New Exciting Changes to the CFBA

[cyn]

Something I hadn't thought of needs to be factored into the cost: if Bonnie has 100 takers for copies of the book (modest estimate since the release states there are over 200 bloggers), 100 x cost of the book, shipping and handling = a pretty penny.

If it is a galley copy (ARC) then likely it will be digitally printed and the publisher/ author will be looking at around $5- $7/ book. So, $500 blog tour becomes +1000 bucks.

I'd want to be guaranteed:
a. positive reviews
b. blogs with daily hits in the thousands, not hundreds

Technorati ratings don't do much for me.

And, as for Jeffrey Overstreet and his change in ranking of 75000 on Amazon -- depending on where he was initially, this could mean the purchase of 1 book! Frank is regularly in the top 20 of his category and sells about 8 copies/ month through Amazon.

Sorry, this publisher isn't willing to gamble that amount of money on the CFBA -- especially when nothing goes to the members and assistants of the organization.

[M. C. Pearson]

Just to let you know...yes, cfba has about that many members (at least one less than that now), but not all of them ask for each book. On a really popular book she may get from 60-80 bloggers posting.

So, there is no guarantee of 200 plus posts going on about the book that the author/publisher is paying $500 for.

Also, cfba has never encouraged honest reviews. There have been many instances when the director did not agree with a review and demeaned the reviewer on their own blog and [glow=red,2,300]Shelfari[/glow]. So, the author/pub may be somewhat safe with getting positive reviews or just a plain advertisement.

I know all of this for a fact as I [glow=red,2,300]USED [/glow]to be the assistant director of the cfba. I quit when she told me she was going to charge for what I thought was a ministry.

[cyn]

I figured that I was safe in assuming that all 200+ bloggers don't blog on a regular basis. I know of several who haven't in over a year.

One in particular wrote to Bonnie to state that he could no longer participate because of time constraints. She reassured him that it wasn't a problem . . . and his blog is still listed on the blog roll.

60 - 80 blogger-reviewers is nothing to sneeze at but it is a far cry from the advertised 200+

Also, cfba has never encouraged honest reviews. There have been many instances when the director did not agree with a review and demeaned the reviewer on their own blog

I was being somewhat facetious about paying for good reviews. As someone who assists with another tour, I like to see honesty in reviews as long as the blogger presents it in a respectful manner. Oh yes, and doesn't include personal tastes as part of the review. In other words, s/he doesn't slam a romance novel or a sci-fi novel just because s/he dislikes the genre. I call "foul" in this case.

Demeaning the reviewer is not only a sign of bad manners, it is unprofessional. And when running a tour as a business, well, it may end up coming out of someone's pocketbook.

when the director did not agree with a review and demeaned the reviewer on their own blog and [glow=red,2,300]Shelfari[/glow].

What? Is there some sort of code of conduct that bloggers have to sign when acting as an individual on Shelfari? This is insane.

So, the author/pub may be somewhat safe with getting positive reviews or just a plain advertisement.

What then is the value of a review from the CFBA? While I am sure that many bloggers are speaking truthfully when providing a positive review -- if they are brow-beaten into it then what kind of credibility does the review have . . . not to mention the tour?

[debkinnard]

Smalls and indies are paying this? I'd love to know which ones. I'd be willing to bet they won't say, though. The two small presses who've pubbed my books certainly will not spend this sort of moolah unless they're 100% sure it's going to result in huge increases in sales.

[Frank Creed]

This is what I meant. With rare exception, the only comments on those tours are from the other people with blogs. Assuming these are indies lining up at the blog-tour door, they won't be back if the results aren't there. CFBA has been around and has a good rep goin--Bonnie needs to build on that foundation.

Faith,
f

[sonburst]

Now that I'm on the board, would anyone like to talk to me about all of this?

"Charity suffereth long, and is kind;
charity envieth not;
charity vaunteth not itself,
is not puffed up,
Doth not behave itself unseemly,
seeketh not her own,
is not easily provoked,
thinketh no evil;
Rejoiceth not in iniquity,
but rejoiceth in the truth;
Beareth all things,
believeth all things,
hopeth all things,
endureth all things.
Charity never faileth: (1st Cor. 13:4-8a)

Why do I put that in here? Because that's my answer. That's how I feel about it. I'm sorry Sue and Mimi feel hurt. I'm sorry that Bonnie feels hurt. I'm sorry that these sisters in Christ can't work together instead of against each other. I've know from the beginning of CFRB that Bonnie didn't want any comparisons made between her and us. That's her purgative. All of us are sinners. All of us deserve eternal death because of sin. Yet Jesus looked down from the cross and saw me in all my ugliness and said, "Father forgive them." Now, it's up to us to look at each other with the same kind of love. "Father, forgive them, they don't know what they're doing." Why? Because love does not rejoice in wrong, but rejoices in the truth. If there is anyone we should be cutting down it should be Satan, not each other. This is where I stand, firmly, upon the Rock!

David

[Frank Creed]

David--
I wanted to sleep on this before replying. Truth is not about feelings. I've always gotten along with Bonnie--we even share silly pictures on Shoutlife. The fact is that she's turned her blog-tour into a for-profit venture. Hre group, her rules, she can do that.

