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Post by newburydave on Dec 5, 2011 12:06:09 GMT -5
We're Christian Speculative Fiction Writers here.
Everyone, whose goals I've seen in this forum, states that they feel called to write for the glory of God, to reach souls with God's truth, or some variation on that theme.
I feel called to write Christian Themed Spec Fic for the secular Science Fiction marketplace as a sort of asymmetric mission effort. I know that some of you share my specific calling, but all of you have your own special calling to write in this "unusual" genre.
Writing with Christian themes seems to be the common denominator for all of us in terms of how we plan to take those genres, which today are ususally antiGod, and make them into vehicle for God's truth and hopefully a tool for the Holy Ghost to use to convict hearts.
Okay, enough defining of terms and assumptions.
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The reason I'm starting this thread. I'd be very interested to learn from each of you:
1. What do you think constitutes good Christian thematic elements for an Sf story?
And more importantly;
2. What is your plan to weave Christian thematic elements into your Sf stories?
I think we may all be able to benefit from this discussion. Examining our own assumptions and strategies in the community of our brothers and sisters in the Faith and Calling can be illuminating.
Write on Sibs
SGD dave
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Post by Kessie on Dec 5, 2011 15:45:32 GMT -5
When I've been reading along in spec fic, I have a few expectations. First off, to be entertained. Second, if there is religion, it needs to be integrated into the world.
I hate being preached to. In The Rolling Stones by Heinlein, the last chapter has a two or three-page sermon on how awesome we are because we evolved from a courageous worm in the mud. Being preached to about something I believe in is bad enough, but being preached to about something I disagree with is downright odious. I understand why people get so mad about overt Christian themes in books they didn't know were 'Christian'.
For me, good elements are the unexplained things that make me wonder. In Dogsbody, by Diana Wynne Jones, I was almost crying because she didn't explain more about the Stars and the Spheres. In Starswarm, by Pournelle, I've had to read it multiple times to figure out how the world works, because he never comes out and tells you. There's lots of books that deal with the Beyond, and it's left nebulous. The reader is free to imagine what they like for the Powers, or Distant Light, or whatever the author writes about. That's what I like best. Things that leave me curious about the unknown. It approaches Lewis's "numinous" feeling.
My plan for integrating Christian thematic elements? I don't have much of a plan. I just want to tell good stories. My faith will leak through. I had a story once where the heroes go up against an outer space monster. I couldn't figure out how they should kill it, so I finally had one guy get bitten and slice his way out through the top of the head. Then I had one reader tell me later how my symbolism was neat, because they crushed the head of the serpent. I had honestly never thought of that.
I'm writing modern fantasy. If my characters believe in God, I'll be honest about it. If they don't, I'll be honest about that, too. I do have an amusing idea that the Chronomancers believe in God and are terrified of him, because he interferes with their time spells. Sort of like how the "demons believe in God and tremble". You don't have to be on God's side to know that he exists.
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Post by birdnerd on Dec 5, 2011 18:18:06 GMT -5
1. Having your main characters act in a way that would not irritate God ... and when they do mess up, there's a consequence for doing the wrong thing.
Do nothing that would misrepresent God, godliness, and/or holiness.
2. I just write the story in my head, adhering to #1. Sometimes they "Christian elements" are wide open for anyone with half as many brain cells as eyeballs to see. Sometimes they're in there, but you have to be on the lookout.
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rjj7
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Today I'm a drake
Posts: 202
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Post by rjj7 on Dec 5, 2011 21:12:14 GMT -5
I think most people, if asked whether "mistakes inevitably bring consequences on ourselves or others" is a Christian theme, would say no. I say absolutely it's a Christian theme! It is truth, and truth is always of God. So I don't try and write obviously Christian themes into my books, but to just write a story that is true to the world we live in. Good triumphs over evil, actions have consequences, authority is to be obeyed, and so on and so forth. That said, I do have a couple of stories that are more closely tied to Christianity. I have an idea mulling around in my mind about a story with an order of knights that go out into the world and act like missionaries to spread the true religion. However, I'm not going to go out of my way to say that it's Christianity. They will adhere to a code of conduct just like a Christian's and they will act like Christian's (even down to making mistakes from time to time), but I'm not going to have them sit down and talk to characters about all of the modern arguments atheists use or how God's son gave his life to save the world. I will share what is important to the story and the main character, but since it is a story where evil is a little more 'present', it's not going to be a big story of faith and believing; more a 'this is the way things are' "oh, glad you told me. Now we can go about fighting it"I hope to demonstrate more by example than exposition, if you will. I generally don't weave themes in at all. Either the theme is one of the first concepts that helps form the core, or it's something that just happened to fit into the story through no work or merit on my part (though I believe there is someone looking out for that sort of thing )
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Post by yoda47 on Dec 5, 2011 21:39:29 GMT -5
In my Guardian series, I have one character who is a Christian, but she's not pushy about it. (I've kinda taken a hint from the current modern world where religion isn't tall that popular.) If asked, she's direct about it, and tries to live by example. As for the other characters, they (the character) isn't saved, but I, the author, am, so I try to: - have "clean", but entertaining plots. - have characters and plots that refect Christain theams (for example, one of the theams in the second Guardian Chronicels book is "why do bad things happen to good people". The first book is , "being friendly, relaying on friends") I try to just hint at the theam, without preaching (a book is supposed to be entertaining. Mostly, I want readers, Christian or not, to read the book and be entertained, and to see an example of Christian living in the book (but possibly not realize it...
