video promoting the a 10 ew print on demand (POD) services from two distributors have spotlighted the shifting role of wholesalers in the Christian retail world. Days after STL Distribution North America (STLD) unveiled its POD system offering overnight shipment on out-of-print titles, in March, Anchor Distributors announced a similar program, due to go into operation this month. The initiatives compete with the existing POD service offered by Spring Arbor (SA) through its parent company Ingram Content Lightning Source division. The POD ventures are seen as providing a way to help Christian stores set themselves apart as category experts by being able to special-order titles beyond the best-sellers now carried in competing channels. And they follow a shift in busiDISTRIBUTORS, page 42 Borders Christian retailers be by store closures RIC IANSAY bankruptcy for Christian retailers?both chains and independents as well as marketing groups, according to industry leaders. They say the Christian retail channel could see a bump in business following the second-biggest U.S. bookstore February filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. CBA said that Borders having to close more than 200 of its 642 stores be a loss of opportunities for the sale and distribution of Christian books and Bibles to a world in desperate need of At the same time, the store closings opportunity for others, including independent retailers, to step in and fill the the trade association said in a statement regarding bankruptcy. have many independent retailers who, like Borders, work hard to build Jason Green customer relationships and practice excellent retail. Christian retailers have an advantage in that they are excellent evangelists for Christian But the trade group warned that customer loyalty only goes so far. are telling us today that if we are to a 10 A 10-minute revival A NDY UTCHER Christian Retailing DITOR Give me 10 minutes in which to revive your passion for Christian bookselling. Sounds a bit like one of those awful late-night IN-CompeTuition-View CR 05-11.indd infomercials, maybe? Well, I want you to send any money, just grab a pen and a piece of paper and sit quietly for a few minutes. I believe this simple exercise could help fan the flames of your Christian literature ministry. Now, jot down the titles of the 10 books you PERSPECTIVE, page 46 3/30/11 4:23 PM