There have been several discussions at the Lost Genre Guild, on Shoutlife, on blogs, and in email about the limitations of Christian fiction published by the Evangelical Christian Publishing houses and sold by the CBA. Writers of sci-fi and fantasy, in particular, have been left out in the cold unless they've written, or are willing to write, within the guidelines of what is acceptable to the CBA. Now, we have found that many publishers are more than reluctant to let you know exactly what their guidelines are, and in fact, some even go so far as to say that they've no guidelines. However, I believe that the proof is in the pudding -- pick up one of these books and see for yourself.
Again and again, I refer back to a comprehensive essay written by Simon Morden. Do check it out sometime -- it is well worth the ten minutes it takes to read and days to ponder.
These excerpts are from a speech given at Greenbelt Arts Festival (2005), by Morden. In "Sex, Death and Christian Fiction" Morden laments the lack of artistry and craft allowed in fiction sold via the niche market of Christian fiction. He is careful to point out at the beginning that his references to the Christian publishing industry are strictly about the ECPA and CBA.
Introduction
"Christian writers, for the past 20-30 years, have been sold a lie: that there is one way to write, one message we need to communicate, that we’re only here for one reason. It’s led to the ghettoisation of Christian writers and a subsequent lack of artistic integrity and craft. We need to think very seriously both about how we got here and which direction we need to take next."
---------------
The publisher and the bookseller are no longer filters for artistic or commercial concerns. They become controllers of the content of the story. They are the gatekeepers, and their criteria for publication dictates what shall pass.
We, the writers, are faced with the proposition that if we do not write to their criteria, there is no chance of publication – no matter how good our writing is. We could send them the Chronicles of Narnia, and have it rejected on the grounds of smoking, drinking, violence and a nasty outbreak of Universalism in The Last Battle. We could send them Lord of the Rings and have it rejected on the grounds of – again, smoking, drinking and violence, the fact that God doesn’t get a mention and no one gets saved in the third act.
--------
The word dangerous isn’t often associated with Christian writers or for that matter, Christian readers. It’s certainly not a word associated with CBA fiction. One of the reasons that CBA fiction exists is that it is a safe alternative to secular fiction. I should be able to read it without being tempted or scandalised. It is fiction which is pitched at adult audiences, but that my kids should be able to read. It is a place where Christian readers can escape to where they have nothing to fear and know before they start that everything will be all right in the end.
CBA authors and editors censor fiction not just because of its potential to offend, but because it offers vicarious experiences that may be seen as sinful. If we believe that sin occurs in the mind as well as in behaviour, any vicarious experience we read about might give rise to sinful feelings or thoughts. If I write a sex scene, which might be entirely necessary to the story, I have to find a way to write it that does not encourage lustful thoughts. A description of a murder must not encourage murderous thoughts, and so on.
There’s a problem here. A hallmark of good writing is that it changes the way people feel. Writers are supposed to offer vicarious experiences, the more intense the better. A book which does not engage a reader’s emotions is dull and lifeless. I don’t want to write a book like that anymore than I want to read one. And yet, CBA fiction censors the vicarious experience, quite deliberately.
-----------
The sum total of the effects that I’ve been outlining is to foster conditions where it is very difficult -- not impossible, but very difficult -- to write good fiction. The quality of prose is not the primary concern of the CBA. I’m not arguing that it isn’t a concern, just that it isn’t their first concern.
As a reader or a novelist, does anything Morden wrote jump out at you? At the Lost Genre Guild, many novelists have resigned themselves to finding Christian publishers outside of this group -- but only after a history of turndowns and rejections, then lamentations and valiant statements about changing the so-called CBA guidelines.
Morden ends his essay/ speech with this thought:
As authors, there’s very little we can do to influence the CBA. Pressure to change has to come from within the industry itself. I am aware of tensions beginning to build, but this is very much the hand on the tiller of a supertanker. It might turn, or not at all. Waiting for it to do so is a fools’ errand. But there’s plenty we can do to influence ourselves for the better.
