March column

My March "Notes from the Windowsill" column is up: Cleansing Fire. One of the wonders of the Flint Hills, at least for me, is when farmers and ranchers burn off pastures. It can be a dramatic sight, especially at night. And it reminds me of how God works in our lives, burning away the stuff that gets in the way of living for him. So that's what the column is about. As an online bonus, I included some relevant links.

How to tell spring has almost arrived in Kansas ...

Saturday we were under a tornado watch until 6 p.m. Then we were under a blizzard warning.

(Fortunately, we didn't get the nastiest of the weather -- just lots of rain and lots of wind.)

Blog tour and truth-tellers

Today I'd like to point you to a couple of things.

This week's CFBA blog tour features the second book in John Aubrey Anderson's Black and White Chronicles: Wedgewood Grey. You can find more about it at the CFBA blog.

This week I've been thinking about what freedom in Christ means -- particularly what it means when it comes to writing (but also reading). I don't have my thoughts very organized yet, but it's interesting how when I start thinking about something, I always find others who are thinking related things. Mike Duran posted yesterday about "What is Christian Art?" and it looks like the first in a series. Mike's thoughts are similar, though better expressed, to some of what I've been thinking. And he's not afraid to rattle a few cages, but he always does it with love. And since it's Friday, it's Mark Bertrand's turn to post at the Master's Artist: Tasting the Bitter Scroll is about the unpopularity of prophetic voices. If you wonder about honesty in art, both of these posts are good to read.

Good stuff on the Internet

One of the books I'm looking forward to reading this year is the first novel by Kathleen Popa, a fellow member of the Faith in Fiction community and a regular blogger I read. Her book is called To Dance in the Desert and it's coming out in May. There's a trailer up now and I encourage you to visit -- it's beautiful. Then enter the Web site and find out more about what inspired Katy to write about the desert, and read the first chapter.

I don't listen to a lot of podcasts, but one I listen to regularly is by Michael Spencer, otherwise known as the Internet Monk. He's a Bible teacher and preacher in Kentucky and I have to admit that part of why I like listening to him is I like his accent -- I lived in Southern Indiana long enough for a Kentucky accent to sound like home. But mostly I like what he says -- he's got good insights into Scripture, a heart for his students, a sharp wit and a keen eye for inconsistency and pretense in the American church. And he always plays cool music. (By the way, you do not have to have an iPod to listen to a podcast -- and you can download his podcasts from his blog if you don't want to mess with iTunes.)

OK, I have to add something. Chris posted about this very fun game that is right up a word geek's alley: Word Shoot: Spell Fast or Die. The idea is simple -- spell the word next to the alien ships coming at you. And sometimes you get the word "detonate," which blows up everything. This could be addictive.

CSFF Blog Tour: Where the Map Ends

This month, the Christian Science Fiction and Fantasy blog tour is highlighting a Web site: Where the Map Ends. The owner, Jeff Gerke, is a writer and former editor with several different publishing houses. But most of all, he's a fan of science fiction, fantasy, speculative fiction ... Well, here's how he describes himself on his Web site:

Jeff Gerke is...me: a guy who loves Christian speculative fiction.

Christian fantasy. Christian science fiction. Christian time travel. Christian spiritual warfare. Christian supernatural thrillers. Christian "chillers." Christian alternate history. Christian pure speculative. I even like Christian speculative gaming, manga, comics, animation, machinima, and animation. If it's Christian and it's speculative, I'm there.

Jeff has filled his Web site with the kind of stuff Christian science fiction and fantasy writers and fans will love: interviews, book suggestions, art, writing tips, publishing suggestions and lots of other neat stuff. A new feature he's added is world-building and character-building tools, including alien name-building. How cool is that? (I wish I'd knows about this when I was trying to come up with a name for the alien race in a short story I'm writing.)

Jeff is developing a great Web site that I know I'm going to be visiting again. Check it out.

