Challenge Help

[Andrea, Hospitality Coordinator]

The only compass book on my list is . I was shocked there was only one!

[Katrina]

Here is a book with a compass on the cover:


I was going to read that one, but with Andrea's suggestion, I may swtich to the Amanda Dykes book.

[Sherri]

I also found with a compass.

[Jenn]

This is kind of a long book, but it does have a compass:

[Andrea, Hospitality Coordinator]

jenn wrote: "This is kind of a long book, but it does have a compass:
"

Ah! I see I missed one. Thanks!

[[deleted user]]

Just as a suggestion these are some older books with gold on the coversThe Girl in the Glass by Susan Meissner,The Fifth Avenue Story Society by Rachel Hauck The Fifth Avenue Story Societyand A Heart Revealed by Julie LessmanA Heart Revealed.Happy reading.

[[deleted user]]

one more book for gold on the cover

[Kelli]

Hello - Not sure if this is the right place to ask, but I'm trying to find an easy way to see my current challenges so I can post books. The only way I know now is to go under groups, challenges, then search for all the 2023 challenges. Sorry :( I'm a bit technically challenged! Thanks

[Andrea, Hospitality Coordinator]

Hi, Kelli. We have a challenge catalogue that might be helpful for you. From there, you could bookmark the challenges you've signed up for when you're on each challenge's page.

Challenge Catalogue 2023: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

[Kelli]

Thank you so much Andrea!!

[Andrea, Hospitality Coordinator]

I'm glad to help, Kelli.

[Lynnette]

How exactly do you determine if a book is Chick Lit?
Any recommendations?

[Andrea, Hospitality Coordinator]

I usually look at which genres have been tagged on the book’s main Goodreads page.

Some Chick Lit I’ve enjoyed are:


I’m currently enjoying these as well:

[Andrea, Hospitality Coordinator]

Also, chick lit is usually female-lead focused, dealing with real-life issues women face. It’s very similar to women’s fiction.

[Staci, Book Awards Specialist]

Can individual novellas from a collection be used for the semi-annual state challenge and quarterly suspense challenge?

[Sarita]

Staci wrote: "Can individual novellas from a collection be used for the semi-annual state challenge and quarterly suspense challenge?

"

Previous years it worked if each individual novella could be found separately on Goodreads. But I am not 100% sure.

[Andrea, Hospitality Coordinator]

If they’re found separately on Goodreads, go for it.

[Paula]

Can you provide names of authors who write women’s fiction?
Would Charles Martin be one? Or Nicole Deese, Cynthia Ruchti? Is there a listopia for CF Women’s Fiction?
Thanks.

[Andrea, Hospitality Coordinator]

Nicole Deese, Cynthia Ruchti, Kathryn Cushman, Katherine Reay…

Kim Vogel Sawyer’s My Heart Remembers is women’s fiction.

I’m not sure about Charles Martin. I only read one and it was survival romance.

[Andrea, Hospitality Coordinator]

Christina Suzann Nelson also.

[Paula]

Thankyou!

[Staci, Book Awards Specialist]

Andrea wrote: "If they’re found separately on Goodreads, go for it."

Thank you!

[Staci, Book Awards Specialist]

To Paula's question about Women's Fiction, I would add some of Beth Vogt, Catherine West and Katie Ganshert.

[Sarita]

Hi, is there a website or list or something to see which Christian authors self publish?

I think Susan May Warren, Susan Sleeman and Christy Barritt does, but wondering if there is more?

[Loraine]

Sarita wrote: "Hi, is there a website or list or something to see which Christian authors self publish?

I think Susan May Warren, Susan Sleeman and Christy Barritt does, but wondering if there is more?"

Don't know about website or list, but a lot of the Christian authors have gone independent. Many are also going with the smaller publishers that only deal with Christian books. Scrivenings is one of them.

[Andrea, Hospitality Coordinator]

Melissa Tagg is indie now, and Kellyn Roth too.

[Sarita]

Loraine wrote: "Sarita wrote: "Hi, is there a website or list or something to see which Christian authors self publish?

I think Susan May Warren, Susan Sleeman and Christy Barritt does, but wondering if there is ..."

Camy Tang as well right? Her regency series under Camille Elliot is self published, right?

[Loraine]

Sarita wrote: "Loraine wrote: "Sarita wrote: "Hi, is there a website or list or something to see which Christian authors self publish?

I think Susan May Warren, Susan Sleeman and Christy Barritt does, but wonder..."

Yes I believe Camy is now self-publishing.

[Annie]

Loraine wrote: "Sarita wrote: "Hi, is there a website or list or something to see which Christian authors self publish?

I think Susan May Warren, Susan Sleeman and Christy Barritt does, but wondering if there is ..."

Any ideas on why this is a trend?

