Brand continuation is key within children’s products as well, as evidenced by three new releases. Tyndale’s 90 Devotions for Kids is the first in a line of devotionals as part of the Adventures in Odyssey (AIO) mega-brand, marking its 25th anniversary this year.

“Parents are searching for trustworthy devotional material to share with their family,” said Linda Howard, senior product development manager, “and they can be assured of sound biblical principles from an AIO branded product.”

At Thomas Nelson, Max Lucado’s brand Grace for the Moment, which has sold more than 3 million copies, has been adapted by Tama Fortner for children, extending its reach. The company has also released the Read and Share Bedtime Bible and Devotional by Gwen Ellis in its Read and Share line, which has sold more than 1 million products.

Thomas Nelson has also updated the covers of Sheila Walsh’s devotional Bibles, God’s Little Princess Devotional Bible and God’s Mighty Warrior Devotional Bible, releasing ?.

For boys, an updated version is available of Heads Up! Sports Devotions for All-Star Kids (Zondervan). First published in 2000 and written by David Branon, a former coach and managing editor of a sports magazine, this offering combines biblical principles with stories of athletes and sporting events to inspire kids, including reluctant readers.

From New Growth Press, Old Story New (October) is Marty Machowski’s second volume of family devotionals, following Long Story Short, both of which use a 10-minute-per-day structure revealing the gospel story to kids.

Since devotionals go hand-in-hand with Bibles, many publishers merge the two into one product. Some of the same publishing strategies that apply to devotional books also apply to devotional Bibles.

For example, author-driven titles are available, like the Oswald Chambers Devotional Bible (Crossway) and three Thomas Nelson products: the Charles Stanley Life Principles Daily Bible, Max Lucado’s Grace for the Moment Daily Bible and Sarah Young’s Jesus Calling Devotional Bible.

Following are some new titles, which take the form of updated classics and best-sellers:

Moody Publishers continues to publish Gary Chapman’s Love Languages titles with The Love Languages Devotional Bible, released in hardcover last month.

Our Daily Bread Devotional Bible by RBC Ministries (Tyndale House Publishers, October). For more than 50 years, RBC ministries has been publishing daily devotions read by millions. Now the widely used devotional Our Daily Bread is paired with Tyndale’s New Living Translation of the Bible, providing 365 readings.

The Women of Faith Devotional Bible (Thomas Nelson), using the New King James Version, has sold more than a quarter-million copies to date. This year a plum leather-look version is another option in the product line.

VBS publishers employ more digital content to reach the younger set

Vacation Bible School (VBS) is a product that connects stores with local churches, and churches to the families in their communities. As VBS comes into the digital age, suppliers are utilizing technology to connect retail, church leaders and consumers, and keep the VBS dialogue going all year long.

Christian Retailing talked with three publisher representatives about the ways that VBS products are evolving and expanding.

Taking part in the conversation were:

• ROBB FAUST, assistant brand manager, Standard Publishing
• ROBERTA LEHMAN, marketing specialist, Lifeway Kids
• CRYSTAL MCDOWELL, VBS editor, Urban Ministries Inc. (UMI)
• KAREN MCGRAW, associate managing editor, VBS for Gospel Light
• SHANNON VELASQUEZ, public relations/special events manager, VBS/women’s ministry, Group Publishing

CHRISTIAN RETAILING: What makes VBS continue to be a viable product for churches and Christian stores?

ROBERTA LEHMAN: VBS is the most effective outreach event of the year for many churches. VBS gives churches opportunities to cultivate and establish ongoing relationships with all who attend. On average, 10% of kids who attend VBS are unchurched. For the average VBS, 10% equals 10 people. Discovering new 10 people plus their family members is a big deal!

CRYSTAL MCDOWELL: I think VBS remains popular because you still have children who are available over the summer, and parents are always looking for something different and fun to make Jesus exciting.