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Post by almarquardt on Dec 5, 2011 21:43:36 GMT -5
I wrote my first novel for a very selfish reason.
My favorite genre is Science Fiction, but I was tired of it all either not acknowledging God, or representing a higher power as some ethereal "Universe" or "Force" that didn't take an active role in the fight between good and evil. At the time (back in 2000) there was no Christian Science Fiction out there -- that I could find -- except Kathy Tyers' Firebird series and C.S. Lewis' SF trilogy.
One day I was complaining to God about it when a small voice said, "Then you write it."
So I sat down wrote the book I always wanted to read.
It's geared toward Christians, no doubt there, but I set out to create characters that were flawed. One of my complaints of the Christian Fiction (again at the time) is that every protagonist was a virgin, never cursed, and never drank to excess. I figured, how much more powerful is Jesus' forgiveness when the protagonist starts out truly horrible?
I also wanted God to play an active roll. I've read some, even recently, where it's categorized as Christian fiction simply because the protagonist prayed at certain intervals and convinced someone else to go to church with him or her at the end.
That's not to say every Christian story must contain overt Christian themes. Sometimes subtlety is key. All we have to do is read Jesus' Parables for example.
Since then, however, I've been wanting to write for the mainstream market where there are more subtle Christian themes, such as forgiveness, redemption and sacrifice.
Science Fiction has been used for decades as a medium to comment on current societal ills. I think it's even expected. That's how Gene Roddenberry wrote Star Trek, for example. It's always seemed an obvious marriage to combine Christian with Science Fiction, and I've always been befuddled by those who believe it's not only impossible, but near sacreligious.
The hard part at times is making the Christian elements organic to the story and at the same time avoid preaching. My first concern is to glorify God. As I write, I pray for God's guidence and refer constantly to his Word to make sure what my characters learn is consistent with the Bible.
For a novella I wrote, some parts I wasn't 100% sure it was on the right track, so I asked my pastor to read it. That was a tremendous help.
As long as we write prayerfully, and worshipfully, God will shine through.
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rjj7
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Posts: 202
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Post by rjj7 on Dec 5, 2011 21:45:12 GMT -5
When thinking about Christian themes, I generally end up with something relating to a common misconception held nowadays. For example, I have a book about 14-20 year olds who basically end up having to assume leadership of their clan when 95% of the men are wiped out in battle. The idea originated because I believe that the notion of 'adolescence' is a myth. At least in terms of it being a time of inevitable conflict and rebellion with authority. Whether this is a Christian theme or not is open to debate, but I think it is because I think it is true (see my previous post); furthermore, if true, it would be of great importance to Christian parents, so that's enough to class it as a Christian theme in my book. Another story I have takes a very black and white view of good and evil. This is in response to the modern clamor for 'grey' area. In the end, the person that everyone expected to be the hero was not. There were a few people who saw it coming, and argued that as he had these flaws in his character, he couldn't possibly be the prophesied one; to be the Hero of Good, you would have to be good; not 'good enough' or 'better than the other guy'. These are just a couple of examples of themes I'm working with. But actually, a number of my stories begin this way; take something I want to say, and show characters living it out. Show, don't tell. Basically, it is my opinion that any theme that is an accurate representation of the truth is a good and viable Christian theme to include. Though if it comes down to it, I think a book filled with characters who act like Christians may be one of the best themes; and it's not even technically a theme. The modern urge is to have characters who have huge problems that they moan and groan under, but I think it's overrated. It makes a good story about a sinner that needs to become a Christian, but every so often, I want a character who is a Christian at the start; not perfect, but noble of character and resilient of person. Which actually is sort of a theme in some of my other stories.
