Challenges of writing Christian Fiction

Book number ten is well underway.  I didn't begin my writing career as a "Christian writer".  Rather I began as a struggling Christian who writes.  My first two books, Freedom Race and Captured, are not specifically Christian. I don't market them as Christian.  As I grew as a woman and as a Christian my books evolved and the themes naturally gravitated towards Christianity.  My characters are strong women with real problems, issues, imperfect lives.  I think I sometimes have difficulty marketing my books as Christian because they are not squeaky clean.  Some, like Angel in Lessons Learned, have lived extremely sinful lives.  Some Christians will argue that my characters are inappropriate and should not be read by Christians.  Okay, so be it.  Christians who cannot handle people who have lived less than perfect lives should not read my books - or maybe they should.

I want non-Christians, struggling Christians, baby Christians to read my books and connect with the characters. See how they handle struggles and life and how they grew and gave their lives to God.  Remnant actually started out as a "non-Christian" story.   Being a Christian, the book naturally took a turn and looked for a higher power.  Some may be pleasantly surprised by the ending.  I know for a fact, some people were miffed at the ending.  That's okay, too.

My challenge right now is, how do I teach the Good News of Jesus Christ in fiction?  I played with that in Man in the Mirror.  This book, I want to take it a step further.  However, it needs to not sound "preachy".  I'm about to write a Bible study scene.  Should I write the entire study?  Should I write parts of it and narrate the rest?  Christians are instructed to "go into the world" and take the Good News.  I feel led to do this through fiction.  I have readers of this blog and of my books from all over the world. If God gives me the words to write in this book I believe I can plant seeds that God can grow.  Challenge accepted.

To God be the Glory.

I would love to hear from you.  How do you feel when you read about Jesus in fiction?  How have you seen it done well?  Poorly?  I've read a lot so I can give my own examples but I want to hear from you!

Books and writing, Writing and running....

Yesterday, when I returned home from seeing Les Miserables (one of my all time favorite books) there was a big box at my front door.  Inside was....

Colleen Wait's books

I looked over the contents for a moment and thought, wow, I wrote those.  It was a very surreal moment.  I may never be #1 on the New York Times Best Seller list or sell millions upon millions of copies, however, as my husband so aptly put it, "Very few people have written even one book. You have accomplished much."   He says the same thing about my running.  

He's right.  I may never win.  I may never be rich and famous, however, I have put myself out there.  I have run the race. I put my heart into words, opened myself up to judgements and criticisms, rankings and place. 

It's odd.  Until now, I have never compared my running to my writing. I'm not the best at what I do, however, I work hard, train hard, do my very best.  Whether or not I win the race or the readers love my writing isn't all that important.  I love what I do.  I love to run and I love to write.  Once, I told someone that I wished there could be a mind-controlled tape recorder so I could do both at the same time.

Another similarity is how I commune with God.  On my runs, long or short, I pray.  It's our time and I covet that time with Him.  Sometimes, it's what motivates me to get out the door.  When I write, I often use the scriptures and I will spend hours reading and studying to get what I think fits the story.  Before I write anything, I pray.  What does God want me to write? Even now, I stop to pray, what do You want me to say? My hope, my prayer, is that someone will be reached for God through my writing.  If I publish 20 books and one person comes to Christ through my writing, then I have done what God has instructed me to do, "He said to them, 'Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.''  Mark 16:15. 

1 Corinthians 9:24-27 says it well:  
²⁴ Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. ²⁵ Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. ²⁶ Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. ²⁷ No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.

It is my prayer, dear reader, that you will also read this and be inspired to run to get the prize.

Happy New Year

Be Blessed

Lessons Learned from Summer Camp has been re-written

Below is an except, a brand new scene from the fully revised version of "Lessons"...

“Oftentimes, whenever I was really angry about something I would clean house. Take all that negative energy and put it to good use.  The taxes were done on a Friday. Saturday morning I start cleaning. By mid afternoon, the kids were playing outside and Dean was sound asleep on the couch in front of the TV.  As I am putting things away and cleaning out an under-the-bed storage drawer I see something that should not be there.  I very gingerly grab it by the handle with two fingers and stand up.  My jaw dropped as I stared at a handgun.”

“Oh, no!” cried several of the girls.

“I’m in complete shock.  I had no idea it had been there.”

“What’re you doing?” asked a voice inches from my back.

“Dean scared the life out of me.  I had no idea how long I had been standing there staring at the gun or how long he had been standing behind me.  I jumped at the sound of his voice.  The gun slipped out of my fingers and hit the tile floor.  The sound was ear-shattering as the gun fired, the window shattered, and the kids screamed as they ran into the house.”

I paused as the room went dead silent. My heart began beating hard in my chest as I remembered that moment.  “As soon as I heard the kids slam the back door, I turned around, shoved Dean out of my way and ran to my children.”

“Did the cops come?” asked Keri.

“No,” I said.  “We lived in a very rural area.  Lot of trees, neighbors far apart. I don’t know if anyone heard anything.  When I got to the kids they were frightened, but unharmed.  The bullet had hit a tree near where they were playing.  I sent them to their rooms then went back to where Dean was, still standing in our bedroom.”

“A gun in the house?!” I screamed.  “Are you insane!  A loaded gun?  Right where the kids could get it, too.  They were in here playing hide and seek just days ago. What? Why?  You do know it is a felony for you to even own a gun much less have a loaded one in the house!  Get that thing and get it out of this house. Immediately!!  Do not even think about returning until you have disposed of it and bring me proof that it is gone.  And believe me, I will be searching your truck to make sure you didn’t just hide it!” I was absolutely livid and he just stood there like it was no big deal.

“It’s your fault it went off,” he said, trying to blame me.

“Get out!!” I screamed at him. “There had better not be anymore anywhere on this property or believe me, I will call the cops!”

“You wouldn’t dare call the cops. It was an accident. We don’t need to call the police!”

“I’m sure I said much more and much worse.  I hate guns, always have.  The fact that he was hiding a loaded gun after being convicted of a gun charge was more than I could handle. He took the gun, left, and didn’t return until after I was asleep that night.

“We went to church as usual the following Sunday. I sent the kids and Dean to Sunday School class and I made a bee line for the bathroom.  When I left the bathroom and didn’t see Dean, I found an elder and poured out my soul to him.  I told him that I felt like I had done everything I possibly could to make my marriage work. I told him because of what Dean did in front of the children it was no longer healthy for him to be in our home, not healthy for me either.  I told the elder I would be asking Dean to move out, immediately, that day.  He was very understanding and said he and the other elders would support me and my decision.  He thought it would be a good idea to tell Dean there at the church.  After church, the elders and I met with Dean.  I told him he would have to move out as soon as we got home. I didn’t say so at the time, but I knew divorce would be the end result. Needless to say, he was shocked.   Out in the parking lot, he let me have it.  I don’t remember everything he said, but a few things I will never forget.”

Find this book and many others at Smashwords and Amazon.

(The print version  has not been revised.)