KAREN MCGRAW: VBS is a prime opportunity for churches to reach out to unchurched kids and their families—and it’s a great program for kids who go to church on a regular basis. Any time God’s people can get together and lavish love on God’s children—that’s a great place to be.

SHANNON VELASQUEZ: I think there is that one point in a life where someone can be reached with the gospel message, and we know that often the easiest time to receive it is as a child, so to get children to have one entire week of VBS, where the gospel is the focus, is just huge.

CHRISTIAN RETAILING: How much is VBS still about evangelizing unchurched kids?

FAUST: The great thing about this year’s VBS for us is that kids are 

learning how to practically serve every day. The first day they are learning to serve their families. The second day they are serving their friends, then their neighbors, then their community, then Jesus. Every day they have a lesson on the topic of serving, then a service challenge to go home and do, so it doesn’t matter if the kids are in church, they can serve others and learn to serve Jesus. We are also introducing a missions component this year with Back2Back Ministries (back2backministries.org). They help orphan kids in Mexico, and the VBS offerings will go to Mexico to help these kids. All week long at VBS, kids will see the missions DVD in the opener. It is the story of Joel, and they will follow his story all week long.

LEHMAN: We call LifeWay’s VBS “The Evangelistic VBS.” All aspects of our VBS include age-appropriate outreach. Everything we do in VBS ties into the biblical content, and there is a special message on day three designed to teach grade school-age kids the ABCs of Becoming a Christian. The VBS scripture for 2013 is 2 Tim. 1:7.

MCDOWELL: I have seen that VBS brings in a lot of the kids already in the church, but leaders are still encouraging them to bring friends to VBS. If they bring a friend or two, you are teaching the kids to reach out to other kids with the gospel. By even just inviting them, they are practicing evangelism.

MCGRAW: At Gospel Light, we definitely develop VBS curriculum for unchurched kids. We realize that a number of churches have more “churched” kids attending than not, but for many, many churches, VBS is still their biggest outreach event of the year. We write all of our materials to address the needs of unchurched kids. And every lesson in Gospel Light’s VBS has evangelistic opportunities written for VBS leaders to talk to kids about becoming members of God’s family.

VELASQUEZ: We have tremendous success reaching out to kids who have never been to church before because we design our VBS with one simple Bible point that is reinforced in every rotation activity. It appeals to kids who go to church, but is also simple enough that even kids who have never heard of any of this before can get it. The one simple daily Bible point is pivotal for us.

CHRISTIAN RETAILING: What brand-new elements are you introducing for 2013?

FAUST: We have two themes this year, which is new for Standard. We have God’s Backyard Bible Camp: Under the Stars and God’s Backyard Bible Camp: Under the Sun. Fifty-three percent of churches now hold VBS in the evenings, so the Under the Stars kit is geared specifically for that timeframe, although it can be used during the day too, but all the Bible stories in that kit take place sometime in the evening. We also decided this year to offer everything in one kit. We used to offer a basic kit and a power kit, but now everything you need to hold VBS is all in one kit and is still just $199.99, although it includes more than $500 in resources. We completely redesigned our materials, so that instead of a big leader’s guide, we are offering leaflets, booklets and cards for each day that you can tuck right into your Bible. There are newly formatted bundles for each age group, including a preschool bundle, elementary/preteen bundle and teen bundle. We also include a DVD set that contains a missions DVD, planning DVD, music DVD, bonus music CD-ROM and an exportable media disc with all mp3s and mp4s of the music and videos. Another disc set included in the kit contains all the teaching resources and leader’s guides as pdf files, so if you need an extra guide, you just print it off. Everything you need to lead and plan our VBS is now in one kit.

LEHMAN: New for 2013 is the Backyard Kids Club. Many churches are looking for ways to take VBS outside their church and into their communities. Our VBS 2013 Backyard Kids Club Director’s Guide and Backyard Kids Club Kit provide portable resources that can be used easily wherever there is a group of kids gathered. The VBS 2013 Backyard Kids Club Kit is an all-in-one box designed for a club of about 20 kids. The VBS 2013 Backyard Kids Club Director’s Guide provides step-by-step guidance to the person or team who will be coordinating and planning the Backyard Kids Club. It’s all based on the Colossal Coaster World theme and coordinates well with the numerous accessories, decorations and promotional tools available.

