The Munce Group and SuzyQ have announced a new writers conference for 2015.

New York Times best-selling author Cecil Murphey’s Writer to Writer conferences equip authors with the nuts and bolts of getting published in today’s industry. The theme for Writer to Writer is “From Think to Ink,” which expresses the process of going from idea to print—and everything in between.

The mood of the American consumer is surprisingly gloomy, according to America’s Research Group’s second Christmas Shopping Forecast of the season.

“It’s not as upbeat as I would have thought,” said Britt Beemer, chairman and CEO of America’s Research Group. “Consumer confidence is down largely because consumers tell us they are not seeing new hires at their places of work. Moreover, more consumers report debt as a big problem at 16% versus 11.4% last year. Americans are still very cautious and more bargain-driven than ever before."

Holley Gerth’s You’re Already Amazing (Revell/Baker Publishing Group) has landed at No. 8 on the Wall Street Journal’s nonfiction best-selling books list for the week of Nov. 8.

Published in 2012, You’re Already Amazing has sold 100,000 copies and has appeared on CBA’s Top 50 and Christian Living best-seller lists. It was also a finalist for the 2013 Christian Retailing’s Best award in the Nonfiction: Women’s category.

While the "war on Christmas" generates more headlines, Thanksgiving has been taking a beating, but some customers and stores are fighting back.

In contrast to many major retailers who have decided to open on Thanksgiving Day, others, like LifeWay Christian Stores, are maintaining their commitment to give employees—and customers—the day off.

A Christian retail store was gutted by fire Friday evening, Nov. 7 in Los Angeles. The fire destroyed Ebenezer Libreria Cristiana (Book Store) in the city’s Westlake District in the Macarthur Park area after starting in the attic of the office building it occupied.

Owner Jaime Flores told KCAL9 that the store was a “total loss” after suffering fire and water damage, although there were some salvageable items. No one was injured in the fire.

Family Christian Stores has announced its partnership with author Miriam Neff and her foundation, Widow Connection, to offer a Thanksgiving luncheon to nearly 200 widows in need.

Family Christian and its customers have joined together to raise the funds necessary to host a Widows Thanksgiving Praise Luncheon in Chattanooga, Tennessee, Nov. 20 at St. Elmo Avenue Baptist Church and in Savannah, Georgia, at Bethlehem Baptist Church.

Nazarene Publishing House (NPH) will not close for business, but undergo a restructure. All imprints of WordAction Curriculum and Beacon Hill Books will continue uninterrupted.

“It’s true that our business model will change Dec. 2, 2014, based on our current financial situation,” said Interim CEO Mark Brown. “However, NPH management is developing a new strategic plan, and we look forward to continuing to meet the literature needs of the Church of the Nazarene and our Wesleyan partners.”