Hello, Janet here! The last few days I have been at the Hayes Conference Centre in Swanwick, for the annual Christian Resources retreat.
As well as celebrating the 10th birthday of the first of the Beech Bank Girls books, we were surprised and delighted to receive this wonderful award for helping to get books into the hands of children with sight loss from Torch Trust! Thank you Torch Trust!
I am so grateful for my sight, and am glad to have been able to have read our books for young ‘readers’ with sight loss. We pass on all our files to Torch Trust so all our titles can be made available to children (or adults!) as large print books, Braille books, and audiobooks. It’s been brilliant to work together… no doubt about it, we can do so much more together than apart!
Janet Wilson is off to the Christian Resources Together retreat next week with Dernier Publishing, and is looking forward to meeting up with talented author Eleanor Watkins and celebrating the 10th birthday of the Beech Bank Girls!
🙂
Can you believe it’s ten years since these girls began sharing their
stories with us? The book (and the sequels) are every bit as relevant
today as they were when they were new. You can buy the paperback, the
kindle version, or get the stories on audio. You can even get them in
Croatian!
Some of you will know that Janet Wilson, founder of Dernier Publishing, set up a resource (Write for a Reason) for new writers of novels for children, in response to requests for help. Registration for the updated course, which starts on 16th September, is now open, so we’re sharing it here, in case it’s of interest to you. 🙂
If you write/want to write novels for children/teens, and want to make them the best they can be, you will enjoy this ten week, step-by-step online course, wherever you are in the world.
Write for a Reason was set up by publisher Janet
Wilson in response to requests for help from new writers. She has run
courses before, but this is the most comprehensive to date, and will
cover everything you need to write a successful novel for children/teens
from a Christian perspective.
By the end of the course you will be buzzing with exciting ways to
breathe life into your stories… PLUS you will have a complete story plan
for your next novel!
If you are writing to share the good news of Jesus in some way, your
novel will already be extra special, because it has eternal value, but the better written it is, the more children will read and enjoy it!
Isn’t that what we want?
In the parable of the talents, the servants who received the gifts had to put them to work… the servant who buried his talent was in trouble – don’t let that be you!
Most writers struggle on alone hoping (doubting?) their writing is good enough,
but, as with any field of life, a little bit of training, support and
encouragement can work wonders. Would someone called to be a counsellor
start counselling without first getting some training?
Get some training to help you with your story structure!
“Thank you for taking the time to educate those of us who feel we have a story just waiting to erupt from the depths of our souls.”~ Leilanie
This course is for you if you:
Are new (or new-ish) to writing novels for children/teens…
Or want to make a start.
Love creative writing.
Have a message to share.
Want to learn some new ideas to help make your stories the best they can be.
Are willing to put time in to learn your craft (around 3-4 hours a week over the next ten weeks)
This course is NOT for you if:
You are happy with your novel the way it is.
You can’t justify the expense right now.
You can’t make time to spend on a course.
You are familiar with everything we will be looking at in the course (see below)
“The course has come to an end all too soon. I thank God for you
and may he keep this group of writers inspired and enabled in this work
for His glory.” – Pam
Janet Wilson, founder of Dernier Publishing and Write for a Reason
Hello! My name is Janet Wilson. I’m a mum, grandma and founder of Dernier Publishing (we publish Christian books for children) and Write for a Reason.
In my role as a publisher, I have learnt a few things about great
novels. I would love to pass on my knowledge to you, to encourage and
equip you make your stories the very best they can be.
I am a Christian, and this course reflects that, but whatever your
beliefs, you will find plenty to help you in your own writing journey.
When you sign up for this course, you will gain IMMEDIATE access to the pre-course runway, which I’ve designed to help you get ready for the weeks ahead (including some fun writing prompts!).
I hope you will join me in the Write for a Reason Academy. I would count it a privilege to help you in the next step of your writing journey.
In this course you will learn everything you need to write a successful novel for children/teens.
The Pre-Course Runway
Purpose: To get ready for the weeks ahead.
Module One: Reaching Your Target Audience
Purpose: To know who you are writing for, and get to know their world.
Module Two: Creating Your Protagonist
Purpose: To create a protagonist (main character) your readers will love and be inspired by.
Module Four: A Look at Narrative Voice
Purpose: To consider all the options and choose your narrative voice for your next story.
Module Five: Weaving in Your Theme
Purpose: To know what your theme is, and how to make your “message” work in the context of your story.
Module Six: Creating the Perfect Setting
Purpose: To choose a great setting for your story, and build your fictional world.
Module Seven: Gripping Beginnings
Purpose: To have a gripping beginning for your story, to draw your readers in.
Module Eight: Satisfying Endings
Purpose: To work out a satisfactory conclusion for your story, that you readers will love.
Module Nine: Conflicts and Resolutions
Purpose: Work out all the terrible things that are going to happen to your characters between your beginning and ending.
Module Ten: Your Complete Story Plan
Purpose: To have a complete story plan in your hands, ready to begin writing your novel in full.
N.B. Each module will include a mixture of teaching and practical assignments. And they’re fun! Yay!
It’s time to invest in your writing!
Click HERE to join the course.
Write for a Reason Academy
Cost: £297.00
Ten teaching modules
Writing exercises and assignments
Membership in a closed Facebook group
Janet will visit the facebook group, to discuss the material and answer questions
Monthly Payment Package:
£49.00 x 6
All the course material is the same, whether you choose the ‘monthly pay’ or ‘pay full price now’ option
If you start the Write for a Reason Academy and find
it’s not for you by the end of Module Three (as long as you have had a
go at the set assignments), let me know, and I will refund your course
fees.