MCDOWELL: I think our new element would be our DVD. Our theme for 2013 is Jesus Family Reunion: The Remix. We had a Jesus Family Reunion VBS in 2006, and it was very successful. This year, we are taking each theme and relating it on the DVD to a family situation. In the lessons, we also picked family situations in the Bible that can be used to understand things like forgiving and obeying.

MCGRAW: In addition to adding more resources to some of our electronic products, we’ve created a brand-new Parent Pocket Guide to help churches extend the VBS lessons beyond the threshold of the church. The Parent Pocket Guide gives parents all the information they need to reinforce the lessons their kids are getting at VBS. Our student guides also include a fun family activity to further promote involvement of the whole family.

VELASQUEZ: We introduced Imagination Station last year, and it is coming back this year. We reimagined crafts and introduced science, fun gizmos and experiments that flew off the shelves. This year, for our Kingdom Rock VBS, we are reimagining our student books and how to get them back home so kids can continue learning and talk to parents or friends and family member. We are also reimagining our Bible Memory Buddies.

CHRISTIAN RETAILING: Is your VBS focused primarily on elementary ages? How does it work for nursery kids and teens?

FAUST: We have a book called Beyond Your Backyard that is an adult VBS curriculum. … Our kits also have preschool, elementary/preteen and teen components and leader’s guides. We have a VBS designed for preschool through adult.

LEHMAN: LifeWay’s VBS provides content for all ages. Babies, 1s, 2s, 3s through Kindergarten, Grades 1 and 2, Grades 3 and 4, Grades 5 and 6, Youth, Adults and also children and adults with special needs. We also provide a full line of Spanish VBS resources. LifeWay’s Youth VBS is perfect for preparing youth to serve during children’s VBS. It’s also great for retreats, Bible studies or as a weeklong youth VBS program.

MCDOWELL: We want VBS to reach the whole family. We created lessons with family situations from the Bible that can be used from preschoolers all the way to teens. Our VBS is geared toward the black community, and that is shown on our DVD and in the music. I think about where the black community is when I write the lessons, but the message is for everybody—it’s Jesus.

MCGRAW: We don’t think of VBS as a program just for elementary children. It’s a program for the whole family. Whether as a team member or as a kid attending VBS, everyone can be involved. Even those parents who can’t participate by volunteering can be involved through our Parent Newsletters, the new Parent Pocket Guide and the family activities provided on the student guides. Not to mention attending Closing Programs and other family-oriented VBS events. Gospel Light has a number of products for preschoolers. The Pony Corral Teacher’s Guide has Bible stories and Bible Learning Activities geared for children from 3 years old through Kindergarten. We also have Pony Corral Fun Pages for each child for each day of VBS. Also included in our Director’s Planning Guide is the Nursery and Toddler Guide. We recognize the need for churches to provide quality care for the little ones whose parents volunteer at VBS. We also have youth and adult guides provided by our Regal book division. These Bible studies are designed to take the Bible content covered in VBS to a deeper level. Our focus is always on providing curriculum that is age-appropriate.

VELASQUEZ: With our VBS programs we really encourage older kids to come back and help. We call ours the easy VBS program because you just have to learn one simple Bible point. And if you are a crew leader, you have a group of five kids that you are taking through the rotations. If you are a helper at the Imagination Station, you stay there the whole time. We also offer a program for teens every year called Unlimited Youth that comes out with our traditional VBS.

CHRISTIAN RETAILING: How is VBS turning to the digital age? Are you, the developers, putting more online? In addition to websites, how are you utilizing the web in other ways as well as media?