You can also explore these fine blogs and Web sites to learn more:

Nissa Annakindt
Jim Black
Grace Bridges
Jackie Castle
Valerie Comer
Karri Compton
CSFF Blog Tour
Gene Curtis
D. G. D. Davidson
Chris Deanne
Janey DeMeo
Tessa Edwards
April Erwin
Kameron M. Franklin
Beth Goddard
Marcus Goodyear
Andrea Graham
Todd Michael Greene
Leathel Grody
Katie Hart
Sherrie Hibbs
Sharon Hinck
Christopher Hopper
Jason Joyner
Kait
Karen
K. D. Kragen
Tina Kulesa
Kevin Lucia and The Bookshelf Reviews 2.0 - The Compendium
Rachel Marks
Shannon McNear
Rebecca LuElla Miller
Eve Nielsen
John W. Otte
John Ottinger
Robin Parrish
Rachelle
Cheryl Russel
Hanna Sandvig
Mirtika Schultz
James Somers
Steve Trower
Speculative Faith
Daniel I. Weaver
Timothy Wise

TGIF

I've been busy this week. I have some projects at work that have needed more attention and I haven't taken time to blog.

I think I'm going through a season of thinking. Which may be a good thing. When I have more to say, I'll say it. For right now, I've been thinking and praying. Our church has been doing 24/7 prayer for about a month now, and it's really neat. I've been in the prayer room about once a week since we started. It is very good to have a place to just be quiet and listen to God and see what he's doing in the lives of people in my church. And time in the prayer room does seem to help put the little daily annoyances and cares in perspective. So that's one thing I've been doing.

I've been walking again this week. One of my co-workers gives me a ride since it's been so bitterly cold. (It's not so cold today, but this afternoon it started snowing. I think it's more than the weather service had expected. It's been very pretty to watch out my window, but in a while I'll have to ride the van in it. Fun.) Anyway, I stood on the scales at the rec center and I've lost a little weight since December. It's encouraging, but I've got a long way to go.

We've been listening to Harry Potter books on audiobook. I get them from the library and Bob and I listen to the cd's together. If you've never listened to the audio versions of these, narrated by Jim Dale, you're missing a real treat. Dale is a wonderful reader, and does different voices for all the characters. It's fun to listen to. And while I listen, I've been trying to crochet again. I learned a long time ago, but I never was very good at it. But it keeps my hands busy and when I'm crocheting, I'm not eating.

So I guess that's the main things. Take care. And here's a thought for the weekend: Don't hate yourself in the morning. Sleep in. :)

CFBA Tour: Christian Writer's Market Guide

I was truly excited to receive my copy of this book in the mail this week. Why? Because it is an important tool in a writer's toolbox. Sally Stuart's Christian Writer's Market Guide is for Christian writers what Writer's Digest's Writer's Market is for general market writers.

Here's a bit about the author:

Sally E. Stuart is the author of 34 books and has sold more than a thousand articles and columns. Her long-term involvement with the Christian Writers' Market Guide as well as her marketing columns for the Christian Communicator, Oregon Christian Writers, and The Advanced Christian Writer, make her a sought-after speaker and a leading authority on Christian markets and the business of writing. Stuart is the mother of three and grandmother of eight.

And about the book:

For more than 20 years, the Christian Writers’ Market Guide has offered indispensable help to Christian writers. This year, for the first time, this valuable resource comes with a CD-ROM of the full text, so you can search with ease for topics, publishers, and other specific names.

The 2007 edition also includes up-to-date listings of more than 1,200 markets for books, articles, stories, poetry, and greeting cards, including information on 40 new book publishers, 83 new periodicals, and 34 new literary agents. Perfect for writers in every phase, this is the resource to get noticed – and get published.

It contains listings for: 695 periodicals, 228 poetry markets, 355 book publishers, 133 online publications, 29 print-on-demand publishers, 1185 markets for the written word, 321 photography markets, 31 e-book publishers, 122 foreign markets, 112 literary agents,and 59 newspapers.

It also gives you comprehensive lists of contests, writers groups and conferences, search engines, pay rates and submission guidelines, editorial services and websites.

I looked through the book last night and was pleased to see how well it is organized. It will be easy to find specific publishers or specific markets I want to submit stories to. I'm going to use this book a lot, I'm sure.

