Into the Fire

Really . . . Ice Cold

 

Bestselling author Tess Gerritsen's novels provided the impetus for the TNT series Rizzoli & Isles. Angie Harmon of Law and Order fame and Sasha Alexander formerly in NCIS play the Boston Police Detective Jane Rizzoli and the Medical Examiner Maura Isles respectively. Ms. Gerritsen also writes an occasional post for Gina Holmes' award winning website Novel Rocket, formerly Novel Journey.

Since Tess comes off as tough, outspoken, and intelligent - the word spunky comes to mind - I decided to pick one of her novels to read. Settling on Ice Cold, I took the trip with Dr. Maura Isles into the chilling mountains of Wyoming.

In Ice Cold the heroine Maura Isles attends a medical conference in Wyoming while nursing a broken heart over an unrequited love affair with a priest. The pragmatic Dr. Isles decides to do the unpredictable when an old acquaintance talks her into taking an impromptu ski trip with two of his friends. When the weather threatens their safety, an effort to turn around goes horribly awry. The foursome discover a cluster of identical abandoned houses not too far from their incapacitated Suburban, but they soon realize they have no cell phone service and no one knows where they are.

Although the houses have food, shelter, and wood for the fireplaces, it isn't until they find a vehicle in the garage that they attempt to leave and get back down the mountain. As they're battling the fierce snow, the need for adding chains causes a gruesome accident injuring one of the men. Things go downhill fast from there.

Meanwhile Maura's lover alerts Jane Rizzoli to his inability to contact Maura. Jane isn't too receptive, thinking she's probably ignoring the priest, but Jane begins to wonder when she can't reach Maura.

I'm not sure I would've cared for the "real" character Maura Isles if I couldn't hear Sasha Alexander's voice and portrayal in the background of this story. The "real" Maura Isles seems more hardcore, less sympathetic, and only toward the end of this book does she seem to acquire any sustained likability.

Ice Cold is a story of cultic behaviors, quirky characters, horror, murder, fear, survival, and the determined pursuit of a friend and lover. Since Ms. Gerritsen is a physician, the medical tech-speak works efficiently in her writing.  I could do without the f-bombs dropped by the women in the story and the lumping together of true spirituality with cultish behaviors, but the novel is suspenseful and entertaining.

 

(Amazon.com)

 

Father, only you know where Tess is with you. I pray you would continue to bless her life and that she would know that every good and perfect gift comes from you. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.

 

Running off . . .

 

In horse racing we have a term for when a horse gets the best of a rider and "runs off". Usually this happens in the morning during the hours of training. For various reasons a horse decides to test, ignore, or disregard his exercise rider or jockey and takes off at a dead run or at an uncontrolled run. It's no fun to be on board when this happens because if fear motivates this action, there's no telling where the horse will run. Will he stay on the track? Will he head for the gap? Whatever his choices, the rider keeps working to gain control of the jaws that have gone cold and unresponsive.

Yesterday Brenda J. brought up characters who "run off" with us as writers. They head directions we never planned to send them. No matter what we thought was right for them, they've set their sights on other ways and means and left us in their dust. While some of the highly organized and plot-driven calculators might find this laughable and absurd, it's a plight we seat-of-the-pantsers contend with on a regular basis when writing our novels.

Characters insert themselves into stories without so much as an introduction and dominate a place we never pictured for them. They claim their portions of our stories and refuse to exit until they've made their marks. Once they've interacted and intersected with the other characters they dare us to remove them, making a solid case for their necessities to the plot. Obviously it's useless to argue with them.

Not nearly as frightening as being a passenger on the lighter exercise saddles of a running off Thoroughbred, a writer can still feel a little out of control when his characters stage their own scenes and invite friends we never intended to include on the guest list.

So much of writing is out of our control . . .

 

Father, we rest in your ultimate control and thank you for you it. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.

Thunder in the Morning Calm by Don Brown

 

For the CFBA Tour:

 

Lieutenant Commander 'Gunner' McCormick is assigned as an intelligence officer to Carrier Strike Force 10, being deployed to the Yellow Sea at the invitation of South Korea for joint exercises with the US Navy. During his pre-deployment briefing, he discovers a TOP-SECRET MEMO revealing rumors that the North Koreans may still be holding a handful of elderly Americans from the Korean War in secret prison camps.