FAUST: It’s exciting for us that Yancey did our music again, and she produced all the music videos herself. Some have kids doing motions. Some feature Yancey, and some just have the words, so churches have a variety of options. Yancey has already posted clips on YouTube and is getting a lot of hits there. We are also putting some on Facebook and seeing traffic increase. There are eight new songs from Yancey, and they are reproducible.

LEHMAN: Many of LifeWay’s VBS resources are available for download from lifeway.com/vbs. Clip art, videos and other helpful free resources are available at lifeway.com/vbs. We also have an ongoing Lifeway VBS blog that offers ideas and creates community (http://lifewayvbs.wordpress.com/). You can follow LifeWay VBS on Facebook and Twitter, and our VBS Blog has something new each day.

MCDOWELL: I know that we are working on media right now, using Twitter and Facebook more this year. We want to try to be more out-of-the-box.

Online and other electronic resources are something we are constantly working on improving. In addition to our reproducible Music & More CD, which churches are free to reproduce for every family that attends VBS, we have a CD-ROM in our Director’s Planning Guide that includes dozens of forms and checklists for the director, volunteer and parent newsletters, as well as training articles that can be either printed out or emailed to team members. We also have a variety of music and skits DVDs and a brand-new Rip-Roarin’ Multimedia CD-ROM that churches can use in conjunction with presentation software to display images on screens during large-group assembly times. As far as social media goes, we have our websites, gospellightvbs.com and myvbsparty.com. We also have a Facebook page, Pinterest page and Twitter accounts (@Gospel_Light; @HenriettaMears).

VELASQUEZ: Technology is so big for kids these days, so we reimagined our Chatter Chipmunk puppet, and he went digital because animation is so cool to kids. We also have an online presence (4everybuddy.com) that kids can go to every day after VBS and see video trailers and play games to reinforce the points they’ve learned. For our friends in ministry, Facebook has become a huge thing for us. We have seen a tremendous increase, I think because it’s an easy, informal way to communicate. Also, we have all of our decorating tips on Youtube, and the videos are a big hit. Families who participated in our VBS find us on Facebook too. Recently, a mom wrote to tell us thank-you for VBS, because her 3-year-old daughter attended last year and then was diagnosed with cancer. The little girl—even at 3—remembered our Bible point, which was “Trust in God.” That is just one of example of why I love VBS.

Leveraging spiritual partnerships in your community

Every Christian retailer is searching for cost-effective ways to increase the awareness of their store’s offerings to the best customer base in their community. One approach that is often overlooked, perhaps because it is not a derivative of the latest social media or advertising trends, is partnering with churches and ministries in your community. After all, most Sundays, the biggest block of your potential customer base is sitting in local church congregations; the challenge is how to reach them with the message of your products and your store.

Admittedly, having been a very involved partner in the spiritual community of our rather small town for in 60 years does give us an advantage, but these relationships and partnerships can and should be nurtured, whether you’ve just opened or have been serving your area for decades. It only makes sense and can be a win-win for both parties when done properly.

Understand this: Most churches and ministries are actively looking for ways to deepen the spiritual experiences of their members. As the local Christian retailer, you have resources that can help them do just that, at no additional cost to them in terms of dollars or time invested! In order for these partnerships to work, however, it requires some investment of time and work on your part.

We have had great success in the last eight to nine years, for example, by sponsoring an annual back-to-school party in our store parking lot. Named “PrayBack” by the local youth pastors, we normally have 500-700 middle school and high school kids gather in our parking lot in mid-August the first Wednesday night after school resumes. For many weeks prior, the youth pastors are announcing each week that everyone is to “meet at Christian Supply” for this event. In many cases, the senior pastor even announces it from the pulpit to the entire congregation, an invaluable endorsement of our store, not to mention the free word-of-mouth publicity it generates—in addition to good will from appreciative parents!

In order to make this happen, we have to invest in a small honorarium for a local praise band to lead worship, and rent a generator to run the sound system. We also have to coordinate the date by hosting a set-up lunch several weeks in advance with the local youth pastors, and secure a flatbed trailer (normally donated) for a “stage.” The entire event costs us less than $800 and brings hundreds of youth to our store at the very beginning of the new school year. It’s a great way for us to connect with them as their new year begins.

