Publishing Books Today

Modifying the original paradigm of how publishing takes place

Sep

2018

Everything Says, “GLORY!” (Jim Albright)

Our pathways crossed some years ago when I was introduced to Jim Albright and helped him get his first book into print. We kept in contact, and some months ago, he reached out to me and mentioned he was ready to do his second book–and would I help him to do so? Well, the pleasure was all mine!

In the book, Jim Albright really does a great job to undermine and demolish some of the axiomatic beliefs of evolution. And what is so useful about it is that he uses many “insider” quotes from the evolutionists themselves in pointing out the weaknesses and inconsistencies of their assumptions and conclusions. As the blurb on the back cover of the book puts it,

In seven articulately written chapters, Jim Albright persuasively pinpoints and exposes the pseudo-scientific tenets of macro-evolutionary thinking. Replete with quotations from scientists across many disciplines, this is a book that every Christian should own. Missionary Keith Jones is right, “The best part of this book is that it will provoke you to a whole new level of worship!”

The book comes with several compelling endorsements, such as

“. . . a staggering number of relevant (often shocking) quotations from scientists and researchers.”—Professor Don Whitney
“Albright makes the case in a way that causes you to say, ‘How could it be possible to believe in evolution?’”—Pastor Jim Elliff
“. . . utilizes scientific and logical evidence to expose the lie that evolution is.”—Professor Jim Ehrhard
“My advice, dear reader, . . . sincerely contemplate what you find in these pages.”—Pastor Lance Quinn
“. . . your tongue and heart are loosed to speak what you know is true with confidence and assurance.”—Missionary Alan Johnston
“A great resource for the church . . . a layman’s synopsis.”—Pastor Brad Vaden
“. . . a treasure of quotable science.”—Pastor Dow Welsh
“Read this book closely; think deeply; observe inquisitively; worship passionately.”—Pastor Doug Richey
“The best part of this book is that it will provoke you to a whole new level of worship.”—Missionary Keith Jones

Peacock and Poppycock

My colonial and English background make me rather like the word “poppycock.” Jim uses it to good effect in some descriptive text. There is a peacock motif that runs through the book. That was really why the cover was so important to “get right.” Below is the text from some early matter in the book:

About the Cover

So, why the peacock feather on the cover? Because Charles Darwin hated it. He wrote, “The sight of a feather in a peacock’s tail, whenever I gaze at it, makes me sick!”^[i]

The obvious problem was that he did not know how to plausibly explain this large, mathematically patterned, jewel-colored, gratuitous display of beauty in evolutionary terms. A peacock tail can stand five feet high. And all those cumbersome feathers are most inconvenient regarding the chief survival-of-the-fittest issue—namely, not being eaten. This was no small dilemma for Mr. Darwin.

In keeping with his general approach to science, Darwin concocted a story. Give the man credit. He knew how to weave a narrative. This is, of course, the foremost skill of his disciples. Storytelling is far less bothersome than engaging in the exacting rigors of real science.

Darwin proposed a theory of sexual selection. That is, peahens prefer peacocks with the best tails. Best meaning, the biggest and most colorful. The gaudier the tail, Darwin surmised, the better the peacock would fare with the peahens, and consequently pass on more of the flamboyant plumage genes to male offspring.

Oops. Yeah, this doesn’t actually happen. This is where storytelling, as opposed to truly doing science, puts one in a bit of a bind. A “seven-year study that observed 268 matings”^[ii] conducted by scientists seeking to confirm Darwin’s theory, found that peacock sexual selection based upon the coolest tail, is, and sorry, I couldn’t resist borrowing Ph.D. David Catchpoole’s quote, “poppycock.”^[iii]

The “tail tale”^[iv] is the perfect parable of Darwinian evolutionary theory. It’s all just unsubstantiated anecdotes. Regarding the macro-Darwinian hypothesis, there is no hard data. Zero. But oh, what a fanciful myth of unparalleled imagination has been fabricated for the incurious and unwary!

Darwin hated the peacock feather. It makes no evolutionary sense. Exactly!

[i] Charles Darwin and Francis Darwin, The Life and Letters of Charles Darwin, including an Autobiographical Chapter, Vol. 2 (New York: D. Appleton, 1911), 90-91.

[ii] Catchpoole, D., Peacock tail tale failure, creation.com/tale, 2008. (Creation 31(2):56–Jun 2008).

[iii] Catchpoole, D., https://creation.com/peacock-poppycock (Creation 29(2):56 – Mar 2007).

[iv] Ibid.

Counsel for the Heart

Connecting with Heart Issues

A significant measure of my time is devoted to serving Shepherd Press. Shepherd Press started a few decades ago because Tedd Tripp’s doctoral thesis from Westminster Theological Seminary–written on the nurture of children–was proving so popular the librarian was being requested to make multiple copies of the doctoral thesis. No publisher at the time really wanted to take on the book for publication, so Tedd and his wife, Margy, decided to self-publish it as Shepherding a Child’s Heart. So was born Shepherd Press.

I love the story–how they thought just a few thousand copies would be enough to satisfy the interest and demand.

