Adapted By Kelly A. Lowe
(originally published online; CMA, August 2009)
Christian publishers, embracing literary escapism are finding new hope for sales by turning to bonnets and bloodsuckers. Publishing in general has suffered during the recession. Several publishing houses are adding or expanding their fiction lines with both the tame (Amish heroines) and not so tame (Christian vampire lit).
In the lead so far is Amish fiction - romances and family sagas set in contemporary Amish communities. Today’s women may be attracted by the simpler time of the story settings and an admiration for the strong, traditional faith and familial closeness of the Amish community.
Not all of the new Christian fiction is focused on the wholesome stories of days gone by. With caution, some publishers are venturing into some very dark places; tales of vampires and the undead.
Publishers, authors and others gathered in Denver this July for the Annual International Christian Retail Show. The consensus: there's a growing audience for Christian fiction that both comforts and challenges. More than a decade ago, “Left Behind” made Christian fiction accessible to everyone by quickly becoming a New York Times best-seller.
The Christian fiction industry has often has mimicked successful genres: Romance, Sci-fi, Legal Thrillers, with an emphasis on Romance. I meant to say romance twice.
Credit for the rise in interest in the Amish community and stories about them goes to Beverly Lewis, a Colorado author who seemingly invented the genre in 1997 with The Shunning, which was loosely based on her grandmother's experience of leaving her Old Order Mennonite upbringing to marry a Bible college student. The Shunning has sold more than 1 million copies.
Lewis tapped into a fascination with the Amish, who base their morals on a literal interpretation of the Bible and are known for their plain clothes and rejection of modern technology.
“Bonnet fiction,” as it has been referred to, plays to the base of the Christian fiction market: Three in four Christian fiction readers are women, according to current publishing research from the firm R.R. Bowker.
On the darker side of Christian fiction today is Eric Wilson's Jerusalem's Undead trilogy from Thomas Nelson, which follows the exploits of characters who have risen from the dead after being tainted by the blood of Judas, the betrayer of Jesus.
Allen Arnold, senior vice president and publisher for fiction for Nelson, said messages of hope reside even in exploits of the undead.
"It is fantasy, but he weaves it from a biblical perspective and ties it back to the power of blood," Arnold said - the atoning power of Christ's blood.
On Sept. 15, 2009, WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group will release a vampire story, Thirsty, by Christian chick-lit author Tracey Bateman. As expected, the marketing material for Thirsty mentions Twilight, the hit vampire book series and movie that was popular with many evangelicals who embraced the abstinence message of the series.
Bateman's lead vampire in Thirsty, Markus, is a metaphor for demons we all must overcome, said Shannon Marchese, an editor at WaterBrook Multnomah who sought out Bateman for the project. The object of Markus’ obsession, Nina, is a divorced alcoholic dealing with addiction. These are easy characters to relate to as we all know a Nina and, for that matter, a Markus in our lives.
"These are themes that work in the Christian life," Marchese said. "You have to fight to say, 'Am I going to choose unconditional love and redemption or a life of following obsessions, a life with holes in it?"
The challenge now will be seeing whether these dripping fangs leave fans of horror and Christians, who are used to something a little more tame, hungry for more.
Source: AP
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