The Perfect Footwarmer…and Maintaining an Attitude of Gratitude.

My cat Rusty is the perfect footwarmer. And often, Rusty will enter my room while I'm writing, meow once or twice (to announce his coming, I suspect), and then curl up right on my feet under my desk. For this simple thing, I thank God.

It brings to mind the simple pleasures of life that God gives us, often in abundance. I'm not talking about the healing of a loved one, or a 10K bonus at work, or a friend believing in Christ--those are ultra blessings. I'm thinking more of the cool breeze in the middle of the day, the smile of a young daughter, the motes dancing in a sunbeam, the perfect coffee, a hug, a cool wisp of cloud, a comfortable chair...you get the idea. Trouble is how often we allow these everyday, simple pleasures to go unappreciated. We take them for granted or allow the pace of life to crowd out any thought of thanks.

Consider the Scriptures*:

Luke 17:11-19

Jesus Heals Ten Men With Leprosy

¹¹ Now on his way to Jerusalem, Jesus traveled along the border between Samaria and Galilee. ¹² As he was going into a village, ten men who had leprosy met him. They stood at a distance ¹³ and called out in a loud voice, “Jesus, Master, have pity on us!”

¹⁴ When he saw them, he said, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went, they were cleansed.

¹⁵ One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice. ¹⁶ He threw himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him—and he was a Samaritan.

¹⁷ Jesus asked, “Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? ¹⁸ Has no one returned to give praise to God except this foreigner?” ¹⁹ Then he said to him, “Rise and go; your faith has made you well.” 

It's cool that this event was important enough to be recorded in the scriptures, and it underscores the importance of thanking God. But getting healed from lifelong leprosy is a pretty HUGE deal. What about the everyday blessings?

1 Thessalonians 5:17-18

"...pray continually, ¹⁸ give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus."

Seems like thanking God is important for all things. Even the tough times. So take the time today to crowd out the world and thank God for the small things. And if you feel comfortable doing so, leave a comment telling us what small things you thank God for.

*New International Version (NIV) courtesy of BibleGateway.com

Motiv8: Meet the Author #1 is Up!

Hi, all. The first "Meet the Author" segment is up on the Fantasy Fiction Tour Site. And guess you was picked to go first...

Click Here to Find Out.

Meet the Authors of the Fantasy 4 Fiction Tour, Part 8, The Final PreTour Installment

Hey, all! Just a handful of days left until The Fantasy 4 Fiction Tour in Atlanta! Please continue to pray about that event--especially for the Fantasy authors out there. ICRS is where a lot of new authors get their first contracts (or at least have a publisher get interested in them).

Please also pray for all those people out there, some of them unsuspecting, who might attend one of our events. Pray that nothing would get in the way of these people coming. No car trouble, no unexpected chores, no trip to the grocery--nothing! Pray that folks would come out of the woodwork and find just the book they NEED. Pray that the message will go out without compromise. And pray for Bryan, Christopher, Sharon, and me--pray that we would be courageous and humble, eloquent and effective--and timely! Traffic could be an issue. lol

For details about the Fantasy 4 Tour, please check out our website by clicking below:

The Fantasy 4 Fiction Tour Website

Tonight I've posted the FINAL entry in a series of Meet the Author threads. The author's words are taken from a Q&A we participated in to promote the Tour. I'll post all four authors responses to one question in each thread. Hope you enjoy getting to know these wonderful fantasy writers.

Wayne Thomas Batson--The Door Within Trilogy and Isle of Swords
Bryan Davis--The Dragons in Our Midst and Oracles of Fire
Sharon Hinck--The Becky Miller Books and The Sword of Lyric Series
Christopher Hopper--The Rise of the Dibor and The White Lion Chronicles

I'll also be including a new piece of desktop art with each new post--Tonight's image is a bonus pic! This is my rendition of Clarion after the attack of the Wyrm Lord in DW2. It's called Clarion Burning. Feel free to save the file and use it as your computer's background. Share with friends or post wherever else you blog!