--Simon Morden is the author of "Heart", "Another War" and the forthcoming "The Lost Art", as well as the short story collections "Thy Kingdom Come" and "Brilliant Things". He is editor of the British Science Fiction Association’s writers’ magazine, "Focus", and is a judge for the 2006 Arthur C Clarke Awards.
Showing posts with label christian fiction. Show all posts
Showing posts with label christian fiction. Show all posts
2/04/2008
Christian Fiction Blog Tours -- yikes!
Yes, I know it isn't my day to blog but I promise this will be a short one.
To follow up on the article written about the Christian fiction industry, an article has just been posted at Associated Content about Christian blog tours that I think is just as interesting.
Off and on the LGG list, people have discussed fiction blog tours over the past year. Something Sue Dent and I discovered is that the big tour: Christian Fiction Blog Alliance (CFBA) is exclusive to books published by the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association (and their affliation with the Christian Booksellers Association).
I was shocked to hear this . . . to hear that yet another organization was exclusive and refuses to acknowledge the quality of fiction published by small, mid-line and large independent Christian publishers as well as Christian fiction published by mainstream publishers.
For a long time, the CFBA kept its cards close to its vest. After all, they toured Never Ceese just over a year ago—a grand novel, yes, but one published by a Christian company not affliated with the ECPA or CBA.
I had my suspicions when I asked Bonnie Calhoun if she would tour Flashpoint and Forever Richard but tried anyway. It wasn't until later, in communication with Sue Dent, that the CFBA administrator said "CBA" only, that they received too many books and needed to draw the line somewhere . . . and that independent, self published, POD publications are usually inferior.
After this point, a note was posted at the bottom of the home page.
Interestingly, a couple of CFBA blog members argued the point in a previous blog . . . they said that there was no way that the blog tour was exclusive. Even their own members aren't/ weren't aware of this.
Because of this we researched the other blog tours to see what stipulations they had and this is the crux of the article.
If anyone has additional information about other blog tours (not review sites) . . . please let us know.
So, go and check out Frank Creed's articles! at Associated Content
To follow up on the article written about the Christian fiction industry, an article has just been posted at Associated Content about Christian blog tours that I think is just as interesting.
Off and on the LGG list, people have discussed fiction blog tours over the past year. Something Sue Dent and I discovered is that the big tour: Christian Fiction Blog Alliance (CFBA) is exclusive to books published by the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association (and their affliation with the Christian Booksellers Association).
I was shocked to hear this . . . to hear that yet another organization was exclusive and refuses to acknowledge the quality of fiction published by small, mid-line and large independent Christian publishers as well as Christian fiction published by mainstream publishers.
For a long time, the CFBA kept its cards close to its vest. After all, they toured Never Ceese just over a year ago—a grand novel, yes, but one published by a Christian company not affliated with the ECPA or CBA.
I had my suspicions when I asked Bonnie Calhoun if she would tour Flashpoint and Forever Richard but tried anyway. It wasn't until later, in communication with Sue Dent, that the CFBA administrator said "CBA" only, that they received too many books and needed to draw the line somewhere . . . and that independent, self published, POD publications are usually inferior.
After this point, a note was posted at the bottom of the home page.
Interestingly, a couple of CFBA blog members argued the point in a previous blog . . . they said that there was no way that the blog tour was exclusive. Even their own members aren't/ weren't aware of this.
Because of this we researched the other blog tours to see what stipulations they had and this is the crux of the article.
If anyone has additional information about other blog tours (not review sites) . . . please let us know.