This fall, we will be hosting a church event for our entire community. When contacted by the publisher about having best-selling author Max Lucado come for an in-store signing, we instead offered to move the event to a local church to enlarge our prospective crowd. The event, which will be called “The Grace Event,” will not only serve to promote his new release, Grace, but will also give us a high profile in the community as the store that is the sponsor of the entire evening. The anticipated crowd is 1,500-2,000, far in excess of what we could have reasonably expected in our store for a traditional signing. As an added benefit, the local church that is hosting it will be promoting it for many weeks in advance to their entire membership of some 5,000.

While some planning, creative thinking and energy are all required in order to partner with local churches and ministries, the rewards can be highly productive and lasting. Summer is a slower time for most of us. Why not take advantage of this and use some of that “down time” this summer for you and your staff to brainstorm a bit about how you can better connect and partner with churches in your area, to the benefit of both parties?

Recommended reads for your business life

The Singer: A Classic Retelling of Cosmic Conflict by Calvin Miller (IVP Books, 978-0-830-82285-0).

“It’s the story of Jesus in poetic form, and … one of the greatest creative pieces I have ever read.”

Killing Giants, Pulling Thorns by Charles R. Swindoll (Zondervan, 978-0-310-42040-8).

“It’s actually a coffee table book, not a thick study book Swindoll is known for. For me, Chuck is the model of really clear, engaging communication. He doesn’t sacrifice biblical loyalty and accuracy for great creativity.”

Peculiar Treasures: A Biblical Who’s Who by Frederick Buechner (HarperOne, 978-0-060-61141-5).

“This book is such fun writing. It basically includes one-page character sketches of favorite biblical characters. I couldn’t put it down. It wasn’t exactly a Bible study, and it was a tad irreverent. It made me think, Is it really OK to write like this? I loved it.”

The Message of Romans by John R.W. Stott (IVP Academic, 978-0-830-81246-2).

“This book from ‘The Bible Speaks Today’ series brought me to a deeper understanding of grace. Stott’s verse-by-verse explanation modeled biblical teaching for me. He gave a clear dissection of Scripture. Personally, this book helped me trust the grace of God.”

Serving the church

Bookstore provides ‘quality, meaningful service’

CHERYL GREEN, director of constituent services for UpWords Ministries, the Bible teaching ministry of Max Lucado, reflects on the history of the church store that helped to launch the author’s bookselling ministry.

Tell us about the UpWords Bookstore at Oak Hills Church in San Antonio. How did the store get started, and how do you function in conjunction with the church?

The UpWords Bookstore at Oak Hills is one facet of the UpWords ministry. About 20 years ago, a trusted member of Oak Hills Church named Gordon Carruth voluntarily began a small bookselling operation as a service to church members and visitors interested in purchasing books written by their new, young minister, Max Lucado. Together, Gordon and Max coined the name UpWords, and the bookstore consisted of a few folding tables in the corner of the church foyer. 

When the church moved to a new building where space was designated for a bookstore, Gordon retired, and Oak Hills Church leadership asked UpWords Ministries to take on the fiscal responsibility of the bookstore, and we were happy to do so.

What types of books do you carry?

In the early days, UpWords carried only books by Max Lucado. Gradually, a few other titles were added, and the product mix greatly expanded when a store location was designed in the new building at Oak Hills Church. Although guests in our store can find a full line of Lucado books, we hope to meet other expectations of our customers as well. We try to keep all titles that appear on the CBA lists for top sellers along with a variety of Bibles and study resources.

In the last several years, you've built up your offering of gift products. How does this fit into your overall strategy?

Our most popular item on any given weekend is the actual sermon message on CD. The church's technology team quickly duplicates the message and makes it available for purchase immediately following the service. Like many small retail bookstores, we also feel the impact of digital sales, both in music and books. Adding a carefully selected line of gifts has helped bring traffic to the store and provided a service to our customer base. 

