A New Me is dyslexia friendly – see how easy it is to read? We would like to update all our books, eventually, to this style, to make them as accessible as we can to as many readers as possible. Most of our books are also available to large print and Braille in the UK. Please contact us for more details. 🙂
So, here are the first photos from the book launch!
Thanks to everyone who helped make the event a great success! Please pray for all the children who will read this book. Thank you!
One way you can develop a rich relationship with your children is to read stories together. Mums and Dads, get involved! Talk about the issues the characters face… in this way you can get to understand what your children are thinking/feeling, and you get a chance to share your own wisdom. 
This book (Living in Hope), tells the story of Sam, who is falsely accused of stealing, and Frida, who is tricked into becoming a domestic servant… when the children get her home, they throw a ‘prodigal’ party. Inspirational, educational, and great fun!
Living in Hope, and the other two books in the series, are available as paperbacks or as an ebook (available worldwide on the Amazon kindle store). Click on the links for more info, or to buy this lovely book for yourself.
All our books (except for the brand new one, A New Me) are available as ebooks on Amazon’s kindle store. So now you can read any book you like anywhere you like in the world. 🙂 Why not read the stories to your children – and be inspired yourself while you read. 🙂 Just search for the title on Amazon and you will find it!
All our books in one neat collage! Who do you know who needs a bit of encouragement? All these books are currently in stock!
Only five days to go to the launch of A New Me! This lovely Christian book for young people (11-13-ish) shows how there is always hope, even when things seem to be going very wrong. If you can come to the launch, we’d love to see you there! The author’s wife, Jane, has apparently got some games and challenges ready, so bring the kids, too.
If you can’t make the launch, you can order the book here and we’ll send it to you next week. 🙂
Planning BIG, Taking Small Steps
Don’t laugh, but I have taken up running. Actually, feel free to laugh if you wish :-). For a long time I’ve been realising the need to do something to increase my level of fitness. Finally, at the end of July, I bit the bullet and downloaded a ‘Couch to 5K’ app on my smart phone, which takes total beginners through a nine week running programme. The idea is to start small (60 seconds running, 90 seconds walking) for half an hour, and gradually build it up. I’ve reached Week Seven and am running 25 minutes in one go. That would have been impossible a few weeks ago! How did I get this far? One small step at a time.
Planning Big
Running 5k seems like a huge goal, but that’s OK- I’ll give it my best shot! I have big goals/dreams for Dernier, too. I’d like to see Christian fiction for children available to every child in a way that is accessible to them – stories that point to Jesus. Paperbacks, ebooks, kindle books, spoken books, books in other languages, large print books, books in every corner of the word… we are making small steps towards all of these. At times the task seems overwhelming. But we press on, one step at a time, because we have a God for whom nothing is impossible, who loves all the little children of the world, and loves the older children, too.
Stepping Together
Getting books into the hands of young people wouldn’t be possible without you taking some of the steps with us. Whatever your involvement with Dernier, thank you. Because we are working together, children in rural schools in Africa desperate for books have something inspirational to read. Because we are working together, 500 prisoners’ children in the UK will receive one of our books this Christmas. Because we are working together, we have a new book out next month with the potential to touch many young lives. Because we are working together, our books are in bookshops all over the UK. Because of you we have a website that is accessible to people in most countries of the world at the click of a button. Because of you, some of our books are in schools, libraries, churches and homes and maybe children’s hands right now.
There’s almost nothing that can’t be done by taking small steps. Not all of them are easy, and some take a lot of courage, sheer hard work and headaches along the way. But as we step out together, we can shoot for the moon. And if we don’t make it quite that far, at least we’ll have sown some seeds along the way. 🙂
Books for rural schools in Africa
Dr Loise Gichuhi from Education Bridge Africa told me via Skype, “We delivered some of the books to a rural village school today. The books fitted the 13 to 17 ages very well. Very excited.” The school have been requesting story books for a whole year. Not all the children are good readers, so some of the books we might consider to be a bit young for them will actually come in useful. And perhaps, like Shema in I Want to Be an Airline Pilot, readers will be assured they have a Father in heaven who cares for them.
Take Another Step!