As it happens, Gunner's grandfather, who was a young marine officer in the Korean War, disappeared at Chosin Reservoir over 60 years ago and is still listed as MIA in North Korea. Sworn to silence about what he has read, the top-secret memo eats at him. Gunner decides to spend all his inheritance and break every military regulation in the book to finance his own three-man commando squad on a suicide mission north of the DMZ to search for clues about the fate of his grandfather.
Risking his career, his fortune, and his life, Gunner will get his answers, or he will die trying.

Don Brown is building a loyal fan base by writing what he knows best: thrillers with heart. A former Navy JAG officer and action officer in the Pentagon, Brown pens action-packed plots and finely-drawn characters that are credible and compelling. Thunder in the Morning Calm is a novel of bravery, duty, and family love that will keep readers of all ages reading straight through to the last page.

 

 

(I will post my review of this novel when my new computer is set up. I love Don Brown's writing, and I've read all of his novels. However, this is not my favorite one. I have a review written, but I can't retrieve it as of now, and I'm not writing another one. :)  )

 

Father, please continue to bless Don's work and writing. Inspire him and speak more stories into his heart. Watch over him and his family. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.

It can change things . . .

 

Personally knowing the author of the novel you're reading can change things. That is if you're not a close friend of theirs. You can't help but wonder just how much of them is in the characters with whom you're spending a lot of time. Is that how they think about that subject or is it really the character? Ooohh, that dialogue reminds me a lot of what I heard them say when we were talking . . .

I don't pretend to exclude myself from my characters. Just how much of me is in each one hopefully shall remain a mystery to all but my most intimate friends and relatives. Those composites of people that make up our lives through the ages mesh and mingle and form into "real" people on the pages of stories along with ourselves. We can't really hide. We're there in some capacity. How much is up to us.

How much of yourself do you allow people to see and experience in the words of your novels?

 

Father, you create the stories. We're often just along for the ride. In the Name of Jesus, Amen. 

 

Postscript: My computer is down. I'm borrowing my husband's laptop. It will be a strange long ten days or so.

Sunday's Offerings

 

Then I turned my thoughts to consider wisdom,

and also madness and folly.

What more can the king's successor do

than what has already been done?

I saw that wisdom is better than folly,

just as light is better than darkness.

The wise man has eyes in his head,

while the fool walks in darkness;

but I came to realize

that the same fate overtakes them both.

Then I thought in my heart,

"The fate of the fool will overtake me also.

What then do I gain by being wise?"

I said in my heart,

"This too is meaningless."

For the wise man, like the fool, will not be

long remembered;

in days to come both will be forgotten.

Like the fool, the wise man too must die!

Ecclesiastes 2:12-16 (NIV)

****Political Update****

 

In less than a month, America will pause to commemorate the 10th anniversary of 9/11. For most, it is a solemn reflection of the fellow Americans we lost and the heroes who helped us persevere through the worst terrorist attack in our nation’s history.

Yet the organizers behind the proposed Islamic mosque at Ground Zero have chosen this moment to roll out a multi-million dollar fundraising campaign. They are actually using September 10th -- the eve of the 10th anniversary of 9/11 -- as their deadline for raising funds.

It’s not just insensitive to the families who lost loved ones that day; it is an outrage to all Americans.

The ACLJ is fighting back. We are in court challenging the Ground Zero Mosque. It is critical, as we prepare to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the terrorist attacks of 9/11 and the thousands of Americans who lost their lives that day, that we take a stand against this Islamic mosque at Ground Zero and it’s organizers’ wholly insensitive fundraising campaign.

How have the Ground Zero Mosque organizers reacted to their fundraising campaign being exposed for what it is? They have said its timing is merely a coincidence.

A coincidence, just like when they originally named the project "Cordoba" – long a symbol of Islamic conquest.

It has been made abundantly clear at every step of the Ground Zero Mosque project that the organizers, the financing, and the public relations campaign behind it are insensitive at best. We must never allow this Islamic victory mosque to be built, and we certainly should not allow them to use this important moment to do it.