But it turned out to be one of those paradigm-shifting books that incisively change people’s thinking. Since those days, more than one million copies have sold.

Shepherd Press publishes books for the heart. The books have to be gospel centered, heart focused, and life changing. And so it is that a new category or imprint has been established, a range of books that are very specific in the application of the gospel and the whole counsel of God to the hearts of individuals. As we thought and prayed about this, it seemed good to define the category in this way:

Resources for Word-Based Transformation and Practical Discipleship

We’ve kicked off with three books so far–one by Paul Tautges, Discipling the Flock, one by Joel James, Counsel with Confidence, and an important book written by two ladies, Sue Nicewander and Maria Brookins, titled Treasure in the Ashes–Our Journey Home from the Ruins of Sexual Abuse.

Each of these books is significant in its own way. Paul’s addresses the nurture and care of the flock is an urgent appeal to return to authentic discipleship; it is a call to shepherds to be tenacious in their preaching of the whole counsel of God, and tender in their application of its truth to the lives of God’s sheep through their personal ministry. There is more info HERE.

I’ve also known and respected Joel for a long time. I first met him at the commencement of his ministry in South Africa, so, when he presented the idea of a book of applied Bible references to guide counselors, I was immediately excited! The book is described briefly in these terms: a book to guide counselors and church leaders in being well informed and to help them bring about heart-based change in the lives of the people they counsel, through the right application of Scripture. Find out more HERE.

Sue Nicewander & Maria Brookins

Sue and Maria are deeply caring authors who write with insight and compassion on a difficult topic. Their book is soon to be released. Here is a short description of it:

Treasure in the Ashes is an interactive book that gently leads readers on a biblical journey through the grueling questions and doubt, emotional turmoil, and relational fallout that follow sexual abuse. It encourages honest and thorough Christ-centered discipleship through the aftermath of sexual abuse, addressing hard questions and painful issues that are feared and often denied by the Christian community. People using this resource will…

Learn to push against shame by giving voice to their stories in a safe setting;
Address doubts and questions they harbor about God, and learn to consider Scripture’s rich, bold worldview on the subject;
Apply the gospel of Jesus Christ and learn the importance of His character and grace-filled sacrifice to them personally;
Be introduced to a biblical self-image, and challenged to gain hope by defining themselves and their purpose in Christ;
Learn how to apply the gospel to their relationships with four basic biblical principles;
Learn to embrace their story as part of the larger story of redemption and reach out to others with the hope of Jesus.

Find out more HERE.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Sep

2018

Thinking About Christmas in September

“May I Wish You a Merry Christmas Right Now?”

“No, it’s too soon,” I think I hear you respond.

Really? Why’s that? Aren’t you concerned to celebrate the wonder of

th’eternal, contracted to a span
incomprehensibly made man

(the couplet is from a hymn by Wesley)? God was revealed in the flesh. Do you know that? Do your neighbors know that? Do your fellow workers understand the implications of that? Do your family members have it in their brains that Christ “made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross” (Philippians 2:7-8)?

In 2016, Roger Ellsworth and I consulted on some writing he had done on the Christmas theme, and together we came up with the idea of The Twelve Days of Christmas–Morning and Evening Thoughts on Immanuel: God with Us. We edited and compiled it into twenty-four readings on Bible-based themes woven into short, easy-to-read chapters, and people love them!

Customization and Special Price Deals!

The project is run in affiliation with SermonAudio.com. We describe the mission of the project in these words:

The Twelve Days of Christmas is a small, easy-to-read book written in short sections. Its aim is to help the hearts and minds of believers to focus on the wonder of the incarnation, as well as to encourage unbelievers to come in repentance and faith to Christ.

This is the third year we are running this promotion, and, to celebrate our third anniversary, we are adding some different covers to choose from, and we are also making the whole offer online so you can choose exactly which cover or covers you would like to get, and which underlying Bible version quotes should be used in the books you order. Check it out on the designated website, www.twelvedaysofchristmas.net.

I have shared about this project before, and you could read more HERE and HERE.

For cover designs, see HERE.

For pricing, see HERE.

View the recently added covers in the slide show below.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Aug

2017

Publishing: 4

Jim Continues His Thoughts. . .

Who Moved My Cheese?

The cover design of the book caught my eye as well as the title. “Who Moved My Cheese?” it asked. It was a slender volume, no more than 96 pages as I recall, and it told the story of a number of mice that had to face change in life. The longstanding supply of cheese from which they have helped themselves is no more. “What is to be done in securing more cheese?” is the challenge facing these four mice. Written as a parable that takes place in a maze, the story engagingly describes Sniff and Scurry, and their associates, Hem and Haw, and how they go about finding more cheese. Spencer Johnson’s intention is to introduce readers to the concept of positive change and how to cope with it. The book makes for engaging reading.

Shifting paradigms are always interesting, especially when they involve adjusting to new ways. Just because something has always been done in a particular way is no guarantee that such a way will always work—or that it cannot be improved.