So, go and check out Frank Creed's articles! at Associated Content
11/10/2007
The Quality of Surprise
What makes a book so impressionable that one would read it over and over again? As I plow through writing my sixth novel, I am starting to understand and agree with what C. S. Lewis wrote (On Stories and Other Essays of Literature, PP. 12-17) on the topic. We probably all have favorite books on our shelves. I have boxes of these gems in my storage unit, and have tried on occasion to give them away or donate them to the library book sale. The effort pained me, like turning traitor on a friend. How many of those books have I ever re-read? Some, few.
Lewis says, 'A good test for every reader of every kind of book is asking whether he often re-reads the same story.' He ponders why someone would re-read a story if he already knows what will happen. Just what compels him, since he can't be curious and excited by the suspense of not knowing the hero's outcome, or the resolution of a conflict? He claims it is due to "a sort of poetry."
"The re-reader is looking not for actual surprises, but for a certain surprisingness. The point has often been misunderstood . . . . In the only sense that matters, the surprise works as well the twentieth time as the first. It is the quality of unexpectedness, not the fact that delights us. It is even better the second time . . . . we are at leisure to savour the real beauties. Till then, it is like wasting great wine on a ravenous natural thirst which merely wants cold wetness. The children understand this well when they ask for the same story over and over again, and in the same words. They want to have the surprise of discovering that what seemed Little Red Riding Hood's grandmother is really the wolf. It is better when you know it is coming: free from the shock of actual surprise you can attend better to the intrinsic surprisingness of the peripeteia." (sudden change or reversal of fortune--yes, I had to look that up!)
Ah, I like this: "The plot--as we call it--is only really a net whereby to catch something else." Well, what it that something else we strive to create in our stories, to make them memorable and re-read by loyal readers? Lewis says, "The real theme may be, and perhaps usually is, something that has no sequence in it, something other than a process and much more like a state or quality. Giantship, otherness, the desolation of space, are examples that have crossed our path . . . . this internal tension in the heart of every story between theme and plot constitutes, after all, its chief semblance to life." Lewis concludes that we should be trying to catch in our net of successive moments [plot] something that is not successive, some bird of quality or essence that will linger and hopefully move the reader on a deep level. That is what makes us re-read books.
One of the complaints I often hear from editors regarding science fiction and fantasy is that the writer spends time creating an alternate world, drumming up bizarre unpronounceable names for characters and locale, and spinning wild stories that she (the editor) cannot relate to. Lewis remarks that the setting matters little. You can have the same dangers--cold, hunger, hardship--in your backyard as you can on the moon. It is so tempting for us to get lost in these worlds we create and forget that what the reader is looking for goes beyond that created world and that exciting plot.
Our challenge as Christian writers of fantasy is to present that quality or essence, weave it through the story, touch some human nerve, stir up a need. For me, it is the need for God, for truth, that I try to stir up without naming it. A longing, a hunger, a thirst for the only source that can satisfy. This is our challenge and our joy--to write, not just for fun, but to be used in a special, clandestine way, sent on a secret mission with a message of great hope and joy. And when you think about it--this message of the good news of never-ending, glorious life is like an outrageous, unbelievable tale. But like Lewis said, the difference is that it is a true myth. How great is that?
Lewis says, 'A good test for every reader of every kind of book is asking whether he often re-reads the same story.' He ponders why someone would re-read a story if he already knows what will happen. Just what compels him, since he can't be curious and excited by the suspense of not knowing the hero's outcome, or the resolution of a conflict? He claims it is due to "a sort of poetry."
"The re-reader is looking not for actual surprises, but for a certain surprisingness. The point has often been misunderstood . . . . In the only sense that matters, the surprise works as well the twentieth time as the first. It is the quality of unexpectedness, not the fact that delights us. It is even better the second time . . . . we are at leisure to savour the real beauties. Till then, it is like wasting great wine on a ravenous natural thirst which merely wants cold wetness. The children understand this well when they ask for the same story over and over again, and in the same words. They want to have the surprise of discovering that what seemed Little Red Riding Hood's grandmother is really the wolf. It is better when you know it is coming: free from the shock of actual surprise you can attend better to the intrinsic surprisingness of the peripeteia." (sudden change or reversal of fortune--yes, I had to look that up!)
