I have dreamed of starting a new genre of Christian literature for a while, and even if I don't have the writing talent for it, I'm hoping I can inspire some of you who do. I know many people decry the state of Christian literature in our country, and when they do they usually describe it as light or insubstantial or touchy-feely. Christian cotton candy.
When I get frustrated with the Christian books I read, I use another word: boring. Too often I find myself reading a book - about what should be an utterly fascinating, life-changing topic - and it feels like chopping wood. Sometimes it's because authors spend too much time exegeting scripture and the book reads more like a commentary. Sometimes it's too research-heavy, or too academic, or too complex. The best writers, and listeners, are people who can take a complex topic and see the simplicity through the complexity, rather than highlight the complexity.
I dream of pioneering a genre that I am calling "nightstand theology." You know that feeling you get when you're reading in bed and you just can't put a book down? You look ahead a few pages, determine to put the book down and go to sleep at the end of the chapter, but when you reach it your eyes involuntarily move to the next chapter? Do you think it's possible to write a book that's both strong on theology and the beauty of the spiritual life and impossible to put down?
I'm not talking about a systematic theology book written for laypeople - Jesus for dummies - I'm talking about a book that has the pace of a narrative, with the characters and plot developments and twists that keep you reading and foregoing sleep. A book with a biblical backbone, an intoxicating presence of God, a sense of humor, and a page-turning story?
Have you ever read a theology book like that? Is nightstand theology possible?
Wow, this is part of my struggle. I tried to make my book Coffeehouse Theology nightstand-ish, but I didn't realize how far my time in seminary had pulled me away from the average person in the pew. I think Matthew Paul Turner may be the closest I've seen to someone with substantive ideas that are fun to read. I'm always trying to think of stuff that is engaging and possibly counter-intuitive in order to arrive at an interesting book concept. In order to nail it, you need a great idea and a ton of creativity. The idea itself is often hard enough! Good thoughts here. I like where you're going and I can really, really relate.
ReplyDeleteThere is such a thing. I suggest poking around here http://imagejournal.org/ The authors featured in this journal combine that mix of theology, beauty, and engagement you're looking for.
ReplyDeleteAdam, I think you're hitting on one of the key issues of our day. In our efforts to be relevant, it's so easy to lose substance. But substance can be so complex sometimes!
ReplyDeleteI second that. I think two people who come close to that, in my opinion, are NT Wright, especially in Simply Christian and Surprised by Hope, and Brennan Manning, though the two are obviously very different in depth and style.
ReplyDeleteAdd Eugene Peterson to the list with NT Wright and Brennan Manning.
ReplyDeleteI think several of the Chronicles of Narnia fit into that category.
ReplyDeleteI think Eli by Bill Myers is such a book. I couldn't put it down even though in once sense I already knew the story.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.amazon.com/Eli-Bill-Myers/dp/0310251141/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1318393714&sr=8-1
I think we have some of that already from authors like Madeleine L'Engle, Kathleen Norris, C.S. Lewis, etc, and more recently from younger authors like Rachel Held Evans, Jason Boyett, Shane Claiborne, etc. I'm curious to hear more details on your idea, and how it differs from these.
ReplyDeleteYou're absolutely right
ReplyDeleteI think you've articulated my goal as a writer.
ReplyDeleteIf you're talking about Christian fiction, I think much of it is boring. Writers should "show, don't tell", and many of these writers don't do this. Make me FEEL what the characters feel, don't just tell me how they feel, and don't pound me over the head with the message. Let me come to that conclusion by myself. I know the message is so important that the writer probably feels he REALLY has to make sure the reader gets it. But that's the job of the Holy Spirit, and those who are really opposed to the message aren't reading Christian fiction anyway.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree! I want to get into the Christian publishing world and one of the reasons is because I want to find books like what you've described. Especially with fiction, though, I find that the characters' interactions with God seem incidental and secondary to the main plot. I'd like to see a moving plot where a person's relationship with God is the primary relationship, which then affects the other relationships. But perhaps books are written this way because that is how we live our lives? Maybe we need to change the way we live first and then our writing will change?
ReplyDeleteBread and Water, Wine and Oil by Fr Meletios Webber.
ReplyDeleteAlso, For the Life of the World by Fr Alexander Schmemann -- it's too heavy on language to be nighstand reading, but is absolutely beautiful and compelling.
(they're contemporary theology books, not fiction... I thought that was the question? If not, George Macdonald! And in essays GK Chesterton!
ReplyDeleteAnne Lamott. Her books make you laugh, cry and believe more deeply because she is truly human.
ReplyDeleteI'd add to that list: anything by Frederick Buechner (and, maybe, Malcolm Muggeridge).
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