When I first purchased my AB Dick printing press in the 1990s (more HERE), there was really only one way to produce books cost-effectively: by printing quite a lot at a time. The prevailing philosophy in the printing industry was to find a sweet-spot—establishing a printing number that was high enough to enable unit price to be attractive but not causing the publisher to have to mortgage his house to pay for the print run and then take take forever to sell the books—and not too short a print run to sell all copies too quickly. Of course, the fact that I owned a printing press did give me a strategic advantage at least when it came to the printing of sales leaflets and catalogs, but book printing was really a larger and more complex operation than my press would be able to manage.

After I relocated to Britain, the first publisher I worked for in the UK operated on the principle of having access to a fairly big warehouse to keep all the books safely stored during the time they were being fed out to the marketplace. Paper and print does not accrue in value under those circumstances, and it can be challenging to keep a large warehouse tidy and functioning in an orderly way. Maybe that got my thinking going about whether there was a better, a different way…

Other publishing wisdom I encountered in the early 2000s went like this: “We’ll print books in large quantities, but first find publishing partners—that is, buyers with whom we can engage in a kind of strategic alliance.” I liked that. It meant that the financial load could be spread and shared between two or more parties, stakeholders in each instance, and created a strong and efficient force for buying print and then for moving it into the market. I do still very much favor this approach, and I think it works really well under the right conditions.

Enter Amazon

The “Big A” has changed a lot of things. At one time, nobody took Amazon too seriously, but not so anymore. Amazon’s ability to operate on a relatively low overhead and to have negotiated specially preferential, volume-related relationships with shippers has dealt the death knell to many vendors who had maybe become comfortable with the status quo. The reality is that people’s buying habits have changed and continue to do so. Most people today are quite relaxed in making online purchases.

So What About a New Author?

Where does a new author, someone not yet published, fit into this shifting paradigm? There are many variables, but it’s usually fair to say that the new author is relatively without connections and can offer no track record to a prospective publisher. Jack Canfield (co-originator of the Chicken Soup for the Soul books) records how he had to work exceptionally hard to find a publisher who was prepared to take the risk with his publishing idea. But that publisher was not unhappy with the outcome. (Canfield has subsequently had several New York Times bestsellers to his credit.)

It’s a hop, skip, and jump (at least in one sense) for an unpublished author to fly solo, and there is significant temptation to do so. The ease with which self-publishing can take place has given newbie authors a lot of rope. Some such authors make good use of the rope for hanging themselves, speedily finding an in-law to help with the editing, a friend to design the cover, and a teenager to help with the uploading of files to the printer; others are more cautious and with due circumspection do a better job. The point is that homemade usually looks homemade. I’ve seen enough to make me queasy!

But let me get back to my story and to tell you why I publish. . . and to address three important questions that need to be kept under consideration.

Below: Some of the books I have published so far

1. The Question of Editing, Design, and Production Quality

It soon became apparent that I could easily help a new author (or an established one) bring a very presentable book into print. And that was gratifying for me as well as for the author! Editing and book design are closely related, and I found that even as I was working with an author, ideas were coming to me in terms of how we could develop the work to make it look like a nice project once it was in print.

Any would-be self published author MUST think carefully about how to achieve an outstandingly good result!

2. The Question of Financial Risk

So, now finding myself in the position of working with authors and others in the publishing realm, but without a full-time employer, my instinct was to push forward and to push hard in developing a new model, one that would facilitate the kinds of people who are gifted writers, but who, for whatever reason, are not able to achieve success with a mainstream or established publisher. One of the most likely things that will happen to a self-published author is that he or she will end up with numbers of cartons of a well (or badly) produced book in the garage. The first ten or twenty copies were relatively easy to sell (or give away as complimentary items); and then things just dried up. That can be an expensive mistake!

DSR Printing

So I reasoned that we could find a way around that by using digital short-run printing (costs have become much lower in recent years) so that only a small number of books at a time would need to be produced. Wow! That made such a difference to how people saw things! In fact, I coined the term “Perpetually in Print” (more info HERE). An author’s book never has to go out of print. And an author never has to face the sight of cartons of unsold print in the garage gathering dust!

Then I turned my attention to how I could help people promote (and therefore sell) their books. That was fun, if you find Facebook and such portals to be fun! This is all about enabling an author to use his or her voice and to achieve maximum amplification through low-cost or no-cost promotional portals. But that’s for another post I’ll write another time!

3. The Question of Distribution Efficiency

But that still did not quite solve the challenge of global distribution. I loved it that my US-based clients could enjoy success in selling their books in the States, but what about my clients in the UK? Well, I am happy to report that there turned out to be a solution—a very good solution to that, too, and one of the print-and-distribute models that I now use is highly efficient in making my authors’ books available anywhere in the world, usually available to ship within just a couple of days.

It was pleasing to be able to see good and reasonable answers to each of these challenging questions as I moved forward in my thinking.

Doing It the Right Way

One of my clients–a self-published author (in fact, he has since started his own imprint with my involvement)–was happy to report to me that when he made his book publicly available, one of his associates spoke these words to him: “Dewey, this beautiful book is self-published, and yet it does not look self-published.” And that is exactly the point! An author who has invested years and years, who has toiled tirelessly to produce a manuscript surely deserves the very best treatment and the prospect of getting a really pleasing outcome from such labors!

