September 28, 2026 Edition

Wednesday is submission deadline for 2027 Christian Book Award® program

ECPA publishers have until this Wednesday, September 30 to submit their titles for the 2027 Christian Book Award® program. Eligible books published from October 2025 through October 2026 may be entered in 13 categories. Finalists will be announced this spring, with winners honored at the ECPA Awards Celebration during the 2027 Leadership Summit, April 27–28 in Nashville.

Nomination details

ECPA welcomes new members

ECPA welcomes five new members to its growing community of Christian publishers and industry service providers:

• The Quiet Hours Press seeks to give fresh voices new and engaging ways to reach thoughtful readers.
• Abundance Books publishes life-changing stories that celebrate God’s transformational love and grace.
• Embassy Publishers is the publishing arm of the International Christian Embassy in Jerusalem.
• Jones Literary provides publicity, marketing, and editorial services to publishers.
• Wild Branch Marketing serves publishers with customized marketing consulting for their authors.

Free online Media Transformation Summit for publishers, Sept. 29

Tomorrow on September 29, Publishing Signal, powered by knk, will host the Media Transformation Summit, a free four-hour online event for publishers designed to cut through some of the noise around publishing transformation and focus on what actually matters. The program features Ed Nawotka from Publishers Weekly opening with a look at what publishers should be watching right now, Erin Servais with practical AI demonstrations for editors, and conversations around finding new readers and markets, AI-generated books and authorship, accessibility, and what comes next for audio.

Registration and Information

IPG adds five publishers to its sales & distribution programs

Independent Publishers Group (IPG) is pleased to announce the addition of five publishers to its sales and distribution programs starting this fall: Pentecostal Resources Group, Goose Lane Editions, D6 Family Ministries, Storyteller’s Forge, and Doran Press.

More…

Celebrate the newly announced Christy Award® Finalists in Nashville on November 6

With the 2026 Christy Award® finalists now announced, authors, readers, and publishers are invited to Nashville on November 6 for a full day celebrating Christian fiction with these events:

• Beyond the Book is a morning session to meet and hear from this year’s finalist authors.
• Art of Writing Seminar features four afternoon sessions, led by authors and publishing leaders exploring trends, AI, writing craft, and the author-editor relationship.
• The Christy Award Gala will be hosted that evening by novelist and radio host Chris Fabry to celebrate storytelling informed by faith, and to present the 2026 award winners.

Register today

ECPA PubU brings 40+ sessions and 70+ speakers to 24-hour program in Nashville

Publishing professionals will gather in Nashville November 4-5 for ECPA PubU, featuring more than 40 sessions and 70 speakers across Editorial, Marketing, Sales, Production & Operations, and Design tracks – and including a curriculum of on-demand master classes.

Douglas McKelvey, bestselling author of the Every Moment Holy series, will open the conference as keynote speaker, setting the stage for the 24-hour conference (1 pm Wednesday to 12 pm Thursday) of learning, fresh ideas, and industry connection.

The PubU program will explore many of the issues shaping Christian publishing today, including AI and discoverability, changing reader and consumer behavior, audience development, global opportunities, special markets, innovation in book production and design, and new approaches to reaching and engaging readers.

Attendees can build their own schedule from practical, peer-led sessions while connecting with colleagues from across the industry.

Register at ECPAPubU.org