Counting the Cost of Writing in the Christian Market

By Rachel Hauck

Being a Christian comes with a cost. Jesus tells us plainly that if men hated Him, they will hate us.

In Luke 14, Jesus challenges His followers to "count the cost," summarizing with this, "Simply put, if you’re not willing to take what is dearest to you, whether plans or people, and kiss it good-bye, you can’t be my disciple."

For most of us, the cost of being a disciple is nominal. We live, so far, in a land that allows us to believe as we want, to function as Followers of Christ.

But more and more there are dividing lines. You don't see Christian music artists delivering awards at the Grammy's or American Music Awards. And the Inspirational awards are usually off stage not part of the main show.

As for movies, we've not seen the Kendrick brothers invited to present at the SAG Awards or the Oscars, or People's Choice, and they've produced some of the last decades top grossing films. The War Room topped the chart the weekend it opened. 

If they were anyone or anything other than Christians, would they be invited to awards shows? On Kelly and Michael? Kelly and Michael went gaga over 50 Shades of Grey but not War Room. 

Christian fiction sometimes feels like the red headed step child in the literary world. The annoying kid who's "there," can't be ignored, "But man, do we have to embrace it?"

It's hard to watch books about sexual bondage or multiple sexual partners, etc take off, in some case, make millions, while our stories about healing, restoration and hope languish on the proverbial shelves.

Hard to read a book about a heroine who discovers her great aunt is really her grandmother while flashing back to her first sexual experience — with her step brother — only to have the story end with NO sense of hope, change or resolution to make more of her life.

Meanwhile, authors who write with a Christian world view are shelved separately in stores, discounted as preachy or worse, subpar writers.

Face it, we most likely will never get the attention of the elite literary world. 

Anyone been in People Magazine? Maybe Ted Dekker or Karen Kingsbury. And we have authors in our market worthy of a People shout out! 

How about an Oprah book club pick? Or the whole slew of NY acclaim and awards? 

Sure, there are many general market authors who get none of those things too. I get that. But when you choose to write in the Christian market, once aimed largely at now-decreasing Christian brick and mortar retailers, you're also choosing to a much narrower path.

The acclaim is less. The money is well, less. Sales are smaller. Above all, it seems, our impact and reader reach is limited, shorter. 

If the general market author can reach 10 readers, Christian market authors can only reach, say, 5 readers.

I'm spitballing. I don't have exact stats but my point is writing in the Christian market comes with constraints. 

We have our literary excellent authors who have done very well. I've mentioned Dekker and Kingsbury, but there's Susan Meisner and Lisa Wingate who've crossed over to the general market and found success. 

So, why not just go general market? Why do we write in the Christian market anyway? Why is there even a Christian fiction market? 

Because we have a message. The one in which God breaks into our every day human existence and reveals Himself.

Isn't that what Christmas is all about? God breaking into history as a little baby in a manger with the destiny in His bones to grow up to be the man on the Cross?

Sometimes the "general market" doesn't want to hear our message. Even a little bit. Because it's convicting, challenging, makes us face our own weakness and need for a Savior. 

In our market there are various levels of God content in each author's book, and at writer's conferences, we teach against being preachy with our God-message. But the fact our books are tagged, labeled, classified, categorized, designated, stamped and called "Christian fiction" we get "special" shelves all our own.

Our great authors have to leave the market to get the recognition and compensation they deserve. 

So why write in the Christian market? Because we feel called. Because there's something in our hearts that can't leave God out of our stories because we can't leave Him out of our lives.

To authors who've left our market and gone to the general market, hats off to you! Let the fragrance on your words go out into the world!

2 Corinthians 2 says, "Because of Christ, we give off a sweet scent rising to God, which is recognized by those on the way of salvation—an aroma redolent with life."

Let's perfume the world with the fragrance of Christ! 

However, if you choose the Christian market with aspirations of acclaim, movies, large advances, guest spots on TV shows, or half the world talking about your book re 50 Shades or Hunger Games, you might be disappointed.