Members here are aware that we're all sinners, and blaming Satan for any human weaknesses seems like you're offering the accused an easy way out.

I'm not sure why you feel a need to defend Bonnie, or that she was personally attacked. What you've found is nothing more than observations of ministry and biz, which is why the comments exist.

I'm pleased that you've joined the Underground boards. Public free-market industry decisions are open to opinion here. That's not gossip, it's analysis. I know you've a great heart, David, and again I'm pleased you're here.

I know as founder of a review, this is a personal topic for you. Please clarify your concerns.

Faith,
f

[Sue Dent]

For the record, I don't feel hurt. There's nothing to feel hurt about. I do feel sorry for Bonnie sometimes and often pray for her as I pray for anyone who openly attacks my credibility. I also pray that I'll be the best victim God wants me to be. Wait a minute. God doesn't want me to be a victim. Well, then, there ya go. Bad feeling gone.

[M. C. Pearson]

I'm sorry David...I do not know you and you do not know me. I know Bonnie very well. I did work with her, and I thought we were good friends for over two years. I no longer work with her due to personal and professional reasons...and for what it's worth, the reasons do not involve being 'hurt'. I will defend myself and my actions. I do not appreciate being judged when you do not know anything about me. I have only spoken truth here. So, please know the facts before trying to give advice.

--Mimi

[Frank Creed]

David's walked into this situation with the best intentions. I know his character, and it is odd that this has been just left hanging, David. Nobody wants to see this kinda stuff, which damages one's rep in a very small industry. Please clarify your concerns for usso we can get it behind us. I'm not questioning your character, I'm counting on it.

[Sue Dent]

Okay, so on about the changes at CFBA because you see, reporting about something isn't the same as trying to take it down as some have suggested. Good grief!

Yes, Bonnie is not being accurate by saying publishers not affiliated with CBA and ECPA are lining up. They aren't and even if they were well they'll have to wait at least a year because she's already booked up with--you guessed it CBA and ECPA affiliated authors. So this is not a blog tour that is in anyway friendly to Christian authors who write for the general Christian market or any other market for that matter--only for CBA and ECPA affiliated publishers--as usual.

[cyn]

Only time will tell I suppose.

I would be interested to see exactly how many small presses tour with the CFBA during the next 6 months.

One reason I won't be signing up my books for the CFBA is because they would likely never make it through the screening process. Why? because mainstream Christian fiction isn't their bag. Up until this point, "CBA" books are the only ones toured by the CFBA -- and my company's books are considered too edgy for the CBA thus, would not be considered "up to standards" by the CFBA.

One has to keep in mind that the standards of the CBA/ ECPA as compared to mainstream Christian fiction are two totally different animals. STandards for mainstream CF = literary standards + Christian worldview whereas CBA standards are very narrow in terms of what can be written and how it is written: they are more concerned with content violations than with the quality of writing.

[Sue Dent]

Well there won't be any small non-cba presses in the next six months. CFBA's already booked up for the year according to their director and I believe the word was, on the notorious open letter to moi, was that they're all CBA affiliated publishers. There are certainly enough to go around.

[Caprice]

This is almost a new subject, but it had to do with CFBA and changes, so I decided to add to this thread. If anyone thinks it should move elsewhere, please feel free to move it.

CFBA launched a Magazine.
www.christianfictiononlinemagazine.com/

For some reason (probably because of recent events that really turned me off to CFBA) I didn't realize this was in the works.

It is HUGE and I admit I only browsed through most of the articles. One tidbit which might be of interest: they are doing a serialized short story/novella which is FANTASY. It's called "Bitter Chivalry" by Shannon McNear. You have to click about four times from the home page to find anything beyond the first paragraph. I'll save you that trouble.
www.christianfictiononlinemagazine.com/bitter.html
You'll have to wait for November for the next chapter. Not sure how many parts there will be.

I also LOVED Randy Ingermanson's humorous article which gives us three compelling reasons to ban ALL non-Amish books from Christian Fiction. www.christianfictiononlinemagazine.com/biz_rooney.html Hilarious.

Any thoughts on this Magazine? Does anyone know if CFBA is paying the contributors? If so, I could see how it would drain Bonnie's finances. But this looks big enough that I think advertising might be able to support it.

Any other article look like it might be of interest to us "outsiders"? They state up front that this publication "adopts all of [the CFBA's] policies and views on promoting fiction", which is to say, it's slanted heavily toward ECPA/CBA, but that doesn't mean it couldn't have some useful information.

[cyn]

All I know about the magazine is what Mimi has written on this forum and from Bonnie 's and Michelle Sutton's comments in various places.

No, it isn't a paying gig for Michelle who puts it all together, but it could turn into one -- perhaps from ad revenue, I think I read? And, I haven't come across anything to suggest that the columnists are not volunteers.

"CBA" all the way -- except for a tip of the hat to POD users I noticed.

-I like the website setup; it's a cool idea for Frank's newsletter
-I wish there were names to go with photos
-Michelle has obviously done a lot of work to pull this off.

I read and laughed over Randy I's writing (while ignoring the misconceptions about the Amish). He was so funny yet very respectful at the same time. Good balance. I hope he writes more columns like this.

c