One Holy Night Wins CSPA Book of the Year Award

Tuesday I received notice that One Holy Night has been chosen as the 2009 Fiction Book of the Year by Christian Small Publishers Association! Needless to say, I am thrilled—and admittedly a bit stunned. I’d forgotten I even entered the contest. LOL!

It’s also entered in the American Christian Fiction Writers Book of the Year contest for long contemporary novels, and it’ll be interesting to see how it does there. Winners in all the categories will be announced at the ACFW conference in September, so I’ll have to wait a while to find out, and that’s always hard. In the meantime, however, Sheaf House will be doing additional promotions in upcoming weeks featuring the award and will also feature One Holy Night again for the holiday season.

Tomorrow, April 18, I’m having a book signing at the Perry Bookstore, 907 Carroll Street, in downtown Perry, Georgia, from 11 to 1. In addition to One Holy Night, I’ll also be signing Wind of the Spirit, and will have copies of books 1 and 2, Daughter of Liberty and Native Son, available at a discount. I appreciate your prayers for a good weather and a good turnout, and if you happen to be in the area, I would love to have you stop by! This is also the weekend for the annual Dogwood Festival in Perry, and there’ll be lots going on downtown, not to mention the Mossy Creek Barnyard Festival, which is close by. Come on out and join in the fun!

Below is an excerpt from a recent review by Jackie Cooper, who is known in the middle Georgia area as the “entertainment man” for his entertainment reviews. His short stories have been used as commentary on Georgia Public Radio and he is also a popular after dinner speaker as well as a noted author. Jackie’s latest release is The Sunrise Remembers.

“Author J. M. Hochstetler has crafted a story that will drive us to tears but also lift our spirits at the same time. . . . It is a “family” story that all readers can enjoy and one to which they can relate in some way. Hochstetler takes us on a journey with these characters as they move through times of joy and times of sadness. Each person described in the story comes alive and takes his/her place in the order of things. The author even brings in side characters to flesh out the story and she does it with inventiveness and skill. If you do not enjoy or appreciate a story of faith then this is not the book for you. But for those who do like this type of religious material as the backdrop for a good story, this is an excellent choice.”

Wind of the Spirit Finally Up on Amazon!

My distributor fixed the problem with Amazon, and Wind of the Spirit is finally available there too! This has been hung up for a long time, and it’s a huge relief to get things straightened out at last. There were times when it felt like the battle scene above. I’ll tell ya, Amazon is the 600 pound guerilla when it comes to making your book available to the public. Can’t live with ’em and can’t live without ’em!

Anyway, all’s well that end well. There’s minimal editorial information on the listing at the moment, but as soon as I have time, I’ll send them a more detailed description and the endorsements. If you’ve read this volume, I’d really appreciate it if you’d take the time to post a review on Amazon, and CBD and help spread the word!

Of course, at the moment Barnes and Noble is out of stock, so naturally they’ve removed it from the title and authorname search. You can find it by searching on the ISBN, but I know most people don’t have that. Sigh. What a way to do business! There’s always a fly in the ointment, it seems. But to purchase or post a review there, just click here.

I have a book signing coming up on April 18 at the Perry Bookstore at 907 Carroll Street in downtown Perry, Georgia, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. If you’re in the Perry area, I’d love it if you’d drop by and say hello!