Thirty-Four Years Inside Seventh-day Adventist Publishing—A Retrospective – Richard Coffen
Date: October 20, 2012
Speaker: Richard Coffen
Position: Retired book editor, Review & Herald Publishing Association
Topic: Thirty-Four Years Inside Seventh-day Adventist Publishing—A Retrospective”
Venue: Chan Shun Hall
Attendance: 30
Presentation: Coffen shared reflections about the managers, GC presidents, & authors he’s worked with over 34 years from the typewriter and linotype era (1970s) to the present. His goals have been to reaffirm SDA doctrines & standards, educate & entertain readers, make authors look good, & push the frontiers of thought. He shared anecdotes & letters about authors like “Prophetess Pearl,” plagiarizing Harold Metcalf, conservative “gem” Elder Frezee, & controversies following books by Rick Rice, Alden Thompson, Charles Wittschiebe, & Helmut Ott. Some books sold well (Anvil Series) & others flopped (systematic theology), but he’s enjoyed a fulfilling career in publishing them all.
Michiana Adventist Forum 