Fruitbearer Publishing, L.L.C.

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“Small Seeds for a Great Harvest”

 

Introducing the Fruitbearer partners:

Candy and Drew Abbott began the company in 1999. Fruitbearer is a cooperative venture, offering professional publishing services to authors who want to retain control of their publishing venture. We are committed to transforming rough manuscripts and humble ideas into quality publications.

Book publishing is a complex process that involves: cover design, typesetting, communication with editors and proofreaders, contracts, promotional materials, printer quotes, offset or POD, etc. Tiered services can be as limited as camera-ready printing or as complex as book packaging with a marketing strategy. Let us guide you through the process step-by-step, as simply and as economically as possible.

Because God is at the helm of Fruitbearer Publishing, L.L.C., we offer an additional benefit rarely found in the publishing industry: a commitment to pray with and for our clients.

Candace F. (Candy) Abbott

Managing Partner, Biographical Sketch

Candy Abbott, author of Fruitbearer—What Can I Do For You, Lord? and president of Fruitbearer Publishing, is also a watercolor artist and calligrapher. In December 2001, she retired from Delaware Technical & Community College (where she served as Executive Secretary to the Campus Director for 28 years) to pursue writing and publishing full-time.

A speaker and Bible study leader, Candy founded and directs Delmarva Christian Writers' Fellowship and teaches creative writing. She is a graduate of the Institute of Children's Literature as well as a CLASSeminars graduate and is working on a spiritual fantasy series for middle school youth. In August 2003 she was named "Writer of the Year" at the Greater Philadelphia Christian Writers' Conference.

Candy is a contributing author to a number of books, including: Gavin Goodfellow: The Lure of Burnt Swamp, Chicken Soup for the Volunteer's Soul, Chicken Soup for the Christian Woman's Soul, Chicken Soup for the Prisoner's Soul and Heart of a Father. She has also had several magazine articles published—but a greater joy for her is being able to help beginning writers get their work in print. The motto of Fruitbearer Publishing is: "Small Seeds for a Great Harvest."

Candy is active in the Georgetown Presbyterian Church. She and her husband, Drew, live in Georgetown, Delaware. They have three children and four grandchildren.

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Sussex County’s inspirational author/speaker Candy Abbott didn’t set out to become a writer and Christian publisher. This part of her life unfolded gradually as she responded to a series of internal nudges and external opportunities during her 28 years as executive secretary at Delaware Technical & Community College. Now retired from the Owens Campus and free to pursue her second career full time, Candy is fast gaining recognition as a professional writer by her peers.

In addition to writing and publishing her own book in 1994, Fruitbearer—What Can I Do For You, Lord? A Guidebook to Fruitful Living in a Rotten Apple Society (ISBN 1-886068-003), Candy’s talent was quickly recognized by anthology editors who have included her work in several of the popular Chicken Soup books. Tom Lagana of Wilmington was instrumental in getting Candy to submit a story about Ivy Jones (also of Wilmington) entitled “Ivy’s Cookies,” which was first published in Chicken Soup for the Prisoner's Soul (ISBN 1-55874-836-9). The story has been subsequently reprinted in Chicken Soup for the Christian Woman’s Soul (ISBN 0-7573-0018-9), as well as two books by Multnoma: Stories for a Teen's Heart (ISBN 1-57673-797-7) and Stories for a Woman's Heart (ISBN 1-57673-859-0).

Her story, “No Batteries: No Survivors,” appears in Chicken Soup for the Volunteer's Soul (ISBN 0-7573-0014-6). This is an account of her son-in-law’s experience as one of the fireman on the scene at the Oak Orchard fire of January 3, 2001, fire that claimed the lives of four adults and seven children.

But Chicken Soup and Stories for a Heart aren’t the only anthology series where you will find Candy’s work. Following her mother’s death, Candy compiled a devotional booklet as a legacy for her family titled Mourning Breakers. Since then, excerpts have been reprinted in other publications. Three of them appear in My Turn to Care: Affirmations for Caregivers of Aging Parents, compiled by Marlene Bagnull and published by Ampelos Press (ISBN 0-9661305-2-9): “Like Moving to a New House;” “Tears that Trickle, Tears that Gush;” and “Together Unafraid.” A fourth, “A Couple Doses of Laughter,” was included in Laura Lagana’s book, Touched by Angels of Mercy (ISBN 1-4010-1291-4).

A touching story about Candy’s dad was accepted for The Heart of a Father, compiled by Wayne Holmes and published by Bethany House (ISBN 0-7642-2543-X). It wasn’t until after the book’s release that she realized her story, “Beulah’s Bull Calf,” would appear between renowned authors Chuck Swindoll and Corrie Ten Boom.

Candy recently used her experience as an anthology writer and publisher to launch an Advent anthology by Delmarva Christian Writers’ Fellowship. The collection of meditations, Christ is Near, Christ is Here, Very Soon Christ Will Appear (ISBN 1-886068-11-9) was released in 2002.

But Candy doesn’t limit her work to anthologies. She is now crafting a spiritual fantasy series for middle school youth. Book one of six is well underway in her novels that are designed to entertain, enlighten, and equip young people regarding spiritual traps and truths.

Beyond writing, Candy spends her time as a speaker, Bible study leader, founder of Delmarva Christian Writers' Fellowship, Sunday school teacher, choir member, workshop leader, and grandmother of four. She and her husband Drew own Fruitbearer Publishing, an independent publishing service designed to help writers publish their inspirational projects. Candy can be reached at P.O. Box 777, Georgetown, DE 19947, 302-856-6649, or by email.