The “Either/Or” and “Both/And” Relationship

There is something of a watershed emerging in publishing. One the one side, there is the traditional model, a model that I love and that continues to be effective. I work closely with established publishers, publishers who have been around for a long time and will continue to be so. But there is a new way of publishing, and it is imperative that established publishers recognize the new dynamic and, where appropriate, make use of it for some of their printing needs. Of course, for the newbies who are careful enough not to hang themselves on the long length of rope suddenly available, judicious use of new technologies and systems provide the enabling to bring them into new realms of effecitveness.

To one of my clients, I recently used the analogy of what the skies are like to aircraft. Her husband, a retired doctor, loves flying his single-engine, four-seater Cessna 182. A 182 is not a Boeing 747. But it flies in the same skies, and uses the same principles of thrust and lift in order to stay airborne, and has many of the same capabilities. And so it is that she, a self-published author who may be unknown to many, is able to appear side by side with the greats when it comes to platforms such as Amazon, and the public response to her writing (expressed in customer ratings and reviews) has much the same visibility authors who may be much better known.

Ask me whether I am an either/or person or a both/and person, and I will tell you immediately that I am the latter, especially when it comes to publishing. And the interesting thing is that the two can sometimes morph together in related projects. An author who is going to enjoy spectacular success will most likely have his or her books printed many at a time, and published and promoted by a publisher and distribution network that can accommodate the speed and urgency of demand, and where the cost of sale relative to the final selling price dynamic is in a satisfactory and realistic relationship. Supply and demand factors often determine this quite naturally.

But there is so much to be said for the author whose books are just quietly selling through key portals, and where the ongoing activity is sustained through quiet and unobtrusive means. You might not find such books in window displays or endcaps in bookstores, and the authors might not be doing public signings, but the reality is that the reader interest and demand is there, and it fuels the life of the book over a good length of time.

There is More to Come. . .

I cannot complete this cluster of posts without sharing a little about some of the books I have published, and introducing you to some of the authors and the fun we had in getting the books from concept to completion. So look out for the next post or two in this series!

Aug

2017

Publishing: 3

More from Jim on Publishing

In my last post, I mentioned April Fool’s day 2014, the day that dawned following over ten years’ service to my erstwhile employers, Day One Christian Ministries. In my tenure there as director of publications and marketing, I had gained a good sense of the publishing world, its strengths and its weaknesses, and how it could maybe benefit from having things done differently. I enjoyed working with editors and with graphic designers, and it was both pleasing and productive to develop so many new lines of books. I’ve mapped out some of these things in my portfolio in one of my websites [HERE].

Working in publishing significantly connected me with some fairly well-known authors, including people like John Blanchard, John MacArthur, Andy McIntosh, Roger Ellsworth and many others (you could see a part list HERE–there are over seventy names in it–but since then extended to more than one hundred). Some of them said some kind words [HERE], especially Dr. John Blanchard (pictured, right, with his wife, Pam) who wrote:

“Integrity and Efficiency”
Two words come immediately to mind when I think of Jim and Sue Holmes—integrity and efficiency. When you add gracious courtesy to those you have a combination that encourages you to work with them, as I have in South Africa, the United Kingdom and the United States. Their experience and expertise will be of great benefit to authors who choose to partner with them and I commend them warmly to any who consider doing so.
Dr. John Blanchard, Evangelist, Author and Christian Apologist

All said and done, I now found myself in the somewhat unenviable position of having been let go of, with a significant workplace injury (which my employers at Day One knew well about and for which they refused to take any responsibility), though, thankfully, with a green card and the right to reside and work in the USA.

Making a Plan

“Well, Sue,” I remarked over my mug of tea. Her gentle face was showing some anxiety and I knew that I would have to work to keep her from stressing overmuch. “It has to be publishing in one form or another. That’s what I know best, and I am happy to be guided by the principle of Ecclesiastes 9:10—Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might.” Around this time, John Lehman, an associate minister at a nearby church, had come into my life. He had, he explained, written a long letter that he wished to convert into a book and wished it to be a blessing to his family members. I looked it over, and it was very promising. Now that I have gotten to know John, we can enjoy a good laugh about how I helped to get the book “out of him.” See the graphic above on the right; John is much better looking than the patient undergoing the X-Ray and I hope I would not be mistaken in real life for the doctor! He and his wife, Suzie, are pictured below. John now has three beautifully produced books—the first on parenting, the second on marriage, and the third on fitness, all with engaging titles: It’s Apparent…You’re a Parent; I Do or I Don’t; and Fit for the Master.

As good J C Ryle said, “The best way to do something is to do it.” So I decided that the best way to start was by pushing ahead in some projects, feeling my way forward using social media and making myself as useful as I was able to. Principles lead to empiricals. “Just try doing it,” I counseled myself. One of the concerns driving me was to establish fair competency in website building and development, so while working on some editing projects for P&R Publishing, I also forayed into the world of Google-Sites and WordPress, soon finding the latter to be quite powerful, and that even eCommerce was not as complex as it might first seem. With thanks, under God, for free online tutorials and perusing numerous FAQs, it was not long before I found my way forward in developing websites for other people to help them promote their writing ministries. These include www.fitforthemaster.fit, www.deborahhoward.net, www.timothyjcross.org, www.lifelineminibooks.com, www.twelvedaysofchristmas.org, www.exposingthefederalvision.org, and several other ones.