[Loraine]

Authors, especially new authors, are lured by self-publishing because they get to do exactly what they want with their book. Instead of a publishing house picking the cover design, managing the editing, and setting the price, the author takes charge. This is especially important to Christian authors who may be asked/told to remove some of the faith elements from their books to make it more accepted by the general public. I am sure that the financial aspect plays a role as well.

[Storm Bay]

Loraine wrote: "Authors, especially new authors, are lured by self-publishing because they get to do exactly what they want with their book. Instead of a publishing house picking the cover design, managing the edi..."

Yes, I was going to add that bookstores are less likely to stock Christian fiction with faith or doctrinal elements in it, so it is even hard for Christian book publishers to get Christian fiction with faith elements in them in stores as well.

[Annie]

Loraine wrote: "Authors, especially new authors, are lured by self-publishing because they get to do exactly what they want with their book. Instead of a publishing house picking the cover design, managing the edi..."
Storm Bay wrote: "Loraine wrote: "Authors, especially new authors, are lured by self-publishing because they get to do exactly what they want with their book. Instead of a publishing house picking the cover design, ..."

Thanks! I tend to avoid self-published most of the time because so many of them are not well edited, etc, but I do know there are some real gems out there. It makes it harder for people who rely on the library since they don't buy self-published books as a rule.

[Andrea, Hospitality Coordinator]

It depends on where the books are published. If they're with Amazon or Draft2Digital (and maybe one or two others that have solid distribution methods), they're distributed better and have a good shot at getting into libraries. Sometimes patrons need to request them before they get on the libraries' radar, though.

[Patricia]

If I'm understanding this challenge, we can ask for help here. Beloved Prodigal has been live since March 22, 2023. Could someone critique the cover design and description to help me move forward? Is there a reason you wouldn't like it? Honesty is coveted.

[Patricia]

Thank you.

[Andrea, Hospitality Coordinator]

Patricia wrote: "If I'm understanding this challenge, we can ask for help here. Beloved Prodigal has been live since March 22, 2023. Could someone critique the cover design and description to help me move forward? Is there a reason you wouldn't like it? Honesty is coveted."

This is a thread for asking for help regarding the reading challenges in CFD, not for soliciting cover feedback. We don't have a thread for that in this group, as we don't help authors make business decisions (which includes cover design). That is something that your own writing buddies and/or street team could help with, if you have a community or group like that.

[Patricia]

Andrea wrote: "Patricia wrote: "If I'm understanding this challenge, we can ask for help here. Beloved Prodigal has been live since March 22, 2023. Could someone critique the cover design and description to help ..."

Thank you. I wasn't sure if this is the place.

[Sherri]

I'm looking for a title that contains the word "portrait" in it for the Title Mania challenge. Any ideas?

[Andrea, Hospitality Coordinator]

Here are a few from my reading list:
A Portrait of Emily Price
A Bride's Portrait of Dodge City, Kansas
Portrait of Vengeance

[Missy]

A Portrait of Loyalty - Rosanna M White

[Loraine]

if you like good suspense.

[Sherri]

Thank you all!

[Sherri]

For "Portrait of Vengenace", do you need to read the previous in the series or can it stand alone? I do enjoy a good suspense!

[Loraine]

Sherri wrote: "For "Portrait of Vengenace", do you need to read the previous in the series or can it stand alone? I do enjoy a good suspense!"

It read well as a stand alone as I had not read the previous books.

[Sherri]

Loraine wrote: "Sherri wrote: "For "Portrait of Vengenace", do you need to read the previous in the series or can it stand alone? I do enjoy a good suspense!"

It read well as a stand alone as I had not read the p..."

Thanks Loraine!

[Sarita]

Recommendations for books starting with K, please.

[Missy]

These are a few I have on my reading list that start with K, maybe one of them will work for you.

The Keeper
Kelly's Choice - Wanda Brunstetter
Keturah
The Key on the Quilt
The Keys to Gramercy Park
The King's Mercy

[Crystal]

Sarita wrote: "Recommendations for books starting with K, please."


This is part of a series but I'm pretty sure it can be read as a stand alone.

If you're doing Listopia, another idea would be to scour those lists to see if any start with K, so you can use that book for Tumbling Titles and Listopia!

[Jenn]

Here are some K books, but I've only read a couple of these:
Kate's Philadelphia Frenzy by Janice Thompson
Kenny and the Dragon by Tony DiTerlizzi (cute kids story)
The Key to Everything by Valerie Luesse
Kill Shot by Susan Sleeman
The Killing Tide Dani Pettrey
The King's Mercy by Lori Benton
Kings Falling Ronie Kendig
Kissed by a Cowboy Debra Clopton
The Kissing Tree: Four Novellas (Witemeyer)
Knox by Susan May Warren
The Kremlin Conspiracy by Joel C Rosenberg

[Loraine]

Kate's Kisses