2 of 3

The blockbuster effect has spread beyond Christian retailers. Chains such as Barnes & Noble, Costco, and Wal-Mart have used Christian blockbusters (along with Harry Potter and The Da Vinci Code) as loss leaders, sold at little or no profit to entice customers into stores.

In a recent editorial called "Devil's Bargain," Sara Nelson, editor in chief of Publisher Weekly, wondered if the strategy has backfired, pointing to recent struggles at B&N, which closed its Memphis distribution center and posted lower-than-expected earnings. Nelson noted that "discounting is a dangerous strategy—when it doesn't work, it really doesn't work."

Scott Bolinder, executive vice president of Zondervan, wonders if Christian publishers have become dependent on blockbusters. "I think we've gotten used to what used to be anomalies being 'regular anomalies,' " Bolinder told CT. "As an industry, we've gotten too reliant on blockbusters—and we don't think that's a good thing."

Zondervan has seen both sides of a blockbuster. "We will have a little bit of a down year—based on recalibrating from The Purpose-Driven Life," Bolinder says. "Take that piece out, and our business is healthy. But the whole publishing industry is in some very tough sledding."

The pressure for blockbusters will likely increase. Christian publishers Multnomah (now part of Random House), Howard (now owned by Simon & Schuster), and Thomas Nelson (a privately held, wholly owned subsidiary of Faith Media, a division of InterMedia Partners) were bought up, while general trade publishers like Penguin Putnam launched Christian imprints.

"When companies get bigger, they want to publish bigger books," says Garrett. "They want to publish fewer books and get more money out of them, so they look for big-name authors. It's quite a bit harder in that type of market for first-time authors or mid-list authors to get their books out."

Despite reports of a downturn in sales, Christian books remain remarkably popular. A bestseller list, compiled by Thomas Nelson president Michael Hyatt and based on data from general market bookstores, Christian retailers, and mass-market outlets, gives an indication of how popular.

On Hyatt's list, 14 of the top 100 books from 2006 were Christian titles. These included Nelson's low-cost paperback of the New King James Version (2), The Purpose-Driven Life (12), Your Best Life Now by Joel Osteen (19), The Chronicles of Narnia by C. S. Lewis (the Zondervan edition was 26, the Harper Collins edition 47), The Five Love Languages by Gary Chapman (27), Captivating by John and Stasi Eldredge (28), Jerusalem Countdown by John Hagee (43), 90 Minutes in Heaven (61), Battlefield of the Mind by Joyce Meyer (83), the Fiesta Bible Book (85), Cure for the Common Life by Max Lucado (90), Mere Christianity by C. S. Lewis (91), and Blue Like Jazz by Donald Miller (98).

Most of these books fall into the "Christian living" subcategory, says PW's Garrett. "Basically, it's Christian self-help," Garrett says, "and self-help is huge in the general market."

Most bestsellers have authors with a "platform"—the publishing industry's term for authors with a built-in audience, usually from a large church or media exposure. But a platform is no guarantee. Missing from that top 100 list, for example, are Living the Extraordinary Life by Charles Stanley and Billy Graham's The Journey. Garrett says both were launched with big expectations, but both stumbled. Hyatt confirms that Graham's book was a disappointment, attributing its struggles to Graham's ill health, the 10-year gap between The Journey and Graham's last book ("That's an ice age in today's world," he says), and the fickle nature of the book market.

next page... |  2 of 3

share this page

June 2007, Vol. 51, No. 6