2008 Summer Beach Read Nominee #1: Skizzer

It's that time again, y'all. Christian Fiction is taking nominations for the 2008 Summer Beach Reading Festival. On June 1 I will set up a poll in the sidebar for you to pick. I will post a nominee every day until May 31, this Saturday. So, if you have a book you want to nominate, then email me or post your nomination and email me the link. Email me at vidae dot writing dot com. Now


Skizzer: A Novel

Synopsis: After receiving news of her sister Becca's sudden disappearance, [Skizzer]Claire Trowling must piece together the shadowy remnants of a past she's long forgotten in order to find her. A cryptic note scrawled in Becca's handwriting leaves more questions than it answers, and when a stack of mysterious letters bound by a rare necklace is found, Claire heads to England-the source of the heirloom-for answers.

My review: I like that the story's structure isn't linear. Kiesling weaves from one decade to the next to help her find her missing sister. However, Claire's voice should have a natural progression from childhood to adulthood. In Chapter 4/1977/ her childhood, she describes her world with the same vocabulary and insight as she does in the present. Having Claire's childhood mind tell the story, having Claire's teenage mind tell the story would have added to the uniqueness of the story's plot. Instead it appears as if Kiesling either got lost in her own intrigue or didn't see her own potential to be the kind of storyteller new novelists need to pattern after.

As for whether it is worthy to be nominated as a summer beach read...

I say yes. It is a great novel for sisters to read together. It has intrigue, a transcontinental adventure, Brit/American romance, and a great escape, since gas and flights are higher than kites.

My favorite line:

He[Colin] looked at me steadily."Breathe easily, Claire, If you heart is as open as it sounds, God will fall over himself to rush out to meet you."

What next? Read some of last year picks here.

20th Carnival of Christian Writers: CFB Featured

Writer . . . Interrupted’s Blog Carnival of Christian Writers
has been runningfor over a year and a half now and features blog
posts about the craft and call of Christian Writing.

To celebrate the 20th carnival they are giving away
an awesome prize ~

p2 weeks - month of Free Advertising on
Writer . . . Interrupted OR

A Writing Critique of a
First Chapter (up to 10 pages)

Participants will get one entry and referring participants will get
an extra entry for each participating referral to the carnival.
Winners will be selected at random.com and notified by email
& posted at Writer . . . Interrupted on Saturday, May 31, 2008.

COME SUPPORT MY ENTRY & ENJOY THE CARNIVAL!

Dee Stewart is starting a series on self-editing with an emphasis on the major pieces of junk that bogs down your prose. See what she has to say at “Self Editing Habits: My Writing Hygiene“.

5 Days til VIP: Building Believable Book Characters

Greetings and Happy Memorial Day. This week is going to be a fantabulous week. We are counting down to the ACFW-VIP Online Conference, which is this Saturday, May 31 and we are also taking nominations for the 2008 Best Summer Beach Reads for Christian Fiction. The deadline to nominate is May 31. I will begin posting our nominees and set up a poll in the sidebar on June 1. Some of the books that have been nominated will be given away this summer, so I'm pleased about that. Now back to VIP...

Today I have Rhonda McKnight, the president of ACFW-VIP, author of Issues of the Heart(Urban Christian, Dec, 2009,) and one of my write-or-die chicks chatting with us today. She will be teaching a workshop on Building Believable Characters. Today she will participate in our 2 question author interview series for the week.

Question #1: What novel characters is the most believable for you and why?

Honestly, I have so many. But the one I've enjoyed of late is Jasmine Larks Bush from Victoria Christopher Murray's "A Sin and A Shame". I'm anxiously awaiting her new novel, "To Little To Late" to see what Jasmine is up to now. Two other great studies in character are James Scott Bell's "Presumed Guilty" and BeBe Moore Campbell's "Your Blues Ain't Like Mine".

Question #2: What is one tip you know will help make a character believable?

One tip about making characters believable would be to honestly know the character. I know that sounds simple, but I want to now the source of a character's traits and mannerisms. Why does she play with her wedding rings or why is he so compulsive in his spending? I need an author to show me who this person is and how they got that way or you haven't really done your job in developing the characters for me.

I recommend a very detailed character sketch where I look into the childhood of the character, things that scarred them as children and why, and even things they were proud of in elementary school. What did they love or hate most about their parents?

Things like that go deeper in building a three dimensional character. The entire person unfolds as you write, not just someone who has brown eyes, long hair, works at ABC company and went to school at UGA. There are lots of character sketch forms available, but some are only sufficient for minor characters. The protagonist and antagonist of a novel need a deeper look to be authentic.

Thanks for spotlighting me.
-Rhonda

What next? If you haven't registered for the ACFW-VIP Online Writer's Conference, you still have a chance. If you would like to attend, but are having a financial hardship, ACFW-VIP are giving two scholarships. Check the site. Christian Fiction Blog is also giving away a free registration for the conference. Search the site to learn how to enter. Subscribe

Christian Fiction News: The Shack Controversy

Welcome to this weeks Christian Fiction News for the week ending May 23, 2008.

The Shack Controversy

1. Are six-figure book deals for niche bloggers good business?
Newsweek article

2. Why aren't more memoirs made into novels?

Pamela Binnings Ewan of Mandeville, author of Walk Back the Cat, has just released The Moon in the Mango Tree (B&H Publishing Group), a novel based on a true story about an opera singer in the roaring '20s who must choose between career and marriage. Publisher's Weekly called it "...rich and heartfelt ... prose is laudably rich in specific and colorful detail ... Ewen is a talented writer, and this is a strong addition to Christian fiction." -Chere Coen reporting for The Advertiser

3. Is the Shack Heresy or a Miracle?

“This story[The Shack] is meant to teach theology that Young really believes to be true. The story is a wrapper for the theology. In theory, this is well and good; in practice, the book is only as good as its theology. And in this case, the theology just is not good enough. -Pastor Daniel Runke, former pastor at Albion Evangelical Free Church.

More: The Shack on NPR

"There is a God who is involved in things like this," he says. "There is really no human explanation for some of what's going on here." Young calls himself an "accidental author," one who has happened into a publishing miracle.

4. Are African American Christian BookStores going bust?

According to Christian Retailing, yes after New Life Christian(NY) and Rainbow Family in Ohio.