“How can they put their trust in Him if they have not heard of Him? And how can they hear of Him unless someone tells them?”Romans 10:14 (NLV)
These two fabulous titles will be going to prisoners’ children via Prison Fellowship’s Angel Tree programme this Christmas. Delighted to be part of this brilliant project, keeping prisoners connected with their children, and knowing the kiddies have a Christian book to read.
I hope you all had a
good summer. I spent a week in Minehead with my sister, who I haven’t
been away with since we went to Austria for a week over thirty years
ago! Where does time go? 🙂
August has been a
quiet month for Dernier, for sales – please pray that schools,
churches and parents everywhere will see what a fantastic tool novels
are for building faith. We so long to know our books are out there,
changing lives. Well, of course, it’s the Lord who changes lives, but
he uses our words to touch people, whether spoken or written. 🙂
Now our books are
also in audio, we have a new way to reach children who don’t enjoy
reading. Please pass on the good news to any of your friends who
have children. Maybe you could even buy an audio book for a
child/family you know? Even children who love reading might also
enjoy listening to a story while on the bus or train on their way to
school!
Why not try out Mystery in the Snow? All you need is the recipient’s email address, and the book is sent to them to download. They can read it on their phone – or a parent’s phone… or a tablet, laptop of computer.
Schools
Some children are
already back at school – some will be heading out this week. Let’s
pray for all those who love the Lord, that they will be strengthened
in their faith and hold on to what they know to be true.
This term we plan to start a campaign to Christian-based primary schools, encouraging them to use our books for their children as class readers, and to make them available in their libraries. Please pray for us – for good relationships with schools, and that many will take up our books. Children from every faith and none attend church schools, so library books have the potential to be read by children from all walks of life. Perhaps the Lord will use them to bring light in dark places, to open eyes and to turn children’s hearts to Him.
Book Club
Teacher Denise (Mrs Angell!) will once more be running a book club for children in Years Five and Six this term, at a local primary school. Denise says, “Every Monday lunchtime, we looked forward to gathering to read together and share our own experiences or predictions that came to mind as we followed the character’s adventure. Being a faith-linked book club, there were a number of books representing the main faiths of the world although of the six books we read all bar onewas a Dernier book! The children made the decision! I asked which had been their favourite and there was a draw between A Pennyworth of Peppermints and The Birthday Shoes as they enjoyed the mystery of them. Between the books, we must have covered many worries that the children have or will face and I pray that they feel equipped to know that they can pray for the Lord’s help and thank Him for the good times too. I pray that my book club has planted seeds of Christian faith that will germinate and grow at some time.
We’ll start with a new group of
pupils in September so please pray that they will also be touched by
these wonderful books.”
None of the children
has to go to this lunch time club – they choose to go.
Isn’t it great that they love reading and discussing Christian books?
Please pray for Denise as she once again brings stories to children,
almost all of whom are not from church families.
Prisoners’
Children
Angel Tree will once
again be sending out some of our books to prisoners’ children this
year at Christmas (apologies for using the Christmas word in
September!). We don’t yet know which titles. Please pray the right
books will go to the right children, and that the Lord will use them
to open hearts. Please pray, too, for the children who have received
our books as gifts over the last three years – maybe the books are
still on a shelf… maybe they are much loved… the Lord knows!
Let’s pray that the Lord will draw these precious children to
himself, each one a prisoner’s child through not fault of their own.
Christian
Resources Together
Our annual trade event will take place on September 17th and 18th at the Hayes Christian Conference Centre in Derbyshire. I will be there with all our books! It’s a lovely couple of days, spending time with retailers from Christian bookshops and other retailers. We love supporting the bookshops – they do a fabulous job.
The Beech Bank Girls are Ten Years Old!
The Beech Bank Girls books are ten years old this month! It’s incredible to think that these stories have been building girls up in their faith for ten years now, and are still touching girls’ hearts today with their message of life, laughter and faith in Jesus. Congratulations to author Eleanor Watkins, who has written such enduring, heart-warming, fun and inspirational novels for our girls. May the stories carry on bearing much fruit for many years to come!
It is totally awesome to look back and see how far Dernier has come, by the Lord’s grace, in these last ten years. Please keep praying for us – who knows what the Lord might do in the next ten? 🙂 Exciting, isn’t it! Please keep buying books – we need you to get the books into readers’ hands.
Right, I’d better let you go and get ready for the new term, or perhaps your holiday, or just back to your usual day to day activities. Whatever you do, may you know the Lord’s presence with you.
Why not keep a stock of Christian books to give away to your children’s friends and friends’ children? You could be giving much more than a book – you could be planting seeds for eternal life.
Children all over the world will have attended camps and clubs run by missions and churches over the summer months. Let’s pray that seeds sown will bear fruit! 🙂
It’s raining! What about a good book? How about this one? You can get the kindle version or the audiobook instantly, or order from the website for the next wet week!
Don’t let the children you love miss out on this fun story. Jesus said Let the children come to me. Giving yours a book like this is doing exactly that.
This book touches on themes of God knowing best; friendship; caring for each other; answered prayer, and racial harmony. Plus there’s buried treasure, and Joshua gets to go to The Village of the Dead Snake!
Want to encourage your girls to keep walking with Jesus? Try this audio book! Available all over the web, including on Google Play for a once-only purchase, if you’re not looking for a subscription.
It’s getting towards the end of the summer holidays, and the evenings are drawing in. Time for some family reading! Don’t miss out on this opportunity to spend some time together with a fun novel, and the added bonus of spiritual input. Seize the day! The days pass so fast…
Our girls are facing all sorts of pressures from every direction.