Q: What advice can you give to aspiring fantasy fiction writers?

WB: #1: It can be done.
#2: Your creativity is already there—you can think up a story as well as Tolkien, Rowlings, or I ever could. But your craft is probably not there yet. Read like a crazy person—esp. in the genre you think you want to write. But don’t just read to be entertained. Learn what the authors are up to. Remember that part that thrilled you? What made it thrill you? Take some classes in fiction and poetry. It may not seem exciting—in the same way that drills at football practice or practicing scales on an instrument seem tiresome. Everyone wants the glory of the big game or the rock concert, but few are willing to invest the work needed to get there. Writing is work. Creating is work. But it can be done.

BD: Don’t copy what has already been done—another form of Middle Earth, a new Narnia, or a Christian imitation of Harry Potter. Be bold. Write themes you’re passionate about rather than what you think the market wants. Don’t be afraid to make real heroes.

SH: Seek God. Let each day over your notebook or keyboard be a time of delicious fellowship with Him – so that whatever comes of the stories you create together, the time will bring Him joy and glory to His name.

Seek God. Ask Him when to pursue publication, where to pursue it, which steps to take next. He WILL guide you…to mentors, to writer’s conferences, to books about craft that help you make breakthroughs.

Seek God. Writing is a LAVISH investment of time. An art form that takes a huge gift of time without knowing if anyone will ever see it but Him. Remember the alabaster jar of perfume…poured out lavishly at Jesus feet. If He calls you to this, trust that the time is not wasted.

CH: If you are meant to write, if the Lord has really put that gift in you, then it will be reflected in how you live your life for Him, and for the pursuit of that goal. After hearing an amazing piano concert, a woman approached the pianist and said, “That was so beautiful! I’d give my whole life to play like that!” To which the pianist replied, “Madam, I did give my whole life to play like that.” If you really want to see your work manifest in a published document, if that’s the goal, then you need to be willing to start pouring yourself into it. Yes, God will make a way for you, and impossible doors can be opened, but you have to do your part. Write. Start today if you’ve been putting it off. Make the time, it normally doesn’t appear for you. Just write.

Meet the Authors of the Fantasy 4 Fiction Tour, Part 7

Hey, all! Less than a week away from the start of The Fantasy 4 Fiction Tour in Atlanta! Please continue to pray about that event--especially for the Fantasy authors out there. ICRS is where a lot of new authors get their first contracts (or at least have a publisher get interested in them). It was just four years this summer that I went to ICRS (in Atlanta then as well) and pitched The Door Within books. A nice editor from Tommy Nelson took a real interest in the books and God did the rest.

But ICRS is also when Bookstore Chains and Indie Stores put orders in to their distributors for more or different titles. So, if you'd like to see your local Christian Bookstore stock more of what you like to read, please pray that Chains and Locals would buy lots of new fantasy/spec fic titles!

For details about the Fantasy 4 Tour, please check out our website by clicking below:

The Fantasy 4 Fiction Tour Website

Tonight I've posted the 7th in a series of Meet the Author threads. The author's words are taken from a Q&A we participated in to promote the Tour. I'll post all four authors responses to one question in each thread. Hope you enjoy getting to know these wonderful fantasy writers.

Wayne Thomas Batson--The Door Within Trilogy and Isle of Swords
Bryan Davis--The Dragons in Our Midst and Oracles of Fire
Sharon Hinck--The Becky Miller Books and The Sword of Lyric Series
Christopher Hopper--The Rise of the Dibor and The White Lion Chronicles

I'll also be including a new piece of desktop art with each new post--Tonight's image is a bonus pic! This is a drawing I did when I was just getting started with Bryce 3D. It's called Haunted Pass. Feel free to save the file and use it as your computer's background. Share with friends or post wherever else you blog!




