I am in Denver at the International Christian Retailers Show. Today AMG bought my next two coffee cup books. We settled on Ruth and Colossians. Thank God with me! I pray that God will change the lives of women and those they influence through His Word.

I have a meeting tomorrow with a publisher to pitch Surprised by Dignity. Thanks for your input and affirmation.

Do you like Christian fiction? It gets better every year. Here are the winners of the Christy Awards this year, announced Saturday night:

Contemporary stand-alone: Levi's Will by Dale Cramer (Bethany)
Contemporary series, sequel and novella: The Road to Home by Vanessa Del Fabbro (Steeple Hill)
Historical: Whence Came a Prince by Liz Curtis Higgs (WaterBrook)
Romance: A Bride Most Begrudging by Deanne Gist (Bethay)
Suspense: River Rising by Anthol Dickson (Bethany)
Visionary: Shadow over Kiriath by Karen Hancock (Bethany)
First Novel: This Heavy Silence by Nicole Mazzarella (Paraclete)

Christianity Today chose This Heavy Silence as their fiction pick of the year. They said this about it: "Nuanced characterization, finely wrought scene-setting, subtlety in addressing questions of faith, repentance, and forgiveness. Mazzarella appreciates the ways that decent, hardworking, righteous people can be tempted to go astray. Her characters are developed masterfully, and her prose style is both beautiful and precise."