We brought out the great fun, brilliantly written Beech Bank Girls books for you to give to all the 10-14-year-old girls in your life, so you can encourage and inspire them in their faith.
The first book in the series (Beech Bank Girls, Every Girl Has a Story) sensitively covers the following issues (do you know a girl going through any of these?):
Bullying
Divorce and separation
Temptation to steal
Trouble with step-families
Doubts about faith
Death of a pet
Chronic illness in the family.
As you see, the Beech Bank Girls go through all the same pressures
and trials many girls face – and have a lot of fun together, too –
this book includes a miracle and a party, plus Annie joins the BBGs
and finds faith for herself!
If you are looking for a book to build your girls’ faith, or show girls who have no church background that it’s great to be a Christian, this is the one for you. These girls are normal and fun!
“Really enjoyed it and found it helpful at
the same time.” – Claire
It’s that time
again! Here I am with the monthly round up of news.
Something is
eating my beans!
For the first time
ever, I’m growing beans in our garden. The plants are luscious, with
all that sun we had and then the rain… but something is eating all
the new little beans!
I need to do
something to stop the creepy crawlies stealing my crop!
It made me think. Plants can look strong, but how can we be sure our children/the children on our hearts will always be strong in their faith?
We can’t, of course. Only the Lord can touch hearts, change
lives.
But that doesn’t mean we don’t have a part to
play. The Lord has chosen to
use us! Scripture tells us we must talk about the Lord and
His ways with our children as we walk along the road of life together
(Deut. 6:7, 11:19).
This isn’t an optional suggestion, and the consequences of not
doing so aren’t worth thinking about. Of course we want our children
to be happy, healthy and to do well in life, but above all else, when
we belong to God, we want them to know Jesus. Nothing else
compares, does it?
Evangelism has to start at home. There are many ways to bring
faith into conversations, and you will want to read the Bible and
pray together when you can…
And there’s another easy and entertaining way to bring up issues
of faith – fun, relevant Christian stories are brilliant
conversation starters!
If your children don’t like reading, you can
read to them, listen to the stories on audio,
or buy kindle ebooks so they can read them on their
phone/tablet/laptop with the free app.
You can start today! Here’s
what you need to do:
1. Choose your books and order, either here or from your local Christian bookshop. 2. Read with your children, or if that’s not possible, send your gift with the message, “I saw this and thought of you.” 3. Discuss the story in person, on the phone, skype, whatsapp, instant message service…. or by letter. Where there’s a will there’s a way!
Pray and see what the Lord will do! We have had
some amazing comments from parents/grandparents/carers/teachers and
children who have read our books – it’s not an exaggeration to say
our books have changed lives.
Whether “your children” are family, friends, church kids,
pupils or friends and neighbours’ children, every one deserves to
have someone talk to them about Jesus.
How will they know if no one tells them? But
think what could happen if YOU DO?
Audiobooks
Know a young person who prefers to listen than read? Want them to betaking in good stuff? You can find all our audiobooks now, all over the web, ready for you to download for all your 8-16+! Pretty much wherever you usually buy your audiobooks, you can get ours – iTunes, Audible… or if you don’t want to buy a subscription, Google Play. 🙂 You can buy the books for yourself, or as a gift for anyone with an email address. Just download with the free app, press play and enjoy as many times as you like!
Sharing the Wealth
A pastor’s wife I know through social media, Claire, gave her daughter A New Me to read. This is what she said, “Just a bit of encouragement for you – my daughter has just finished reading this book… and LOVED it! She said she wished she’d picked it up as soon as I gave it to her.” Get this book from our website or from Christian bookshops. Don’t delay – time passes too quickly when they’re growing up!
The main character in this book, Jess, is from a broken home
because her dad drinks, is threatened with eviction because her mum
can’t pay the rent, goes to live with an elderly aunt in a village
(with her mum and brother), is bullied at school, foils a
cockfighting gang, and becomes a Christian! Why not buy a copy for a
child you know who is going through a tough time?
Email Marketing
The time has come for Dernier to move into email marketing. We
have always supported Christian bookshops, and will continue to do
so, but we also need to realise that we can reach so many more
children by moving into new ways of publicising our books. So I’ve
set up a new email list, separate from this newsletter. If you would
like to be part of it (you will receive weekly-ish emails instead of
once a month) please
click here. It’s exciting because I know we will be able to reach
a wider audience this way, but I do hope those of you who can will
continue to buy your books from bookshops – they are a great
witness, and serve the community in a much more personal way than
email ever can. May the Lord continue to bless the outreach of
bookshops. We love them!
Summer Reading
So now it’s time to get your summer reading books, whether you buy paperbacks, audiobooks or kindle books. We have books suitable for ages from 8-16+. Time to choose!
I hope you all have a wonderful summer, enjoy lots of good books
and watch your children grow in their faith!
Janet
P.S. Please join us in praying for all the children who will be reading Christian books this summer (not just ours!). May many hearts be touched, seeds sown and lives changed.
P.P.S. This is the link to sign up to receive regular emails from us, to keep you informed, and give you offers and updates.
Try before you buy! Get your FREE copy of The Treasure Hunt ebook (pdf) when you join our email list. Read this exciting story (featuring four children from a church youth club who solve a mystery) with your family and discuss the issues it raises. Perfect for building faith together! Or just read it on your own and enjoy.
Don’t miss out, click this link, download the book straight away and start reading at bedtime tonight!
If your kids get bored on long journeys, download one of our audiobooks! Search for any of our titles on Audible, iTunes, Scribd, Google Play (if you want a one off instead of a subscription) and enjoy together! Christian books are a great way to bring up good faith conversations, however you enjoy them. (You can, of course, get a good old fashioned paperback if you prefer. :-))
Kids hot and bored? You can buy Dernier books on kindle and give them to your kids NOW! USE the weather and inspire them in their faith – read together, discuss the issues and multiply the good stuff! Try this one!