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Post by metalikhan on Dec 6, 2011 2:15:57 GMT -5
For the first question, good Christian themes involve application of scripture and consequences of choices. I think each Christian writer has individual passions for particular themes, which, in turn, influences the kinds of characters s/he creates and plots s/he explores. For the second question, I have a hard time quantifying a response for my own writing because of how most of my stories are "born". I don't start with "I am going to write a Christian SFF story with such & such scriptural themes." For me, most stories truly arrive in my brain like volcanic explosions. Aside from my audience of One, I'm not always certain about the target audience until the story is finished. (There are a few exceptions such as those written according to TC2's templates.) Likewise, I'm not always certain what the Christian theme(s) is(are) until I'm well into the story. I don't plan the Christian thematic elements in my SFF stories. They are an outpouring of who I am in Christ; and because I pray over my stories, I trust the Holy Spirit to guide my heart & mind and, thus, the story's theme(s) in the direction it needs to go. However blatant or subtle they may be, I can spot exactly what the themes are once the story is done — even when critiquers (or readers who actually take time to comment) may not be able to see them. And even without intending any inclusion, I can usually see particular scriptures at work in the story. As I glance through a sampling of my stories, these are a few of the themes: self-sacrifice for the good of others yield one's own will and desires to God forgive those who have done harm love thy enemy stand firm against evil courage is as much or more about living as about facing death even the lowly and damaged can serve God even in suffering and loss, there is hope. Regardless of the story I work on, I keep two things in mind: It's my sacrificial offering to God; but I also remember that blemished offerings were not acceptable to Him. If my writing is not suitable to set before God's throne, then neither is it ready to bring before a human audience. The second (and flipside of the first) is embodied in Malachi: If a sacrifice (my writing) isn't good enough for the governors (publishers), what makes me think it's good enough for God? So I don't write with a deliberate, evangelical agenda. I write with an eye toward the excellence capable of proving that, by His grace, God's children can stand in any arena. (One of my arenas happens to be SFF writing.) IMO, it requires that I embrace the creativity, the craftsmanship, the intellectual challenge of the talent/gift He's given me and honor Him before man by striving toward excellence in its expression. In addition, if God wants something I've written to touch/convict/encourage/etc a particular heart or hearts, the quality of writing has to be of a level that does not interfere or detract from what He wants it to accomplish. As for myself, it doesn't matter whether the story winds up going to a Christian or a secular market. I write either way. I tend to the grammar & punctuation, the characters & plots. God tends to the audience.
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Post by newburydave on Dec 10, 2011 10:55:58 GMT -5
Metal;
Your post reminds me of a piece of advice that that I found in a book to preachers. "Life giving preaching is the outflow of a life lived consistently for God, not the result of intellectual study of a few hours duration Saturday afternoon." (this is the gist of it, I can't lay my hand on the book for an exact quote)
I think your application of this principle to writing is a very good observation.
SGD dave
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Post by Kessie on Dec 10, 2011 17:37:31 GMT -5
My hubby's working his way through the Dresden novels right now. One of the characters is a Paladin whose power comes from God, and he carries a sword with one of the nails of the Cross in it. This character is devoutly Catholic.
Now, Dresden is about the last book series I would consider "Christian". But he portrays a Christian character very well.
In movies, Christians are made fun of. But if faith needs to be shown in a positive light, it's always Catholic. Especially dealing with the supernatural, like Van Helsing. Do you think that using Catholic trappings somehow gets under people's radar a little better? (Holy water, crucifixes and so forth).
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Post by Divides the Waters on Dec 10, 2011 21:04:28 GMT -5
I think it resonates because it is well-known, and because the iconic Protestant faith tends towards bible-thumping, big hair, doomsday prophecies, and requests for millions of dollars. (I am speaking, I might add, as a non-denom evangelical Christian. Just trying to see the picture as the masses probably do.) I think the idea of a potent faith based on demonstrable acts of charity or heroism does somehow come across more easily in the Catholic trappings. In creating a "religion" for my own fantasy world, I realized that an organized Church has more dramatic possibilities than a number of disjointed and bickering subsets, so I borrowed a bit from that concept.
I also think that the Catholic Church has more of a reputation for taking the supernatural seriously without making it a caricature. Think of exorcism rites vs. snake handling...you get the picture.
