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Throwback Thursday

  Rebel
         

http://novelrocket.com/2012/08/confessions-of-rebellious-writer.html/ 

If you get a chance, please read this article written and posted on Novel Rocket in 2012. And if you do, scroll way down and read the comments which very much demonstrate a common thought. You might also notice that the "well-known" traditionally published authors who often posted on this site did not offer comments to my rather brazen article. As Brenda S. Anderson commented on last Thursday's Throwback Thursday post, not too much has changed except for the fact that independent Christian writers have skyrocketed in numbers. 

 

Father, you know the course of all of our lives. We seek your direction, but many don't and ignore the paths you place in front of them. Help me to do what you designed for me. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.

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5 responses to “Throwback Thursday”

  1. Brenda S. Anderson Avatar
    Brenda S. Anderson

    I found the comments intriguing. Sounded like readers were clamoring for more “rebellious” fiction, yet the selection offered by trad publishers has only become narrower. I can’t remember the last time I went into a Christian bookstore (albeit, the closest one is a half hour away.) Thank goodness for the rise of indie-publishing so that the reader has a wider variety to choose from!

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  2. Nicole Petrino-Salter Avatar
    Nicole Petrino-Salter

    On Monday you’ll see a review of the third book in The Tox Files by Ronie Kendig (oh, how I loved this series!). Bethany House published this series so I’m quite surprised at the liberal use of one word that would be taboo not too long ago (but of course it fits where it’s used).
    You and I remember the fuss legalistic readers put up with the first edition of Becky Wade’s romance My Stubborn Heart, the insulting accusations they threw at Becky’s Christianity for words which were hardly equivalent to their unjustified wrath.
    It’ll be interesting to see how reviewers encounter this word in one of Bethany House’s publications. It does, however, indicate a willingness to perhaps be stretched to some realistic dialogue/situations where stronger words might be required? We shall see, I guess.
    And it’s not like I’m advocating for curse words and certainly not for graphic sex, etc. No, I’m advocating for the realism which can be so absent in these areas in some Christian fiction.
    I don’t even know where a Christian bookstore is in any area in my vicinity. The last Family Christian closed a few years back. Sad. I’d love to own and operate one. A sign in the entrance would be: You buy it, you own it. No returns for “I didn’t like it . . . blah, blah, blah.” Nope. And it would be books. No jewelry, pictures, etc. Books.

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  3. Brenda S. Anderson Avatar
    Brenda S. Anderson

    I think Ronie Kendig is established enough, plus her audience is not the Amish or light romance reader that BH gives her leeway. She’s one of the exceptions in CF publishing today. When My Stubborn Heart came out, Becky Wade was a new entity. Most of us LOVED that she wasn’t the typical Christian romance writer, but the few loud voices were heard by BH. My Stubborn Heart is by far my favorite of Becky’s because it didn’t toe the CF romance line.
    Now for me, curse words & sex aren’t what makes a book real or not, what bothers me the most are too-perfect characters and endings that are too tied up in a bow and situations that don’t go deep. It’s like Nancy Drew vs. Trixie Belden. Everyone loves Nancy Drew, but Trixie Belden was a far more complex character and the story lines were much more relatable and believable.

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  4. Nicole Petrino-Salter Avatar
    Nicole Petrino-Salter

    It’s interesting about Ronie being “established”. That’s a good point. It’s also interesting to me that she mentioned Dave Long as her editor – or one of them. He’s been with BH for a long, long time and early on was on the fringe of “acceptable to Christian” readers in his opinions. He must’ve toed the line because he’s still there, and BH hasn’t changed too much. However, J. Mark Bertrand was basically told to also toe that line which ended his career at BH – and pretty much his novel writing career unless he’s using a pseudonym. That reminds me: I forgot to add his cop character to my favorite “5” male characters.

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  5. Nicole Petrino-Salter Avatar
    Nicole Petrino-Salter

    Also, Bren, I’m not suggesting cursing and sexual scenes make a novel better or even real, but language-specific scenes and sensual awareness especially in any romantic scene is critical to reality. We’re not robots. But I wholeheartedly agree with you regarding “too perfect” characters/scenes/endings, although it’s expected with most romance genre novels for the “happy ending” to arrive. And I don’t have a problem with happy endings either provided, as you suggested, they’re not sappy/too easy/lacking any depth.

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