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At The Writer's View this week, author Tricia Goyer began a very fun and informative discussion: "What are your Favorite Things?" I've learned more about my buddies in the group, then the years I've been a member. I've also learned about some great writing tools, software, tech and fun stuff. So now I'm curious about the readers of Christian Fiction Blog:
What are your Favorite Things?
I'll start. My favorite things are:
discovering a great book, of course
Firefox Scribewire. I can work on my blog posts offline, dump pics and stats in there. Love it.
#journchat on Mondays.
my daughter, Selah is my best thing
Enzo's White Pizza with a little spinach on top
Namaste Yoga
a fresh canvas to paint on
a fresh composition book to write in
highschool football, it's pure and no money involved
"Assuredly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or family for My sake and the gospel's who did not receive a hundredfold now in this time...and in the age to come, eternal life.
Mark 10:30
This year has been an inspirational roller coaster ride for me: successes and failures, laughter and tears, having and not having, worshipping and wondering why should I bother? According to The Barna Research Group "47% of American adults [said that they] attend church in a given weekend, not including a special event such as a wedding or a funeral." Wow. More than half of us aren't fellowshiping together, we're not inviting others to learn more about Christ, and we're not tapped into the heart of what we were designed to do, worship.
Why?
Here are a few reasons:
There are too many false ministers and pimps in the pulpit, who spend more time preaching to you that their view of God is the only right one. They make you believe that the manifestation of God you witnessed in your personal life never existed.
There are too many stars in the church, who intimidate other members by making them believe that if they aren't spear heading a ministry or project, then it is no good to the Kingdom. They make you think you're not Christian enough to be there.
Some people think that God is their personal Genie and that he takes dictation and make your requests happen when you and how you want it. And if He doesn't, then you question His validity. You stop attending church, because you don't understand why God would allow you to lose something of value or hurt.
Some folks don't know what truly surrendering to God really means.
In this post I want to talk about this last point and how it relates to the Christian writer, who's living a personal rollercoaster.
One of my favorite songs a few years back was Emotional Rollercoaster." I was dealing with a guy, who was putting through all kind of emotions. One day he loved me. One day he loved another. You know what I mean? After leaving that guy I promised myself I would never do that to anyone. But as I look back at my life, I realized I have been doing that to Christ.
I write a book and shop it. If the book doesn't get picked up, I put it down. I put writing down to do something that will give me immediate success: promoting authors, blogging, book reviewing, something that will give me validation and quick tangible results. Now there is nothing wrong with that, if your focus is worship. If your focus is taking any opportunity to share who Christ is, to express what Christ means to you, or to edify someone's soul. The trouble comes when you put down your purpose to chase an earthly goal.
In the passage that belongs to this post Christ meets a successful man, who wants to live as Christ. When Christ tells him to surrender all that he has built, created, thought of himself to follow a new way of living he couldn't. He wouldn't.
This life is tough, y'all. To become successful at anything is a feat. The sacrifices, the years of preparation and practice, and then the tangible fruits of our labor all of that adds up to the real cost of surrendering not just who we are, but what we've become. In this world to become successful without God we know that they are many skeletons kicked in our closets and that we have had to change our mindsets and lose our friends, so many things just to get a little success, just to get a book deal, just to get a paying client. That is alot to ask, especially when we know what life is without the success, an unyielding, fiery and scary roller coaster.
But God is good. He finds a way to remind us, even during the ride. It comes at this point where the rollercoaster stops and hovers above the city. You see everything around. It's beautiful. Your heart is now peaceful and full of appreciation. Or you are preparing for the fall, depending upon your mindset the fall may cause you to lose sight of the beauty you just saw and the worshipping you just practiced. Anticipating the worst that could happen makes or breaks you.
I'm reading Max Lucado's Fearless, and I tell you to see that fall as a child does. They wait. Their eyes are wide. They grab tight to handlebar with joy and laughable fear. Because they know that the fall makes the ride up so much exhilarating. They know that they want fall. More importantly, they know it's a thrill and only lasts for a little while.