The Door Opens

When I got home last night, my husband said I had a letter from The Wittenburg Door -- a letter with a release I had to sign and return. Whoo-hoo! The Door has accepted a humorous survey I submitted called Preacher's Kids Anonymous. It will either be in the magazine (in one or the other of the next two issues) or in the newsletter or online -- or maybe in all three. Not only does the Door actually pay, it's one of my favorite magazines. I'm very excited about this.

In other news, I think you have a few more days to vote in the Infuze Best of 2006 poll. My story Confessions of a Christian Mom is in the running, so I'd really appreciate your vote (if you haven't voted already). My critique buddy Chris has a poem in the running, too.

Have you noticed the new look here? I used the customize layout option that Blogger offers now and I think it turned out pretty good. It's not real different, but I was able to clean it up a bit and it was very easy to do. And I added a link to my Flickr photos, too, if you're interested.

I am ...

You Are An INFP

The Idealist You are creative with a great imagination, living in your own inner world. Open minded and accepting, you strive for harmony in your important relationships. It takes a long time for people to get to know you. You are hesitant to let people get close. But once you care for someone, you do everything you can to help them grow and develop. You would make an excellent writer, psychologist, or artist.

What's Your Personality Type?

CFBA Tour: Germ

This week's featured book is Germ, by Robert Liparulo (who is becoming one of my son Joel's favorite authors -- I should have had him write this entry!).

Once again Liparulo has come up with a story that is just close enough to reality to be unsettling. What's it about?

The list of 10,000 names was created for maximum devastation. Business leaders, housewives, politicians, celebrities, janitors, children. None of them is aware of what is about to happen--but all will be part of the most frightening brand of warfare the world has ever known.

The germ--an advanced form of the Ebola virus--has been genetically engineered to infect only those people whose DNA matches the codes embedded within it. Those whose DNA is not a match simply catch a cold. But those who are a match experience a far worse fate. Within days, their internal organs liquify.

Death is the only escape.

The release of the virus will usher in a new era of power where countries are left without defense. Where a single person--or millions--could be killed with perfect accuracy and zero collateral damage. Where your own DNA works against you.

The time isn't coming. It is now. Pray the assassins get you first.

In case you're wondering, Joel (age 16 and a voracious reader) says it's pretty good.

FIRST: Abiding Darkness

This month's featured book for the FIRST tour (Fiction in Rather Short Takes) is Abiding Darkness, by John Aubrey Anderson. I'm afraid my heeby-jeeby meter went way high when reading the cover copy for this spiritual warfare thriller, so I haven't read it yet, but it has received some good reviews from other readers. Here's how fellow FIRST reviewer Kevin Lucia describes the book:

Abiding Darkness, by John Aubrey Anderson, is a promising work of literary weight that’s a wonderful period piece steeped in nostalgia and good old fashioned, Southern living. Told in a style reminiscent of Flannery O’Conner and other Southern writers, Abiding Darkness takes the 40’s, 50’s, and 60’s and fleshes them out to real-life proportions, so much so you can smell the catfish roasting on the fire and hear the Temptations playing in the background. The characters are wonderful studies of simple, foundational living, and the narrative drawls in a uniquely Southern fashion, Anderson writing the character’s dialogue as only a Southern writer could.

The story follows the life of Missy Parker, a white girl who’s been deemed “special” by dark and holy powers alike. Through her young life and through adulthood, Missy is unwittingly the center of a demonic and holy tug of war, as unseen, dark forces wage war against her; first in an effort to sway her soul, and forever after in an effort to hurt her and the ones she loves. Twice these forces claim the lives of those close to her, as two people she cares for sacrifice themselves for her.

However, the dark forces that dog her every step are thwarted by the prayers of those close to her and Missy’s own determined spiritual development. Also, beyond her ken and of those around her, an angelic host stands guard, making sure that God’s special ones are not harmed by the Enemy’s hand. The novel ends as a demonic and angelic forces clash once again, and the storyline leaves us expecting continued repercussions of the Cat Lake ‘War of ‘45’.