At the moment I’m working on updating the website, building up relationships with retailers, making final touches to the new book and working to make it known, updating all our book files so we can go print on demand all over the world, finishing audio versions of the books (nearly there!), planning my talk for Christ Church… and soon I will be taking a week off! 🙂
Here are some steps you could take:
Thank you! Every step forward is a step in the right direction!
Christian Resources Together
Last week I was in Derbyshire, at the Christian Resources Together event, meeting up with other people who work in the Christian book trade. It’s always a good time with authors, publishers, distributors and retailers, showcasing our books, worshipping together, and deepening friendships over meals and drinks. I made some potentially good contacts, including interest from a publishing house in the States… if anything transpires I will be sure to let you know! I also had a lovely chat with J John’s wife, Killy, and gave her a copy of The Birthday Shoes for their grandaughter! You can buy your own copy here. 🙂
Speaking
I’m speaking at Christ Church Orpington on Saturday September 29th, at a Ladies Breakfast. If you’d like to book a ticket, I’m sure they’d be able to fit you in! Love to see you there. There’s nothing on their website yet, so contact me if you’d like to come.
Kindle books
All our books are now available on the kindle platform. Just type in the book title in the Amazon search, and you will find the one you are looking for. Enjoy!
A New Me
This fab new book will be launched next month. Author Roy, and his wife, Jane, have got some great ideas for a launch – will give you more details next month!
In the meantime, thanks once again for walking with us, and praying for us. God will make a way where there seems to be no way.
Grace and peace to you all,
Janet
Hello, and welcome to the latest Dernier Publishing newsletter!
What type of videos do you enjoy watching on YouTube? Surfing dogs, other people’s disasters, how-to videos, Tim Vine clips? (Or maybe you have better things to do! :-)) Have you seen this one: You Shall Not Pass, Dog? 🙂 Why do dogs hate walking past cats so much? Sure, cats can be mean, but what’s the worst that can happen? Some of these dogs get a clip as they pass, but mostly they survive unscathed… and some are so much bigger and stronger than the cats – they just don’t realise it! Aren’t we a bit like that sometimes? Fear of the wrong things holds us back. OK, we might have to take a risk, get hurt… but honestly, are there areas where you should be more bold and courageous? Any cats standing in your way? 🙂 I know there are in my life! Please pray for me, for our authors and all who work with Dernier, that we will be bold and courageous as we seek a wider audience for our books. Thank you!
I reported last month that there have been delays with A New Me – thanks for praying, it’s coming on nicely now, although we’re still waiting on the cover, which is a bit frustrating. One teacher who read the manuscript felt it wasn’t up-to-date enough, but we have also had some great reviews, including two from twelve-year-old girls:
Lucy’s mum, Ruth, said, “She [Lucy] really didn’t want to read it (she has sadly gone off reading over the last year), but once she started, she couldn’t stop – I am hoping it will trigger her to read again! She seemed to really enjoy it.” Lucy said, “I liked the real life scenarios in the story and how it showed that God can help you through tough times.”
Ellie read the book in two days and loved it! Mum, Michelle, emailed me to say:
“My daughter Ellie has read your book (in 2 sittings!) and has written the bit below –
This book is amazing!! It shows you that through hard times all you need to do is trust in God. Jess was living in a difficult situation, she was surrounded by Christian friends and even though her parents and brother were not Christians she put her trust in God. I’m glad that she decided to put her trust in God. I definitely recommend the book. – Ellie (12)”
I asked Ellie who was her favourite character in the book, and she replied: “Aidan, as he is not ashamed of his beliefs and is not afraid of what people think about him because he has put his trust in God.”
That’s encouraging!
Edna, a young mum from Australia, has also read the manuscript. She says:
“I think this is a great book that deals with real life issues of alcoholism, separation, and bullying, and how God can turn things for good if only we ask Him to. I hope that this book brings comfort and strength to many young people dealing with these issues! Need more books like these in this world we live in!”
