Abundance Books Accepted into ECPA Following a Milestone Season
Abundance Books has been unanimously approved as a Small Press member of the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association (ECPA), marking an important step for the young independent publishing company.
The news comes during an already memorable season for Abundance Books. Earlier this month, its titles received ten honors in the 2026 Golden Scroll Awards and Christian Market Book Awards, including three first-place awards.
Together, the milestones reflect both the growth of Abundance Books and the work of the authors whose books have helped build its expanding catalog.
A Meaningful Industry Milestone
ECPA is the trade association of Christian publishing, serving publishers and industry partners through education, networking, advocacy, industry information, and professional development.
Unlike organizations in which membership is simply a matter of joining and paying dues, ECPA has eligibility requirements and an application and approval process. President Jeff Crosby notified Abundance Books founder, co-owner, and editor-in-chief Teresa Janzen that ECPA’s board of directors had unanimously affirmed the company as a new Small Press member.
“For a young company like ours, this is a meaningful milestone,” Janzen said. “We have worked hard to build Abundance Books with strong publishing standards while continuing to learn and adapt. Being accepted into ECPA gives us an opportunity to become more deeply involved in the industry, learn from other publishing professionals, and contribute to those conversations.”
The timing is particularly significant as the publishing industry continues to change. Consolidation, new technologies, shifting distribution models, and changing reader habits are reshaping how books are developed, published, marketed, and discovered.
For a young independent publisher, those changes bring challenges, but they also create opportunities.
“The publishing industry we entered is not the publishing industry of ten or even five years ago,” Janzen said. “We work hard to understand where publishing is going and stay ahead of the curve while holding firmly to the things that shouldn’t change: excellent content, professional standards, strong relationships, and respect for the reader.”
Creating Opportunities for Fresh Voices
One priority has remained consistent as Abundance Books has grown: creating opportunities for new and emerging authors.
Large platforms and established publishing histories can open doors for authors, but they are not the only indicators of a book’s potential. Abundance Books also looks for strong ideas, compelling stories, distinctive perspectives, and authors willing to do the work necessary to develop them well.
“We need fresh voices in today’s culture,” said Jenn Dafoe-Turner, co-owner and chief acquisitions and learning officer at Abundance Books. “There are writers with important ideas, experiences, stories, and perspectives who may not yet have a large platform or an established publishing history. Part of our role is recognizing that potential and helping authors develop it into excellent books.”
Several of those books were recognized this month in the Golden Scroll Awards and Christian Market Book Awards. Abundance Books titles received ten honors across children’s literature, education, historical fiction, and other categories.
Three titles received first-place honors: Lisa M. Pritchard’s Dirt Dog Invites Prissy Poodle to the Prom was named Golden Scroll Children’s Book of the Year; Lora Avery’s The Biggest WHY received Christian Market Children’s Picture Book of the Year; and Peg Arnold’s Making Your Message Memorable received Christian Market Education Book of the Year.
Read the complete story and see all ten award-winning titles and honors.
Looking Ahead
ECPA membership will give Abundance Books additional opportunities for industry education, professional development, and relationships with others working throughout Christian publishing.
One of the first will come in November, when Abundance Books participates in PubU, ECPA’s annual publishing university in Nashville. The event brings publishing professionals together for education in editorial, design, marketing, production and operations, sales, and other areas of the industry.
For Abundance Books, the ECPA acceptance is an occasion to celebrate, but it is also an opportunity to keep learning.
“We’re proud of how far Abundance Books and our authors have come in a relatively short time,” Janzen said. “But we’re still building. ECPA membership gives us another opportunity to learn, develop stronger industry relationships, and continue improving the way we serve our authors and readers.”
Coming on the heels of ten book awards, ECPA membership makes this a particularly memorable season for Abundance Books—and an encouraging beginning to the company’s next chapter.