An Unexpected Phone Call

An email that dropped into my in box from an online form submission from one of my websites was very interesting, and even more so when I phoned the man from whom it originated. “I represent a publishing family,” he said, “And in doing due diligence, we wish to establish whether you might be the right person to help in their publishing ministry.” It was an extra surprise, a pleasant one, too, to learn that the publishing family was none other than that of Tedd and Margy Tripp. Tedd (pictured here) is well known for his remarkable book Shepherding a Child’s Heart, a manuscript derived from a doctoral thesis that nobody wanted to publish when he first wrote it, so it ended up being self published (under the quickly thought-up name of Shepherd Press). Now with a sales history of well in excess of a million copies, it is a book that has challenged, blessed, and guided countless parents and teachers over the years. To cut a long story short, following a weekend visit to northern Pennsylvania, there commenced a relationship between me and Shepherd Press that enables me to be of service in the promotion and development of the ministry, and to help in recruiting new authors and rolling out of new resources. That’s just one of the various things that I love doing. You can find out more about Shepherd Press HERE and HERE .

Waging War on Worry!

Because the Shepherd Press work is flexible and part-time, there are many other things that I do in publishing. Like when Simon Robinson, my good friend in England, told me that he had been writing some notes all about anxiety. “I think we should make a book of it,” I ventured. “If you could get to 31 readings, it could even become a daily reading book.” Simon warmed to the idea immediately and soon after we were exchanging emails and sharing ideas. The outcome not long afterwards was a book in a black and red cover with an anxious man regarding people holding the book—the man on the cover that is—with 31 easy-to-read chapters, complete with Bible reference, application points, and a suggested prayer to pray—even if just to prime the pump, as it were–all to strategically help readers get over the worry factor.

So, why do I publish… That’s a great question. Perhaps it’s something like ink (rather than blood) in my veins.

So I am not yet done in sharing these thoughts. There is more to say about this ministry of publishing, especially inventing new and more efficient and effective ways of doing it, so I will add to this short cluster of posts and share some interesting insights into what I do and how I do it—and especially how the paradigms are changing!

To read the earlier posts on this topic, see HERE and HERE. To read the next one, see HERE.

Aug

2017

Publishing: 1

Why I Publish

My résumé looked good–at least I thought it looked good.

So why did the response letter start, after the salutation, with these words: “We regret to inform you that, while we were impressed by your credentials, we are unable to offer you the position…”

I had thought the publishing position tailor-made for me. It did not involve relocation. It required literary and management skills, all of which I had been building up in the years of teaching I had undertaken in a school operated by the KwaZulu government in recent years. Perhaps, unknown to me, the principle of Proverbs 16:33 was at work:

The lot is cast into the lap,
But its every decision is from the LORD.

Be that as it may, a few months later security conditions in the school deteriorated to the point that it was no longer safe for me, as a white South African, to commute the seven or so miles to the school where the students were all black South Africans. A large rock hurled by someone in the bushes on the roadside–intended for my face–narrowly missed going through the windshield (creating a massive dent, instead, on the corner of the roof of my Volkswagen Beetle) and it was considered prudent that I seek employment elsewhere.

To Johannesburg we go!

So, with our vehicle bulging at the seams, we found ourselves en route to Johannesburg after so many happy years in the Natal midlands. I served as bookstore manager for a while before engaging in a temporary excursion back into the teaching world and before biting the bullet and starting an import and mail-order discount bookstore. It grew auspiciously and soon required full-time attention.

It wasn’t quite publishing, but, well, it was a way of serving publishers and people who needed the books.

James Dearmore and the A B Dick

Jim Dearmore was a Texan in Africa. His story was remarkable for its adventure and spiritual verve. He and his wife, Georgia, had been missionaries in the Congo and then moved to what was then Rhodesia before ending up in the northern regions of South Africa, where they continued their missionary endeavors. His outspokenness against Marxist doctrine made him the kind of person who probably would not be welcome to stay in the country once an ANC government was established. He was one of my favorite customers, a godly man, a no-nonsense American in whom there was no guile. I loved the way his gas-guzzling 1970s automobile drove into the parking lot, so much like a great ship, taking as it seemed several minutes to come to a halt as it berthed. From deep within its recesses (it may have been a Cadillac; it was huge) he would emerge, his short white beard outlined against the greenery in the background. His eyes were kindly, always twinkling. His voice deep and his drawl slow and pronounced, he always spoke wisely and well, often punctuating his speech with apt quotations from the Bible, always in the King James version.

“Brother Jim,” he informed me (he always called me Brother Jim or Brother Holmes), “Brother Jim, I am a kicker of sacred cows; if I see a cow in the distance, I will go up to see if it is sacred, and I will kick it if it is. We should only believe and practice things that are in the Bible.”

