A Peek Into Christian Publishing

Mick Silva, a friend of The God Journey and editor with Waterbrook-Multnomah publishing group was in town to visit Wayne and Brad so they dragged him into the podcast booth for a wide-ranging discussion about the current state of Christian publishing in the U.S. and the effect that The Shack has had on the industry. On the way the find themselves talking about the changing of the guard for those who would be gate-keepers of truth for others.

5 Comments

  1. Hey guys. Laughed at the “Podjourney Godcast” thing, especially since the statistically-significant sample of 2 people who use that phrase was basically me and my wife. But maybe we can convert more people to our whimsical re-naming thanks to the extra publicity!

    Blessings from Japan and keep up the good work.

  2. I am wondering why it is necessary for a writer to hire an agent in the hope of publishing a book? I have researched the topic. As a result I have some understanding of the process, but am having difficulty understanding why the author cannot act as their (own) agent.

    I enjoy the podcasts. Thanks!

    Pat

  3. Pat,

    It is only necessary because most publishers will not even consider a manuscript if it doesn’t come through an agent. Their purpose for that is to make sure the material has already been reviewed by an outside person who deems it worthy of publication. One publisher indicated to me that they publish one of every 6000 unsolicited manuscripts they receive. While almost everyone thinks they have a book to write or a story to tell, not everyone can tell that story in a way that makes it compelling for other to read. This is just a way publishers can thin down the number of manuscripts they receive and let agents do the culling for them.

    I have never had an agent, so I’m with you, but the industry is responding to a deluge of manuscripts and declining opportunity to print them.

    Wayne

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