April 2024 CIPA: An Author Organization You Need to Know About

It happened again just the other day. I was discussing book promotion and publishing topics with a first-time author, and I said, “You know about CIPA, right?”

But she didn’t.

That reminded me that I needed to write about this great organization [pronounced SEE-pah] that hundreds of authors trust for training and book promotion ideas.

CIPA, which stands for the Christian Indie Publishing Association, is a resource you need to know about.

If you’ve even thought about writing a book, you likely Googled publishers and writing organizations and there are just so many. Some are more reputable than others.

This is a topic we will return to in coming weeks as we are going to be discussing some resources for authors, both organizations and events that are coming up in weeks and months ahead.

I’m excited to share with new authors some organizations with which I’m proud to be associated.

Today here’s more about CIPA, which self-describes on its website as “Serving independent authors and small publishers.”  Which basically means any and all independent, or self-published authors, as well as small presses that release only a few titles per year.

Its website, a link above, is not exactly its name, but ChristianPublishers.net.

CIPA has been around for 20 years, founded by Sarah Bolme in 2004 as the Christian Small Publishers Association, later rechristened the Christian Indie Publishing Association. As God nudged Sarah to transition from the leadership, she connected with Susan Neal, and the leadership was prayerfully transferred to Susan in 2021.

Susan, who holds professional qualifications in health, business and writing/coaching, has written seven healthy living books, including an Amazon number one bestseller that sold 15,000 copies in its first three years.

CIPA continues to go from strength to strength serving its members who pay $90 annually, an amount many authors get back in discounts, in addition to the value of industry info, service and training.

In addition to training courses and resources, CIPA can help you find a trustworthy publisher, and also sponsors book awards called the Christian Indie Awards (formerly Christian Small Publisher Book of the Year Awards).

These annual awards “honor books produced by small publishers and independent authors each year for outstanding contribution to Christian life.”

Per the CIPA website, these are CIPA’s stated vision, mission and values:

Vision

To be the premier Christian author and small publishing association. To be known for its value, discounts, and training at a reasonable price, all to further the kingdom of God.

Mission
Equip Christian small publishers and authors with tools, resources, and discounts to sell more books. Help authors get their God-inspired message into the hands of more readers.

Values

Serving others as if you were serving Jesus.

Buoyancy PR is proud to be an industry member. We aren’t experts on CIPA, and hopefully all the info above is still correct. But we certainly encourage you to check out this trustworthy, God-serving organization.

And if you plan to attend the Christian Product Expo (CPE) in August, stop by the CIPA exhibition booth while you are there and meet Susan for yourself.

By the way, more info is coming on CPE as some of us begin to make plans to attend.