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The Steve Laube Agency

Helping to Change the World…Word by Word

The Steve Laube Agency

The Steve Laube Agency

Helping to Change the World Word by Word

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Home » News

News

A Year in Review – A Look at 2017

By Steve Laubeon January 8, 2018
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I find it a healthy exercise to review the past as it can be encouraging to note progress and look at the foundation for the future.

The Industry

Our industry continues to create tremendous books but few new ones “break out.” It is hard to gain the attention of readers and buyers in our media-saturated society. And yet books continue to sell!

It was almost a foregone conclusion, so in February when Family Christian Stores announced the closing and liquidation of their 240 stores, no one was caught by surprise. I stand by what I said back then in an interview, “[The closing] will have a deleterious effect on many communities which have relied on their local store for their Christian products, whether it be a greeting card, book, or Bible. While hard news for the publishing industry to absorb, I suspect most companies have limited their financial exposure. Any loss is regrettable.”

Nearly a year later the industry seems to have weathered the changes quite admirably. Some of the FCS locations were reopened under new management. This included some becoming Lifeway stores, some becoming part of a new regional chain, and others taken over by former employees.

Retail is a constantly shifting landscape. Publishers work very hard and hire a lot of smart people to find new places to sell their books. (Re-read “Retail is Dead! or is it?” posted in November.) Even Hobby Lobby has begun carrying a larger selection of Christian books in their stores.

It was encouraging to see Gilead Publishing find new funding and a new distribution partner (Kregel) to relaunch a robust fiction publishing program. They released the 50th anniversary edition of Christy by Catherine Marshall and have 40 titles in the queue for 2018 (including 12 science fiction and fantasy titles from Enclave Publishing for which I still acquire.)

There were a handful of shifts among our publishing partners. Howard Books closed their Nashville office. Harlequin Love Inspired ended acquisitions of new historical novels. Plus there was the various assortment of editorial and executive staff changes. Including the retirement of long time colleagues Philis Boultinghouse (Howard Books) and LaRae Weikert (Harvest House). It can be hard to keep up, but fortunately we keep a finger on the pulse (so to speak).

Our Agency

We had an eventful year, to say the least. I spoke at six events during the year and was a guest on three TeleSeminars/Podcasts. As an agency the four of us covered the country from Florida to California attending nearly 20 different writers conferences.

In July, Karen Ball decided to shift her focus to freelance editing and writing and stepped away from the agent role. I was quickly able to rope Bob Hostetler into joining our team. He has done a great job!

It was fun to be at the ACFW awards gala when Tamela Hancock Murray was named Agent-of-the-Year! Congratulations again Tamela.

It was also a fun year for author recognition. During the year we had four finalists for the Christy Award (Susan May Warren, Connilyn Cossette, Mesu Andrews, and Elizabeth Camden). Lynnette Eason won a Carol Award. Bob Hostetler won the Selah Book-of-the-Year award. Stephen M. Miller’s The Complete Guide to the Bible received the Gold Book Award from ECPA for more than 500,000 copies sold. Patrick Carr won an ISPY award. Ronie Kendig won the Romantic Times Reader’s Choice Award. Both Rod Gragg and Ken Samples were shortlist finalists in the World magazine book-of-the-year in their categories. Both Nadine Brandes (Alliance award) and Morgan L. Busse (Parable award) were honored by Realm Makers.

In December we announced that we had bought The Leslie H. Stobbe Literary Agency. It has been a busy time integrating those writers into our agency. We look forward to great things in the coming years.

Meanwhile, in 2017, our agency was able to secure contracts for 145 forthcoming books titles. That is very exciting. Seven of those contracts were for first-time authors (five non-fiction and two fiction). We are glad to be able to help find and develop those new voices.

It is awesome for our agency to serve over 300 authors!

The Christian Writers Institute and The Christian Writers Market Guide

It has been fun to watch The Christian Writers Institute grow. The ability for writers to further their education via the convenience of their own devices is great to see. We recently created three multi-course “Tracks” to help guide the user through the basics.

The new 2018 edition of The Christian Writers Market Guide is available now in paperback and ebook. Or you can subscribe to the information online and have access to up-to-date content all the time, on any device. We will continue to release the new paper/ebook edition each December and keep the online version constantly updated.

In addition, we released two books on writing for writers. Ghostwriting: The Murphey Method by Cec Murphey and Writing Deep Viewpoint: Invite Your Readers Into the Story by Kathy Tyers. Both are truly incredible books that should be read by everyone.

Personal

At the end of August our third and youngest daughter was married. It was a joyful and God-honoring ceremony. Then, at Christmas, it was a delight to literally have a full house.

The Future

2018 promises to be another great year in the world of publishing. While keeping our feet firmly grounded in reality we like to remain positive and upbeat. The writing and publishing life isn’t easy. If it was, everyone would do it. The key is doing it well. We are called to excellence in all things. My hope is that our puny efforts guided by the sovereignty of God will further His kingdom.

 

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Category: Agency, News You Can Use, Personal, The Publishing Life, The Writing Life, TrendsTag: Agency, News, Trends

Three Steps to Freedom!