I suspect this may not be the book you would give to an older street-wise teenager, but from the feedback we’ve received from the two girls who have read the story, it seems like A New Me has the potential to touch young hearts. Maybe for your younger 10-12 year-old girls at church? Those who need some encouragement, and a story where it’s great to be a Christian? To encourage them that they, like Aidan in the story, can make a difference by sharing their faith? And perhaps that they, too, like Jess, need to reach out to God for themselves, whatever they are facing in life?
I will put up some excerpts from the story on the Dernier facebook page next month, so don’t forget to come over from time to time. 🙂
And please do pray for the author of A New Me, Roy, as we plan the launch of the book and try get the book known far and wide. “Discoverability” is key. No point having a book and nobody knows about it. Thanks once again for your support for this story.
Dr Loise, our contact from Education Bridge Africa, sent me a brief video clip of children in Nairobi saying thank you for the books we have been sending, and a report on how things are for children in some of the informal settlements of Kenya; sadly I can’t work out how to download the video to show you, but if you contact me I will be happy to send you Dr. Loise’s report of the desperate situation in the informal settlements. It includes some lovely photos of children reading our books!
If you would like to help with this project, let me know. Just one book could change a life! If you buy the books, we will organise and pay for their delivery.
As you are such wonderful supporters, I’d like to make you an offer of our newest book: Revenge of the Flying Carpet – first ten people to send me their names can have a copy for £4.99, postage free (wherever you are in the world). Theme: Revenge, justice, judgement, mercy. For 10-13s-ish. If you have never read this book before, now is your chance, then you can pass it on! And if you would be kind enough to write a review, I’d be most grateful. 🙂
(Retailers: If you would like to order copies of this book at extra discount this month, please contact me.)
I think that’s all for now! Regardless of what happens in the World Cup, rejoice always! 🙂
Love to you all,
Janet
P.S. If you would like to receive our regular newsletters via email, you can sign up here. Make sure you are first to hear our news and offers!
Hello again Friends, and thanks for sticking with us. We wouldn’t be here without you! GDPR has taken a lot of time, trying to get all the forms right, making sure our privacy policy says all it needs to, and poring over reams of information to make sure we are doing the right thing. The good thing is that now that’s all over we can get back to working on books, phew! Truly appreciate your support.
A New Me
The manuscript of A New Me is now with the editor. We’re doing the very best we can to make this a useful and enjoyable book for young people. Please pray for a great cover as well as a good book, with useful ‘Reading Group Questions’ to go at the back. Some people who have read the manuscript have enjoyed it; some have made suggestions for improving it, so still lots for the editor to do…
Conference
I attended a business conference recently and came away with some new ideas. The one thing I really don’t want to do is to ‘persuade’ people to buy books they really don’t want or need. It’s not about numbers, or sales figures, or ‘what’s working right now’, but about getting books into the hands of the young people who would be encouraged by them, or even have a life-changing experience. Books really do change lives. The thing I really do want to do with marketing is to get known, so anyone who is looking for books for young people at least knows we exist. I hope to do some more facebook advertising, and google ad words with this aim in mind. If you ever see a Dernier ad, please do comment, like and share, if you think your friends might be interested. 🙂
Ambassadors
I’m thinking it might be good to have some Dernier ambassadors who will help to get the word out in their community – to pass on information to their church, school, homeschool groups, friends and social media contacts. What do you think? If you feel you could be an ambassador, let me know. Love to hear from you!
Schools in Africa
Schools in Africa are crying out for books, and we love to send them! Thanks to a kind donor, we were able to send two big boxes of books to a school in a very poor area of Nairobi, doing the very best they can in desperate circumstances. (Mathare Informal Settlement – do look it up on Google.) More schools in Kenya have asked for books… I hope to send some more soon. If you would like to help, or would like books for a school you support, please don’t hesitate to contact me. We try to help wherever we can.
Equally, if you help run a Boys’ or Girls’ Brigade, kids club, summer camp or youth club, and would like books to give your members, please do get in touch. There’s always a way.
Exams/Summer Reading
It’s nearly the end of term, but there are still young people taking exams. It can be a very stressful time, but a novel can help! If you’d like summer reading for your young people, and would like some recommendations, please don’t hesitate to ask. I will be on annual leave in June for a week, but will get back to you when I can.