So, here's the the beginning of Chapter 1 of Abiding Darkness (I'll send you to the FIRST blog for the rest of it):

Summers were mostly reliable.

The always followed spring. They always got hot. And they always promised twelve weeks of pleasure to the three children at Cat Lake.

The summer of ’45 lied.

^ ^ ^

The whole thing started right there by the Cat Lake bridge.

They were playing their own version of three-man baseball when Bobby knocked the ball onto the road near the end of the bridge. Junior was taller and faster, but Missy was ahead in the race to get it. Bobby and Junior were older, but Missy was tough enough to almost keep up, and the boys usually held back some so they didn’t outdo her too much.

Missy was still a few yards from the ball when it rolled to a stop near the only car in sight. A boy taller than Junior stepped from behind the far end of the car and picked up the ball; he was followed by two more boys—one younger than Missy and another almost as tall as a man.

Missy slid to a stop in the gravel and yelled, “Hurry! Throw it!” Junior jogged up behind the girl and waited.

A heavyset man in a rumpled suit was standing in the road by the driver’s door; he allowed himself a long look at the girl and whispered something to the boy with the ball.

The boy nodded at what the man said and backed toward the car. The tallest boy moved up to stand by the man.

The fat man eyed Junior, then looked up and down the deserted road before beckoning to Missy. “Why don’t you come closer, and he’ll let you have it?”

Missy ignored the man and advanced on the boy with the ball. “Give it.”

When she walked past the taller boy, he fell to his hands and knees behind her and the one with the ball shoved her over his back. When Missy hit the ground, all three boys laughed. The man grinned.


In the near distance, a foursome of well-armed witnesses—tall, bright, and invisible—stood at a portal between time and eternity and watched Bobby Parker leave home plate and sprint for the bridge.

One of the group said, It begins.

Junior Washington’s guardian answered for the remainder of the small assembly, And so it does.

The three guardians conferred quietly about the events taking place before them; the archangel watched the unfolding drama in silence. The quartet—guarded by the wisdom of the ages against restlessness—waited patiently for a precise instant in time that had been ordained before the earth was formed.

(For the rest, follow this link.)

Take the survey

If you'd like to offer feedback on the cover of a new novel from Bethany House, you can take this survey. Dave Long has also posted a link to an interview with author, Ann Tatlock, too.

Fantasy and reality

Here’s a little riddle: What do American Gods, A Prayer for Owen Meany, Lisey’s Story, and Relentless have in common? (Besides the fact that I really liked all of these books.) I might include Peace Like a River in the list, too. Each of these books tells a story in which an ordinary person realizes that the world is not quite what it seems. The people and places and times seem familiar, but the fantastic, the magical, the miraculous, are part of the world, too.
I’ve always liked stories in which an ordinary person is thrust into events larger than himself (think The Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings, or the Chronicles of Narnia). But the books I’ve named above seem to integrate the extraordinary into the fabric of everyday life in some way -- and they do it well.

Some books tell stories that are fairly predictable -- the stories adhere to certain conventions of genre and the reader knows what to expect. I’m not saying this is bad -- I’ve always loved mysteries and science fiction and a lot of novels in these genres are very well written. But when you open the latest Sue Grafton novel, you know what to expect in late 20th Century California. There will be twists and turns to the story, but they’ll be firmly rooted in what we understand as ‘the real world.’ When you read The Hobbit, you know you’re in Middle Earth. There are wizards and dwarves and dragons, and, of course, hobbits -- all of which are firmly rooted in Middle Earth, not 21st Century America.

By contrast, the world of American Gods certainly seems familiar, but it soon becomes clear that Mr. Wednesday is not who he seems to be. And the reader soon begins to suspect there is more to Shadow than meets the eye. In Lisey’s Story, it doesn’t take too long to realize that Scott Landon was not just a typical tortured novelist who died too young. The Los Angeles of Relentless seems to match what we know, but I don’t think any of us knows anyone quite like Grant Borrows. A Prayer for Owen Meany and Peace Like a River are a little different, and yet in both of these, the miraculous is almost an everyday occurrence.

