Into the Fire

Credit needs to be given and acknowledged to https://powerfulchristianfiction.wordpress.com/ for this heading and picture.

The definitive answer to the title question is an absolute NO. However, yet another question that needs asking: Is the Christian Fiction bookselling industry/publishing/business dead? That remains to be answered. If you'll look in the comment section of Friday's "Knockdown" post, you'll find some interesting, thoughtful, and revealing comments from authors Sally Bradley and Brenda S. Anderson. 

In my opinion the breakout novel (as described by Steve Laube in the first paragraph of the post) that began a Christian Fiction revolution was Frank Peretti's This Present Darkness. Frank introduced the full length, spiritually and supernaturally focused story that captured relationships, temptations, demonic interferences, struggles, and an overall fascinating tale of the human condition with and without the Lord. He blew the doors off "Christian Fiction" and established it for years to come. He followed it up with a sequel and several more captivating stories that took more than a couple hours to read and thoughtfully addressed serious "in-house" Christian difficulties in the world and with other-worldly challenges. Although there were some major authors before him, he truly pioneered a fresh approach to writing fiction in the Christian market which gained the attention of the general market.

So where are we now? Closed Christian bookstores, an exodus by traditionally and non-trad authors to indie/self-publication for various reasons:

1. More and more publishers require a suggested marketing package designed by the author so the authors might as well do it by themselves for themselves.

2. The royalties and earnings paid to authors are much more via indie/self publishing so the potential to actually make more money outside the traditional market is certainly more appealing.

3. Freedom to write the stories the way authors choose to write them, to select their own cover designs, titles, etc.

4. A much quicker turnaround rate for book production. 

The local Barnes & Noble bookstores generally have a small one-side of a two-part bookcase for Christian fiction and include Christian non-fiction with other "religions" in a section on the other side of these bookcases. From my nearest Barnes & Noble, the offerings are not new nor innovative as far as Christian novels go. The selections are as staid as the industry's decision to produce and sell "safe" books and new releases are infrequent and more by the well-known/established authors. There are no "sale" prices for these soft covers.

Please don't misunderstand me here. Those authors deserve those places on the bookshelves and their audiences should be supplied, but as far as developing new readers to the Christian Fiction genre, there are next to no places to accomplish that outside of indie authors on Amazon.

Christian booksellers have closed their doors, there is conflict at CBA, and those in the business end of all of this must be pondering to whom exactly are they going to sell their published wares. Their print books and Kindle versions are overpriced on Amazon and wherever they're found. They aren't presenting competitive products and prices and they have to be suffering the consequences of their decisions.

Christian fiction authors are alive and well and many of them can be found happily producing the stories they've been born to write or with the help of particular self-publishers.

So, again, a definitive NO to the question regarding the demise of Christian Fiction. In fact it's experiencing a revival of sorts.

Father, you know how it all turns out, what you desire from your people, how to rectify problems, and you continue to meet the needs of all of us who seek after you and desire to be what you designed us to be. Thank you for watching over us, Lord. We're always desperate for you. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.