Q: What do you hope to accomplish during the fantasy tour?

WB: Each one of the authors has a unique fan base. But readers of Bryan Davis’ wonderful Dragons in Our Midst series may have never heard of Christopher Hopper’s compelling White Lion Chronicles. I’m hoping to let readers of The Door Within Trilogy know that there are other fantastic tales out there. I’m hoping that we’ll bring readers of all four authors together, so that all of us can reach more readers.

BD: Over the last few years, I’ve noticed that quite a few Christians are skeptical of fantasy. They have good reason for their skepticism. With all the dark fantasy stories available, they are wise to be careful. I want to calm their fears by showing them how powerful fantasy can be in leading readers to Christ and strengthening their faith. I want to work to make fantasy a mainstream way of communicating spiritual truth.

SH: Meet face to face with many of the people who are hungry for stories to inspire courage and faith, and talk about the power of STORY as an art form in the Christian life.

CH: Like I said above, I hope we’re able to be an example of how authors, publishers, and Christians as a whole can work together to produce amazing fruit. I hope people are encouraged to meet the faces behind the writing and see that we’re just normal, everyday people that got crazy enough to put our thoughts down on paper. Sure, I hope we sell a lot of books and grow the market awareness; that’s just good business. But it has to be more than that in the long run. It has to be because we love the King and want His Message sent out to the ends of the earth. For my part, I get the East Coast with three other amazing writers, at least for this summer.

Meet the Authors of the Fantasy 4 Fiction Tour, Part 6

Hey, all! Just a WEEK away from the start of The Fantasy 4 Fiction Tour in Atlanta! Please continue to pray about that event--especially for the Fantasy authors out there. ICRS is where a lot of new authors get their first contracts (or at least have a publisher get interested in them). It was just four years this summer that I went to ICRS (in Atlanta then as well) and pitched The Door Within books. A nice editor from Tommy Nelson took a real interest in the books and God did the rest.

But ICRS is also when Bookstore Chains and Indie Stores put orders in to their distributors for more or different titles. So, if you'd like to see your local Christian Bookstore stock more of what you like to read, please pray that Chains and Locals would buy lots of new fantasy/spec fic titles!

For details about the Fantasy 4 Tour, please check out our website by clicking below:

The Fantasy 4 Fiction Tour Website

Tonight I've posted the SIXTH in a series of Meet the Author threads. The author's words are taken from a Q&A we participated in to promote the Tour. I'll post all four authors responses to one question in each thread. Hope you enjoy getting to know these wonderful fantasy writers.

Wayne Thomas Batson--The Door Within Trilogy and Isle of Swords
Bryan Davis--The Dragons in Our Midst and Oracles of Fire
Sharon Hinck--The Becky Miller Books and The Sword of Lyric Series
Christopher Hopper--The Rise of the Dibor and The White Lion Chronicles

I'll also be including a new piece of desktop art with each new post--Tonight's image is a bonus pic! This is a drawing I did when I was just getting started with Bryce 3D. It's a simple piece, but I've always liked the mood and suggestive quality. It's not based on any story, but it seems to be begging for one, eh? It's called Castle Cliffs. Feel free to save the file and use it as your computer's background. Share with friends or post wherever else you blog!






Q: How do you think coming together for The Fantasy Fiction Tour demonstrates the gospel message?

WB: When Jesus came to the men who would become apostles and shared the good news of the Gospel with them, they left everything behind: homes, jobs, lifestyles, and also pretense and artificial barriers. You had doctors, fishermen, tax collectors, and tent-makers—and they gave up everything for The Mission. In the four authors on this tour, you have a former engineer, a musician, a soccer mom, and a teacher—all of whom have become authors for different publishers. You also have four different Christian backgrounds spanning several denominations. And yet, we are coming together for the mission of conveying God’s truth through the well-written fantasy tale. Our publishers have put aside competition and are working hard to promote all of our works, which is something I’ve never heard of before.

