Into the Fire

So I’m plowing along, minding my own business, when Nicole asked me if I wanted to do a guest posting on her blog. Here’s how the conversation went:

Nicole: Want to do a guest post on my blog?
Mark: Sure. What about?
Nicole: Just your take on the writing/publishing world as an unpublished author, what you look for in a story, and what you’ve learned about the publishing process since you decided to start writing.
Mark: Ok, I can do that. But why would anybody care what I think?

Still, Nicole didn’t withdraw her offer, so here I am, with a hodge-podge of thoughts. I’m a relative newcomer to the CBA world–in fact, I can probably count the number of CBA books I’ve read on one hand. For years, I honestly didn’t know there were Christian novels out there for a reader like me. Whenever I walked into the Christian bookstore, I usually saw one of three types of books on the fiction rack: romances, historical fiction, and end-of-the-world stories. Where were the spy novels, police thrillers, epic war novels? I couldn’t have told you. They were there, of course, but hidden from my view. Now, as I’ve come to be more aware of the market, I know that there are some books like that out there. But this awareness has only come from my own research–I have not seen any concerted attempts by the CBA to market these sorts of novels. That’s not to say it’s never been done–just that it hasn’t reached me. Now that I know they’re out there, I’ll probably try and seek more of them out for my shelf.

I read primarily to escape into a story. I tend to like books that are more plot-oriented–the ones that have a “hook” upon which the story is built. I can appreciate a well-developed character, but I am not the target audience for character studies. Same goes for literary fiction. No matter how beautiful the language is, if nothing’s happening, I’m putting the book down. And no stories that spiral into constant angst and depression–I’m reading for fun here! I prefer a fast pace. My ideal book would have a little bit of everything: action, suspense, mystery, wit, interesting people, drama, romance. I’m trying to carry these preferences into my writing as well.

There’s been discussion around the CBA blogs lately concerning items like the use of italics to convey thoughts or alternate POV’s, alternate fonts, 1st person vs. 3rd person, etc. Some discussion on the ideal length of novels as well. As a reader, my feelings are pretty blunt. I really, truly don’t care. As long as I can understand what’s going on and it’s consistent–for example, if I know that when I read the italics, I’m reading the character’s inner thoughts–I’m fine with it. Length of a novel doesn’t concern me either. I’ve read 800-page Tom Clancy behemoths that had me absorbed throughout. I’ve also read a couple where I had to skip entire chapters devoted to describing the inner workings of an airplane engine. If the story is interesting, length is not a concern to me.

One of the reasons I started writing a novel was that I thought there would be a market for male readers in the CBA–guys like me who wanted to read thrillers and didn’t feel the need to include f-words and sex scenes. And I still think there is a market for them. The question, of course, is how to reach the male reader. I’ve learned that a prospective author needs to not only write a great book but needs to have a marketing strategy as well. While this seems unfair to a guy without an MBA, I can see it from the publisher’s side. They’re investing money in you and need to know that they can make it back. This is especially true for a first-time author. In that role I represent even more of a risk.

Another frustration is that it seems like it’s a lot easier for you to be published if you already have been published. This is especially tough if you have a full-time day job, family, and all sorts of responsibilities that pull you away from writing. I often wonder how I could get published–it’s not like I have access to magazine editors, either. Again, I can understand how this has to do with risk aversion on the part of the publisher. But the deck certainly seems stacked against the newbie, and one wonders how new authors ever break through. The answer appears to be hard work and making connections. Just about every agent and publisher encourages writers to attend conferences where they can meet in a controlled setting. This makes sense because it seems the best way to put faces with names. However, the downside is that most of these conferences are far away from me, and in a single-income family, it’s very difficult to plunk down a couple grand to leave my family and attend. Personally, I’ve made the decision to finish my novel first and then worry about attending a conference. Hopefully I’ll be able to find one close by. The bottom line is that it seems in publishing, as in most areas, there’s a degree of “It’s Who You Know” at work.

In a nutshell, that’s what I’ve learned (rightly or wrongly) about the publishing world/CBA thus far. I think the important thing for me is to be realistic, knowing that it can take years to realize my dreams as an author. Keep working, keep learning. And above all, I need to remember that it may not be God’s will that I ever get published. He’s put me where I am, today, to serve Him now. We’ll see where He takes me.

My sincere thanks to Mark Harbeson for bringing his H-game to my blog. H is for honesty, folks. He’s a reader and a writer. His opinion matters because he’s a consumer/reader, a writer, and a guy who hopes to one day crack the publishing code. I’ve read as far as he’s written on his first novel Samaritan (and you can read a little bit of it, too, if you go back a ways to his entry on “Saturday Sample . . .”) He’s a natural who has an intriguing plot goin’ on.

Mark is one of the good guys, and you can visit his blog “Utter Drivel” where you’ll find all kinds of interesting topics, not all of which is “drivel”.

*Please continue to pray for Kristy Dykes. She’s had some good times and some bad times. For details visit her at CHRISTIAN LOVE STORIES.*