By Karen Ballon April 18, 2012
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It’s The Most Wonderful/Terrible Time of the Year

It comes every year, and every year we wait for it with a mixture of excitement and dread. No, I’m not talking about taxes.

I’m talking about the award season.

From the ECPA Book of the Year awards to the Christy’s, the Genesis to the RITA, the Golden Heart to the Carol, and all the gazillion contests and awards in-between, online groups, …

Read moreThree Steps to Freedom!
Category: Encouragement, Get Published, Karen, Marketing, Writing CraftTag: Awards, contests, Encouragement, News

Christy Award Finalists 2012

By Steve Laubeon April 16, 2012
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We are quite excited to announce that our agency has a number of finalists in this year's Christy Awards. (Click here for the list of this year's finalists.) Congratulations to all finalists. Below are our clients who have been honored and a link to their publisher's site for more information on the book.

Susan May Warren - My Foolish Heart (Tyndale) - Contemporary Romance

Ronie Kendig - …

Read moreChristy Award Finalists 2012
Category: Agency, Awards, Get Published, News You Can Use, SteveTag: Christy Awards, News

Implications of the Department of Justice Lawsuit Against Five Major Publishers

By Steve Laubeon April 16, 2012
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by Steve Laube

As you have heard by now the Department of Justice (DOJ) has leveled a lawsuit against Apple and five major publishers accusing them of conspiring to fix prices. There has been a lot written on the topic with varying degrees of understanding and a wide disparity of conclusions.

Authors are asking what this all means to them. And many are confused about the math involved. A …

Read moreImplications of the Department of Justice Lawsuit Against Five Major Publishers
Category: Agency, Book Business, Contracts, Get Published, Legal Issues, SteveTag: Book Business, Get Published, lawsuit, News, retail prices

News You Can Use – Mar. 27, 2012

By Steve Laubeon March 27, 2012
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Differences in screen vs print reading contributing to illiteracy? - Chris Meadows asks some interesting questions about the future of reading.

Branding for Writers - A perennial topic that bears another look.

Trinity Broadcasting Sued by Granddaughter and Former Employee - Please. Not again.

Oprah's Endorsement Hurt Book Sales - Interesting perspective!

My Parley with Book Pirates - …

Read moreNews You Can Use – Mar. 27, 2012
Category: News You Can UseTag: News, Trends

News You Can Use – Feb. 28, 2012

By Steve Laubeon February 28, 2012
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Why Authors Need Agents - Four professionals weigh in on the discussion.

How to Stop Procrastinating and Start Writing - Read this when you have the time.

Questions an Agent Might Ask You - Be prepared if an agent calls you with these questions. It might happen today.

E-b00ks: The Giant Disruption - another breathless evaluation and ominous prediction about publishers. From the UK.

Why …

Read moreNews You Can Use – Feb. 28, 2012
Category: Book Business, News You Can UseTag: News, Publishing News

News You Can Use – Feb. 21, 2012

By Steve Laubeon February 21, 2012
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My Favorite Article of the Week - Please read it and make your agent happy.

What Publishers Can Learn From the Airlines- Andy Le Peau of IVP renders a very clever take on what publishing could look like if they would only emulate other industry practices.

Amanda Knox Signs a $4 Million Book Deal - Sigh...Think about it for a second. In 2005 a relatively unknown senator from Illinois got $1.9 …

Read moreNews You Can Use – Feb. 21, 2012
Category: Book Business, Grammar, News You Can Use, Trends, Writing CraftTag: Agents, Book Deals, Copyright, Dystopian, Google+, Grammar, News, Pinterest, Publishing News, Social Media, YA Novels

News You Can Use – Jan. 31, 2012

By Steve Laubeon January 31, 2012
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Amazon's Hit Man - The is a very good article about Larry Kirshbaum the new head of Amazon's Trade Publishing division. Every serious writer should read this article. Take the time, it is only 3,400 words. Source is Blomberg's Business Week magazine.

Is There Hope for Barnes & Noble? - an interesting take by Rich Adin.

Why Are We Obsessed with What's New? - Maria Popova reviews a book …

Read moreNews You Can Use – Jan. 31, 2012
Category: Book Business, News You Can UseTag: News, Publishing News, Trends

News You Can Use – Jan. 17, 2012

By Steve Laubeon January 17, 2012
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Thank you for the overwhelming response to our survey last week. We had almost 100% confirmation that we should continue this feature. So you are stuck with it!

Publicity Calendar for 2012 - EVERY author should download this PDF and see if there is something they can capitalize on! This is a brilliant resource.

Write for Your Audience - An excellent article from a YA author on the challenge …

Read moreNews You Can Use – Jan. 17, 2012
Category: Book Business, News You Can Use, SteveTag: News, Publishing News, Trends

Did You Miss Today’s “News You Can Use”?

By Steve Laubeon January 10, 2012
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For quite some time we have been providing various links on Tuesdays under the title “News You Can Use.” This post takes considerable time to compile. But since it doesn’t create discussion or comments we have little idea if anyone is reading this weekly post. Therefore we are asking if you can click two buttons below to respond to our survey. And, if you have a topic you would …

Read moreDid You Miss Today’s “News You Can Use”?
Category: News You Can UseTag: News
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