That is why the ACLJ is aggressively fighting back as this case is now on appeal, representing Tim Brown – a firefighter and first responder who lost nearly 100 of his friends at Ground Zero. As he recently told Fox News, “With the ACLJ . . . this will never happen; this mosque will never be built.”

The reason he can say this with confidence is because of you.

Thank you,

Jay Sekulow
ACLJ Chief Counsel

 

Father, we look to you for justice. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.

How important is it?

 

Out of the all the novels you can buy today—just today—what makes yours important? What will separate yours from the sea of selections and make it a choice for anyone to buy when it becomes available? Are there trustworthy answers to these questions plaguing novelists today?

 

“Important” is a scary word for evaluating fiction. Some might view it as pretentious. I don’t. I think it’s a real consideration for anyone who writes stories. If you’re going to sit in front of a white screen or plant yourself with pens or pencils and some kind of writing paper for indeterminable hours, yeah, I think “important” is a definite word to examine. Writing takes dedicated time, and that time is mighty precious and hard to come by for some. Others have the time but those words can come at a steep price with commitment to the project in the forefront of every decision to use time in creation.

 

It might be an easier question to ask, “How important is your novel to you?” This forces an honest evaluation because it requires a look at how much time is devoted to it along with other variables. Would you—or could you—pay to have the entire manuscript professionally edited? Would you—or do you—allow a critique group or a writers’ group that “gets” you and that you trust read your work? How do these options rate in your “importance” scale?

 

Don’t we all hope our work is important? Aah, I just want to entertain people, you say. I just want to write a good story, you echo. I can’t really elevate my work to “important”, you think.

 

Do you consider that your writing is important to God? If this is what He has for you to do, isn’t it important that you do it?

 

How important is it anyway?

 

 

Father, you’re the most important. Help me to do what you have for me to do. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.

And all that . . . Jazz

 

Soft. Sultry. Melancholy. A haze of cigarette smoke. Slinky black dresses with slits up the leg, long sleeves, and low backs. Stiletto heels. Pinstripe suits. Low lights. The massage of a trumpet’s notes. Piano keys that dance under gliding fingers with a dark face turned down toward those black and whites or upward with eyes closed.

 

Memories of images never lived. Hidden places. Kisses in dark corners. A bare back against the wall. A drink. Tables with no more than four chairs. A hush but so much silent conversation. Waiters appearing from nowhere.

 

A stool with a singer. The voice that sounds like an instrument and comes from a face that sings as if no one’s there.

 

Patrons turned toward a stage, arms resting on the bar holding a beverage. Alone.

 

And all that . . . jazz . . . playing.

 

 

God, omniscient, omnipotent, omnipresent. Startling but true. Thank you. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.

Capturing the Melancholy . . .

 

Melancholy: (n.) 1.Sadness or depression of the spirits; gloom 2.Pensive reflection or meditation 3.archaic a.Black bile, one of the four humors of ancient or medieval physiology b.An emotional state characterized by sullenness and outbreaks of violent anger believed to arise from the bile

 

We probably could’ve done without the archaic definition, but it served its purpose to demonstrate how the mood was given physiological origin.

 

Writers and artists in general can be a melancholy bunch. Whether it’s because we must capture the states of minds of many characters, good or bad, moody or virulent, joyful or petulant, or not: who knows? Are we wired for soaking in the emotions of all kinds of experiences and then capitulating them onto page or canvas or structured form?

 

The beauty of creating with words is the privilege of portraying characters, places, and, yes, moods such as melancholy well enough to create that emotion in the reader. To touch the reader’s emotions and drive them to exactly where we want them to arrive, dropping them off at the corner of that experience, and either leaving them there to fend for themselves along with the characters or causing them to take a breather and regroup before pressing onward with the story: those experiences are the ultimate reward(s)for an author of a story. 

 

Melancholy is especially important because it can be so prominent in stories without hope. Hope can be elusive in all different kinds of stories, but when it’s absent or faint, there will be melancholy as a constant companion to the reader.