More of our books are now out as audiobooks, ready for kids who are not so keen on reading, or for all the family to listen to on that long journey!
London’s Gone is the latest to hit the virtual shelves. This gripping drama for 10+ is available from your usual subscription service (eg Audible, iTunes)… or Google Play for a once-only purchase.
Don’t miss out on this fab opportunity to share your faith with your kids, and talk about the issues.
Reading Christian stories together is a great way to fulfill Scripture’s commands to talk about the Lord and his ways as you walk along in life together.
Choose your book from our website
Follow the link to go to the audiobook, or put the paperback in your basket
Read (or listen) and enjoy discussing the story together!
Do your kids love to listen to stuff on their phones? But there are so many voices out there! Want to give them an exciting Christian novel to listen to? Another of our books is now on audio! This gripping novel (I Want to Be an Airline Pilot) takes place in rural Rwanda – you will love it too, so why not listen together on a car journey? You can download it from Google Play here. Or get it from audible, iTunes or from your usual audiobook platform.
Don’t leave your children’s spiritual health to chance. Do what you can now. You won’t regret it if you do, but you might regret it if you don’t.
If your 10-14-year-old girls love listening to stuff on their phones and you want them to keep walking with God, you can now get all these fun Christian books on audio from Google Play. We can’t change lives ourselves, but we still need to reach out to encourage and inspire! #dernierpublishing#funbooks
Don’t let your girls miss out. The stakes are too high.
Search Beech Bank Girls audio books on your phone
2. Scroll down until you find the Google Play option of the book you want to download.
3. Click and buy!
You will now have instant access and your girls will be good to go this evening!
Oh, and 4. Pray for the Holy Spirit to move. 🙂 Who knows what He might do through your gift?
More and more church kids are walking away from faith, and many young people are growing up never hearing the good news of Jesus. There are so many conflicting voices out there, leading young people in all sorts of different directions.
We publish fun, exciting, relevant, faith-building novels for you to share with the children and teens in your life, to encourage and inspire them in their faith.
Our stories are more than great stories – they change lives. You can make a difference, an eternal difference, by reading them with the children in your life. If you can’t do that, don’t let them miss out – send the books and pray.
Who knows what the Lord might do? But don’t delay. The time to sow seeds is now, because tomorrow might be too late.
We are delighted to bring you the second of theBeech Bank Girls books in audio format, which is brilliant for girls who love their phones!
This is the second title in the series, available from google play. Girls can now listen to this fun, relevant Christian book on their phone!
OR you can download from many different audiobook subscription services, such as Audible, iTunes, scribd and audiobooks.com. Simply put the title in the search, and up it will come!
However you get it, make sure you do – our girls seriously need encouragement. All sorts of voices are coming at our precious girls from all sides – these fun stories tackle issues from a Christian perspective. “My 13 year-old granddaughter was riveted, and read through all four books about the Beech Bank Girls in the half term week that she stayed with me,” said one Granny, concerned for the spiritual welfare of her granddaughter. Church girls are dropping out of church, and many are growing up never knowing that the Lord is there, He cares, He answers prayer, and he can help us, whatever sort of trouble we get into!
So buy your copy today – paperback or audiobook. You need to sow seeds if you want to reap a harvest.
Clive Lewis (author of The City Kid) is back from his trip to Uganda. Thanks for your prayers! Clive says, “I returned from Uganda last week and enjoyed great fellowship with family, friends and Christian brothers and sisters.” Clive and his team took lots of books with them – please pray they will have a good impact on readers. This picture is of Clive with the vicar of the parish of Obiya in northern Uganda which Clive’s parish supports. While there, Clive talked to Dickens Zziwa from SU Uganda, who was the recipient of a box of The City Kid on a previous visit. Clive says, “He [Dickens] said that last year’s supply had long since dispersed, and he added encouraging words about the impact of The City Kid on some young people.” Great news indeed! If you or someone you know is going on a mission trip this summer, would you buy books to take along? Please contact us for quantity discounts. Always glad to help!
More fun, faith-building Dernier books are winging their way out into the world today! Here they are, boxed up and ready to go! If you don’t want your children to miss out, order your books today. We’d love to help you. We love our books, but what we really care about is the children who read them. – Janet
In
Deuteronomy 11, the Lord, through
Moses, urges the people,
concerning his commandments: “Fix
them in your hearts and minds.
Teach them to your children,
talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the
road, when you lie down and when you get up.”
This isn’t an “if you like”
suggestion. The words are so familiar that they can wash over us. But
it seems to me that it is deadly serious.
So many voices are coming at our
children from every side. We are so busy. They have other interests.
But they are being seduced away…
Could there be anything more important
than to help them understand the good news, and what it means for
them and us? And I’m not just talking about our own children – we
are called to go into all the world… Jesus doesn’t want any
of the little ones to perish.
I wish I’d had Dernier books and the
discussion questions back when my children were small, and I was a
youth club leader. I prayed with them and read Bible stories, but we
could have gone so much deeper sharing life stories, discussing
issues… and so much more, as we walked along the road together.
Don’t miss out – buy a book today
for a child on your heart, download the discussion questions and get
talking.
Jo read Rebecca and Jade: Choices at the same time as her fifteen-year-old daughter. She said, “I thought Becca’s journey to finding her own relationship with Jesus was brilliantly covered. The book also gave me a good opportunity to open up the subject of abortion with Abi and we had a really good chat.”