As you write and submit(I am working on something myself) remind yourself that in five years when I look back at my situation will I feel proud that embraced the rollercoaster with faith or will this situation negatively affect who I become five years down the road.
Don't let the devil ride this Monday.
So here are four steps to get back on that ride:
Begin to think in divine terms. How will this challenge in your life look if you were story was retold in the Bible? How do you want your story to end?
Let go of your passion for this world. Instead insert a passion to bring to this world.
You cannot fix the thing that separates you from God on your own. There is a reason why you are disconnected from your internal need to worship. You must surrender and allow God to remove those strongholds, even if it's a friend, a mentor, your penchant for sweets, allow God to do His thing.
Remember (vs 29) Stop looking to be blessed, because you already are. Hasn't God blessed everyone that followed Him?
Do me a favor. It would really help me today, because I write these words to you I'm ministering to myself and I still need more...comment here or on facebook or on Twitter three ways God has blessed you today. Be blessed.
And as you leave here is a song that sums up this entire post. Donald Lawrence's the Blessings in You.
While driving my daughter to school this morning, I listened to Whitney Houston's "I Look to You" on the radio, and thought...This song is my novel's theme. As I told you last week I am writing a new novel with hopes to have the first dirty draft completed by Labor Day and the full clean version as my Christmas gift to myself. I plotted this story years ago, and have pitched and played around with different plot points, and main characters, and even genre-switching util three weeks ago I finally met the main character of my novel. I don't know about you, but I can't write a book until I meet the character and he or she has to haunt me somehow. So three weeks ago, while dealing with my own personal crises(plural), Marisa(my main character) appeared in my mind. She was not at a cross roads by choice. You know what I mean? She's placed in this position of distress. She doesn't know who she is anymore or that all that she has done with her adult life so far has been in vain...I saw Marisa standing on a podium in front of a press corp unsure of herself and angry about her life. I saw her. One of my author buddies, Olympia Vernon often talked about her authors taking over her life and not letting her go until she wrote her story. Marisa is doing that to me. When I heard Whitney Houston's new song--again-- Marisa cried. THIS IS HER SONG!! I almost stopped the car mid school car pool dropoff lane. LOL. As I begin to write a new day in Marisa's life, while playing this song for inspiration of course, I wonder what tools inspire you to know your novel character better? Is it pictures, music, smells, the people in your life... What helps you bring your character's story to life for you?
Leave your comment here.
Also let me remind you that in September we will be building better book blogs. I will also host a special chat for Authors who Twitter and will begin a new program for Do-It-Yourself Marketers called Book Marketing Mastery: Online Marketing & New Media. In the next coming days I will share more about that program and how you can register for it. To receive Christian Fiction Blog in your email address visit the sidebar.
I'm writing an old novel from scratch and will chart my progress here. Oftentimes, I talk about creating a compelling, relevant, page-turner, but how to execute such a story is what writers would love to know. I know I did when I began writing some blah blah years ago. And since I'm not a published novelist, I get to do something my published author pals can't anymore, share the details and take your input.
My objective this month is to write this novel as fast as I can without any editing. I will clean it up after it's done. Author Anna DeStefano has an excellent class on novel writing, which I have attended twice. Walter Mosley states the same notes in his book Write Your Novel in a Year. So that's where my thought pattern is right now.
Before I began this dirty writing as my write-or-die chicks call it. I completed a character arc of my main characters and used J. Mark Bertrands 8 point plot system to create my plot. Took a mind break for a month and began writing on Friday past.
I spent Friday working on my hook. Before I put pen to paper I visualize the scene in my head, then I plot out the scene using Randy Ingermanson's scene and sequel method. I don't write anything until I have a plausible and juicy scene and sequel plotted. It usually takes me about an hour to plot out those, but it may take me all evening to visualize the scene. That is one reason why I will not spend a great deal of time editing this draft. I don't want to lose what's in my head, what I see and smell and taste. This is a blind written- Vida, not Dee the book reviewer--process going on.
The beginning of your novel should be either a hook opening scene or a sneak peak into a big moment later in the book. Since my book isn't a thriller, I chose the hook opener route.
