Mike Nappa
Mike Nappa | |
|---|---|
| Born | December 10, 1963 Norman, Oklahoma |
| Occupation | Author/Editor/Literary agent |
| Genre | Non-fiction, Theology, Writing resources, Church resources, Children's literature, Christian fiction |
| Notable works | VeggieTales Super Comics, God in Slow Motion, Johnny Grav & The Visioneer, 77 Reasons Why Your Book Was Rejected |
| Website | |
| www | |
Mike Nappa is an author of more than 50 books and an entertainment journalist for the e-magazine, FamilyFans.com “Pop Culture for Parents.” Although he's published books for all ages with many different companies, he's best known for his work in children's religious publishing where he created the award-winning comic book characters, Johnny Grav & The Visioneer, and co-created the VeggieTales comic book characters, the Quitter Critter Quad Squad.
Biography
Mike Nappa started his career as a youth pastor, and then transitioned to writing church resources at Group Publishing in Colorado. He eventually joined Group as a book acquisitions editor, and remained active as an author. In 1995, Mike left Group Publishing to start his own company, Nappaland Communications Inc., which became the parent company for Nappaland Literary Agency and the long-running e-magazine, FamilyFans.com “Pop Culture for Parents." Since then he has published over 50 books which have collectively sold more than a million copies worldwide. He has also served as a fiction acquisitions editor for Barbour Publishing, as a general acquisitions editor (fiction and non-fiction) for David C. Cook publishers, and as Editor in Chief of the short-lived Destination Magazine (published by Private Escapes Luxury Destination Clubs).[1]
In 2000, Mike created the award-winning serialized comic book characters, Johnny Grav & The Visioneer, for Clubhouse kids magazine. That comic ran for three consecutive years in the magazine before being collected into a graphic novel format. In 2010 the Johnny Grav characters returned for another three-year run in Clubhouse, which included a serialized prose novel called Nightmare City that ran both in print and online, and was published in book format in 2013.
In 2015, Mike Nappa joined the VeggieTales universe as a writer for the VeggieTales Super Comics line of graphic novels and comic books created under license from Dreamworks / Big Idea Entertainment (B&H Kids). In this capacity he adapted classic VeggieTales videos into comic book format, and also co-created new Veggie characters for the original comic book story, LarryBoy and the Quitter Critter Squad.
In 2016 Mike Nappa turned to adult fiction and began publishing the Coffey & Hill Investigations series of suspense novels. Each of these novels features an Atlanta-based private detective team investigating an Edgar Allan Poe-themed mystery. The first book in Coffey & Hill is Annabel Lee, published by Revell (Baker Publishing Group).
Current Bibliography
- The Raven (Revell) 2016
- VeggieTales: LarryBoy and the Quitter Critter Quad Squad (B&H Kids / Big Idea Entertainment) 2016
- VeggieTales: Minnesota Cuke and the Search for Samson's Hairbrush (B&H Kids / Big Idea Entertainment) 2016
- VeggieTales: Where's God When I'm S-Scared? (B&H Kids / Big Idea Entertainment) 2016
- Annabel Lee (Revell) 2016
- VeggieTales Super Comics Volume 4 (B&H Kids / Big Idea Entertainment) 2015
- Johnny Grav & The Visioneer in Twilight Rising (Walking Carnival Books) 2013
- Nightmare City: Starring Johnny Grav & The Visioneer (Walking Carnival Books) 2013
- God in Slow Motion (Thomas Nelson Publishers) 2013
- Instant Family Devotions (Baker Books) 2012
- When Pigs Fly (Group Publishing) 2012
- The Jesus Survey (Baker Books) 2012
- Sky iOpeners (Group VBS) 2012
- 77 Reasons Why Your Book Was Rejected (Sourcebooks) 2011
- Instant Small Group (Baker Books) 2011
- Pogo’s Prank-a-Palooza Day (Group Publishing) 2011
- PandaMania iOpeners (Group VBS) 2011
- Hometown Nazareth iGrow Chart (Group VBS) 2011
- Interactive Illustrations (Standard Publishing) 2010
- Creative Family Prayer Times (NavPress) 2007
- Make it Stick (Group Publishing) (contributor) 2007
- Heartwarming Christmas Stories' (David C. Cook) (contributor) 2006
- The New Men’s Devotional Bible (Zondervan) (contributor) 2006
- Tuesdays with Matthew (David C. Cook) 2003
- Growing Up Fatherless (Baker Books) 2003
- Faith 4 Life: Getting Along with Others (Group Publishing) 2003
- Who Moved My Church (RiverOak Publishing) (foreword by John Maxwell) 2001
- The Prayer of Jesus (Barbour Publishing) 2001
- Zachary’s Zoo (Zonderkidz) 2000, 2007
- A Mind Like His (Barbour Publishing) 2000
- Lunch Box Promises (Standard Publishing) 2000
- Lunch Box Trivia (Standard Publishing) 2000
- Lunch Box Laughs (Standard Publishing) 2000
- True Stories of Transformed Lives (Tyndale House Publishers) 1999
- True Stories of Answered Prayers (Tyndale House Publishers) 1999
- What I Wish My Youth Leader Knew about Youth Ministry (Standard Publishing) 1999
- A Heart Like His (Barbour Publishing) 1999
- Legacy of Joy (Barbour Publishing) 1998
- The Heart of a Father (Barbour Publishing) 1998
- Imagine That (Augsburg Books) 1998
- Family Nights Tool Chest: Wisdom Life Skills (David C. Cook) 1998
- Family Nights Tool Chest: Christian Character Qualities (David C. Cook) 1998
- It’s a Sheep’s Life (Standard Publishing) 1997
- Faith Happens (Standard Publishing) 1997
- Family Nights Tool Chest: Basic Christian Beliefs (Group Publishing) 1997
- An Introduction to Family Nights (David C. Cook) 1997
- Get Real (Group Publishing) 1996
- 52 Fun Family Prayer Adventures (Augsburg Books) 1996
- Noah, Noah, What’ll We Do? (Group Publishing) 1996
- Do You See the Star? (Group Publishing) 1996
- Jesus What’s for Lunch? (Group Publishing) 1996
- Little Lamb, Where Did You Go? (Group Publishing) 1996
- Bible Hero Adventures: Old Testament (Group Publishing) (contributor) 1996
- Bible Hero Adventures: New Testament (Group Publishing) (contributor) 1996
- Bore No More! (Group Publishing) 1995
- 1996 Just-Plan It Daily Organizer (Group Publishing) 1995
- 1995-1996 Student Plan-It Calendar (Group Publishing) 1995
- 52 Fun Family Devotions (Augsburg Books) 1994
- The Youth Worker’s Encyclopedia of Bible-Teaching Ideas: Old Testament (Group Publishing) (series editor; contributor) 1994
- The Youth Worker’s Encyclopedia of Bible-Teaching Ideas: New Testament (Group Publishing) (series editor; contributor) 1994
- The Church: What am I Doing Here? (Group Publishing) 1993
- 1993-1994 Student Plan-It Calendar (Group Publishing) 1993
- Reaching Out to a Hurting World (Group Publishing) 1992
- Accepting Others (Group Publishing) 1992
- The Youth Bible (Word Publishing) 1991 (contributor)