Prayer Topics
I’d be truly grateful for your prayers on the following topics:
Thank you so much. “More things are wrought by prayer than this world dreams of.” – Alfred, Lord Tennyson.
Right, better go, you’ve been kind enough to stay with us, I don’t want to bore you! 🙂
Every blessing to you all,
Janet
P.S. If you use facebook, do come over to our page and join in.
I hope you all had a wonderful Easter, celebrating the sacrifice of Jesus for us; his death and resurrection.
Recently I’ve been thinking about perspective. Allow me to share a couple of photos with you.
I took this first photo at Hever Castle in Kent – it looks like the Easter bunny is taking over the Easter world! The old castle hardly gets a look in, although you can just about see it in the background. In this second photo, taken on a recent visit to Hong Kong, many skyscrapers tower above St John’s Cathedral. But it just depends on which angle you are looking at it…
Like so many things in life, there is more than one perspective to Easter. It looked like all was lost on Good Friday, but it turned out to be the pivotal point of our salvation, as Jesus rose from the dead on the third day. Is the Easter bunny really taking over the world? You might think so from what we see in the shops. But we know better. Will secularism triumph over the church? Not a chance!
Praise God for the truth we know from his word, that the Lord will continue to build His church, and even the gates of hell will not prevail against it.
Sometimes we need to hold on to the right perspective, when other things seem to loom in size. Do you sometimes look at things through the wrong lens? I know I do. We have such a small number of books! But they can change lives. That’s more than the Easter bunny can do – the only thing he can do is expand waistlines!
Recently a kind supporter sent me her church newsletter, which contained this book review for Living in Hope:
“I really enjoyed this book because it was simple but written cleverly. I think it is a great idea and it is really gripping. Shema is my favourite character because he finds planes really fascinating. The creativeness of the children is really good and it seems really realistic. The characters are very detailed and are described in depth. The title suggests this is about hope but it is actually about a village called Hope.
I really like this book and I’d recommend you to read it.” – Alfie.
It’s always so encouraging to receive reviews of our books – makes all the hard work worthwhile. Rarely will a child say in a review that they were touched in their spirit by a book, though, or that the characters were good examples to them. I guess it’s a bit unrealistic to expect it… still, we hope and pray that children nonetheless will not only enjoy the stories, but be impacted by our books in a way that is unseen. Perhaps the story will be a favourite, turned to again and again, passed on to a friend or sibling, or will impact the whole family if it’s read out loud. Sometimes a parent will tell us how a book has touched a young reader, which is always great to hear.
It’s also possible that a story will be completely forgotten! All we do know is that it is up to us to “plant the seeds”. Well, actually, I guess as much as anything it’s up to you to buy the “packets of seeds” from us! Together we can make a difference. If there’s any way we can help you reach the children on your heart, please let us know. We will always try to help.
Living in Hope is all about a group of children who are learning to walk by faith. One is tricked into becoming a domestic slave, so it also highlights an important issue from a Christian perspective. And the story of the prodigal child is lived out as Freda is rescued and returns home. Lots of seeds there. You can buy the book direct from our website, from Christian bookshops, or any online bookstore.
Our next book, A New Me, for 9-12s, will be released later this year. We have been working hard on the manuscript, and hope to put the final first chapter on our website soon. Please pray for each of the steps of publication – editing, typesetting, proof-reading, printing; for the cover design, for distribution, for sales and marketing. And especially please pray it will reach the children who need to hear the message of new life. Author Roy Jones has written an exciting and relevant story – now it’s up to us all to do the very best we can to get it into as many hands as possible. Thank you for your prayers! If you would like to read a pre-production copy to review, all offers kindly received (we are always looking for reviews from young people for back covers!).
Prizes and Presentations
Does your church or school need books for prizes or presentations at the end of term? Please pass on our info to the person who does the buying – one of our books might be just what they are looking for. Please contact us for quantity discounts.
Janet Wilson, Founder of Dernier Publishing
And once more, grace and peace to you this month of April showers – may they be showers of blessing!
Janet
P.S. If you would like to receive newsletters by email, just let me know!
10% off Bundle of Books for 10-14s, Limited Time Offer! Insert Coupon Code: BOOKBUNDLE at Checkout Dismiss