BD: All four of us have a passion to build God’s kingdom, and we are coming together to share hammers, nails, and encouragement as we build. This kind of cross-publisher support demonstrates that this effort isn’t about money; it’s about communicating something we all believe in. Sure, we hope to sell more books, but that’s so more people will read the stories that we believe will lead them closer to God. The foundation for the gospel is love, and love is selfless. That’s the spirit we hope to illustrate as we work side by side.

SH: The heart of the Gospel is that we can’t save ourselves. We need Christ – and HIS actions on our behalf. I know that as writers, each of us has acknowledged that we can’t succeed in our daily work apart from Christ, either. By uniting for this tour, we are looking to HIM to accomplish His purposes. We’re also enjoying the blessing of fellowship – supporting each other, instead of promoting ourselves.

CH: I love meeting fans of my books, because their lives have been changed by them in some small way, just as mine has been in writing them. And not only that, but meeting the fans of the other authors’ works, seeing the looks on their faces when they shake hands with that author because they both have a mutual connection, all because of a simple story. Isn’t that the point? We’ve all been affected by a simple story told over and over again for 2,000 years. And if we’re honest with that story, it will redefine who and what we are, because there is life in that story.

I also think the tour hammers home the way real Christians should be acting. Think about it, four different authors, each with a different church affiliation and personal background, from four different publishers, each with quite possibly a completely different set of values from how they market to what they edit and why. Unfortunately the secular world has seen enough evidence of why not to be a Christian; it’s a wonderful thing to be a part of a team that shows them what they are missing if they aren’t. Unity is not uniformity. Unity is working together for a common purpose.

Meet the Authors of the Fantasy 4 Fiction Tour, Part 5

Hey, all! Just a WEEK away from the start of The Fantasy 4 Fiction Tour in Atlanta! Please continue to pray about that event--especially for the Fantasy authors out there. ICRS is where a lot of new authors get their first contracts (or at least have a publisher get interested in them). It was just four years this summer that I went to ICRS (in Atlanta then as well) and pitched The Door Within books. A nice editor from Tommy Nelson took a real interest in the books and God did the rest.

But ICRS is also when Bookstore Chains and Indie Stores put orders in to their distributors for more or different titles. So, if you'd like to see your local Christian Bookstore stock more of what you like to read, please pray that Chains and Locals would buy lots of new fantasy/spec fic titles!

Tonight I've posted the FIFTH in a series of Meet the Author threads. The author's words are taken from a Q&A we participated in to promote the Tour. I'll post all four authors responses to one question in each thread. Hope you enjoy getting to know these wonderful fantasy writers.

Wayne Thomas Batson--The Door Within Trilogy and Isle of Swords
Bryan Davis--The Dragons in Our Midst and Oracles of Fire
Sharon Hinck--The Becky Miller Books and The Sword of Lyric Series
Christopher Hopper--The Rise of the Dibor and The White Lion Chronicles

I'll also be including a new piece of desktop art with each new post--Tonight's image is a bonus pic! This is my rendition of Rivendell, the House of Elrond from LOTR. Feel free to save the file and use it as your computer's background. Share with friends or post wherever else you blog!




Q: Tell me about a current project.

WB: I have a high adventure on the high seas planned for release in August of 2007. This pirate’s tale is called Isle of Swords, and begins with a lad awakening on an island. He is bruised, scarred, beaten within an inch of his life, and yet he has no memory of what happened to him…how he came to this island, or even of his own identity. All he has to go on is a leather pouch containing: a priceless green jewel, a lock of red hair, and a rusty iron cross. The journey of discovering who he is will bring the lad between two of the Caribbean’s most notorious pirates: Declan Ross and Bartholomew Thorne.

