Christians and serious fiction

Here is another interesting link Why Aren’t We Serious? by J. Mark Bertrand. Bertrand examines the question of why Christian fiction hasn’t seemed to produce the serious work that many of its practitioners and readers want (or claim to want). As usual, you should read the whole thing, but for those of you who are too busy, and to tempt you to read the rest, here is the conclusion:

Why don’t I write serious fiction? Because it’s hard. Because I’m afraid that I won’t be able to do it, or that if I manage, I won’t be rewarded. Why don’t I give up on writing serious fiction? Because I love it too much, because even in my unseriousness there are sometimes intimations of more. Because I want to do justice to this great legacy I’ve inherited, to the perceptions I’ve been gifted with. Because I want to speak to people I write for, and to speak for them, too. I want to express in words the depth I find in myself, and discover that I’ve said something that is true of us all. Not to manage this, I fear, is to fall short of the calling. Not to care is even worse.

Kevin Holtsberry
I work in communications and public affairs. I try to squeeze in as much reading as I can while still spending time with my wife and two kids (and cheering on the Pittsburgh Steelers and Michigan Wolverines during football season).

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