Friday I shared this blind dirty drafted version with my write-or-die chicks. I will also share it with you here. Let me know what you think of it, please say the edit remarks for next month.
If you would like to participate with me and write your novel by Christmas, hit me up here.
(let me know if you can see it, I haven't used writing dot com in a minute)
Dear Lord, help me to erase what needs to be erased, say no to those things You are closing before me, embrace the people You've placed in my life, and serve You in a manner that doesn't burn me out. You edit my life, Lord. Add some periods. Take out some exhausting sentences. Rewrite my story with energy, vigor and truth. Streamline me for Your glory. I want my "the end" to be a mark of finishing well, not limping to the finish. I love You Jesus. So much. Forgive me for doing so much in my paltry strength. For saying yes when You wanted me to say No. For fearing over trusting. Make me over, Lord. Renew me. Refresh me. Not so I can wallow in that refreshment, but so that You through me can be a refreshment for others. Amen
- an excerpt from Mary Demuth's The Master's Artist: "Time to Edit my Life."
When I read Mary's entry last week I looked above me and sighed, "God was this not my life!"
There are so many things to be doing, so many things that have to be done, and you find yourself asking yourself when did I sign up for all this? For years I had been asking God to simplify my life, my writing, my focus, but did I brace myself for how He would do it? No. Uh-uh.
However, peace and understanding is with me. I know I have some friends and family members not still pleased with me. I know my money is my funny, and I'm still short of the mark I want to make on this world.
But what does God want for us? Peace, love, joy, goodness, love, love, love.
I don't have to have money to love more. I don't have a published novel to love more. Shoot I don't have to promote another client to love more. If I can only start with loving myself...
Take a minute to read Mary's post and comment at The Master's Artist this week. I write there every 2nd and 4th Mondays. You may find an author, who speaks what your life is telling you right now. I know I did.
Dee
Happy Sunday. If you haven't seen this already, here's a sneak peek at Tyler Perry's "I Can do Bad All By Myself(releases 9/11)."
Premise: When Madea catches sixteen-year-old Jennifer and her two younger brothers looting her home, she decides to take matters into her own hands and delivers the young delinquents to the only relative they have: their aunt April. A heavy-drinking nightclub singer who lives off of Raymond, her married boyfriend, April wants nothing to do with the kids.
I'm very excited for Adam Rodriquez. I'm a big CSI Miami fan, because of him.
It’s a wonderful feeling when you’re a writer and you’re able to give vent to your creativity and let the words fly as faster than your fingers can move over the keyboard. And when you’re writing Christian fiction, you feel a greater sense of achievement because you know you’re doing your readers a world of good. It’s a little different from writing regular fiction, so if you’re looking for tips on how to attract a larger target audience, read on: Know Christian values: The very purpose of writing Christian fiction is to imbue in your readers a sense of Christian values. And only when you know and practice these values yourself will you be able to include them in your writing and pass them on to your target audience. Read the Bible and learn all you can about Christian values before you begin to write.
Offer advice subtly instead of preaching: Most people are put off by attempts to preach, even if they are meant to instill good values in them. It’s best to offer advice subtly, through the story rather than directly. It takes all your skill as a writer to be able to do this, to make readers realize the importance of values even as they are engrossed in your story. Mix values into the story: Your story may be great, but when you’re trying to attract Christian readers, you must be able to mix values seamlessly into the story. This allows them to connect to both your story and you on different levels and provides you with a regular readership.
Provide a great story: Most important of all, your story must be able to captive readers, even those who are not interested in Christian values. When you’re able to weave a compelling yarn, you can use it as a foundation to spread Christian values and rope in more people into the fold. Your books and stories serve as a platform to spread Christianity and Christian values.
Christian fiction must be engrossing and filled with values that both the young and the old can enjoy. Only then are you doing your job as a good Christian writer.
This guest article was written by Adrienne Carlson, who regularly writes on the topic of online bible colleges . Adrienne welcomes your comments and questions at her email address: adrienne.carlson1 at gmail.com