In addition to the most popular music CDs, we try to stock music by guest worship leaders as well as the music enjoyed in our children's Bibleland programs. We have greeting cards and gift items, including some of the top-selling inspirational lines from Demdaco and DaySpring.

How many square feet is your store? How do you maximize the space?

Our store is approximately 1,000 square feet. The majority of space is taken for bookshelves, which fill the center of the store. The three perimeter walls contain best-sellers, children's books and gifts items. We have racks up front for music, greeting cards and more gifts. It's definitely a challenge to use our space to its best advantage. 

You've been selling books through MaxLucado.com for years. What advice do you have for Christian retailers and church bookstores looking to branch out into online stores?

We love offering Max's full product line both to constituents who visit our online store as well as those who call in or write to the ministry. We've certainly seen competition for Internet sales increase over the years. We realize we don't provide all the options of the Internet superstores, and we don't market as well as they do. However, we offer personal attention and knowledge of the products. We'll continue to sell online as long as it's a viable option for UpWords to do so. Anyone considering the launch of an online store should meticulously research all the factors. Staying upgraded and meeting the expectation of online shoppers can be tricky.

How does your online shopping offering compare with the physical store?

MaxLucado.com is limited to Max Lucado titles and a very select few others such as Karen Hill, Max's executive editor, and his daughter, Jenna Lucado Bishop. We have tried to define and stay within our niche in both areas of e-commerce and church bookstore. While both produce revenue that is beneficial to UpWords Ministries, providing a quality, meaningful service to our constituents is our primary motivation.

Publishers provide an alternative that connects with YA readers

From fantasy to fairy tale and sci-fi to Steampunk, the Young Adult genre covers a broad range of fiction types—not all of which have yet entered the Christian market. With general market series such as “The Hunger Games” and “Harry Potter” appealing to teens, Christian publishers are offering alternative titles from YA authors, including Robert Liparulo, Nancy Rue, Stephanie Perry Moore , Melody Carlson, Sigmund Brouwer, Donita K. Paul and Lisa Bergren.

“If you connect with a reader during this time period, you may have made a lifelong connection,” said Shannon Marchese, senior editor, fiction at WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group. “The way to do so is to tell them a life-changing story and give them an author they can trust.”  

Not one particular type of book is associated with YA readers, but rather genres including science fiction, supernatural, action/adventure, everyday teen life and dystopian, said Becky Monds, associate editor at Thomas Nelson.

At Zondervan, paranormal is a subgenre that the company is making a “serious effort” to publish, said Annette Bourland, senior vice president and publisher, trade and Zonderkidz. 

Subtitled “What If Following Your Heart Meant Losing Your Soul,” Halflings by Heather Burch is “the classic story of good versus evil, but offers a very satisfying read without the vulgarity often found in mainstream publishing,” Bourland said, noting that the second in the trilogy, Guardian, comes out this month.

Zondervan also recently published its first dystopian novel, Replication by Jill Williamson, which examined the moral and ethical issues of cloning. 

Author Kat Heckenbach (Finding Angel, Splashdown Books) doesn’t find a “message of despair and hopelessness,” in dystopian fiction, as many expect to find, but just the opposite, she said. “I think dystopian fiction is popular because it sends the message that no matter how bad things get, there is always hope—and that teens have real power in seemingly hopeless situations.” 

Jenny B. Jones, a Thomas Nelson author, sees dystopian as a reflection of our times.

“Times are hard all around, from the economy to the environment to the government, and right now our literature reflects that, but in a hyper-developed way,” she said. “And there is always a thread of reality in these dystopians. The plot might seem far-fetched (a world where the ability to love is surgically removed, for example), but what a lot of dystopians do well is make it within the realm of possibility. Our tweens and teens are really thinking about their world, and dystopian is a natural reflection of that.” 