 

One of the “qualifying” objectives in the recent definitions of “Christian Fiction” was the hope factor. The reason for this inclusion is because the very basis of Christianity personifies the hope factor. Now if you’re a Christian living in Somalia your hope factor is most likely centered on heaven not earth. If you’re a Christian who has acquired multi-millions, your hope factor might lie in making sure you’ve been generous with what the Lord has given you. If you’re a 14 year old Christian girl experiencing your first flutter of romance, your hope factor might be attached to a favorable look from the object of your affection. The hope factor covers a lot of emotional real estate no matter who you are, but the real hope factor remains in Jesus Christ and the power of His resurrection and cleansing Blood. Without that provision by the God of the universe there really is no hope factor for the human race. 

 

Capturing melancholy in its true emotional content sends a reader to the heart of a matter. It forces us as readers to realize we must live with this state of mind over the course of our lives and shed it before it makes its home with us and evicts us away from hope. While melancholy can also be a time of precious decomposition from our wayward states of mind, it is a guest which must only be allowed to dwell for an apportioned amount of time before being ushered out of its rental space. It’s not a permanent resident but provides a genuine contrast to what we need our reality to be.

 

Often when we capture the melancholy we are forced to experience it, to remember it, or to accentuate it for a time. Those novels which open with it and close with it forget, or perhaps do not in truth recognize, that hope is as essential to humanity as the pensive contemplations and gloomy aspirations of melancholy. Hope is truthful. Melancholy reflects our fallen humanity.

 

 

Father, without you melancholy resides in our souls. Thank you for your deliverance available to all. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.   

Is timing really everything?

 

Yes. And no. Of course as Christians we accept that God’s timing is perfect. It’s just as humans we seem to be in constant conflict with His appropriated and specific “time for everything” (Ecclesiastes 3:1).

 

Let’s talk about book releases. One of the better novels of 2011 published by Bethany House and released in July gave us a story which took place in a very concentrated timeframe just before Christmas. Christmastime in Houston, Texas, might not resemble Christmastime in, let’s say, northern Idaho, but it’s still very much Christmas. Now I know the scheduling for book releases is something publishers and their marketing teams decide, but I can’t help but wonder why this novel couldn’t have waited a couple of months or so to accommodate the season. Story-wise, it really didn’t matter when J. Mark Bertrand’s Pattern of Wounds was released because there were plenty of readers just like me who were waiting for this book. It’s good enough not to have had to worry about impeccable timing for its release, but just the same it seems like a little bit closer to Christmas would’ve accentuated its timeliness. And planted it firmly in the minds of shoppers for the Christmas season. But you can’t argue with providing a great summer read either, so what do I know?

 

Which brings me to the timing for my upcoming novel Breath of Life. The story begins at the end of summer and moves through the holiday season into the New Year. The protagonist is a financial services consultant in a private firm. I wrote this novel in 2007 when the stock market wasn’t quaking like a 9.8 on the Richter Scale.

 

The plot doesn’t really center on the protagonist’s job, but it is a factor. I had five novels waiting in stasis when the opportunity to self-publish one more became available. You can bet I prayed about which one to do, and this is the one chosen.

 

Timing. Perseverance. Patience. Tenacity. All familiar words to a writer.

 

And . . . blessing follows obedience. Blessing doesn’t always come in expected ways but it arrives from the Lord’s generous hand . . . on time.

 

 

Father, I can’t trust myself, but I can trust you. Help me to keep my focus on you and what you desire for me to do. In the Name of Jesus, Amen. 

What comes after . . . The Last Jihad

 

I’ll be honest here. I wasn’t going to write an opinion on Joel Rosenberg’s The Last Jihad, published by Tyndale Fiction with a copyright date of 2002 even though the novel was written somewhat prophetically before the 9/11/2001 acts of terrorism. With such astounding endorsements from Rush Limbaugh, Vince Flynn, and Sean Hannity, how could I resist such a novel knowing my propensity for political thrillers such as those of Vince Flynn’s? Admittedly I bought this novel some time ago but hadn’t managed to get to it until recently. Since it’s been published, Joel Rosenberg has produced not only subsequent novels in this series but non-fiction books with prophetic tendencies. Check out his website to examine these in depth looks at the current and future explosive conditions in the Middle East with Israel in the center of it all. He’s sold millions of books and his latest The Tehran Initiative will release in October of this year.