I loved his straightforwardness, his directness, his call-a-spade-a-spade mentality. He was no stranger to hardship and to hard work. One day he told me about his A B Dick, a printing press he housed in his garage. With relocation back to the USA in mind, he needed to sell it, and he considered that I should buy it. At the time, I was running the book business I had started, and it involved quite a lot of printing that I usually got done in a copy center in Johannesburg. I was also editing a magazine at the time, Reformation Africa South, so that put me in connection with a commercial printer, Leonard Venter. Len was another character. Everything he described was “fantastic.” I mentioned Dr. Dearmore’s offer to sell his A B Dick press to me. In his Germiston accent he enthusiastically said to me, “Fantastic! Jim, my boet, let’s go check out the doctor’s printing press.” A few days later, riding along in his Toyota Camry at around 100mph, we made the long journey north of Pretoria to Dr. Dearmore’s location in a very short space of time.

“Ag, Jim, I think you should buy it,” Len told me. “It’s quite an old machine, but these are fantastic for jobbing.” Jobbing, he explained, was for doing the run-of-the-mill printing that involves a printing press that just keeps on going in a stable way–ideal for catalogs, newsletters, flyers, etc.

The deal agreed some weeks later, we knew we would need space to house it, so a few months later, we commenced building a double garage on our Strubens Valley property. Getting the press from where Dr. Dearmore had housed it to our location was challenging; it weighed more than a ton. And it arrived with a bewildering number of rollers and peripheral items, all with special names and functions that would need to be learned!

Then Julian showed up. Julian Glover was one of those young chaps who will try his hand at anything. “Yeah, I think I can make this machine work,” he said confidently. I must say that I wondered… Long into the night hours he tinkered with it, multiple colors of ink adorning his fingernails, hands, arms, face, and hair. And, sure enough, the steady duff-duff-duff of the press eventually yielded some remarkable output, including printing in full color.

Why I Publish

So, why do I publish? I’ll have to explain this a little more in my next post! I read Theology, Biblical Studies, English, Greek, and Hebrew (and some other stuff) in my Bachelors degree; I trained in postgraduate studies and practiced as a teacher; I started a book business; and I purchased a printing press knowing a little more than nothing about how I would make it work, but in the care, purpose, and providence of God, it worked–and it worked well. I think that might hint a little as to why I have ended up as a publisher…

So I will take up more of the story in a future post [HERE].

Illustrations of James and Georgia Dearmore, from CWS Funeral Home. The A B Dick printing press is one rather like the one I purchased. Image credit here.

Jun

2017

Paul Tautges on Prayer

Pray About Everything

One of the many things I get to enjoy is working with gifted authors.

My good friend, Dr. Paul Tautges (“Say my last name to rhyme with couches,” he quipped to me when I first met him some ten years ago) is hard working in the ministry, as well as being prolific in his writing and editing. It was my privilege to be involved in his first main publication, then called Counsel one another (published by the company I used to work for in the UK) and subsequently upgraded to Counseling One Another, and now available from Shepherd Press.

One of Paul’s subsequent books was also brought into print by the same UK publisher, but, for various reasons was released to Shepherd Press, too, and is now making its second debut as Pray About Everything. It was originally titled Teach them to pray, and had as its assumption that the primary users were church ministers and office-bearers.

One of the reasons for changing the title in the Shepherd Press edition is that prayer should not only be about everything, but that prayer is for everyone who is walking in a right relationship with God. Ordinary people, not just church leaders, should be praying people!

Extensively endorsed, Paul’s book carries recommendations from men such as Jerry Bridges (he contributed the foreword), Brian Croft, Joel Beeke, and Mark Dever. Dever calls it “one of my favorite books on prayer.”

The short description of the book goes like this:

An urgent call, with practical guidelines, for believers to commit themselves to regular and systematic heartfelt prayer as an essential spiritual discipline of the Christian life.

The Table of Contents is in itself an appetite-whetter:

Foreword; Preface
Part 1 Prayer and the New Testament Church
1 Common People in Constant Prayer
2 The Priority of Prayer
Part 2 Brief Meditations for Prayer Meetings
3 Praying in Jesus’ Name
4 Praying for Unbelievers
5 Praying for Government Leaders
6 Praying Constantly
7 Praying with a Forgiving Heart
8 Praying with Tears
9 How Stubbornness Kills Prayer
10 How Husbands Get Their Prayers Answered
11 Asking Your Elders to Pray with You
12 Keep Praying!
Part 3 Practical Helps for Cultivating God-Dependency
Appendix 1 Annual “9 Days of Prayer”
Appendix 2 Four Seasons of Prayer
Appendix 3 Monthly Missions Prayer Nights
Appendix 4 Praying Scripture through Trials
Appendix 5 Prayer Sermon Outlines
Appendix 6 Small Group Bible Study on Prayer

Practical Stuff

You may order the book from Shepherd Press HERE

View a downloadable PDF information sheet HERE

KEY DETAILS AT A GLANCE
Pray About Everything: Cultivating God-Dependency
Paul Tautges
Trade Paperback, 128pp, 7.8 x 5.06 inches
ISBN: 978-1-63342-114-1
Suggested retail price: $12.95

Enjoy listening to an interview and discussion between Paul Tautges and Kevin Boling of Knowing the Truth Radio.