If you want to fulfill your responsibility and draw closer to your children, 1. choose your book, 2. download the questions and 3. get started!
Discussion Questions
Most of our books have online
discussion questions now. The latest
addition is London’s Gone (with grateful thanks to
Brenda Lord for her wisdom and help). Beech Bank Girls
questions coming up next! Please pray as we finish up this task,
because it takes a lot of careful thought. We need the questions to
be suitable for use in a school/non-church environment as well as in
Christian families, so we need to be sensitive, as well as making
sure we’re covering the vital points in each story.
Caroline used the Deepest Darkness discussion questions when reading the book with her nine-year-old son, Jaidon. She said, “They started some good questions and I was able to answer with examples from the book in a way that helped my son understand and relate to real life. He suffers from low self-esteem and anxieties. I was able to use Abi’s experiences of overcoming her fears, to try to get him to see how he might overcome or build upon small steps like Abi did.”
Good, isn’t it? Let’s
pray for Jaidon, and for so many other children like him, who are
reading our books today, and finding a gem of truth to draw them
closer to God with, or without
support.
Prayer Support
Prayer is so vital! When I first set
up Dernier, I used to have a wonderful group of people who prayed for
Dernier and the work we do, but when I moved house (seven years ago
now!), it gradually fizzled out. My fault entirely. I’d really,
really like to set up a new email prayer group. Prayer is so key to
all we do for the children – there’s a battle on, and we need to
fight in numbers! If you’d like to be a prayer supporter, I would be
so grateful. Just reply to this email and I’ll set up a new group.
Audio Books
This is so exciting! All our books
have now been uploaded to various distributors of audio books, and
one by one they should become available within the next 40 days to
download online all over the world. This is brilliant, because they
can reach a whole new audience – children who don’t enjoy reading,
and for families to listen to together. Kids love to listen to stuff
on their phones – what could be better than a Christian book? 🙂
At the time of writing, only A New Me, A Pennyworth of Peppermints, Revenge of the Flying Carpet and Beech Bank Girls, Every Girl Has A Story are available, but this list will grow!
.
There are two ways you can buy the
audiobooks:
1. You can join a subscription
programme, such as Amazon’s audible programme. Here’s
the link to join (with A New Me in your free
month’s trial).
If your church is running a camp or club this summer and you’d like to give away books, email me for quantity discounts (just reply to this email). Books keep the message going after the event is over – and whole families might read them. We know of one instance where a mum started going to church after reading her son’s book… and became a Christian after hearing the preacher.
The Dernier Website
I’m in the process of re-vamping the
website – would you mind
taking a look? Is there anything you like or don’t like? Or that
doesn’t work on your mobile or tablet? Anything I’m missing that
would make it simpler for people to choose and buy books? Thanks in
advance for your help. 🙂 You don’t have to buy from our website, of
course! You can buy all our books from Christian bookshops, so if you
have one in your area, do support them.
I think that’s it for this month!
Thanks so much for all your support and encouragement. Do pass on
this letter to a friend – we need to keep “enlarging the place of
our tent”. 🙂
Have a wonderful July,
Janet
P.S.
In case you’re in a hurry and have skimmed, here are the essentials:
*
Some of our books are now available on audio for your kids to listen
to on their phones
*
You can download discussion questions from our website to help you
and your children get the most from the books
*
Reply to this email if you’d like to be a Dernier prayer supporter
*
Contact me for quantity discounts of books for summer clubs and
camps.
Morning, Janet here. Last year we started sending boxes of books to Kenya, for children in slum schools on the outskirts of Nairobi. This is such a heart-warming picture – I was told the children were so excited to have story books – this little chap just couldn’t wait to get reading!
One day I’d love to go… in the meantime, please do pray for all the children who read our books all over the world, whether they are privileged or destitute, seven years old or seventeen, at school, in refugee camps, or at home, with single parents, no parents, or children of a father with four wives. Every child is precious. Every single one.
If you’d like to send a box of books to Nairobi, we can do it on your behalf – we work with an organisation called Education Bridge Africa. £250 would cover the cost for as many books as we can fit in a 5kg box (including shipping). That’s around 40-50 books (some are lighter than others). Let me know if you want to be a hero for children like these – reading will help them out of poverty, and reading Christian books will help to build their faith.
Let’s pray for the preparations of summer camps and clubs starting soon! They can be such a vital time in the lives of young people – fun and good news are a fabulous combination! If your church or organisation is planning an event, and you would like to give your children books to keep feeding them with good news once it’s over, please get in touch with us. We’d love to help if we can.
Hello, Janet here, founder of Dernier Publishing. I just wanted to drop in and let you know that as well as working on books, I also run a resource for Christians who write novels for children. If you’d like to join us, we’d love to have you! You can hop on over to the Write for a Reason website by clicking on this link.
These books for 8-11s are off to a bookshop. We don’t know who will buy them and who will read them… but we can pray for them! Will you join us? So many issues are bombarding our children. Let’s be the bearer of good news! If we can help you with books for the children on your heart, please contact us. Or you can buy all these books for yourself – simply go to the ‘Books for 8-11s’ tab and add the books you want to your basket! Couldn’t be easier… but you could change the world for your readers.
You don’t have to join a subscription programme to listen to Beech Bank Girls, Every Girl Has A Story. You can download it direct from Google Play and enjoy it forever!
Do you have children who don’t enjoy reading, but love listening to a story? Want to build their faith? You do not have to subscribe to a monthly programme to benefit from audio books – you can download whichever book you like, when you like, from Google Play.
The book is set in Weymouth and Portland (Dorset) and begins when Ben, Sidney and Vera find a message in a bottle – little dreaming of the adventures this will lead to. The main characters are at the end of their primary school education during the 1914-18 war.