Ah, I like this: "The plot--as we call it--is only really a net whereby to catch something else." Well, what it that something else we strive to create in our stories, to make them memorable and re-read by loyal readers? Lewis says, "The real theme may be, and perhaps usually is, something that has no sequence in it, something other than a process and much more like a state or quality. Giantship, otherness, the desolation of space, are examples that have crossed our path . . . . this internal tension in the heart of every story between theme and plot constitutes, after all, its chief semblance to life." Lewis concludes that we should be trying to catch in our net of successive moments [plot] something that is not successive, some bird of quality or essence that will linger and hopefully move the reader on a deep level. That is what makes us re-read books.
One of the complaints I often hear from editors regarding science fiction and fantasy is that the writer spends time creating an alternate world, drumming up bizarre unpronounceable names for characters and locale, and spinning wild stories that she (the editor) cannot relate to. Lewis remarks that the setting matters little. You can have the same dangers--cold, hunger, hardship--in your backyard as you can on the moon. It is so tempting for us to get lost in these worlds we create and forget that what the reader is looking for goes beyond that created world and that exciting plot.
Our challenge as Christian writers of fantasy is to present that quality or essence, weave it through the story, touch some human nerve, stir up a need. For me, it is the need for God, for truth, that I try to stir up without naming it. A longing, a hunger, a thirst for the only source that can satisfy. This is our challenge and our joy--to write, not just for fun, but to be used in a special, clandestine way, sent on a secret mission with a message of great hope and joy. And when you think about it--this message of the good news of never-ending, glorious life is like an outrageous, unbelievable tale. But like Lewis said, the difference is that it is a true myth. How great is that?
10/25/2007
Day 3 of the Flashpoint Tour
Final day of the virtual book tour for Frank Creed's FLASHPOINT: Book One of the UNDERGROUND is upon us and it has been a fun ride. I've read some pretty impressive posts from readers of Flashpoint, and today is no exception. As usual, I have listed the day's highlights (and there are links attached to each; just run your cursor over each highlight to find the link).
Below the highlights, a fun Frank Creed video (editing is purposely cheesy).
Highlights:
"Flashpoint: Action Heroes without a License to Kill," is the name of Terri Main's article at Wayfarer's Journal.
Murray T. Alchemist is at it again at Back to the Mountains with the latest installment: Stopping a Goliath Part II.
"Frank Creed is one of my favorite people. He has a heart for God and is, in my opinion, one of a new generation of spiritual warriors," writes MaryLu Tundall at her blog Cross and Cutlass. MaryLu's post today is all about Frank: his bio, which is fascinating in itself.
Cathi Hassan and Frank Creed have had many conversations over the past couple of months about writing Flashpoint. Her blog post yesterday was a compilation of all of these creatively packaged as an interview. I even learned from reading it!
And, then today at Cathi's Chatter, another post: "Meet Legacy." Here we read Chapter 2 of Flashpoint where Legacy, almost everyone's favorite character, makes his entrance.
Timothy Hicks has three great posts at Fantasy Thyme. His last discussion about Flashpoint gives insight into the novel's strengths.
Christine Deanne has posted the interview she did with Frank Creed at Write and Whine.
Remember, comment on any of the participating blogs on tour and your name will be entered for a prize--plus, I encourage you to show each blogger appreciation for their work!
Some more links to check out:
a. Reviews
Stephen Rice's review of Flashpoint: Book One of the UNDERGROUND, "Crouching Matrix, Hidden Christians."
Queen of Convolution
Hoshi to Sakura
Daniel I Weaver
Disturbing Reviews
Grace Bridges
Virtual Tour de 'Net
Christian Fiction Review Blog
Yellow30 Sci-Fi
The Sword Review
Teen Life
Karri Compton
More reviews at Frank Creed's website and at Amazon
b. Interviews
Wayfarer's Journal
Joseph Ficor
"The Farthest Frontiers"
Yellow30 Sci-Fi
Fantasy Thyme
The Stiltskins
Write and Whine
And, here is a video for your viewing pleasure . . .