May

2017

On Blogging

The Discipline of Writing

I love writing. That’s why I do the work I do. On Twitter, I describe myself in these terms:

A Christian publishing consultant with the passion and skills to assist people to communicate their message clearly and efficiently to a global audience.

Francis Bacon said, of writing, that it “maketh a precise man.” (Interestingly, he also said that reading makes “a full man” and conference–debate–makes a “ready man.”)

Perhaps I am just a little guilty of not practicing what I preach. Maybe the doctor should be healing himself (I’ve been wonderfully engaged in helping others to write, and to write well).

So, my reader friend, it’s back to blogging and not just the snippets that I have been posting on Facebook and via my Twitter feed.

Nov

2016

Evangelical Times Promotes “The Twelve Days of Christmas”

An Article Published in November 2016 of Evangelical Times

Reproduced with the kind permission of www.EvangelicalTimes.org

The Twelve Days of Christmas

Recently, Evangelical Times interviewed Roger Ellsworth and Jim Holmes about a new project they are working on, the publication, promotion and distribution of a small-format, 112-page book, The Twelve Days of Christmas: morning and evening thoughts on Immanuel — God with us. The book is by Roger Ellsworth (details from http://twelvedaysofchristmas.net).

ET: Jim, tell our readers how the Twelve Days idea came about.

Jim Holmes: Several years ago, Evangelical Press published Roger Ellsworth’s book The 31 Days of Christmas. I loved the title and the idea — short devotional readings that could be consumed by ordinary people in one month — but it went out of print. To cut a long story short, Roger and I have been able to rework some of the original content and make it available once again.

ET: Roger, you have evidently preached a lot about Christmas over the years. Are people receptive to the gospel message at this time of the year?

Roger Ellsworth: Yes, people do seem to be more receptive to the gospel during the Christmas season. There is such a sustained emphasis on showing kindness and goodwill to our fellow citizens, that even those who are opposed to Christianity are apt to be a bit more patient with Christians in general, and especially with those in their own family and among their colleagues.

It is also the one time of the year that some unbelievers are willing to attend a church service, perhaps to honour a family tradition or please a family member. Individual Christians should seize opportunities to invite unbelievers to attend services at Christmas, and pastors should be prepared to clearly and winsomely proclaim the gospel.

ET: Jim, tell us why you chose the title The Twelve Days?

Jim: There is something really catchy in the idea of ‘twelve’. And as everyone knows the song, it seemed such a good idea to pack some good, Bible-based content in bite-sized chapters into a book with this title.

By the way, we express the mission of the book thus: ‘It is intended to help the hearts and minds of believers to focus on the wonder of the incarnation, as well as to encourage unbelievers to come in repentance and faith to Christ’. The meditations are easy to read and include bulleted points for practical application.

ET: Roger, in a nutshell, how do you define Christmas?

Roger: Christmas is the celebration of the Son of God coming to this earth in our humanity. The angel who appeared to the shepherds outside Bethlehem put it this way: ‘For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Saviour, who is Christ the Lord’ (Luke 2:11).

ET: What do you think many people greatly misunderstand about Christmas?

Roger: While most still understand that Christmas is the celebration of the birth of the Lord Jesus, very few know why it was necessary for him to come. Many seem to think that Jesus only came among us to be an example to us. They do not connect the manger of Bethlehem with the cross of Calvary. They do not understand that Jesus came in our humanity for the express purpose of dying on the cross. And they certainly do not understand why it was necessary for him to die on the cross.

People do not realize the reality and enormity of their sins. They do not realize that our sins deserve the wrath of God and that Jesus went to the cross to receive that wrath, so that all who put their trust in him will not have to endure that wrath.

We must never think of Jesus’ death on the cross in terms of just another man dying a physical death. Jesus’ death was much more than that. It was a special death, in which he received the full measure of the judgement that our sins deserve.

When we view Christmas through the lens of the cross — assuming we truly understand the cross — Christmas will become exceedingly precious to us.

ET: Roger, over the years, ET readers have seen how your writing strongly directs them to apply what they read, in personal, practical ways, to their lives. How challenging is it to write like this?

Roger: As far as I am concerned, the Christian author faces the most challenging of all tasks, namely, to put the glorious truths of Christianity into clear and understandable language without losing the glory of those truths.

ET: This is a devotional book, and yet it calls people not only to worship the one true, living God, but first to come to him in repentance and faith. How do you expect ordinary readers who may not yet be believers to respond to this emphasis in your writing?

Roger: Repentance from sin and faith in Christ have never been popular topics. No mere man can produce repentance and faith in himself, let alone in anyone else. This always has been and will be the work of the Holy Spirit.

As I preach and write, I pray that the Spirit of God will use my feeble efforts to powerfully convince sinners of their sins and draw them to Christ.

ET: Jim, we understand that there are aspects of Roger’s book that can be personalised for the specific use a certain church. Please explain how this works.

Jim: Yes, this is customisation: personalising a high quality book so that it is identifiable with a church or ministry. Poorly produced material used in the name of advancing the gospel can be a turn-off to unbelievers, but it is possible to print nice literature affordably and with its own unique look and feel.