You can also use author Mary’s discussion questions, to build your relationship with your children, and build your own faith at the same time!
Yipppeee! You know we exist to unite concerned Christians with life-changing stories for the 8-16s on their hearts? Well, we have three more inspiring books now on audio, so you can share these great stories with the young people in your life on a car journey, or even buy one for someone in a different country! Simply choose the one you want, search for it online and download! Be the bearer of good news.
These Christian books for children are going out into the world today, ready to change lives! If you want to be part of it, you can find Deepest Darkness here, and I Want to Be an Airline Pilot here. You can’t be a winner if you don’t take part! You can also use the discussion questions, if you want to read these lovely books alongside your kids. Keep those conversations about faith going – share you faith – you never know where it will lead. 🙂
Christian books can change lives. Sometimes the seeds take a long time to grow. Sometimes they fall in thorns and weeds, or on the path, or on rocky ground. So we need to keep sowing, and never give up. Maybe, one day, some of the seeds you have sown will grow into mighty OAKS.
So keep sowing those seeds! Why not buy a book today, for a child on your heart? This seed could be the one that changes a life.
Prayer is an enormous privilege, and a huge responsibility – here’s a resource to help your young people to pray!
Millions of Christians worldwide suffer persecution for their belief in Jesus Christ. As well as our help, they need our prayers.
‘Praying for Persecuted Christians’ offers 30 carefully chosen, biblical prayer pointers suitable for family, group, or private prayers, with useful scripture references.
Originally designed for teens, they have become a trusted prayer guide for adults, too!
Our heavenly Father is pleased to answer our requests – he is just waiting for us to ask. If we are obedient, we really can make a difference – an eternal difference, to thousands, maybe millions of people.
What a breathtaking privilege… and an awesome responsibility.
Buy copies for yourself, your church, your youth club. FREE shipping to UK addresses (please contact us for overseas orders).
Author of The City Kid, Clive Lewis, is off to Uganda again soon, with a mission team. Clive’s church made an appeal for books to take to children who so badly need them, and raised the amazing total of £440! The team will be sharing the weight of the books between them for the journey.
Clive says, “Thank you for your prayers. Our party will have three intensive days with our mission partners in the Gulu area (north Uganda) and during that time I plan to hand over the books to the diocesan youth organiser. He will be thrilled, I have no doubt.”
Please pray for Clive, his wife, Florence, and the mission team; for the diocesan youth organiser, and for the children who will receive the books! (The photo above is of Clive during a previous visit to Uganda.)
If you’re off on a mission trip in the summer, could you take books with you for a school, children’s home, camp or church? Or organise to raise funds for someone else?
Please contact us if we can help with quantity discounts, and even a few freebies!
John Ouma (aka The City Kid) is getting packed up ready for his flight to Uganda next month. Ultimate destination: a school library! Please pray this story will be well used, and readers will be touched by its message of forgiveness, life and hope in Christ.
Do you know anyone off on a ministry trip this summer? Could they take some books for church kids, or a school or children’s home? Please contact us – we would be delighted to help!
Last week GCSEs started, and SATs began. A levels will be starting soon, along with college/uni exams. It can be such a stressful time. We had such good feedback from the exam prayer we put on social media, we have now added a bit of design and linked to it below as a downloadable file. Please feel free to print it out and pray it with your children/young people, and or give it to them to take to school/college.
The Lord is a very present help in times of trouble!
Not all churches now have children, sadly. If yours does, would you like to give out some of our leaflets? Not all children read, but almost all love to have a story read to them!
Grandparents and godparents might like to buy books, as well as Sunday School teachers and children’s workers. Send us a message if we can help!
Is it time for your church to go back to giving books as gifts?
Shout out to CLC who distribute our Christian children’s books to bookshops all over the UK! These books are on their way to the CLC warehouse in Chester, today. They may have been ordered for a prizegiving, at a church or school. 🙂
If your church has children (sadly, not all do), would you mention our books to your children’s worker or minister, as ideas for prizes? Even children who don’t love reading themselves usually love being read to! And there’s nothing quite like a fun story to start a conversation about faith…
Please feel free to contact us if you have any queries. We’d love to help you get fun Christian books into the hands of the children/teens on your heart.
Hello, Janet Wilson here. I visited central London yesterday – Hillsong Kids (7-11s), to give a talk about books!
It was a delight to meet so many keen readers. I got to talk to some of the children individually as well as give a talk to the whole group. Several of them buzzed around me after my talk, thrilled and amazed to find books with Christian characters just like them (and two asked me if I’d publish the books they are writing!). Please pray the children will be strengthened in their faith through good Christian books, as well as the teaching they receive week by week when they’re together.
I suspect way more children than we think would read Christian books if they had the opportunity… and still more would love their parents to read the stories to them. Let’s pray for parents to take up the challenge – and that other family members and church family will buy them for those that can’t afford it.
Our children so badly need the encouragement to keep walking with God.
The exam season is on us once again… let’s pray for all our children and young people doing tests and exams. It can be such a stressful time. But the Lord can give strength!
Below is a prayer you can pray with your children to pray when exams loom – why not print it out for them?
If you have a child on your heart you’d like prayer for, please add their name, or a nickname, in the comments below. Isn’t it the most amazing thing that we can all pray for each other? 🙂 We are all family. x
Janet (Janet Wilson, founder of Dernier Publishing)
Dear Father God,
Thank you that you came to give me life, and life in all its fullness. May your name be honoured in my life.