 

This story focuses on greed, corruption, Jihad, and Israel’s survival. With an airborne attack on the President’s Thanksgiving motorcade, Israeli Commandos foiling an attempt to launch a nuclear missile into their country by Iraqi forces, and the last minute discovery of an inside attempt to assassinate the President once again, the United States and Israel race the clock to prevent a potentially devastating nuclear assault. In other words there’s a lot going on in a very short period of time. The pressure is ratcheted up with the nuclear threat hanging over every decision resulting in the no-win “nuke or be nuked” clincher.

 

Rosenberg’s sources had to be good ones, and the research he must have done shows up well. Christianity plays a minor role but is introduced organically, challenging one of the main character’s belief systems.

 

But here’s my problem with this novel, and I take into consideration that it is a first novel. There was quite a cast of characters in this story, and out of the buffet of people, including the co-protagonists, I only cared for two of them, both peripheral characters and one of those not even appearing until the novel was near its end, the other one getting snuffed. Some of the dialogue between certain characters didn’t work for me—seeming awkward along with their interactions. The action came and went, but it was difficult for me to invest in the story itself in spite of its potent reality because I didn’t care about most of those who were primarily involved.  

 

To top it off, the story concludes with a significant cliffhanger which always feels like a setup for the next book.

 

So. Although I know The Last Jihad is a thriller and that this and his other novels are wrapped in potential reality with stunning assertions and prophetic possibilities, I appreciate the novel, but it’s not one I particularly liked.

 

                       

 

 

Father, you watch over Joel and you lead him. Please continue to inform him and give him insights into this difficult and volatile world we live in during these last days. Please protect him and his family from all harm. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.

Sunday's Offerings

 

I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you by the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel - which is really no gospel at all. Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let him be eternally condemned!

Galatians 1:6-8 (NIV)

 

****Political Update****

 

Issa Demands Page One Retraction from NY Times

 

Henry J. Reske (Newsmax)

 

Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., is demanding The New York Times issue a front-page retraction for an article “riddled with factual errors” that looked at the congressman’s personal business dealings and the alleged overlap between them and his work in Congress.
 

The office of the Chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee requested the retraction for the article entitled, “Helping His District, and Himself.”
 

“The request for a full front page retraction is based on numerous errors that invalidate the primary assertions made in the story that is a false and sensationalized account Rep. Issa’s efforts to conduct congressional oversight of the Obama Administration and other matters,” the congressman’s office said in demanding the retraction.
 

The New York Times has so far issued one correction and is reviewing other errors cited by Rep. Issa’s office and the request for the retraction, according to Issa’s office.
 

The 2,700 word piece by author and Pulitzer Prize winning reporter Eric Lichtblau is a detailed look at Issa’s business interests, how they have grown since he entered Congress in 2000, and how his work in Congress may have helped.
 

However, the congressman’s office said shortly after the piece appeared that “beginning with the opening line, The New York Times piece is riddled with factual errors and careless assertions that has resulted in a story predicated on innuendo and not fact.
 

“It's disappointing that the so-called 'paper-of-record' has decided to publish a story that is nothing more than a compilation of left-wing blog posts that are easily found by a simple Google search. It's the same old playbook, every time Darrell Issa starts gaining ground, the left-wing smear machine goes on the attack. If anything, this story validates the work that the Chairman of the Oversight and Government Reform Committee is pursuing.”
 

The article alleged that as Issa’s “private wealth and public power have grown, so too has the overlap between his private and business lives, with at least some of the congressman’s government actions helping to make a rich man even richer and raising the potential for conflicts.”
 

“He has secured millions of dollars in Congressional earmarks for road work and public works projects that promise improved traffic and other benefits to the many commercial properties he owns here north of San Diego. In one case, more than $800,000 in earmarks he arranged will help widen a busy thoroughfare in front of a medical plaza he bought for $10.3 million.”
 

The article alleged that Issa “bought the complex in 2008, soon after securing the first of two earmarks for the two-mile project and unsuccessfully seeking millions more. The assessor’s office now values the complex at $16 million, a 60 percent appreciation.”
 

“This, however, is false,” Issa’s office stated in a memo that included a copy of the sale agreement.
 