When I wrote The Man Who Kept a Dragon in the Basement, I was toying with a similar approach (not as well as Neil Gaiman or Stephen King, of course): The world we know, with one little difference -- dragons are real and some people can see them. As I was writing it, I realized that the story was becoming about more than just a guy with a dragon in his basement. I probably knew this all along, but I'd never really thought about it in relation to my own writing -- fantasy offers a language for talking about realities that sometimes are hard to express any other way. Ursula LeGuin talks about this in her introduction to The Left Hand of Darkness (which I don't have handy so I can't quote it directly). But she says something to the effect that if what she had to say could be said any other way, she wouldn't have had to write that whole novel to say it.

I've been trying to find ways to write about faith and life that don't sound contrived and false. In a fairly short stretch of time I read American Gods and then finished A Prayer for Owen Meany. They're very different types of books, and yet they both talk about faith and how what we believe motivates our lives and our actions -- and they do it without sounding hokey. Both books use fantastic elements -- exaggeration, outsize characters, surreal situations. But both books completely sucked me in and those two different pictures of America became real to me. And both books gave me a lot to think about.

The novel I started and didn't get very far on in November is a fantasy. Right now it's too much characters in search of a plot, but maybe I'll be able to do something with it. I like the possibilities it presents.

Maybe I've got fiction and reality on the brain too much, but my February column for Notes from the Windowsill is on a similar theme: A Larger Reality.

'I won't back down'

I was walking back to my office from the gym today and bemoaning the miserable state of my physical fitness -- when I take a day off between walking, it's like I'm starting all over again. And that led to thoughts of the miserable state of my writing life. OK, maybe miserable is too strong, but I've been very undisciplined. If I'm ever going to make progress, I need to be writing every day, or at least more days than I am. And then one of my favorite songs came on -- "I Won't Back Down" by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. I tend to think of it as my theme song because it's about standing firm, sticking to what you know is right, no matter what. I'm such a wimp I need the encouragement. (Maybe it's an odd choice for a theme song, but I've always like Tom Petty's songs and they keep me moving.) So, even though my legs hurt and some days I can't get in a good walk, I'm going to keep at it. And somehow I'm going to carve out some writing time for myself.

Well I won't back down
No I won't back down
You can stand me up at the gates of hell
But I won't back down

No I'll stand my ground, won't be turned around
And I'll keep this world from draggin me down
gonna stand my ground
... and I won't back down

Chorus:
(I won't back down...)
Hey baby, there ain't no easy way out
(and I won't back down...)
hey I will stand my ground
and I won't back down
(I Won't Back Down, by Tom Petty)

Friday reads

I'm involved in women's ministry at the conference level (in my role as coordinator for the Kansas area women ministries in our denomination). The role of women in ministry and how it is discussed is interesting to me. So I found this article from Books and Culture to be especially interesting: A review and essay about Finally Feminist: A Pragmatic Christian Understanding of Gender by John G. Stackhouse, Jr. This sounds like a book I might want to read. And Susan Wise Bauer's essay and review is excellent, as well.

Mark Bertrand has penned a thought-provoking tale at the Master's Artist: The More Things Change: A Pernicious Parable, Depending on Whom You Ask.

I'm reading Stephen King's new novel, Lisey's Story -- stayed up way too late last night. The only other book by him that I've read is On Writing, which I recommend to everyone who likes his books or wants to write a book themselves. It's excellent. The thought occurs to me, though, that if a writer writes a book about writing, readers are going to look at that writer's books with a sharper eye, perhaps. Lisey's Story is a good story, and King writes pretty well from a women's viewpoint, but it seems a bit uneven. I'm not far enough along in the book, though, to know for sure if it's a function of the story or not. But I like the book.

It's CFBA blog tour time again and this week's featured book is If the Shoe Fits, by Marilynn Griffith. You can find out more at the CFBA blog or Marilynn's Web site.

