1. Kessie says:

    I think this story has a moral, or something, but I can’t decide where. I liked it because, like, it was fun and stuff. And the characters were different. And, like, it doesn’t hide the nastiness of readers.
     
    😀

  2. Esther says:

    Nicheolas: self-absorbed, much?

  3. Galadriel says:

    Haaa. I have to admit, I don’t think I really found any other fantasy-fans at church until I went off to college, but I’m not sure exactly why. Maybe because I felt like I should be talking church stuff, or maybe school stuff, at church.

  4. Love it, Stephen! I never thought before that the “niche mindset” might actually be why SFF fans don’t spread the word about the books they love.

    How much easier is it to write our own book than to read and support others. 😉 Of course, I’m writing my own, but after years of laboring in the industry–or, should I say, outside the industry–I realize how important it is to be up on what is current.

    I’m always surprised to read criticism of Christian fiction or specifically of Christian speculative fiction from someone who admittedly doesn’t read it! Or bloggers who can’t find review sites or CSFF titles. It makes me wonder just how interested in the genre they really are.

    Becky

  5. Funny post. Thanks. I try to read in my genre. Which has not been Christian fantasy lately. But I also try to keep up on children’s Christian fantasy. I don’t necessarily do a great job at it. Thanks for the reminder. 

  6. Erica says:

    This in in response to why church members may not want to hear about fantasy books. By the way, love the post!

    We need to stop trying to talk outside of the church paradigm in church. “Church folks will not ever get it. The artsy, creative, deep thinkers are the ones who are not tied down to buildings and a pastor. I know this because my husband and I tried talking about creative writing/reading and the church wanted  our writings to be “churchy” before it was called “acceptable”- we should have known better.

    Just know that there are readers of fantasy/spec fic out there who appreciate writers and other readers like ourselves. Blogs like this is what starts the conversation on these matters.

    Thanks!     

  7. This dialogue is hilarious. Scarily hilarious, because it hits pretty close to home. One of the reasons I try to avoid talking about my own unpublished writing (which continuously consumes large swaths of my thought-life) is ’cause I know I’d start coming across like Nicheolas.

    I think the tendency of Christian fantasy fans to isolate themselves might not be unrelated to the tendency among modern Christians to abandon congregational assemblage. It seems like the root of such self-cloisterment might be nothing more than an unwillingness to associate with those of a slightly different background or mindset for fear of being judged, inconvenienced, or made uncomfortable. More terrifying is the prospect that these loners actually believe themselves to be literarily superior to the rest of the world, without need of guidance or, at the very least, companionship. I may be perpetuating the stereotype of the self-absorbed critic here, but I haven’t read many offerings from independent Christian speculative authors that were actually worth my time. Integration into the larger community of writers and readers can help raise the standards of writers without lowering their standards as readers.

What do you think?