Below the highlights, a fun Frank Creed video (editing is purposely cheesy).
Highlights:
"Flashpoint: Action Heroes without a License to Kill," is the name of Terri Main's article at Wayfarer's Journal.
Murray T. Alchemist is at it again at Back to the Mountains with the latest installment: Stopping a Goliath Part II.
"Frank Creed is one of my favorite people. He has a heart for God and is, in my opinion, one of a new generation of spiritual warriors," writes MaryLu Tundall at her blog Cross and Cutlass. MaryLu's post today is all about Frank: his bio, which is fascinating in itself.
Cathi Hassan and Frank Creed have had many conversations over the past couple of months about writing Flashpoint. Her blog post yesterday was a compilation of all of these creatively packaged as an interview. I even learned from reading it!
And, then today at Cathi's Chatter, another post: "Meet Legacy." Here we read Chapter 2 of Flashpoint where Legacy, almost everyone's favorite character, makes his entrance.
Timothy Hicks has three great posts at Fantasy Thyme. His last discussion about Flashpoint gives insight into the novel's strengths.
Christine Deanne has posted the interview she did with Frank Creed at Write and Whine.
Remember, comment on any of the participating blogs on tour and your name will be entered for a prize--plus, I encourage you to show each blogger appreciation for their work!
Some more links to check out:
a. Reviews
Stephen Rice's review of Flashpoint: Book One of the UNDERGROUND, "Crouching Matrix, Hidden Christians."
Queen of Convolution
Hoshi to Sakura
Daniel I Weaver
Disturbing Reviews
Grace Bridges
Virtual Tour de 'Net
Christian Fiction Review Blog
Yellow30 Sci-Fi
The Sword Review
Teen Life
Karri Compton
More reviews at Frank Creed's website and at Amazon
b. Interviews
Wayfarer's Journal
Joseph Ficor
"The Farthest Frontiers"
Yellow30 Sci-Fi
Fantasy Thyme
The Stiltskins
Write and Whine
And, here is a video for your viewing pleasure . . .
10/22/2007
Flashpoint Virtual Book Tour Day 1
It's time to begin Frank Creed's FLASHPOINT: Book One of the UNDERGROUND virtual book tour! and over the course of the tour there are a LOT of things to show you: reviews, blurbs, book trailers, interviews and some really fun posts by some super creative minds!
We even have a prize package for the winner of the Flashpoint tour drawing! How to win it? Simply leave a comment on one or more of the participating blogs . . . or leave one here telling about your favourite blog post!
<----- oops, wrong prize - -
This is the prize ---------------------->
OK, it may arrive in different wrapping
Meanwhile, here are some highlights to check out:
Hoshi to Sakura Interview with Frank
Back to the Mountains Some craziness only Steve Rice is capable of: here he has a real surprise! but make sure you read the conversation carefully . . .
Fantasy Thyme Tim at Thyme got a head start and has already made a couple of posts! including yet another interview with Frank.
Cathi's Chatter Cathi is a one-person cheerleading squad who has sent the Dallas Cowgirls back to training camp. Oh yes she has a review posted, plus some hip hip hooray stuff for y'all.
Back to the Mountains II Yup, Mr. Rice is at it again! with the "Genuine Fake Interview" --again, read very carefully . . . . . . . . . . did you get it? This is cool stuff.
MaryLu Tyndall one of Frank's all-time favourite authors joins the tour with some good info on Flashpoint
Over the course of this tour: Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday check out these blogs to see what is happenin'
jamessomers.blogspot.com
Write and Whine
Wayfarer's Journal
BlogCritics Interview
Daniel I Weaver
Disturbing the Universe
9/06/2007
Tell the Story!
