More on Christian Fiction

Well, I promised to write more about Christian Fiction. I like the healthy discussion generated from my last post on the topic.

To comment on some of the comments.

To Jason and Mirtika...I'm glad to hear from people who are reading Christian Fiction! I knew you folks had to be out there somewhere. And I'm glad to hear, as well, that you're both trying to advance the cause of bringing more quality into the Christian Publishing world. Keep writing!

One of the comments (from Jason) mentioned a website Faith in Fiction. I went to the site and was glad to see a plug for Relief Journal. Relief is a new journal that has the goal of publishing fiction written by Christians that breaks the boundaries set by most Christian Publishers. I recently went to a gathering hosted by the Relief editors (some of them are based here in Chicago), and met some really, really cool people who are kindred spirits. We talked about literature, faith, the state of Christian Publishing, and what they're trying to accomplish with Relief. They're looking for stories that deal with the nitty-gritty of life and faith, aren't afraid of four-letter words, and maybe don't always have a nice, tidy ending. In other words, stories about real life.

I do think Christian Publishers are stretching their boundaries more. I'm encouraged by that. One of my favorite books from the stack I just read was a story about a young girl recovering from rape. The character was so well drawn and real. I loved the book. So I'm encouraged that CF is going beyond sentimental tripe. And I'm not saying it all has to include a dark, traumatic event. But I just think it needs to embrace all of life....the good the bad and the ugly. And acknowledge that sometimes things dont' turn out so well, and faith is hard and includes doubt. But God is still God.

Real life sometimes includes people who say four letter words. There wasn't a four-letter word to be found in all of the thousands of pages of Christian Fiction I read. I'm in a writing group with a writer who had a story published in Best American Southern Short Stories. She recently had her well-written novel rejected by a Christian publisher because of the "language." I just find that sad that the focus is on a few four letter words and not the quality of writing, the authenticity of the characters, and the message of faith.

My husband is reading The Power and the Glory by Graham Greene. One of my favorite books -- it's about a "whiskey priest" stumbling through life as an extremely flawed character but meeting God despite himself. I need to reread it. I taught the book in a freshman literature class a long, long time ago. David brings up the point "What is Christian fiction?" Good question. Would love to hear what others think.