“According to the final settlement statement of the medical plaza property, the purchase price paid by Rep. Issa’s company for the property was $16.6 million. This figure, $16.6 million, is essentially identical to its current tax assessment and wipes-out the 60 percent appreciation the New York Times story alleges Rep. Issa’s commercial property enjoyed.”

The congressman’s demand for a retraction asserted that the “government sponsored road work noted in the article has not even begun and Rep. Issa’s requests for the project (which were publicly announced and made on behalf of and at the request of the City of Vista, and the San Diego Association of Governments which is the regional transportation planning authority) all came before the 2009 property purchase.”
 

An attempt to reach Lichtblau for comment was unsuccessful. His article noted Issa “did not respond to repeated written requests in the last three weeks to discuss his outside interests.”
 

“Eric Lichtblau’s story is filled with factual errors, half-truths, and exaggerations,” Issa spokesman Frederick Hill told Newsmax. “This poorly reported piece is consistent with past interactions we have had with Lichtblau. These past experiences with Lichtblau, and concern that any comment we gave him would be distorted, was why we declined to speak with him for his story. “

The congressman’s office said the article contained “13 erroneous statements” including:

 

• The assertion, "Here on the third floor of a gleaming office building overlooking a golf course in the rugged foothills north of San Diego, Darrell Issa, the entrepreneur, oversees the hub of a growing financial empire worth hundreds of millions of dollars." The office building located at 1800 Thibodo Rd. in Vista does not overlook a golf course.
• That "Mr. Issa has . . .  split a holding company into separate multibillion-dollar businesses . . ." Issa does not own a single "multibillion-dollar business.
• That "Mr. Issa brushed aside suggestions that his electronics company's role as a major supplier of alarms to Toyota made him go easy on the automaker as he led an investigation into the recalls." Issa's former company, Directed Electronics, is not a "major supplier" or even a supplier to Toyota and the congressman does not have a personal financial interest in Directed Electronics.

Hill said that so far the Times has “only acknowledged the multibillion claim was incorrect.”
 

“Since publication, our efforts have been focused on raising awareness of the unambiguous factual mistakes in the New York Times’ story and the recycled innuendo from partisan blogs that the Times story attempts to portray as original non-partisan reporting,” Hill said. “To be sure, there story contains a number of half-truths but some facts have also been taken from sources like the congressman’s annual financial disclosure.  So far, the Times has been unwilling or unable to offer us serious explanations for its many dubious claims."

 

 

Father, in the end may your truth prevail. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.

Calling SOME romantics!

 

As opposed to calling all romantics. It’s true. I’m currently searching for the right audience for my novels. My love stories are heavy on the romance, deeply character driven, and they absolutely don’t cater to the “light” or “fluff” romance reading crowd.

 

A male author friend of mine who shall remain nameless for now termed me a “minute chronicler of the human heart”. What an honor.

 

So . . . if you know anyone who enjoys contemporary love stories with an honest look at that thing called romance . . . have I got a book for you. Coming soon . . . Breath of Life.  

 

 

Lord, without you there are no stories. Thank you for the ones you’ve given me. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.  

What or who you really want to be . . .

 

. . . isn’t necessarily what or who you really are or ever will be. That’s hard to hear, isn’t it? It is for me—or I should say it was for me. When my mind threw the desired images into the flash frames of my imagination and the years edged upward and the dreams drifted into partially realized fragments, I accepted that my designs for myself created disappointments and disillusionments.

 

Those inclinations I carried around with me for most of my youthful years didn’t prove to be realistic in the sense of who I “needed” to be. When I met Jesus Christ, I learned that me-focused stuff didn’t bode well for any kind of genuine happiness. It only fostered more of the same dissatisfaction with what was present and an intense hunger for more of the same in ever escalating possessions and accomplishments. Humanity in its fullness is often what we indulge in our dreams and desires without considering who we are meant to be.

 

Man-made dreams might have their origin in God-made dreams, but the moment we take control of them for our fulfillment we lose the significance of the journey toward their purpose. When we fail to abide by “The Plan” and exercise our own versions of getting to where we think we’re supposed to go, we sacrifice the beauty of supernatural provision and the value of lessons learned along the way.