When I first started writing in college, I sent a story to Marion Zimmer Bradley's Fantasy Magazine. I got back a personal rejection letter. Not realizing how rare those were, I've since lost it, but I do remember one line, a piece of advice she said she received as a novice writer that she now passed on to me:
Stop showing me how good you can write and tell me a story!
As writers of Christian fiction, we need to keep in mind the corollary to that:
Stop showing folks how good a Christian you (or your characters) are and tell a story!
Tonight on FabChat, I interviewed publisher Lida Quillen of Twilight Times Books. Twilight Times is a growing publishing company, which moved from eBooks to print in 2004 and has about 50 titles to claim, many of which are award winners and some of which are in national bookstore shelves. Several of her titles, like Infinite Space, Infinite God, are Catholic and Christian in nature. I asked her if religious content influences her in any way.
"I'm looking for a great story," she insisted. Not a great message. Lot a life changer. A great story.
Certainly, there are niches for message works--but if you want to write spec fic, you find a way to make the story demonstrate the message, not fit a story into your message. Genre fiction has with it certain expectations: fantasy had better have an adventure and elements of the fantastic--whether magic or fairy creatures or stepping into a make-believe world. Sci-Fi had better have some internally consistent and legitimized science. (Has anyone read some of the early "Christian SF" novels which read like Pilgrim's Progress with a spaceship or dismiss science as inherently evil when it's all that's keeping them from the vacuum of space? No wonder it's a hard sell now.) Horror better, as Daniel Weaver puts it, scare the Jesus into you.
And no matter what, you'd better have a character who feels conflict, doubts, grows and eventually meets his challenges in a "realistic" and meaningful way. To suddenly have all their troubles solved--or have their ability miraculously empowered, simply because they "accept Jesus as their personal savior" is as much a cheat as having the Good Witch Glenda send Dorothy home at the start of the book. Faith gives us strength for the struggle; it doesn't remove it. Not in real life. Not in a well-crafted story.
As one writer put it, the only difference between secular fiction and Christian fiction should be that when evil is done, the protagonist doesn't rejoice--and neither should the reader.
The really incredible thing, however, is that if you do write a really incredible story, the message will come through more powerfully than if you concentrate on message first and story second. We've seen that with Infinite Space, Infinite God. When Rob (my husband) and I solicited stories for ISIG, we wanted stories that entertained first, made you think, second; and showed the Catholic faith in its complexities but with a positive light, third. As a result, not only was it picked up by a secular publisher like Twilight Times, but it won the 2007 EPPIE award for best electronically published sci-fi. Not religious or Christian. Just sci-fi. But even better are the reviews it's getting. Even readers who are not Catholic say they are enthralled by the book. I've been told it should be required reading for teens because of the issues covered in many of the stories. One reviewer called it a terrifying and invigorating read. Some have been led to reconsider what they thought they knew about Catholicism; others are considering anew the moral issues of progresses like genetic engineering.
We're seeing a gentle upsurge in "Christian" spec fic--or should I say spec fic with Christian values? If we are to build this gentle upsurge into a tidal wave that sweeps our readership, we need to keep in mind what spec fic readers want. They can get "message" on Sundays or from their Bible or from any number of non-fiction testimonials. When they come to spec fic, they are looking for story.
So stop showing them what a great Christian you (or your characters are) and tell them the story! Do it right, and they'll get the message.
Stop showing me how good you can write and tell me a story!
As writers of Christian fiction, we need to keep in mind the corollary to that:
Stop showing folks how good a Christian you (or your characters) are and tell a story!
Tonight on FabChat, I interviewed publisher Lida Quillen of Twilight Times Books. Twilight Times is a growing publishing company, which moved from eBooks to print in 2004 and has about 50 titles to claim, many of which are award winners and some of which are in national bookstore shelves. Several of her titles, like Infinite Space, Infinite God, are Catholic and Christian in nature. I asked her if religious content influences her in any way.