When I get anxious, help me to remember you hold all things in your hand, even the sparrows. When my heart beats fast, help me to remember that I matter to you. When I feel alone, help me to remember you have promised to be with me, always. When I feel crushed inside, please help me to look up to you, not at my worries. When fear grips, please help me to take one step at a time, knowing your Holy Spirit is right there beside me.
Help me to trust you because you care for me. Help me to remember your constant, never-ending love. Help me to remember that whatever the outcome of my exams, you have a plan for my life, and your presence will guide me. Help me to see that my value is not dependent on my exam results, but on my worth to you.
You came to give me abundant life! Please help me to experience that today, in all I do. You came to give peace, so I choose to rest in you. You came to bring joy! May I know your joy in my heart today, because I am your child, and nothing compares with that. Thank you for giving me the gift of faith. Thank you for being my friend, my Saviour, my hope and my light.
There is no other God like you. May your name by honoured in my life.
Hi, Janet Wilson here, founder of Dernier Publishing. On Sunday I have the privilege of speaking to the Hillsong London Kids’ 7-11s about Christian books! I have a little talk planned, and aim to encourage them to be brave, because children are as important to God as adults. Please pray for a good response! I’ll try to remember to take some photos to show you next week. 🙂
We are absolutely delighted to let you know that our first audio book is now for sale on Audible and iTunes! So now, if your child doesn’t love reading, or you want to listen together on a journey, you can still enjoy this story!
This is a great book to bring up themes of justice and mercy, judgement and forgiveness. The Bible teaches us we need to talk to our children about the Lord in our everyday lives – when we sit and walk, and wherever we go. Now you can listen to this book in your home or car, and join in with the discussion questions afterwards!
Here’s a bit about the book: Paul hates his sister – she has been awful to him ever since he can remember, and when he finds a flying carpet in his gran’s loft he seeks revenge… but gets a lot more than he bargained for. Justice, judgement, forgiveness, mercy… Paul sees them all as he and Trinity travel through time and space. But then comes something completely unexpected… You can find the book here.
Exciting news! We have just heard that our first audio book has been approved by Amazon/Audible and iTunes! It will be on sale in “2-3 days”. Be sure we will let you know!
“I really like Beech Bank Girls. It is about six teenage friends, Annie, Willow, Rachel, Amber, and Chloe. Holly is on holiday! In this book, a new girl, Madalina comes to school. She is a Roma gypsy and will only stay for a while, and so she does not have to wear school uniform. The Beech Bank Girls make friends with Madalina, and give her their spare school uniforms. Madalina tells them that she will have to go home, but in the end the headmaster gives her something that means she will go back to her parents but will come back to school again! Also there is a fun night at Beech Bank. There is a film on at Beech Bank, and lots of the girls cry during it. Willow meets one of the presenters called Jay, and she likes him. After the film the girls came up with the idea to give Madalina school uniform. The other girls all join in with it. Another thing that happens in this book is that Amber’s sister, Kim comes home from university and says that she won’t go back. She had met a boy on the internet and he wanted her to show him round her university. In the end she decides not to meet up with him. He sends loads of emails, and says he will try to find her. Amber tells Kim about God, and she decides to believe in Him and is generally much happier. I really like all that happens in this book especially how they are kind to Madalina. I think you should read it, and I think that you will enjoy it too!
I really like Beech Bank Girls. It is about six teenage friends, Annie, Willow, Rachel, Holly, Amber, and Chloe. In this book, Holly comes back from holiday and her father’s business goes bankrupt. Amber is rather mean to Holly and says, “Welcome to the new world.” Because Holly has always been rather rich. In the end they both say sorry. (At the same time!) Rachel’s sister, Ruth, thinks that she is too fat. So Ruth goes on a diet and does not eat really anything. She faints at Beech Bank after missing lunch, and is taken to hospital. Rachel talks with Ruth, and Ruth says she did not enjoy her diet, and goes back to normal eating. Annie has an accident on a sledge, and hurts her foot. The sky gets dark and the girls can’t find their way back. All of the girls’ fathers come and find them. I really like all that happens in this book especially how they all work together. I think you should read it, and I think that you will enjoy it too!” – Mary
We would like to take this opportunity, as we take a few days’ break to celebrate the death and resurrection of Jesus, to thank everyone who has supported and prayed for Dernier. We appreciate you all.
We would like to wish you a very Happy Easter. May you experience the love of God in a deeper way than ever before.
Last call for books for Easter! Want to give more than chocolate? Want to share the good news of Jesus? You need to be quick! Send in your orders today. 🙂
All this week we will be working on our audio books… please pray with us as we seek to serve our children/young people in this way. Thank you! Here are some more of the covers:
If you’d like to be kept informed about the progress of the audio books, please contact us and we’ll let you know when they are up and running. 🙂
Please pray! After months of hard work and lots of hiccups we have uploaded our first audio book (Revenge of the Flying Carpet) to audible and itunes… it’s awaiting approval (which could be up to fourteen days). Once this one has been sorted (and there may be some further technical tweaks to be made) we will start work on uploading all our other books, one by one. It’s been a learning curve – but will be so worth it, because children who don’t enjoy reading will still be able to enjoy our books!
All the news from the last month, condensed into one handy place! 🙂 Enjoy and be encouraged… and thanks for all your support and prayers. x
Easter… If Jesus hadn’t died for us, if he hadn’t been raised from the dead, we would be lost forever, with no hope. It’s hard to express, for those of us who are children of God, how much that means to us. Words can not convey the gratitude, however much we try. This story, of all stories, is so full of joy after sorrow, hope after despair, light after darkness, truth after deception, life after death, undeserved forgiveness. Once again at this time of year, our hearts overflow with awe at the amazing grace of God – his sacrifice for us, because he loved us.
