Christian Authors Network (CAN) has announced the 2013 International Christian Retail Show (ICRS) giveaway winners.

During ICRS, President Bonnie Calhoun and Treasurer Karen Whiting gave a talk on successful author in-store events, and the group offered two drawings of books by CAN author members, which had a retail value of more than $1,600.

The winners—Kehinde "Candy" Abolarin of Christ We Bookstore in Ibadan, Nigeria, and Susan and John Rheauno of The Christian Shop in Palatino, Ill.—received books from more than 50 authors published by Zondervan, Revell, Tyndale House Publishers, Abingdon Press, AMG Publishers, Legacy Press, New Hope Publishers and Thomas Nelson.

Founded in 2005, CAN has more than 100 members who help promote Christian books and support retailers. For more information, visit www.christianauthorsnetwork.com.

Kingstone Media Group, which publishes Christian comics, has announced that Affirm Films/Sony Pictures Entertainment is currently adapting to film one of Kingstone's upcoming graphic novels.

The Remaining graphic novel is scheduled for release next July, with the movie premiering in fall 2014. The thriller follows a group of friends who must figure out what to do in the first three days after the rapture occurs.

Kingstone CEO Art Ayris also recently wrote an Op-Ed column for foxnews.com titled, "Why Jesus and comic books need each other."

"Christians know that the archetype for all superheroes is Jesus," said Ayris, referencing the Superman movie Man of Steel. "The Bible is full of heroes and hero tales. They've conquered film and TV, but an important battleground remains—comics and graphic novels. Our initial goal was that Kingstone would become the 'Marvel Comics' of the faith-based market, but eventually to be considered a legitimate player in the general comics market."

Kingstone recently released Eternity, the first graphic novel by New York Times best-selling author Randy Alcorn. Besides Eternity, Kingstone's 25 comic books and 12 graphic novels are available on the comiXology platform—the No. 3 top-grossing iPad app last year.

"This isn't about me or Kingstone," Ayris said. "It's about a large market virtually untapped by Christians. U.S. sales of comics and graphic novels top $750 million, and that is growing. In Japan—with about a third our population—it's a $5 billion industry. The bar is set high, and the opportunity—business and ministry—is huge. But the formula is simple: Story and quality sell. If that isn't an opportunity for Christians—for business and for ministry—I don't know what is."

Visit www.foxnews.com/opinion to read Ayris' Op-Ed.

Zondervan has named former Guideposts executive David Morris as vice president and publisher of nonfiction trade books, effective Aug. 19.

Morris joins Zondervan after leaving his position as vice president and editorial director for Guideposts Books. Guideposts announced earlier this month that its trade books program, which is mainly nonfiction and some fiction, will be discontinued.

Most recently, Morris oversaw Guideposts' acquisitions for the Christian trade as well as direct-to-consumer distribution. During his 17-year tenure at Guideposts, Morris held various editorial positions, working with marketing, design, sales and finance. Before Guideposts, Morris worked with Chatham House Publishers in New Jersey.

"We are thrilled to welcome David to Zondervan," said Annette Bourland, senior vice president and group publisher for Zondervan. "His expertise both in publishing and the Christian industry will serve as a great foundation for growth."

Mark Schoenwald, president and CEO of HarperCollins Christian Publishing, Zondervan's parent company, added: "We believe that David is the right leader to continue this area of growth for our business. He believes in our mission to inspire the world with content that honors God and is committed to our authors' purposes."

Morris, who has a Ph.D. in religion and society from Drew University, will replace Tracy Danz, who is moving to backlist development for Zondervan's nonfiction trade titles. Morris will relocate to Grand Rapids, Mich.

The wait is almost over for fans of Duck Dynasty to catch the third season of A&E TV's wildly popular reality show on DVD.

Through its partnership with Lionsgate, Thomas Nelson will release the two-disc Duck Dynasty Season 3 on Aug. 6 to the Christian retail channel. Duck Dynasty's first two seasons are also available on DVD from Thomas Nelson. Additionally, Duck Dynasty DVDs are available from New Day Christian Distribution.

Duck Dynasty features the Robertson family, who transformed their home-grown, duck-call business in Louisiana into a multimillion-dollar sporting empire, while staying grounded in faith and family values. The show has spawned a plethora of popular Duck Commander line of products, as well as best-selling books.

Duck Dynasty Season 3, with a running time of 309 minutes, retails for $21.99.

For more information, visit http://www.thomasnelson.com/duck-dynasty-season-3.html.

CBA is offering free buyer admission to next year's International Christian Retail Show (ICRS) in an unprecedented move to attract more retailers to its marquee summer event.

"ICRS is changing dramatically next year with new features, new exhibitor procedures, integrated exhibitor marketing support and free buyer admission," CBA officials said. "The exhibitor commitment period opens Aug. 21. Exhibitors only need to commit to participate, with a minimal deposit to reserve space. ... The earlier exhibitor commitments are received, the better opportunities exhibitors will have to optimize plans."

CBA is asking member retailers for their stance on proposed legislation that which would allow states to require and collect online sales taxes.

"There has been conflict within our membership regarding a fair-tax bill in Congress—the Marketplace Fairness Act—that would require online-only retailers to collect sales taxes just as brick-and-mortar stores do," said CBA President Curtis Riskey, requesting retailers to take a survey on the issue. "We strongly believe the Marketplace Fairness Act is in the best interests of our members. But we would like to hear directly from you."

The Senate passage of the Marketplace Fairness Act on May 6. The bill, S. 743, is pending before the House, where it is expected to face opposition. The bill requires large online retailers with more than $1 million a year in online sales to collect state and local sales tax in jurisdictions where consumers purchase their products.

"Some Christian retailers are opposing the act because they believe it represents a new tax or a tax on the Internet," CBA officials said. "CBA believes it doesn't represent a new tax, rather fair collection of existing taxes."

The association recently posted on its website findings by economists Art Laffer and Donna Arduin, who said fair online sales tax policies would jumpstart growth. Their research, Pro-Growth Tax Reform and E-Fairness, found that closing the online sales-tax loophole could lower overall tax rates, and fair taxation policies could generate about 1.5 million U.S. jobs in the next decade.

Abbey Press is unveiling a new product line celebrating the power of women to undergo hardship with courage and overcome it with grace. The “Courageous Woman” collection was created to encourage women to overcome adversity through faith in God and the strength He gives them to endure.

Available Sept. 15, the first wave of the line’s products includes a wall cross with scripture ($21), a ceramic mug with coaster ($12) and a wood plaque with an inspirational poem ($16). The wood wall cross and plaque feature antique-look metal butterfly embellishments. The butterfly design motif, also used on the mug, suggests the power of faith to uplift women and help them rise above life’s setbacks.