"I'm looking for a great story," she insisted. Not a great message. Lot a life changer. A great story.
Certainly, there are niches for message works--but if you want to write spec fic, you find a way to make the story demonstrate the message, not fit a story into your message. Genre fiction has with it certain expectations: fantasy had better have an adventure and elements of the fantastic--whether magic or fairy creatures or stepping into a make-believe world. Sci-Fi had better have some internally consistent and legitimized science. (Has anyone read some of the early "Christian SF" novels which read like Pilgrim's Progress with a spaceship or dismiss science as inherently evil when it's all that's keeping them from the vacuum of space? No wonder it's a hard sell now.) Horror better, as Daniel Weaver puts it, scare the Jesus into you.
And no matter what, you'd better have a character who feels conflict, doubts, grows and eventually meets his challenges in a "realistic" and meaningful way. To suddenly have all their troubles solved--or have their ability miraculously empowered, simply because they "accept Jesus as their personal savior" is as much a cheat as having the Good Witch Glenda send Dorothy home at the start of the book. Faith gives us strength for the struggle; it doesn't remove it. Not in real life. Not in a well-crafted story.
As one writer put it, the only difference between secular fiction and Christian fiction should be that when evil is done, the protagonist doesn't rejoice--and neither should the reader.
The really incredible thing, however, is that if you do write a really incredible story, the message will come through more powerfully than if you concentrate on message first and story second. We've seen that with Infinite Space, Infinite God. When Rob (my husband) and I solicited stories for ISIG, we wanted stories that entertained first, made you think, second; and showed the Catholic faith in its complexities but with a positive light, third. As a result, not only was it picked up by a secular publisher like Twilight Times, but it won the 2007 EPPIE award for best electronically published sci-fi. Not religious or Christian. Just sci-fi. But even better are the reviews it's getting. Even readers who are not Catholic say they are enthralled by the book. I've been told it should be required reading for teens because of the issues covered in many of the stories. One reviewer called it a terrifying and invigorating read. Some have been led to reconsider what they thought they knew about Catholicism; others are considering anew the moral issues of progresses like genetic engineering.
We're seeing a gentle upsurge in "Christian" spec fic--or should I say spec fic with Christian values? If we are to build this gentle upsurge into a tidal wave that sweeps our readership, we need to keep in mind what spec fic readers want. They can get "message" on Sundays or from their Bible or from any number of non-fiction testimonials. When they come to spec fic, they are looking for story.
So stop showing them what a great Christian you (or your characters are) and tell them the story! Do it right, and they'll get the message.
8/31/2007
Name that Christian SF Title!
Current Christian speculative fiction: how many 2007 titles can you name? Did you ever wonder what new SF has hit or about to hit the market? There are certainly lists of Christian spec fiction around. Jeff Gerke at Where the Map Ends has a great annotated list of titles and earlier this year, the folks at Spec Faith and A Christian Worldview of Fiction compiled a list of the 2006 titles they could recall. But what about a current listing of new fiction?
Johne Cook said earlier this week, "It would be cool if there was a clearinghouse of the latest new fiction in a database, sortable by date, author, genre, etc. As it is, if I don't see it in front of me, I lose sight of what I was waiting for."
The Lost Genre Guild is going to take on this little job and develop a database of the latest in Christian SF, beginning with 2007 titles. But, we need your help! Please list any 2007 Christian SF titles, preferably with date of release, publisher, and short synopsis!
Johne Cook said earlier this week, "It would be cool if there was a clearinghouse of the latest new fiction in a database, sortable by date, author, genre, etc. As it is, if I don't see it in front of me, I lose sight of what I was waiting for."
The Lost Genre Guild is going to take on this little job and develop a database of the latest in Christian SF, beginning with 2007 titles. But, we need your help! Please list any 2007 Christian SF titles, preferably with date of release, publisher, and short synopsis!