It’s a story we have to share. Please
continue to pray for the children who read our books, which convey
something of the good news of Jesus, wherever they are in the world –
orphans and refugees in Nigeria, desperately poor children in Kenya,
children of prisoners in the UK, and so many others.
Children
who go to church, and children who don’t… all need encouragement
to walk with Jesus.
Easter Outreach
If your church has an Easter outreach
event,A
New Me for
10-12s would be a great book for
the children to take home. The
story features Jess, whose dad has left home because he drinks.
Forced to move home as they are behind with the rent, Jess, her mum
and brother start a new life in a new village. Jess
joins the
church youth club and meets Christian young people for the first time
in her life. She learns about Jesus, forgiveness, and what a new
start really means. As
in all our newer books, A
New Me has a dyslexia
friendly design.
Rebecca, in Rebecca and Jade:
Choices (for teens) opens her heart to Jesus at an Easter
church service. Do you have a teenage girl you could share this book
with?
They’ve arrived! Real copies at last!
Mystery in the Snow is
also set at Easter, although it does snow (not unknown in the UK!).
If you were looking for a book on
forgiveness/grace/justice/mercy, Revenge of the Flying Carpet
(for 10-14s) would be a good option. Good for young people
living with difficult people/situations they feel powerless to
change.
Please contact
us for quantity discounts. We want your young people to have
our books, and will do what we can to help you.
Book Review
Reviews like this brighten our day! A
girl called Mary kindly took the time to write to us via our website
contact form:
“I wrote a book review for my school
work, and I was wondering if you would like to use it:
‘I really like Beech Bank Girls. It
is about six teenage friends, Annie, Willow, Rachel, Holly, Amber,
and Chloe.
In this book, there is a miracle
with Chloe’s brother. He has been unwell with depression, he reads
Christian books, becomes a Christian, and is much better.
Another thing that happens is that
Amber’s dog dies, and her parents try to make her happier by
getting another dog. They wanted her to name it. It makes Amber
sadder, but after a cat fights the dog (who she names Hamlet in the
end) she becomes friends with him.
Holly has a date with a boy, he
kisses her, and she does not like it, so she cancels the date. Annie
joins the group of friends. Also, Willow gets to know God better. It
is a really interesting book. I think you should read it, and I think
that you will enjoy it too!‘”
Thank you, Mary, for your
encouragement!
Discussion Questions
We are building up our list of books
that have Discussion Questions. If
you want to discuss the book with your children, run
a book club, or use the book
as a class reader, you may find these questions helpful. You can find
the list of books that already have questions
here.
Because our books go to schools and
are used in all sorts of different contexts, we have tried to keep
the questions simple and non-threatening, but we hope they will help
readers get the most from the stories. To
give you an idea, here are the questions for Deepest
Darkness (feel
free to skip on!):
1. Everyone is afraid of something. Do
you have the same kinds of fears as Abi, or are yours different?
Abi’s anxieties are all-consuming and affect what she is able to
do. Are your fears like that?
2. Abi’s family is supportive of her
fears, but other people don’t understand. Do people understand how
you feel?
3. Abi felt safe in the cabin. Do you
have a safe place, a place where you can be yourself, and relax?
4. What things do you miss out on (if
any) because of your fears? Do you want to be able to overcome your
anxiety, or are you happy the way you are?
5. Abi’s dad is very different to
Abi. He likes challenges, whereas she doesn’t. What are the
differences between you and your family and friends?
6. Nic only takes Abi one step at a
time with her fears. She wouldn’t have been able to walk in the
forest at night if she hadn’t first slept without a light at night,
then walked in the forest during the daytime. Is there anything in
your life you would like to change, if you could do it a little at a
time?
7. Abi and her family have never
thought about God before. Do you think God cares about us, and
answers our prayers, even if we don’t really know what to do or
say?
8. Abi’s family didn’t know much
about praying, but they were willing to give it a try. Would you be
willing to pray for someone else who needs to see light in their
situation, like Abi’s dad needed to see the light in the forest?
9. Nic talks about Jesus being the
true light that shines in the darkness. What do you think of that
idea? Do you think you could carry the light of Jesus with you in
your life? If you did, could that help you do something you couldn’t
do before?
10. Did Abi’s story inspire you? In
what ways?
Online Catalogue
This is the link to our online
catalogue. All our books are there for you to browse.
Please pass the link on to schools,
teachers, youth workers, homeschoolers, people who work with Boys and
Girls Brigades, and anyone you know who might be interested in
Christian books for the children on their heart.
Feel free to browse then buy from your
local Christian bookshop – they need your support to keep going.
Where Will the Books End Up?
Every new order is exciting! You never
know where the books will end up. Will they go to a girl like Mary,
who enjoyed the story? Who will read them? Will they change lives?
These five books (below) were ordered from our
website by a lady in Chatham, Kent. May they be much used and
loved! Don’t let your young people miss out. Not every child
enjoys reading, but if you know one who does, don’t miss the
opportunity to be a blessing.
Do you have a story about a book that
touched you as a child? We’d love to hear from you. 🙂
Right, that’s all for now! May the
grace of the Lord remain with you always.
Janet
P.S. We
very much appreciate your feedback. With this in mind, what
one thing could we do to make it easier for you to buy our books?
Have you visited the Dernier Publishing facebook page? If you are looking for Christian books for the young people on your heart, we hope to inspire you with book reviews, snippets of information, news, events and special offers that may be of interest. Love to see you over there! 🙂 Check out the video of Janet Wilson talking about our latest book – A New Me (above). If there’s anything you’d like to know, please ask. We’ll try to get back to you as soon as we can. 🙂