If you choose the Christian market because you feel compelled by the Holy Spirit to write stories that demonstrate the Love of God coming to earth, then go for it. With all your might. The awards, acclaim, sales, etc is gravy compared to doing what you're called to do.

I think an author is worthy of all those things! I want them for myself too. But if I don't get them, I'm okay right? I'm doing what God has called and gifted me to do!

Writing in the Christian market is like fishing in the family pond sometimes. We're all trying to hook the same fish.

But with God as the great fisherman and rewarder of those who seek Him, we'll all be just fine!

I'll close with a few words from Jesus...

"Simon, push out into deep water and let your nets out for a catch.”

Simon said, “Master, we’ve been fishing hard all night and haven’t caught even a minnow. But if you say so, I’ll let out the nets.” 

It was no sooner said than done—a huge haul of fish, straining the nets past capacity. They waved to their partners in the other boat to come help them. They filled both boats, nearly swamping them with the catch."

See, there are plenty of fish in the see. What if our stories are just the net Jesus is needing to bring in a big haul of souls?

Never the less... as you pursue your writing endeavors, be sure to count the cost. 

*** 

Rachel lives in sunny central Florida.

A graduate of Ohio State University with a degree in Journalism, she worked in the corporate software world before planting her backside in uncomfortable chair to write full time eight years ago.

She’s the author of USA Today, EPCA and CBA best sellers, RITA and Christy nominated books. 

Her book The Wedding Dress was named Best Inspirational Novel by Romantic Times.

Rachel serves on the Executive Board for American Christian Fiction Writers. She is a mentor and book therapist at My Book Therapy, a conference speaker and worship leader.

Rachel writes from her two-story tower in an exceedingly more comfy chair. She is a huge Buckeyes football fan.

Her latest book, The Wedding Chapel, was named to Booklist Top Ten Inspirationals for 2015.

Visit www.rachelhauck.com for book links.

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BRIDGING THE GAP BETWEEN INDIE BOOKS AND STORES

by Brandilyn Collins @Brandilyn

Brandilyn Collins is a best-selling author of 28 books. She is best known for her Seatbelt Suspense®--fast-paced, character-driven suspense with myriad twists and an interwoven thread of faith. She also writes insightful contemporary novels, often laced with humor. Her awards include the ACFW Carol (three times), Inspirational Readers' Choice, the Inspy, Christian Retailer's Best (twice), and Romantic Times Reviewers' Choice. She loves to interact with readers on Facebook. Check out all her books on her website.

Last month I told you about the Stakeholders Team that has been put together to address the issue of stocking indie paper books in stores. As a forerunner to assembling this team, the editor of CBA Retailers+Resources asked me to write an article for the February issue about the gap between indies and stores, and how the Stakeholders Team came about. That issue is now available. I am running the text of my article below (and a sidebar on indie titles), with permission from CBA. Go here to subscribe to the magazine.  

Booksellers And Independent Authors

Build Bridges

Last year after my publisher’s fiction line was discontinued, I faced a crossroads in my career. Was this the impetus I needed to become a fully independent author? I’d already released one indie novel and had been considering making the switch. After a good deal of prayer and due diligence I took the plunge, choosing not to sign with another publisher.

Soon in my new venture I began to focus on the large drawback that exists in the indie world: the dearth of indie paper books on the shelves in brick and mortar stores. The large majority of indie units are sold online, either in ebook or paper form. As a result ebooks of new releases far outsell the paper versions—exactly opposite from my experience in working with publishers.

Indie authors—both in the Christian and secular industries—have simply learned to live with the reality that their books won’t show up on store shelves. In truth, because indies make a much higher profit per unit sold than they would earn from a publisher, many are pulling in a very nice income even without sales from brick and mortar stores. So they haven’t seen the need to spend their energy on vying for shelf space.