Our method is simple: people may select the cover they prefer, and Bible text using the version they most like (AV, NKJV or ESV), and then place their order. If they wish to add their church’s name and contact information on the cover and inside page (to describe or promote their ministry or use the book as a giveaway), we offer this option too. What a great way to help churches connect meaningfully with their communities!

ET: Isn’t this quite an expensive kind of project to undertake?

Jim: No, it’s actually a fairly low cost, high value project, and it is a very well produced product. The book’s suggested retail price is £4.99. But, by producing it in a prepublication model that has low overheads, collects payment before printing and arranges for the printers to send the books directly to the user, we are able to give generous discounts. It is very affordable.

ET: So it’s really just one book (with the option of Bible texts quoted from three different versions) and with the choice of three different covers?

Jim: Yes. The content is exactly the same in all three editions of the book — other than that Bible texts are quoted from a different version in each one. The covers reflect different tastes, ranging from modern to traditional designs. We’re really happy to accommodate people’s wishes.

If there is an ET reader who has a new and different idea to share, we’d love to explore this (visit the site http://twelvedaysofchristmas.net for contact details)

ET: Roger, as we close this interview, in one sentence what is your prayer for people who will read this book?

Roger: I pray that unbelievers will come to faith in the Lord Jesus and that believers will have a greater sense of awe and wonder regarding the Lord Jesus.

Oct

2016

What They Never Told You About The Twelve Days of Christmas!

What You Never Knew about The Twelve Days of Christmas. . .

Every year the old song goes around—leaping lords, maids-a-waiting, and all that stuff, culminating in a partridge nesting in a pear tree. I’ve always liked the title, so when the opportunity came about earlier this year to do a special Christmas project with author Roger Ellsworth, I got things into gear and started work with him on an old, previously published book, selecting several of the readings and modifying them to fit into a small book under this title and subtitle:

The Twelve Days of Christmas–Morning and Evening Thoughts on Immanuel: God with Us

The book is highly intentional, and its mission statement is defined as follows:

“The Twelve Days of Christmas has been written in short sections and in an easy-to-read manner. It is intended to help the hearts and minds of believers to focus on the wonder of the incarnation, as well as to encourage unbelievers to come in repentance and faith to Christ.”

I’ve written elsewhere about it, notably on the dedicated website and on my book ministry blog.

But I thought I would still share a few thoughts here, anyway, and give you a bit of the background.

I’m delighted that friends from Sermon Audio love the idea, and are helping to promote it. They kindly mailed out 100 copies to key broadcasting churches, and are featuring it as news item on the site. See HERE and enjoy some of the quite vigorous arguments for and against the opportunities that Christmas affords for sharing the evangel of God’s grace in Christ.

Elsewhere, I recently shared these ten special thoughts about the book:

Ten Great Reasons To Use The Twelve Days of Christmas!

It’s so exciting to be working on this promotion. Here are ten reasons for you and your church to use this little book:

1. It is a faithful presentation of the account of the birth of Jesus, the God-Man.

2. It is attractively produced, a small book that people will want to keep and to use.

3. It is intentionally affordable for use as a book-of-the-month or for a giveaway in neighborhood evangelism.

4. It is completely customizable and can include a message from your minister, a picture of your church, and your phone and web contact details.

5. It is easily understandable, with short readings for morning and evening of each day.

6. It is biblically rich, explaining and applying the text of the Bible to ordinary readers.

7. It’s highly applicatory, with points to think about at the end of each reading.

8. It is easily digestible, with headings and summary points to help understanding.

9. It is naturally sequential in moving its focus from the angels and the shepherds to ordinary people today.

10. It is all about Jesus–and His summons to everyone to repentance and faith.

On the Twelve Days site, you could also take a look at how the book may be customized and how it may be purchased inexpensively on scale. Check out links such as these:

I’ll end this short post with a short video I had fun generating using some of the software available from Powtoon—enjoy!

Everything Says, “GLORY!” (Jim Albright)

Peacock and Poppycock

About the Cover

Connecting with Heart Issues

Resources for Word-Based Transformation and Practical Discipleship

“May I Wish You a Merry Christmas Right Now?”

Customization and Special Price Deals!

Jim Continues His Thoughts. . .

Who Moved My Cheese?

Enter Amazon

So What About a New Author?

1. The Question of Editing, Design, and Production Quality

2. The Question of Financial Risk

DSR Printing

3. The Question of Distribution Efficiency

Doing It the Right Way

The “Either/Or” and “Both/And” Relationship

There is More to Come. . .

More from Jim on Publishing

Making a Plan

An Unexpected Phone Call

Waging War on Worry!

Why I Publish

To Johannesburg we go!

James Dearmore and the A B Dick

Why I Publish

Pray About Everything

Practical Stuff

The Discipline of Writing

An Article Published in November 2016 of Evangelical Times

What You Never Knew about The Twelve Days of Christmas. . .

Ten Great Reasons To Use The Twelve Days of Christmas!

Windows on My World

Jim’s Recent Posts

Jim’s Recent Twitter Feed

Visit Jim’s Social Media Sites.

Receive Jim’s Occasional Updates

Recent Comments

Categories