Julie Gumm - Author

Winning A Christian Retailing Best Award

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Back in April my publisher, Abingdon Press, sent me an email letting me know that “You Can Adopt Without Debt” was a finalist in the Christian Retailing Best Awards in the relationships category.

What a huge honor! Especially considering the company on the finalist list includes Matt Chandler who has written almost a dozen books.

This morning they announced the results at the annual International Christian Retail Show. Thankfully someone was live tweeting the announcement.

CRB Awards

I was blown away…and yelled really loud…while in the office at work 🙂

The award will give the book another PR push, especially in front of a ton of retailers who are at the show this week. And that means getting it in the hands of more adoptive families and bringing them hope! Yay!

The list of all the winners.

“You Can Adopt Without Debt” – New book NOW AVAILABLE!

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NowAvailableIt’s launch day! Approximately 2.5 years in the making, I’m beyond thrilled to have “You Can Adopt Without Debt: Creative Ways to Cover the Cost of Adoption” finally available!!

The book was written with one goal in mind – to equip families wanting to adopt with the tools and ideas to make their dream come true and do it without going into debt. Unlike my previous book,” You Can Adopt Without Debt” is designed to even help someone just beginning to think about adoption. It explores the different kinds of adoptions, gives pros and cons to each, guides you through choosing an agency, what to expect during the process and the wide range of costs.

Then, of course, it delves into the nitty gritty of paying for adoption should you choose private domestic or international adoption. (Adoption from the foster care system is generally free or VERY inexpensive.)

It’s filled with tons of practical fundraising and income-producing ideas with varying levels of time commitment and return. (Don’t let the word “fundraising” scare you off – you don’t necessarily need to flat out ask for donations as you’ll see.)

(A Table of Contents is at the end of the post so you can see all the information we crammed in!)

SPREAD THE WORD: I would love it if you would help spread the word about the book! I’m giving away 3 signed copies and there are lots of ways to enter at the bottom of the post!!

BOOK HUNT: Of course the book is available at all the major online retailers BUT I’m wondering where else it’s going to be. The first person to find it in a brick ‘n mortar store and take a selfie in front of shelf it’s on wins a special awesome prize from me. (Email pic to julieATjuliegummDOTcom.)

AVAILABLE AT MAJOR RETAILERS

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Christian Book | Cokesbury

 

Table of Contents (*completely new chapters)

Introduction

  1. The Adoption Adventure*
  2. Our Story
  3. What Type of Adoption Is Right for You?*
  4. Choosing an Agency or Attorney*
  5. What to Expect in the Process*
  6. Considering the Cost*
  7. The Debt-Free Approach*
  8. Adoption Debt: Wrong or Right?*
  9. It Starts with Sacrifice
  10. Adoption Grants
  11. Employer Benefits*
  12. Sacrifices and Second Incomes
  13. Fund-Raising
  14. Event Fund-Raisers
  15. Sales-Driven Fund-Raisers
  16. Social Media Fund-Raising*
  17. Debt-Free Adoption Is Possible*
  18. Adoption Tax Credit*
  19. Giving Back*
  20. Our Journey to Ethiopia

Appendix
Notes

a Rafflecopter giveaway

What’s new in the new version of “Adopt Without Debt”

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NewBook080814PinNow that the new book is listed on several retail book sites (see links below) I’ve had a few people ask me what the difference is between the two books. So here’s the low down…
  • The first book was self-published in May 2011 and was approximately 25,000 words (152 pages)
  • The first book is out of print and only available from used book sellers who are charging an exorbitant amount of money. Please don’t go into debt to buy the book 🙂
  • The first book told our story and focused only on how to pay for adoption.
  • The new book is being released by a “real” publisher – Abingdon Press. (January 6, 2015)
  • The new book title is slightly different because the old version can never really “go away” from Amazon. It is now titled “You Can Adopt Without Debt: Creative Ways to Cover the Cost of Adoption”
  • Abingdon wanted the book to be a “all-encompassing” adoption book that someone at the “I’m thinking about adopting” stage could pick up and it would cover A-Z
  • So, the new book is over 65,000 words (approx. 225 pages)
  • It includes 5 new chapters in the beginning that cover the different types of adoption, pros and cons of each, overview of the process and steps of each, etc. There are a couple new chapters in the last half of the book as well.
  • Tons of new fundraising ideas and stories of other families who’ve adopted debt-free.
  • Information on the adoption tax credit.
  • …and lots more.

Available at these retailers:
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Christian Book