Shopping for Christian Fiction?
HT to Dave Brooks
Vampires in Christian Fiction
If you missed the first post, there were very good comments related to vampires and such in Christian fiction. One of the commenters was Sue Dent, who wrote the mentioned Never Ceese novel.
Evangeline noted my objective take on it – thanks. I was trying to present it evenly to see what people came up with before I threw in my own 2 cents. There are a few different facets to this discussion, so I don’t think it is a simple “yes it is eviiiiiil” or “no, there’s no problem”.
Sue brought out the importance of defining what is meant by Christian fiction. I was referring to the notion of the CBA/ECPA. As Sue noted, this is an umbrella group that is responsible for a certain type of “Christian fiction”, a type that usually gets ownership of that moniker. It is evangelical and conservative in outlook, and there are certain unwritten rules with these type of rules: no cussing, no sex (unless in marriage, and not on page), and as Sue mentioned, certain literary images like vampires, werewolves, etc., would not be generally welcome. (Oddly enough, you can have mass murderers, super assassins, and a high body count, but that’s another post…) “CBA” is almost a brand, but religious or Christian books are not limited to it. Very prominent examples of non-CBA Christian books would be the award-winning Gilead and Peace Like a River, and Sue’s novels. So you likely wouldn’t find a vampire novel in a Christian bookstore due to the CBA, as Sue mentions.
Evangeline talked about vampires as good objects for symbolism, metaphors, or allegory. This could potentially be a worthy use of the undead in CBA fiction. It would take a compelling author with a bold statement of faith to pull it off, likely.
Carole had interesting, thoughtful insights about the possibility of salvation for vampires, based on whether they were “fallen” men or demons. She also notes that vampires often act as a “bad boy” for the good girl to redeem, which might be a little prejudiced toward the “hot male vampires” LOL.
What are my thoughts? Jumbled as usual. I’ll list some out.
1. Regarding the Twilight series specifically, I have finished Twilight and am almost done with New Moon. I share Evangline’s concern about the sensualness of the series – even though Meyers keeps the clothes on and the physical touching limited to arms and faces, she still has a gift for romance and sexual tension. I wouldn’t want a young daughter of mine to read them. I also don’t like that Bella’s desire for immortality comes from wanting to become a vampire like Edward, over God’s ways.
2. We discussed the Twilight series in a home group/Bible study. A few people automatically didn’t like the idea of some many kids reading about vampires and werewolves, considering them evil and demonic, and wondering if Christians should be opening themselves up to such influences. I remember reading Dracula for high school, and my pastor’s wife cautioned me to be prayed up for it, as she read it and felt darkness from it. Considering the Twilight series, I told the group I couldn’t judge it without reading it for myself.
3. I have experienced evil influence from entertainment before. I used to play Dungeons and Dragons with friends around 9th-10th grade. We didn’t go for real heavy use of demons (mostly orcs and the like, Lord of the Ring-ish) and we always made our characters religion “Christian” on the player sheet. Still, it got to us. We had a sleep over one night where we got pretty freaked out with some weird stuff going on. I was the first to leave the group, feeling it was a bad situation. After this these good friends turned on me and I had some bad experiences with them. I wouldn’t be against any role-playing game, but I would not want my kids to play D&D specifically.
4. I have argued before for freedom for a Christian artist to produce the art they feel they should make. I wouldn’t condemn a Christian for using elements that I felt uncomfortable with, but I would use discernment whether it would be something for me to partake in or not.
5. Vampires and other mythological, typically evil creatures should be used carefully, but I think there is room for them to be used in a conscientious manner. I can’t help thinking of C.S. Lewis using witches, giants, the Greek god Bacchus, and other pagan-type supernatural events in his stories. A modern master of using the supernatural for a truly Godly end is Stephen Lawhead in many of his books.
6. Are vampires in essence a perversion of the gospel with their life coming from stealing the blood of people, as opposed to the life-giving power of the blood of Christ? This just came to me while writing this post – don’t know if I have the answer.
I think that’s more than enough to chew on for now. I’ll let y’all sink your teeth into it (grooooan).
Vampires in Christian Fiction
If you missed the first post, there were very good comments related to vampires and such in Christian fiction. One of the commenters was Sue Dent, who wrote the mentioned Never Ceese novel.
Evangeline noted my objective take on it – thanks. I was trying to present it evenly to see what people came up with before I threw in my own 2 cents. There are a few different facets to this discussion, so I don’t think it is a simple “yes it is eviiiiiil” or “no, there’s no problem”.
