Into the Fire

Mike Duran recently said this: "To put it bluntly, message-driven fiction potentially dumbs down readers." in his post here. In his article he gives his opinion about some CBA literature and quotes authors Athol Dickson from his post I made reference to on Monday and T. L. Hines. I find Mike's comment to be true because of his careful insertion of the word "potentially". The reason I find it to be true is because I believe all writers have an "agenda" whether or not they're conscious of their intentions.

Did you feel the surge of hackles being raised at my last statement? Whoosh! Here's why I say that. Only people who have no belief system could write without a point, a message, a theme, a statement. Out of 100,000 words or more – or less – an author better have something to say regardless of it being in story form. Stories have a purpose. Entertainment is a purpose because if your story isn't able to conjure a reaction of some kind – a laugh, a tear, an anger, a smile, a frown, an admiration, an opinion – what have you got? Empty ineffective words, that's what – and lots of them.

However, that doesn't mean the message – or agenda – must be in your face or obvious or that if it is that it must be poorly written.

In the polarized place in which our society now resides I find that artists, writers, filmmakers, and actors are putting their "agendas" in the forefront of their art. Is this wise? Is it good? Is it effective? It could be argued in all cases that it is not particularly wise, good, or effective in making their work desirable. And here's where the "potential" for dumbing down occurs. If a reader who is a Christian doesn't want to have to "wonder" about the "message", then they buy CBA fiction in their preferred genres and for sure they have created a market perpetuated by most CBA publishers. But this is no less true for ABA and its readers.

Someone remarked that the blame for this could be placed on the public school system, and though I'm no fan of recent public school curriculum which is almost entirely agenda driven and in many places "dumbed down", I don't think it's possible to teach some students the value of understanding symbolism. If they continue to resist or fail to see the importance of searching for and comprehending the symbolism, and if they decide to read for pleasure, believer or unbeliever, they'll seek out those message-driven novels which entertain them without challenging them.

Some readers will tell us point blank that they don't want to be challenged. They just want to escape and spend those minutes allotted for reading away from the trials and tribulations of life on planet earth. However, if honest, they would probably concede that they don't want to read message-driven novels that don't agree with their worldview.

The "Christian agenda", if we choose to indulge that labeling, does somewhat isolate its audience by proclaiming its intent to satisfy a certain number of readers compiled from the publishers' chosen demographic. It risks limiting the readership of those who seek out meaningful and well-written tomes by offering a large number of what can only be called ordinary literature where the depth of writing is not a requirement. The one positive you can extract from this is that it's honest – in that it makes no bones about its appeal to those Christians who want to experience that set "agenda" usually qualified by a possible conversion, solid Christian characters who attend church or those who are mad at God but return to full service to Him in the end, neat and tidy endings with either that Cinderella feel or unlimited hope, and chaste romances. Now, mind you, some of these stories are the Christian equivalent to or the "holy" renditions of the Harlequin Romances. Others outside the romance genre give you suspense, mysteries, or the unlimited supply of historical (often historical romance) novels where the villains are stereotypically evil and the heroes are strong and good or end up that way. This literature doesn't pretend to be anything other than what it is.

However, what some of those who sampled that fare and came up wanting have yet to realize in their generalized criticisms of Christian Fiction is there are some superior CBA authors who have chosen not to follow this agenda and because of their attractive skills have been allowed publication and promotion in the CBA marketplace. These are the authors who could compete artistically in any market but because of tackling Christian spiritual issues, whether overtly or covertly, and originating from "Christian" publishers, they, too, are labeled and sometimes confined to the very same place as the more ordinary offerings in the industry.

If you've read comparable genres in the ABA, then you must have noticed some of their agendas written into the stories. Such as New Age overtones, favoring uncomitted sex, homosexual freedom, abundant profanity, liberal politics, and the like . . . If none of these registered on your radar, then you haven't read much in the ABA because those issues are all there in some of their offerings just as Christianity is present in CBA publishing with no apology.

I think it's fair to say whether or not you write speculative fiction to romance, your work has a point and even an agenda in or outside of CBA. Even if it's only to "entertain". And if you choose to appeal to those readers who want very little from a novel, you should have that place to write. If you want your novels to reach a broader audience and opt for more in-depth literature, you also should have a place. This is where the conflict often arises. For those who wish to write for CBA with a deeper objective and an amplifed perspective . . . will there be a place for them?

Father, I wish to write as you determine. Not solely to please man. However it is, Lord, help me to be obedient to you. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.