But I consider the lack of being in bookstores a major concern. I chose to walk away from publishers for my own business reasons. That doesn’t mean I chose to walk away from bookstores. Over the years I’ve built a loyal readership of my Seatbelt Suspense® novels. Many of those readers still shop in bookstores. Plus, I’m concerned to see more and more book products move from the shelves to strictly online. That’s hurting the bottom line in stores. Meanwhile the trend of authors turning indie is on the rise. Many of my traditionally published colleagues are expressing serious interest in indie publishing—either through turning indie full time or releasing indie titles as they fulfill their contracts. (See “Indie Releases From Previously Traditionally Published Authors” for a small sampling of titles.) Because of this trend, it’s clear the gap between indies and stores is only going to widen.

Who is losing as a result? Everyone in the industry. Both authors and stores lose potential sales. Distributors lose their potential cut from these sales. Meanwhile online retailers grow even more powerful. As the overall industry and bookstores are hit, publishers also suffer.

Hmm, I thought. Why doesn’t somebody fix this?

For my first indie Seatbelt Suspense®, Sidetracked, I teamed up with a press that guaranteed the novel would be sold into bookstores through a distributor. Sidetracked is selling off shelves, and I have seen a profit from that endeavor. However this approach required a large amount of upfront money for producing the book, marketing it, and print-runs. It took months to pay back that investment and begin to see a profit in paper. (Meanwhile the ebook version was immediately earning well.) This approach isn’t something I want to continue doing. And many indie authors can’t afford it at all.

As I researched further into the issue of indie books not being stocked in stores, I saw that indie books often are available for order through distributors. But the bookstores don’t know about these books, because there are no sales people presenting them to the stores. And booksellers don’t have time to try to find new titles on their own.

So there lay the real crux of the problem: how can indie books be sold into bookstores?

During the ACFW conference last September I approached CBA’s managing editor with this issue. Could we work together to try solving the problem? CBA has been very responsive. They were quick to see that, while various industry stakeholders have the same questions regarding indie publishing trends and the impact on everyone involved, no one group has all the answers. The potential opportunities soon became apparent—and the decision was made to bring together representatives from around the industry to work toward solutions that “win” for everyone.

And, boy, am I learning more about this problem. Why hasn’t someone fixed it? Because it’s large and multi-faceted, with no pat solution. And it certainly can’t be “fixed” by one person. Every aspect of Christian publishing represented by the stakeholders team will need to be open-minded in understanding the issues from the other parties. Those issues range from the retailers’ ability to return unsold books, to the authors’ need for a high enough per unit profit balanced against being at risk for those returns. In addition, retailers will be concerned about content in the books. Without a publisher in the mix, who’s going to vet that content? Meanwhile distributor salespeople have quotas to attain, which are more easily met by selling books in bundles (as from a publisher), than individual books from indies. Is there a way for indie books to be bundled?

Further, there are two groups of indie authors—those who were once traditionally published and have proven sales in brick and mortar stores, and indie authors who have never been traditionally published. That latter group breaks down even more. Some indies are so new to the industry that retailers won’t want to risk stocking their titles. But other indies have built a solid readership and are pulling in a lot of online sales every month. Will retailers be willing to give them a chance?

Our stakeholders team hopes to report on our progress this summer at ICRS so the discussion can continue on a wider scale. We don’t yet know what the answers will look like, but we are willing to try to find a solution for the good of the entire Christian publishing industry.

And I strongly believe we do have to find a solution, one that will continue to evolve as needed. Our industry is facing difficult times. Online sales, ebooks, indie authors—all of these have been disruptors to traditional publishing and bookselling. The disruption is only going to continue. So all of us must look forward. A smaller problem today is likely to become a major problem tomorrow. Do we sit back and wait for it to get worse—or do something about it now?

I urge my indie author colleagues to not focus solely on online sales. What happens in the future when those online sellers are, in turn, disrupted? I urge retailers to not view indie authors as producers of books that stores can’t sell. What happens when more and more books are written by indies? And I urge distributors to help create a solution to this problem so they, too, can capture the income they are currently losing.