 

I’m grateful for my life. I’ve learned how gracious God has been to me. Beyond what I deserve, he has given me. I pray that I will continue to be the right shade of paint on God’s magnificent canvas. Nothing else matters anymore.  

 

 

Thank you, Lord.   

.

Hype!

 

Attitudes are funny things. We can cop a ‘tude about anything, but one way to accelerate bad, skeptical, or doubting attitudes is to over-hype some kind of entertainment.

 

We’ve all heard the opinion about publicity. Even if it’s bad, it’ll generate curiosity and bring viewers—and readers—to investigate the claims and to experience it for themselves to make their own evaluations; to see if they want to buck the general opinion, to challenge the standard of the critic(s), to go against the current of judgment(s).

 

I’ll be honest. Hype tends to send me in the opposite direction. Overselling anything makes me scoff or shudder.

 

So where is the comfortable balance between lack of promotion and hype? What works to sell a product to some has zero effect on another. What repels one buyer seduces another.

 

How do you effectively and respectfully promote your novel? Tone it down too much and it equates to begging. Amp it up too much and it feels likes it’s being shoved at the buyer.

 

Is there anything that absolutely works every time it’s used? The most acclaimed method of “selling” novels is word-of-mouth, but when you think about it, even that only works when you’re suggesting it to like-minded readers. You can rave about historicals to me, but I doubt I’ll read them. And I can assure you no matter how great a fantasy novel is, I won’t be reading it.

 

Wednesday’s wonderings . . .

 

 

Father, you know the answers. Apart from you I can do nothing. Help me to hear your instructions and do what you ask. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.

A Double Standard?

 

Do you as a reader and even as a writer approach Christian Fiction differently from General Market fare that you know won’t contain many if any spiritual references in the story? Do you have a built-in reservation that the Christian novel you’re about to read might contain some cheesy Christian-ese, stereotyped church people, a happily-ever-after conclusion?

 

Have you established criteria for what you expect to find when reading Christian fiction? Have you done the same for general market novels?

 

Do you think there could be a personal double standard to how you approach these sometimes very diverse reading selections?

 

Most of us accept the fact that if we venture into general market novels, we will encounter some bad language and the possibility of gratuitous violence and sexual explicitness. Might not happen but nobody’s surprised when it does. When some readers approach Christian fiction via CBA publishers, they expect no bad language, some violence depending on the genre, and no sexual explicitness. Violate these (CBA) expectations/restrictions and look out for the wrath of some “Christian” readers.

 

Since these expectations/restrictions are for the most part adhered to in the library of Christian fiction, does that provide the impetus to insist on a higher level of writing to overcome a stereotypical “Christian” novel? Does it seem like in the process of putting out “Christian Fiction” that editors in publishing houses are seeking similar novels and not looking for initiative or genuinely “fresh” voices?

 

We could all state (and have stated): Just give me a good story—but written well. And throw in some gold bullion while you’re at it. Our tastes in literature differ not only in content and genre but in style and voice and even format. From fluff to horror we approach reading with expectations according to what we’ve come to like and appreciate. It could be argued we sometimes “settle for” novels in either market because we find so few that are exceptional. What I wonder is if there is a double standard applied to accepting less in the general market than there is in accepting the same grade of novel in Christian fiction? 

 

 

Father, help us to write that which honors you, however that is. Help us put you first in all of our endeavors. In the Name of Jesus, Amen. 

Could it be the "Christian" in fiction?

 

Those of us who are avid readers of Christian Fiction will admit to having experienced that “canned” testimony moment in some of its offerings. Or the tossed in “prayers” at critical crises. Or the “preachy” explanations of Christian-ese activities and dialogue. Or the goodie-two-shoes characters or even worse the holier-than-thou characters.

 

So. Is it the "Christian" in fiction that insults, irritates, or inflames its critics?

 

In one of the all-time best novels I’ve ever read, Lisa Samson writes The Passion of Mary-Margaret as a memoir of an aging Catholic Sister who’s been assigned to leave a record of her life. In that story of course readers would expect to encounter some “religion”, but in this book the miraculous comes so—the common word now is—organically, and so naturally, as to set it apart and make it “true” and real.

