Report calls niche category ‘one of the fastest-growing genres in romance publishing’

Amish inspirational fiction has been spotlighted as “one of the fastest-growing genres in romance publishing.”

USA Today focused on the category in a 1,400-word report in August that noted how “in our sex-soaked society, nothing seems to inflame the imagination quite like the chaste.” “It’s a huge, huge, huge trend,” said romance blogger Sarah Wendell, co-author of a book on romance fiction.

Exploring the popularity of Amish novels, English professor Pamela Regis, author of A Natural History of the Romance Novel, told the newspaper: “Simplicity is a hallmark of that community, and simplicity is powerful.”

Trade association releases monthly statistics to help publishers make ‘intelligent decisions’

A new monthly report on Christian book sales is being made available by the publishers trade association.

Data from the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association (ECPA) is to be reported by Christian Retailing to help publishers and retailers track trends in the market.

Publisher’s growth due in part to several fiction authors hitting the ‘New York Times’ best-seller list

Zondervan posted “strong growth” in the financial year ended June 30, company officials have announced.

Citing “success on a variety of fronts,” the news followed parent company HarperCollins’ announcement of an increase in profits of $77 million in the previous 12 months.

Zondervan spokesperson Tara Powers said that the company’s improvements were in part due to several fiction authors hitting the New York Times best-seller list, including Karen Kingsbury, Terry Blackstock and Tim LaHaye.

Leading names voice support for inaugural retail awareness campaign

A bevy of authors and artists has voiced support for the first nationwide Christian Store Day, to be held Oct. 23.

More than 20 leading names from the Christian book and music world have given their backing to the initiative to raise awareness of Christian retail stores.

Running through Labor Day, Sept. 6, the show is hosted by Christian Retailing magazine, aiming to help stores set themselves for the fall and Christmas seasons with product news, order specials and training. It is the magazine's fourth virtual trade event since debuting the innovative program following last year's ICRS.