Sue brought out the importance of defining what is meant by Christian fiction. I was referring to the notion of the CBA/ECPA. As Sue noted, this is an umbrella group that is responsible for a certain type of “Christian fiction”, a type that usually gets ownership of that moniker. It is evangelical and conservative in outlook, and there are certain unwritten rules with these type of rules: no cussing, no sex (unless in marriage, and not on page), and as Sue mentioned, certain literary images like vampires, werewolves, etc., would not be generally welcome. (Oddly enough, you can have mass murderers, super assassins, and a high body count, but that’s another post…) “CBA” is almost a brand, but religious or Christian books are not limited to it. Very prominent examples of non-CBA Christian books would be the award-winning Gilead and Peace Like a River, and Sue’s novels. So you likely wouldn’t find a vampire novel in a Christian bookstore due to the CBA, as Sue mentions.
Evangeline talked about vampires as good objects for symbolism, metaphors, or allegory. This could potentially be a worthy use of the undead in CBA fiction. It would take a compelling author with a bold statement of faith to pull it off, likely.
Carole had interesting, thoughtful insights about the possibility of salvation for vampires, based on whether they were “fallen” men or demons. She also notes that vampires often act as a “bad boy” for the good girl to redeem, which might be a little prejudiced toward the “hot male vampires” LOL.
What are my thoughts? Jumbled as usual. I’ll list some out.
1. Regarding the Twilight series specifically, I have finished Twilight and am almost done with New Moon. I share Evangline’s concern about the sensualness of the series – even though Meyers keeps the clothes on and the physical touching limited to arms and faces, she still has a gift for romance and sexual tension. I wouldn’t want a young daughter of mine to read them. I also don’t like that Bella’s desire for immortality comes from wanting to become a vampire like Edward, over God’s ways.
2. We discussed the Twilight series in a home group/Bible study. A few people automatically didn’t like the idea of some many kids reading about vampires and werewolves, considering them evil and demonic, and wondering if Christians should be opening themselves up to such influences. I remember reading Dracula for high school, and my pastor’s wife cautioned me to be prayed up for it, as she read it and felt darkness from it. Considering the Twilight series, I told the group I couldn’t judge it without reading it for myself.
3. I have experienced evil influence from entertainment before. I used to play Dungeons and Dragons with friends around 9th-10th grade. We didn’t go for real heavy use of demons (mostly orcs and the like, Lord of the Ring-ish) and we always made our characters religion “Christian” on the player sheet. Still, it got to us. We had a sleep over one night where we got pretty freaked out with some weird stuff going on. I was the first to leave the group, feeling it was a bad situation. After this these good friends turned on me and I had some bad experiences with them. I wouldn’t be against any role-playing game, but I would not want my kids to play D&D specifically.
4. I have argued before for freedom for a Christian artist to produce the art they feel they should make. I wouldn’t condemn a Christian for using elements that I felt uncomfortable with, but I would use discernment whether it would be something for me to partake in or not.
5. Vampires and other mythological, typically evil creatures should be used carefully, but I think there is room for them to be used in a conscientious manner. I can’t help thinking of C.S. Lewis using witches, giants, the Greek god Bacchus, and other pagan-type supernatural events in his stories. A modern master of using the supernatural for a truly Godly end is Stephen Lawhead in many of his books.
6. Are vampires in essence a perversion of the gospel with their life coming from stealing the blood of people, as opposed to the life-giving power of the blood of Christ? This just came to me while writing this post – don’t know if I have the answer.
I think that’s more than enough to chew on for now. I’ll let y’all sink your teeth into it (grooooan).
Dragons to Vampires
Two weeks ago the Christian Sci-fi and Fantasy blog tour featured DragonLight by Donita K. Paul. The question was raised if dragons were an acceptable subject matter for Christian fiction authors. I had some good response, and everyone seemed to agree that dragons could be used as good or evil depending on context and not contradicting something clear in the Bible.
My question of the week plays off of this topic and the hot book for the weekend – the fourth book in the Twilight series by Stephenie Meyer, Breaking Dawn. For those who have been in a cave recently, the Twilight series is the hottest thing in youth fiction that has crossed boundaries into all ages. It features a love story between teens Bella and Edward. Bella is a clumsy, ordinary girl, while Edward is a typical hero – fantastically beautiful, pleasantly scented, and he’s a vampire. Oh, that last part may not be so typical…
The question: Can vampires or related creatures (werewolves, etc.) be a viable component of Christian fiction? Specifically, can vampires be considered good? Would it be acceptable to have “Christian” vampires?