 

Going back in time to what is considered classic Christian literature, Frank Peretti dared to put “faces” on and give “personalities” to demons. Addressing spiritual warfare in a “down-to-earth” and completely understandable, fathomable way, This Present Darkness and Piercing the Darkness gave readers seeking an entertaining, exciting, and honest rendition of this neglected facet of Christianity an opportunity for spiritual exploration via story and accomplished setting the stage for future supernatural thrillers which no one took advantage of—or equaled—for years to come. Granted, C. S. Lewis wrote The Screwtape Letters many years before either of Peretti’s novels, but Peretti unleashed the decidedly contemporary and American flavor to the battle for souls conducted outside of our normal vision.

 

The “come to Jesus moment” expression has gained momentum in the media, often being mocked by those who hold disdain for anything they deem “religious” and other times referring to a spiritual wakeup call. In truth these supernatural moments can have amazing and exhilarating appeal if addressed with the substantive drama and humility they warrant. Or they can ignite wrath from those who happen to read a “religious” novel expecting it to be something other than what it is.

 

This inherent challenge remains the big deal for writers who serve the Lord. Addressing faith and the issues it incorporates in all the various forms and genres of fiction, while giving writers unlimited options, can be the critical measure in determining the wow factor of a story. This is certainly where the writer exercises his talent with words. Or not.

 

I confess to using multiple “come to Jesus moments” in my stories acknowledging that none of them are directly responsible for saving souls. That burden is totally a God-thing. He calls. People either answer with a yes or a no. He can certainly use novels as easily as anything else, and I’m sure He has, but to think any novel will be an evangelical tool in any form is a mistake at best, an arrogant assumption at worst.

 

I contend it can be the Christian factor in Christian Fiction that causes dissension and discontent because of how it’s sometimes handled and/or received. However, very few professionals who responded to last week’s Question/Poll gave any indication they assumed that the overall genre should not contain material related to our Christian faith. We are instructed to be in the world, not of the world, so that reasoning allows us to unashamedly explore our faith within stories. How this is done varies from writer to writer, dogma to dogma, and genre to genre. Our primary personal question remains: What does the Lord want me to write and how does he want me to write it?

 

 

Father, direct me in your ways always. Help me to hear your voice more clearly, more completely, and to follow with total devotion. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.   

Sunday's Offerings

 

"Lift up your eyes to the heavens,

look at the earth beneath;

the heavens will vanish like smoke,

the earth will wear out like a garment

and its inhabitants die like flies.

But my salvation will last forever,

my righteousness will never fail.

 

"Hear me, you who know what is right,

 you people who have my law in your hearts:

Do not fear the reproach of men

or be terrified by their insults.

For the moth will eat them up like a garment;

the worm will devour them like wool.

But my righteousness will last forever,

my salvation through all generations."

 

Isaiah 51:6-8 (NIV)

****Political Update****

 

WASHINGTON — A White House photographer was allowed to take and widely distribute a photo from the ceremony Tuesday for the return of the remains of 30 American troops killed in a weekend helicopter crash in Afghanistan — despite the Pentagon's claim that any public depiction of the scene would violate the wishes of bereaved families.

News media coverage of the ceremony had been banned by the Pentagon over the objections of several news organizations.

Pentagon officials had dictated that no images could be taken because 19 of 30 of the American families of the dead had objected to media coverage of the remains coming off a plane at Dover Air Force Base. In addition, the Pentagon rejected media requests to take photos that showed officials at the ceremony but did not depict caskets.

President Barack Obama attended the ceremony, called a "dignified transfer," for those killed in the worst single loss of the nearly 10-year war. An official White House photo of a saluting Obama was distributed to news media and published widely. It also was posted on the White House website as the "Photo of the Day." It showed Obama and other officials in silhouette and did not depict caskets.

Doug Wilson, head of public affairs at the Pentagon, said the department did not know the White House photographer was present and had no idea a photo of the event was being released until it became public. He said the photographers who routinely travel with the defense secretary and the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff were not allowed to go to the event, and no official Pentagon photos were taken or released.


Read more on Newsmax.com

 

God, please have mercy on this nation. We're desperate for you. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.