Barbour Publishing announced an exclusive partnership with Back to the Bible on Feb. 6. Under the new agreement, negotiated by Greg Johnson of WordServe Literary Group, Barbour will work with Back to the Bible to launch the goTandem book imprint to provide quality nonfiction resources especially for churches.

The first release is scheduled for November, with another 12 titles to follow in 2015. The goTandem imprint aims to provide churches with a solid and relevant selection of books that address the unique needs of congregations large and small.

Janette Oke is hosting her first-ever Facebook party alongside her daughter and writing partner, Laurel Oke Logan, the evening of March 4. During the hour-long live online event, Oke and Logan will be introducing readers to their latest release, Where Courage Calls (Bethany House/Baker Publishing Group), a special companion story to the Hallmark Channel’s new When Calls the Heart TV series.

Last fall, the movie When Calls the Heart, produced and directed by Michael Landon Jr., debuted on the Hallmark Channel. The movie was inspired by Oke’s previously published book by the same name and launched the weekly TV series that premiered Jan. 11. The storyline and characters in Where Courage Calls are based on the TV series set in the Canadian West.

On the heels of a healthy yet modest holiday shopping season, cautious consumers aren’t quite ready to splurge on Valentine’s Day this year, as they continue to keep their budgets in check. According to the National Retail Federation’s 2014 Valentine’s Day spending survey conducted by Prosper Insights and Analytics, 54% of Americans will celebrate with their loved ones this year, compared to 60% in 2013.

The average person plans to spend $133.91 on candy, cards, gifts, dinner and more, up slightly from $130.97 last year. Total spending is expected to reach $17.3 billion.

On the heels of a healthy yet modest holiday shopping season, cautious consumers aren’t quite ready to splurge on Valentine’s Day this year, as they continue to keep their budgets in check. According to the National Retail Federation’s 2014 Valentine’s Day spending survey conducted by Prosper Insights and Analytics, 54% of Americans will celebrate with their loved ones this year, compared to 60% in 2013.

The average person plans to spend $133.91 on candy, cards, gifts, dinner and more, up slightly from $130.97 last year. Total spending is expected to reach $17.3 billion.

Worthy Publishing Group (WPG) grew 84% in 2013 versus its already strong start of 64% growth from 2011 to 2012. In the company’s first full year of business, its list of trade books, along with new releases from imprints Ellie Claire, WorthyKids and Inspired, helped WPG establish an aggressive growth profile for the young publishing house.

WPG released The Jeremiah Study Bible right before Thanksgiving, shipping more than 140,000 copies at launch. The release was celebrated by a sell-out crowd at an event at The Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City, featuring David Jeremiah, MercyMe, Kari Jobe and The Brooklyn Tabernacle Singers. This month, Dr. Jeremiah and the Worthy team celebrated a milestone achievement as The Jeremiah Study Bible hit No. 1 on the CBA best-seller chart.

The 2014 Christian Retailing’s Best awards program is accepting nominations in the annual competition that celebrates the top Christian market products. Enter by Feb. 14 at ChristianRetailingsBest.com for the Early Bird discount (for every five paid, get one free) or until Feb. 24 at the $60 per-product rate.

This year, products may be entered in any one of more than 60 categories. In Fiction for example, there are eight categories, including Biblical and Historical, and in DVD, there are four options, including Movie and Book/Bible Study.

At least 3 million viewers watched the highly publicized debate between Bill Nye the Science Guy and Creation Museum founder and author Ken Ham the evening of Feb. 4. The debate, sponsored by Answers in Genesis, dealt with the question, “Is creation a viable model of origins in today’s modern scientific era?” and quickly became the No. 1 topic trending on Twitter and Facebook.

Nye, an agnostic educator who rose to national prominence with his ’90s children’s science TV show, argued the evolutionist side, while Ham defended the young-Earth creationism upon which the Creation Museum and Answers in Genesis are founded. At least 10,000 groups watched the debate in a public venue, spurring further conversations about creationism, the Bible and related subjects.