BEYOND DYSTOPIAN

While dystopian is still a strong seller, “novels with ‘everyday’ teens, set in our own time are making a comeback,” said Monds. “These typically deal with heavier topics, like cancer, death and suicide.”

Nicole O’Dell based her “Diamond Estates” series on her experience as a resident at Teen Challenge as a teenager. In The Shadowed Onyx (Barbour Publishing, December), 17-year-old Joy Christianson faces depression after her best friend commits suicide, but seeks help at a home for troubled teens.

Appealing primarily to male readers, Andrew Klavan brings action to the fore with his high-stakes adventures, including Crazy Dangerous from Thomas Nelson.

“His novels are impossible to put down and appeal to that hard-to-reach audience of teen boys,” Monds said.

In an altogether different subcategory, Zondervan has seen success with one of its young authors in historical fiction. 

“Perhaps one of our biggest rock stars is 16-year-old author Rachel Coker,” said Bourland, noting that Coker’s Interrupted was well-received by reviewers. “Rachel’s story is rooted in the Christian marketplace. She is homeschooled and her parents once were independent CBA retail owners.”

Coker’s next work, Chasing Jupiter, set in the 1960s, is slated for publication in January.

Looking into the supernatural is Karyn Henley’s forte in the “Angelaeon Circle” series, which includes Breath of Angel and Eye of the Sword, from WaterBrook Press. 

Thomas Nelson also looks into the world of angels with new voice Shannon Dittemore, who made her debut with Angel Eyes. 

“What I love about her stories is that her main character is a teen girl, like any teen girl, who has her eyes opened to a world of angels and demons that she didn’t even know existed,” Monds said.

Fairy tales are also prevalent in pop culture these days—in TV, movies and books, Burch noted. Shellie Neumeier (Driven, Risen Fiction), agreed, citing Melanie Dickerson’s work that “retells classic fairy tales with a twist. Her books appeal to the romantic side, but they take on social injustices at the same time.”

CREATING ‘BOOK TALKERS’

Zondervan’s success in YA has come with works “that have rich character development, interesting plot lines and a sense of exploration, meaning teens are not fed didactic answers about life and religion,” Bourland said.

“The most important element is to make sure the author does not talk down to the reader,” Monds said. “A teenager can smell condescension from a mile away. And if you are trying to preach something? Forget it. It is also important to relate to them where they are. Connect with some of the issues they are faced with on a daily basis. And finally, it has be a page-turner. The stakes have to be impossibly high, leaving the reader with no option but to stay up late into the night to finish the novel.”

Diana Sharples, author of Running Lean (Zondervan, May 2013), pointed out that YA novels have to written “almost as if they were written by a teenager. A stroke of death for a teen novel is to have an adult step in to solve the character’s problems!”

The genre presents a challenge for marketers, said Katie Bond, publicity manager at Thomas Nelson.

“We must meet youth where they are, finding ways for great stories to be shared among peers and for authors to connect authentically with young audiences—respecting these intelligent young audiences who are exposed to more influences than any previous generation,” she said. “And we must simultaneously gain the respect of gatekeepers like parents, educators, school librarians. 

“But it’s worth it. When books capture the attention of youth and their parents, series can become family reads.  Our authors’ favorite fan letters come from youth who report that they had to fend off a parent for first dibs to read a copy of the latest offering from a YA author.”

Retailers must reach the parents of YA readers. Citing the 2010 Bowker PubTrack report The Children’s Book Consumer in the Digital Age, Bourland said that “79% of teens have read a book given to them by a parent,” and Bowker Market Research from fall 2011 reported that “60% of parents are considered ‘top sources of book discovery.’ ” 

Getting the YA reader into the bookstore can be a challenge and is an invitation that must be issued, Bourland believes. It’s important to offer a varied selection of titles, too, she said, sounding a note of caution: “Make certain this area isn’t placed with the children’s section.” 

Once you have the young people on board, Jones said: “So much of YA is sold by word of mouth. There are no bigger ‘book talkers’ than your YA audience.”