Sometimes I get irked . . .

when I hear people bashing Christian fiction, faith fiction, whatever you want to call it. In most of these cases, people either haven't read it, or they haven't read it in the last five years, or they read ONE book that could be called "Christian" and have written off the entire genre--and its authors.

I also get irked when I hear the old tired arguments about literary versus popular or "commercial" fiction. As if the quality of a book can be determined by the number of words per sentence! Good grief, if there's one place where we ought to be forebearing and gentle with each other, it's in the area of the arts! Taste is so subjective, and what may thrill me may leave you lukewarm.

What the Spirit uses to speak to me may not apply to you.

I've read literary (and commercial!) fiction that put me to sleep, and that, my friend, is the unforgiveable sin in this market. If a book is to tickle and touch my heart and life, it's got to keep me involved.

I'm not irked--I'm hurt--when I read comments by believers criticizing the work of other believers. Our mothers were right--if you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all. Or if you must say something, let's try spurring each other to excellence, let's teach each other; let's keep lifting the bar and encouraging each other to offer nothing less than excellence to our Lord. Whether you write for the Christian market or the world at large, if you are a believer, then you should be offering the work of your hands and heart as a worthy sacrifice.

I'll admit I'm not perfect in this area--it's all too easy to find fault with others' work. In my standard speech, I frequently joke that working writers love to read others' books and gleefully note mistakes in the margin. Okay, so maybe I do that . . . in private. Father, strike me upside the head if I do that in public. Help me to keep my teaching examples anonymous, just as I'd appreciate it if another writer kept me anonymous while pointing out mistakes in my early books. (Better yet, help me make up "bad examples" on the fly.)

This past February I taught the fiction track at the Florida Christian Writer's Conference. Because that venue is within driving distance of my home, I loaded my trunk with a box of one of my old titles--enough for everyone to have a copy. I sent my class home one night with a homework assignment--using the techniques I'd just taught them in class, edit chapter one.

Oh, yeah, there was LOTS of room for improvement. After we'd gone through several pages, one of my students asked, "How did this ever get published?"

"Because things were different then," I told her. "Now things are better. The quality is better, the writing is better, the editors are sharper--many of them are sharper than their equivalents at general market publishing houses."

So that's why I get irked when I hear people trashing Christian fiction as if it were a shoddy stepsister to "real literature." It's not--my brothers and sisters are writing their hearts out, producing quality literature that will amaze you.

When I attended the Maass conference a few weeks ago, I offered one of my scenes for my critique group. When I'd finished reading it aloud, I remarked, "And that's Christian fiction . . ." and one woman in the group nearly fell off her chair.

Oh, yeah. We've come a long way, baby. So before you write us off or offer that snide comment--or allow someone else's to go unchallenged--pick up one of the new novels and read it.

The iron is continually being sharpened. As it should be.

David once said, "I will not offer to the Lord that which cost me nothing."

Amen. Our offerings cost a lot . . . in terms of work, study, and yes, critical thinking for private perusal. We dig deeper and spill our hearts, unveiling our most private places in the hope that what we write will reach farther than a person's intellect or funny bone. We write to influence hearts and lives. We write so our words can be a tool of the Spirit of God.

Well, I'll climb off my soapbox for now. Tomorrow, after an interview in the a.m., I have to write the first 5,000 words of my WIP.

Maybe I'll get to bed early. :-)