English

Welcome to Letra Viva’s web site! If you would like to receive our occasional news bulletin in English, please contact the address below.
Letra Viva (Living Letter, in Spanish) is a network of evangelical book publishers working within the Spanish speaking countries of Latin America, seeking to produce contextualised and biblical publications. The network was formed in 1996 by a group of publishers which shared the same vision of improving the distribution, quality and impact of Christian books in Latin America.
Letra Viva is a network – in other words members participate voluntarily, in order to do together those things that would be impossible to achieve alone. As a network Letra Viva maintains a flexible structure, and is led by a co-ordinating committee chosen at biannual assemblies.

The objectives of Letra Viva are:

1. Distribution: the network aims to support the distribution of its members books, through joint action by members, and a Co-operative Fulfilment Centre.

2. Training: the network works to train the teams of member publishers through sharing of experience, international Consultations, and the production and distribution of resource material.

3. Information: the network seeks to disseminate information that is useful to its members, through a newsletter and the Web.

4. Representation: the network helps represent all its members in conferences and other events, as well as promoting the books of its member groups through promotional magazines, e-mail newsletters and the Web.

5. Pastoral: the network encourage the pastoral support of the personnel of member groups, by sharing news and providing opportunities for mutual support.

Book fulfilment center
A Continental Fulfilment Centre was established in Miami, in 2000.
Contact Gladys Amador, lvbooks@letraviva.com for further details

Local training workshops and consultancies
For publishers, editors and writers

Publications
Letra Viva produces a weekly in-house news bulletin, a web site, and occasional working manuals for editors.

John Stott Ministries/Langham Partnership International
Letra Viva collaborates with JSM/LPI in the implementation of literature programmes in Latin America, especifically aimed at centres of theological study.

Why book publishing is strategic
Books in Latin America are vital because: :

· the church in Latin America grows vigorously,

· it is moving out to reach the world for the Lord, including the 20-40 window

· as Dr Andrew Walls has documented, the ‘centre of gravity’ of the evangelical church today is in the 2/3 world

YET, the church in Latin America is still young and fragile—

· there is a great need for teaching and discipleship

· there is a need to reach those who, as yet, do not know Christ

· the church needs to tackle serious problems of the continent (violence, corruption, poverty…)

SO, the need for RELEVANT and BIBLICAL literature is tremendous. To help the church deepen, we need books by Latin Americans for Latin Americans. We need books that speak the language of the heart, and which will be distributed in every part of the continent. We need to enable pastors and leaders so they can write— and in doing so, develop their own gifts and thinking.

For all this to happen, the Christian publishers working within Latin America are crucial. They know their countries well— they target books for their own people, they develop local authors, they penetrate a ‘market’ that a publisher from outside can never do.

Yet publishing in Latin America is tough:

· most of the member groups of Letra Viva are undercapitalised

· to develop a promising but inexperienced local author takes time and effort (much easier to translate a book from abroad, but nothing like so effective)

· editors, in order to find and train local authors, have to dedicate a lot of time and effort

· there are tremendous needs in the area of training amongst these small publishers.

If you would like to know more about Letra Viva or would like to support financially, please contact the present Co-ordinator of Letra Viva:

Ian Darke,
Co-ordinator of Letra Viva
Apartado 161-1350,
San Sebastian,
COSTA RICA

Tel 506 2286 3227

E-mail: ian@letraviva.com