Is there a conflict with vampires generally considered from an evil origin? If they are undead, how can they fit in a worldview that entails heaven and hell?
I didn’t realize until searching Amazon for this post how many vampire novels are out there. I know of one considered Christian: Never Ceese, by Sue Dent, who had werewolf and vampire leads. I didn’t read it when it was featured for a blog tour, I just posted the promotional info. Apparently there is a sequel (Forever Richard) coming out soon.
What say you? I just started reading Twilight, so I am far from knowing what Meyer does with the characters, and I haven’t really thought about this before. Can it be done? Should it be done? Fantasy has the advantage of being able to re-write rules when world-building, but are there rules for Christian fiction that shouldn’t be crossed, other than heresy and explicit depictions of sin?
(BTW, my wife happened to be at our local Barnes and Noble on Friday night when the release party for Breaking Dawn was going on. Wow. There were a ton of folks, with many girls and young women decked out in prom outfits or Gothic/black clothing, along with the scattered classic vampire. For sleepy Idaho Falls, there was a lot of interest. Quite the stir caused by a stay-at-home mom in Arizona!)
Dragons to Vampires
Two weeks ago the Christian Sci-fi and Fantasy blog tour featured DragonLight by Donita K. Paul. The question was raised if dragons were an acceptable subject matter for Christian fiction authors. I had some good response, and everyone seemed to agree that dragons could be used as good or evil depending on context and not contradicting something clear in the Bible.
My question of the week plays off of this topic and the hot book for the weekend – the fourth book in the Twilight series by Stephenie Meyer, Breaking Dawn. For those who have been in a cave recently, the Twilight series is the hottest thing in youth fiction that has crossed boundaries into all ages. It features a love story between teens Bella and Edward. Bella is a clumsy, ordinary girl, while Edward is a typical hero – fantastically beautiful, pleasantly scented, and he’s a vampire. Oh, that last part may not be so typical…
The question: Can vampires or related creatures (werewolves, etc.) be a viable component of Christian fiction? Specifically, can vampires be considered good? Would it be acceptable to have “Christian” vampires?
Is there a conflict with vampires generally considered from an evil origin? If they are undead, how can they fit in a worldview that entails heaven and hell?
I didn’t realize until searching Amazon for this post how many vampire novels are out there. I know of one considered Christian: Never Ceese, by Sue Dent, who had werewolf and vampire leads. I didn’t read it when it was featured for a blog tour, I just posted the promotional info. Apparently there is a sequel (Forever Richard) coming out soon.
What say you? I just started reading Twilight, so I am far from knowing what Meyer does with the characters, and I haven’t really thought about this before. Can it be done? Should it be done? Fantasy has the advantage of being able to re-write rules when world-building, but are there rules for Christian fiction that shouldn’t be crossed, other than heresy and explicit depictions of sin?
(BTW, my wife happened to be at our local Barnes and Noble on Friday night when the release party for Breaking Dawn was going on. Wow. There were a ton of folks, with many girls and young women decked out in prom outfits or Gothic/black clothing, along with the scattered classic vampire. For sleepy Idaho Falls, there was a lot of interest. Quite the stir caused by a stay-at-home mom in Arizona!)
New Resource for Christian Fiction
Welcome to a new week!
There’s a great way to start the new week off right as well, if you’re a fan of Christian fiction. I’ve been a member of the Christian Fiction Blog Alliance for 2 years now, and it has grown tremendously. There are books reviewed twice a week (not always here, of course), and there is a large community that talks about the latest in Christian fiction.
Now there’s been a new expansion that is quite remarkable. The leaders of CFBA have started the Christian Fiction Online Magazine. I knew this was coming for a little while, but I didn’t appreciate how much they had managed to put into this work. It is very impressive. From a cover story interview with Robert Liparulo to columns of fiction craft by Brandilyn Collins and funny stuff from Randy Ingermanson and Kristin Billerbeck, it is packed with content. You can browse in an alliterative delight, with categories of “Best,” “Buzz,” “Bizarre,” and “Biz” awaiting you.
So if you enjoy reading good fiction or are interested in writing yourself and want an online resource, make sure to check out CFOM. The editors have put in a lot of work and it is well worth your time.