We all have to work together to bridge the gap between indie titles and bookstores. As one CBA representative put it, “I doubt that everyone working on their own ‘status quo’ basis is going to move the needle. But by everyone understanding the value and needs of the others, we can make a difference.”

The stakeholders team welcomes your thoughts on this issue. Please send an email with the subject line Bridges to cellis@cbaonline.org.

Brandilyn’s latest Seatbelt Suspense®, Sidetracked, (over 180 5-star reviews) is on sale for $0.99. 

When you live a lie for so long, it becomes a part of you. Like clothing first rough and scratchy, it eventually wears down, thins out. Sinks into your skin ... 

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Martyred For A Noble Cause

Writers, for all their talk about bravely speaking truth, are sometimes just whiners. Those who most loudly claim a noble calling to write truth, also complain most loudly when they believe they're being persecuted. Writers tend to enjoy drama and some love to play the martyr, it seems.

I used to think it was only general market writers who whined about being censored. YA writers with gritty, sexually graphic, or disturbing books about aberrant behavior, are quick to cry, “Censorship!” when people complain about their books. I expect it from them. Recently I came across a Christian writer claiming that she and her friends were being censored by Christian bookstore owners who didn’t like sex shops, wine, or frank language in the books they sold.

This accusation bothers me. It feels manipulative. It reminds me of when people say Christians engage in hate-speech when they don't affirm sinful lifestyles. It's meant to shame the other guy into lowering his standards, I think.

I came across the accusation of censorship on a Christianity Today blog when I followed links from one of Steve Laube’s News You Can Use posts. The author of the CT post, Caryn Rivadeneira, suggests that Christian publishers and bookstore owners sin when they ask faithful Christian writers to remove certain words. Christian writers are, after all, present-day prophets, in Ms. Rivadeneira’s estimation, and they should not be hindered in getting their stories out:

The problem with Vaginagate—and any other effort  to remove specific and frank language from books written by faithful Christians—isn’t that bookstores don’t have the right to decide what types of books they will or will not sell. They are businesses after all, and to be successful, businesses need to sell products their customers will read without getting up in arms. The problem with Vagina-gate and similar forms of “censorship” is that, in an attempt to protect customers, publishers and bookstores are making it a lot harder for writers to tell the stories God has called them to write. And when Christians are barred by other Christians from serving God, it dishonors God. In fact, it’s sin. 

As an aside, is it clever or clichéd to link a woman’s reproductive organs to a political cause?

Ms. Rivadeneira illustrates her blog post with a picture of a girl with duct tape over her mouth and with a “censored” stamp.

This is hardly helpful.

First of all, is Rachel Held Evans [the target of the aforementioned, "vagina-gate"] a faithful Christian? I don’t know her so I’m not saying she’s not. I’m only saying that if I was a bookstore owner or a publisher, I wouldn’t assume that everyone who sent me a book was a faithful Christian. I would look at the book and judge whether I thought it was edifying. How would I know if the writer was faithful or not?

Secondly, I can't see that anyone is being censored. It’s not like there aren’t other publishing options, as Nicole Petrino-Salter said recently. Publishers and bookstore owners have a right and a duty to obey God to the best of their ability, and to protect their brands. They are under no obligation to help writers who don’t fit their brand.

Even if Rachel Held Evans were a prophetess, to refuse to publish or stock her books is not to “bar” her from serving God.

Imprisoning her? Maybe. Beating her senseless? Sure. But refusing to sell her books in your store?

Implying that publishers and bookstore owners bar Christians from serving God is the same thing as bearing false witness against a neighbor, isn't it? Where does this accusation of censorship come from? Is it justified? What am I missing? When Christian authors take offense at Christian publishers and bookstore owners over the content of books, how do they differ from Christian readers who take offense over the content of books?

photo credit: Éole via photo pin cc

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Sally Apokedak has published short works in a number of places, has won various and sundry contests, and has received an SCBWI Work in Progress grant. She's between agents at present, and can be found blogging about young adult novels at sally-apokedak.com. 

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