CSFF January Blog Tour

A few weeks ago Rebecca Miller realized I had been writing some science fiction and fantasy stories and suggested I join the Christian Science Fiction and Fantasy blog tour. So I said sure. Why? Because science fiction and fantasy is an overlooked part of Christian fiction and one way to encourage writers is to give them some exposure. And the truth is, one of my favorite books last year probably falls into this category -- Relentless.

I haven't read this month's featured books (but I think I'll try to find them and read them this year), but I have to agree with Rebecca that they're beautiful books. They are the Door Within Trilogy, by Wayne Thomas Batson. To find out more about the books -- The Door Within, Rise of the Wyrm Lord, and The Final Storm -- you can follow the links to the author's Web site, the trilogy Web site or some of the fine bloggers listed below.


Jim Black
Jackie Castle
Valerie Comer
Karri Compton
Frank Creed
CSFF Blog Tour
Gene Curtis
Chris Deanne
Janey DeMeo
Tessa Edwards
April Erwin
Linda Gilmore
Beth Goddard
Marcus Goodyear
Todd Michael Greene
Leathel Grody
Karen Hancock
Katie Hart
Sherrie Hibbs
Sharon Hinck
Joleen Howell
Kait
Karen
K. D. Kragen
Tina Kulesa
Lost Genre Guild
Kevin Lucia and The Bookshelf Reviews 2.0 - The Compendium
Rachel Marks
Shannon McNear
Rebecca LuElla Miller
Caleb Newell
Eve Nielsen
John Otte
Robin Parrish
Cheryl Russel
Hannah Sandvig
Mirtika Schultz
James Somers
Stuart Stockton
Steve Trower
Speculative Faith
Daniel I. Weaver

Vote!

Infuze Magazine has opened the voting for its Best of 2006 Anthology and one of my stories is on the list (Confessions of a Christian Mom). They're also taking votes for poetry. There aren't many votes yet, so you need to get over there and vote for your favorite story and favorite poem (only once for each, though -- this isn't Chicago). And tell your friends and family to vote, too.

Friday news and views

Winter seems to be settling in finally. We haven't gotten the worst of the storms that have rolled through this month, but it's been very cold. It looks like we'll get more snow this weekend, too. Joel will be disappointed if we don't get any snow days out of it. So far we haven't had any. (Probably one of the few school districts in Kansas that hasn't!)

This is something to look forward to: Leif Enger's next book. I was beginning to wonder if he was going to pull a Harper Lee on us. But then again, if the only novel a person writes is To Kill a Mockingbird or Peace Like a River, maybe we shouldn't complain.

I like Jeanne's approach to milestone birthdays.

The Master's Artist has had some good posts this week.

I finished, at last, A Prayer for Owen Meany this week. It is an excellent book and I can't figure out why it took me so long, except maybe I just didn't want to read it at times I couldn't give it the attention it deserves. I've been thinking about the book and some others I've read recently, so maybe I'll try to get some thoughts down to share next week. But life is busy right now -- both at home and at work, so we'll see. Have a safe and blessed weekend.

CFBA: Arms of Deliverance

This week's book is Arms of Deliverance, by Tricia Goyer (a CFBA member). This is the fourth book in a historical fiction series set against the backdrop of WWII. You can read the first chapter on Tricia's blog. You can find a review of Arms of Deliverance along with a review of Tricia's most recent nonfiction, Generation NeXt Parenting, at Bookshelf Reviews.

Ah, yes, winter in Kansas

Yesterday it was in the low 60s here (it reached 70 in Wichita). Now it is 18 degrees in Manhattan and we're under a winter storm watch. We've avoided the freezing rain/sleet scenario, but we're likely to get snow this weekend. Sounds like a good weekend to make soup and curl up with a good book. (And it's a long weekend for me since I get Monday off.)

Blog watch:
Read the Master's Artist -- Mark's post today is excellent.
I've just started reading Rebecca Miller's blog, a Christian Worldview of Fiction. She's a fellow Fifer and writes fantasy. There's also good and thoughtful discussion there about faith and writing. (I think I'm going to participate in the Christian Science Fiction and Fantasy blog tour, too.)


On the exercise front, I walked three times this week so I feel like I'm off to a good start.

Take care and have a good weekend.