Suspects
Suspects by Steve Merckx, published by WinePress’ print-on-demand division, has recently been reviewed by Christian Book Previews. Check it out at the following link:
http://www.christianbookpreviews.com/christian-book-detail.php?isbn=1414101902
ABOUT THE BOOK
Witness the Trial for the Murder of Jesus Christ
The jury enters the courtroom and the Judge takes his place on his royal judgment seat. Soon the accuser enters and spews charge after charge against each suspect. As the swarm of accusations come forth, only God’s Justice stands between each defendant and his deathly sentence.
The Bible speaks of individuals involved in Christ’s death. But who holds true responsibility? Was it Judas Iscariot, Pontius Pilate, the Pharisees, or perhaps even Barabbas? The suspects seem endless and yet God holds one ultimately accountable. Journey through the trial and discover the final verdict.
From Printer To Publisher
Born in Sudan during a time when civil war and savagery ruled the country, William Levi knew from a young age what it meant to be persecuted for his Christian beliefs. His miraculous escape from torture and eventual landing in the United States he shared in his book “The Bible or the Axe.” The title was taken from a lesson learned from his grandfather who taught him that the battles such as those fought in Sudan could be fought with one of two weapons…the Bible or the Axe. As a godly man, he taught William to fight God’s way, through prayer and the Word.
After arriving William became a successful engineer, but later realized that his life was not meant just to fulfill the American dream while his brothers and sisters in Sudan suffered. His heart became inflamed with a desire to help them. He decided to publish his story to raise awareness and funds to help war-torn Sudan. He found WinePress publishing through his ghost writer, who tried for 4-5 months to get Williams story picked up by a traditional publisher but without success, and then recommended that he publish with WinePress.
In a rush to meet a conference deadline, William Levi’s book was shipped overnight by WinePress from the printer to a writer’s conference in Pennsylvania where William and his co-author were attending. At this very conference a representative from Moody Publishing saw his book, heard his story and expressed interest in the possibility of Moody buying the rights to re-publish his story. Within a short time frame, Moody offered William a contract and his book was released within a year.
William gives God all the credit and glory. He encourages anyone who has a good story to use WinePress to get their book published and see where God takes it from there. Says William, “My prayer from the beginning was that my book would bless other people and touch their lives for Christ. I hear story after story of that very thing happening. This book has achieved its purpose.”
Tweet This!From Self-Publishing to Traditional .. and Back Again!
Trying to decide on the best avenue for publishing can often be agonizing for authors. With the many options available, how does a person know the publishing choice best for their message? Rebecca Ingram Powell, author of Baby Boot Camp (WinePress 2000), offers authors her insights as both a self-published and a traditionally published author, who will soon be returning to WinePress to publish a print-on-demand book through Pleasant Word.
Rebecca printed 5,000 copies of Baby Boot Camp in September, 2000. Her first piece of advice to authors is, “You must have a web site. An author who doesn’t have a web site is like an author who is still using a manual typewriter.” After her books arrived, Rebecca immediately realized she needed an avenue to tell others about her book on an on-going basis, so she started a weekly e-mail devotional. She sent it to everyone she knew and had a place on her website for new people to sign up. She placed the name of her book and ordering information on every newsletter.
Through a well-known women’s ministry, Rebecca developed a speaking ministry. She made herself available to do retreats, Bible studies…whatever doors opened up. She also began freelance writing with articles on her topic. When writing freelance an author normally gets a small bio at the end of the article in which she placed her credentials and the name of her book.
Rebecca was also fortunate to establish a monthly column with ParentLife magazine, which kept her book in the public’s eye. She heard that ParentLife had just hired a new editor and knew this would be a prime time to approach the new editor with her book and writing samples, adding that “because I had printed with WinePress my book did not look self published.” After purchasing an article from Rebecca, the editor later looked to Rebecca to fill a columnist slot that had opened up. Now Rebecca has been a monthly columnist for ParentLife for three years.
As Baby Boot Camp began selling, and she had moved over 2,500 books, she realized she could now approach a publisher since she had demonstrated a market for her book. She counsels authors to research the market and find the right publisher for their topic. Just blindly peddling proposals to publishers is a waste of both your time and theirs. She began praying that God would lead her to the right publisher. One day she picked up a Bible study book and noticed the publisher, New Hope. God clearly spoke to her and told her to contact them. It “so happened” that she had an upcoming speaking engagement in the town where New Hope was located and an editor agreed to meet with her about her book. They offered her a contract and her book has been in print for about a year now!
So how does her experience with both self-publishing and traditional publishing compare? Rebecca says, “One thing that does not change is that you still have to promote your book. If people aren’t willing to promote their books then they shouldn’t publish at all. You must believe in your message and believe other people can use it. No one will be as passionate about your message as you will be.”
Having experienced both sides of publishing, Rebecca has decided to return to self-publishing with an upcoming project she’s working on. She emphasized the quality of WinePress products and that our toll-free ordering number gave her credibility when doing media interviews. She says, “The self-publishing experience taught me so much. I learned how to lean on the Lord in a totally new way and I experienced God in a new way as I went out on a limb. WinePress made it easy because the people were so easy to work with and helpful. When I filled out the online form and I got a personal call, it was so reassuring. There’s a trust factor at WinePress.”
Tweet This!Message for the Times
Pastor Ben Young of Second Baptist Church in Houston saw a need in his congregation for a tool teaching people how to defend their faith against skeptics. He put together a pithy book of apologetics titled Why Bert’s Not a Christian that serves a two-fold purpose: It helps Christian who may feel uncomfortable talking with skeptics, and it provides solid answers to skeptics searching for answers.
As the author of six books published by traditional publishers, Pastor Young decided to self-publish this book for a couple of reasons. He didn’t want a hyper edit of his text or a lot of the information changed. He also needed it quickly, and so he had his assistant, Toni, begin researching self-publishing. On the internet she found many printers and publishers and picked WinePress for the wide array of services offered. Says Toni, “What we really appreciated about WinePress is the balance of expertise in design and layout with a willingness to take author’s input. The back and forth teamwork gave us the input we desired while still having the benefit of experts in the industry.”
Toni added that they needed a short print run with a quick turn around and a larger print run later, something WinePress was able to accommodate. With the combination of print-on-demand through Pleasant Word and the larger print runs afforded by WinePress they were able to have every need for their project met on time.
Pastor Young and Toni both feel that having a finished product opened doors for a traditional publishing contract. They attended ICRS in 2005 and presented their finished book to publishers. Having a finished product gives the writer credibility. A publisher can see that you not only have a great idea, but the stamina and ability to carry it to completion and the willingness to market it.
Pastor Young received several calls from publishers who received their book at ICRS, and ultimately were offered a contract with Harvest House within four month of the convention. Why Bert’s Not a Christian is scheduled for release by Harvest House in August of 2006.
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