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Post by paulinecreeden on Dec 11, 2011 21:12:29 GMT -5
Even Stephen King got away with it in "THE STAND" - and I'm pretty sure he was raised Catholic as well. I think one of the reasons that Catholicism is more acceptable than Protestantism is because there is no getting "saved" in Catholicisim - you accept the rituals and your in - you sin, just confess. The ritual nature and the symbolism that drives Catholicism makes it so that it is easier to digest as well. You can have faith in the symbol (the wooden cross in your hand or holy water in the watergun) without having to dedicate yourself to an intangible God.
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Post by waldenwriter on Dec 12, 2011 1:08:05 GMT -5
I confess this is something I haven't really thought about. Just like I didn't give much thought to writing sci-fi at first. I just figured, "hey I like technology, science, and world-building", and sci-fi seemed like the only genre you could get away with writing about that. Never mind that I'd read next to no sci-fi and only knew sci-fi through movies, some TV shows, and anime. I'd always felt subconsciously though that in some way I should use my writing talent for God, because he gave me the talent. But I think I was confused about what that entails. And I think that I thought I could get by on talent and what "craft" I learned in school alone, which I guess you can to an extent. But if you don't know who you are as a writer, you just get lost. And that's where I am right now. I think for an SF story, as in any story, Christian elements can find their beginnings in some sort of moral construct. Christian or not, we all have some sort of inner understanding of right and wrong, and Romans 1 says everybody has some idea from creation that there is a God. No matter how far out your story may be, generally there are rules to even how a fantasy world functions -- especially if there is magic. That's how you distinguish between the good guys and the bad guys, even if the bad guys seem to have good intentions. Beyond that, a lot of the virtues we cherish in life in general have a Biblical basis, like wisdom, bravery, and selflessness. And those work well in any SF story. I'm not quite sure how I will weave Christian elements into my future stories. My one finished novel, Darkly Bound, is a salvation narrative - in other words a book about a person getting saved. So it definitely has Christian elements, perhaps too many. (In fact, my friends in the critique group at my non-Christian university thought it had too many Christian elements - and I never even got through the whole book with them). It was a novel I felt I needed to write, though, for me at least even if it never gets published, because I feel like through Avalon I was trying to work out a lot of my own struggles as a Christian. One of my other planned stories, The CYA Files, explores the idea of superhero-like characters who use their natural skills and talents, along with their spiritual gifts, to fight evil. This is something I've been trying to work out for years and was my attempt to pacify those Christians who might turn away from a superhero story because they're anti-magic. Now I'm not so sure how it's going to work, especially considering most of the spiritual gifts don't seem suited for combat. But then again, a lot of people seem confused about spiritual gifts - myself included - and so it might help them. Then there are the Tales of Walden, which explore a Tolkienesque-fantasy world that, similar to Tolkien's, has a creator but no clear equivalent of Jesus or the Cross (not sure if Frodo can be considered a Christ character). I have planned that there will be a savior character, but I haven't worked out how that plot will fit into the epic of Walden overall. Lastly, my planned time-travel adventure YA series, TimeSavers. This is the one I really don't know how to weave God into. I hate to gobbet it in through these blatant statements, like "Your god can't hurt us, because we believe in a greater God" sort of thing - which Frank Peretti's Cooper Kids Adventures did to an extent. My initial intent was to provide a series kind of like the Boxcar Children, with these kids doing things without an adult's help, but then the stories became more like adventures than mysteries. The only good thread I have is that the society that Solania, the Guardian of the Time Stream, comes from, is very focused on fate and predestination. So I'm afraid I don't have much to contribute to this discussion. I really don't have the experience or knowledge of myself as a writer to say much on this. Sorry. Edit: Oh and, while I initially thought I'd only publish through a Christian publisher, I am now broadening my horizons to include secular possibilities as well.
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Post by Kessie on Dec 12, 2011 12:00:45 GMT -5
Renee: I've gone through your exact same progression. Not knowing how to incorporate Christian themes, putting in too many, putting in too few. The best way to figure it out is just keep writing, then bounce your writing off Christians and non-Christians. You'll narrow it down to a happy medium eventually.
What I've found is just to concentrate on telling a good story. Also, don't worry about pleasing people. Write for an Ideal Reader. (Mine used to be my siblings, then when I got married it became my husband.) Write what you want to read.
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Post by newburydave on Dec 12, 2011 13:11:19 GMT -5
Kessie and Renee;
I don't know if either of you have read Jeff Gerke's "The Art and Craft of Writing Christian Fiction"? It is the flat out best book for Christian writers on writing fiction for God.
He has a whole chapter on who our audience is / should be. I highly recommend it. I've got a dead tree copy (that I loaned out and now can't find) and a kindle copy. It's worth rereading many times.
I think he answers some of your questions.
Time presses, got to go.
Write on Sisters
SGD dave
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