BOOK DEAL

RYAN LOKKESMOE

It's been six months since I signed a publishing contract, but it still feels SO surreal.  I’m eager to share this story with you, and I hope you will join me as I walk through this new and exciting process!

THE BACK STORY

On June 20th, I received a voice mail that I’ll never forget. It was from an area code that I didn’t recognize. I hit play and listened to a publisher telling me that they were interested in publishing a book that I had proposed. 

I was completely shocked.  I had sent a book proposal to a number of publishers, but I didn't actually think that any of them would be interested.  

It all started back in seminary.  I had this great idea for a book, but I didn't really have time to fully explore it.   Then, this past Summer, I felt led to look at it again.  It had to be the Holy Spirit that prompted me, because I had plenty of other things on my plate and wasn't looking to add anything else. 

I decided to just put pen to paper and see what happened. I came up with an outline, and it started to come together. I felt myself getting more and more excited about it.

After thinking and praying some more, I felt led to at least explore what it takes to get published. I learned that you don’t actually have to write a whole book; you just have to write a great proposal and a couple of sample chapters. 

So that’s what I did.

I emailed it off to any publisher or agent that would take submissions from a new author, and moved on.  I felt peace about it.  I did not expect to hear anything from anyone. I thought I was done.

Dave Almack, the National Director and Publisher at CLC Publications, was the first one to get in touch. Two other publishers and two literary agents also expressed interest, but after a lot of prayer and good advice I decided to begin negotiations with CLC. They’re a remarkable publisher that distributes all over America at retailers like Lifeway, Mardel, Family Christian Stores, Christianbook.com, and Amazon. They have 18 distribution centers and work internationally in 53 countries. You can check out some of their recent publications here.

THE BOOK

So what's my book about? It's all about how to read and understand The Bible. It is tentatively titled Blurry: Bringing Clarity to The Bible. Here's a quick synopsis:

For many of us, The Bible is pretty blurry. Its message is familiar, but so much of it is confusing and out of focus. How do we know where to start, or how to read it? Is it possible to really understand The Bible?

Blurry is a brief, innovative introduction to God's Word. It is written for the person who wants to understand The Bible but doesn't have a lot of time and energy to engage with it. Using plain language, Blurry strategically focuses on just four books: Genesis, Luke, Ephesians, and James. Through the lens of these four books, Blurry teaches the basic story of The Bible, as well as some very practical reading tips that can be applied to any part of Scripture. No jargon. No complicated diagrams. No insider language or theological speeches. Blurry is just a straightforward set of first steps that will propel the reader into a lifetime of reading and enjoying The Bible.

WHAT'S NEXT

I turned in the complete manuscript to CLC on December 23rd.  I am now in the process of seeking endorsements from influential authors and Christian leaders, which has been very interesting so far. I’ve been able to trade emails with some people that I never thought I would have a personal interaction with. No, I will not be dropping any names. 

From here on out, I will provide regular updates as we go through the editing process and approach the release date (September 23, 2014). This blog will also start to look a little different in the coming days to serve as a better online home base for the book. There are some exciting changes ahead!

I hope that you will come along with me on this journey, and pray that God will use the book to make a spiritual impact on its readers. 
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