8/16/2007
ISIG Virtual Tour
Like any Christian Science Fiction, the idea of Catholic SF seems to be a contradiction in terms—perhaps more so given the infamous stands the Catholic Church has taken against against scientific theory all those centuries ago. But, Galileo's trial is ancient history and for the last 1000 years, Catholic scientists (including priest, monks and even some saints) have received encouragement and support from the church. It is no wonder, then, that writers have become fascinated with the concept of how the Catholic church will meet the challenges of the future—and SF is just the vehicle for this.
This 2007 EPPIE award-winning anthology includes SF concepts from time travel to transporter technology, genetic engineering to alien abduction, interstellarcolonization and uncontrolled inter-city violence told from a Catholic world view. All of the ISIG short stories are well-crafted and entertaining—the latter a real surprise for me considering that I do not number among the millions of sci-fi fans in this world. The range of intensity in this volume kept me reading because I couldn't predict what I'd discover when I turned another page.We see the teenager Frankie off to evangelize to alien beings; we sit with Saint Francis of Assisi as he ministers to the needs of a mannaro; we make the pilgrimmage alongside an IRA 'terrorist' as he makes his way through the stations to enlightment. The three described above: "Interstellar Calling," "Canticle of the Wolf," and "A Cruel and Unusual Punishment" were my favourites.
And one more thing, it is pretty darn refreshing to read good fiction that does not haul out the fictional stereotypes of predatory priests or knuckle-rapping nuns.
I thoroughly enjoyed all of the stories included in Infinite Space Infinite God and liked the fact that they forced me to ponder and question. In fact, I became so interested in the spiritual background of the stories that Karina agreed to give me a tutorial on some preconceived notions I had about Catholicism.
Check out all the stops on Infinite Space Infinite God's Virtual Book Tour all August long! There will be a plethora of reviews, interviews and information all over the web.
Also, each day in August, check out http://www.fabianspace.com/ for personal insights into the writers, fun stories and a contest to win a free book.
7/04/2007
True Light by Terri Blackstock
The Christian Fiction Review Blog is featuring True Light in the July book tour.
True Light is the third book in the Restoration Series. Previously published are Last Light and Night Light. A crisis strikes the entire globe and the devestating effects are seen through the eyes of one community. True Light continues to explore the technological dependence of our world and the disparate reactions and desperate actions of the citizenry.
Eight months into a global blackout, the residents of Oak Hollow are coping with the deep winter nights. But the struggle to survive can bring out the worst in a person—or a community.A teenager has been shot and the suspect sits in jail. As the son of a convicted murderer, Mark Green already has one strike against him. Now he faces the wrath of all Oak Hollow. But the Branning family stands with him as he fights to survive—and forgive.
You can download a chapter of True Light and read a sample for yourself.
The author, Terri Blackstock, is a prolific writer with over thirty Christian titles to her credit! Read more about Terri's novels at her website: terriblackstock.com.
Prior to writing Christian fiction, Blackstock wrote for a secular audience. Although she was an award-winning novelist, had 32 books published by the likes of HarperCollins, Harlequin, and Silhouette with 3.5 million books in print, just over ten years ago she began to question her craft and motivations: was she writing to glorify God?
"After much soul-searching and wrestling with God, she finally told the Lord that she would never write another thing that didn't glorify Him. Thinking she might never be published again, she began planning ways to supplement her income, while she worked on her first idea for a Christian novel."
Terri enjoyed reading suspense and so tried her hand at writing one of her own with a Christian message woven throughout. And publishers expressed interest! Since that time, her Christian books have increased her sales to over five million copies and many of the Christian novels have been number one best-sellers.
Read about True Light at A Frank Review, Frank Creed's book review site.
Here are some places you can purchase True Light:
Amazon
Barnes & Noble
Books A Million
Christianbook
Parable
Wal-Mart
Others
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