BD:I just finished the second book in the Oracles of Fire series, Enoch’s Ghost, and I will soon be working on book number three, Last of the Nephilim. These stories continue the Dragons in our Midst saga. Thigocia is the only dragon left in the world, and she is searching for her long lost human son, born to her while she was in human form. Three human characters help her in a search that literally takes one of them to the gates of Hell, to the very edge of the lake of fire. What they learn will mean life for some and death for others.

SH: Right now I’m working on my revisions for the third book in the Sword of Lyric series. Like the Old Testament Judges, God raises up a new “Restorer” in times of great need, so each book focuses on a different Restorer – but Susan continues to be an integral part of each story.

CH: I’m working on book III in The White Lion Chronicles. Honestly, I think it’s been the most fun of the three to write simply because it’s so fast paced. I’ve wanted to do an action thriller for some time, and this is as close as I’ll get to one in this series. Everything is culminating at break neck speed. I think people are really going to like it, and have to stop just to catch their breath; I have to when writing it!

Meet the Authors of the Fantasy 4 Fiction Tour, Part 4

Hey, all! Two weeks and counting. The Fantasy 4 Fiction Tour will kick off July 9th in Atlanta! Please continue to pray about that event--especially for the Fantasy authors out there. ICRS is where a lot of new authors get their first contracts (or at least have a publisher get interested in them). It was just four years this summer that I went to ICRS (in Atlanta then as well) and pitched The Door Within books. A nice editor from Tommy Nelson took a real interest in the books and God did the rest.

But ICRS is also when Bookstore Chains and Indie Stores put orders in to their distributors for more or different titles. So, if you'd like to see your local Christian Bookstore stock more of what you like to read, please pray that Chains and Locals would buy lots of new fantasy/spec fic titles!

Tonight I've posted the fourth in a series of Meet the Author threads. The author's words are taken from a Q&A we participated in to promote the Tour. I'll post all four authors responses to one question in each thread. Hope you enjoy getting to know these wonderful fantasy writers.

Wayne Thomas Batson--The Door Within Trilogy and Isle of Swords
Bryan Davis--The Dragons in Our Midst and Oracles of Fire
Sharon Hinck--The Becky Miller Books and The Sword of Lyric Series
Christopher Hopper--The Rise of the Dibor and The White Lion Chronicles

I'll also be including a new piece of desktop art with each new post--Tonight's pic is from my own Door Within Trilogy--Alleble at Dawn. If you've read the books, you know the dawn of which I speak, eh? Wink, wink. Feel free to save the file and use it as your computer's background. Share with friends or post wherever else you blog!




Q: Tell me about a character or theme from one of your books that is at least loosely autobiographical.

WB: Aidan, the main character of The Door Within, is a lot like I was when I was in my tweens. Creative, hopeful, and thoughtful—but not very outgoing…not very confident. I always longed for adventure, but most of mine were in my imagination. Aidan’s fear of Robby’s basement came straight out of my own childhood fear. My parents have a split basement. The unfinished side, the workside as we called it, was the creepiest place on the planet. I was always afraid that some creature lurked in its shadowy confines—that it waited for someone to venture too close to the open door. I used to leap over the side of the stairs onto a couch to avoid going by that basement door.

And like Aidan, I made a life-changing discovery that people tried to dismiss as make-believe. I became a Christian at age 22 in 1991. My parents thought I was cute, my coworkers thought I was crazy, and my friends thought I’d been abducted by aliens and brainwashed! But faith in God isn’t cute, it isn’t irrational, and it’s not trickery. God is real, and He’s waiting to change lives.

BD: I pass on this question.

SH: Susan, the heroine of The Restorer, chooses to obey and follow God in spite of sacrifice and confusion. Because of that, she expects that He will smooth the path for her. When she endures torture and betrayal, she confronts her disillusionment. A key step in her spiritual growth comes as she surrenders her need to have God explain Himself to her – but love and trust Him anyway. That theme is drawn from my walk with Christ. From childhood, I’ve sought to serve Him with a deep passion. Yet He has allowed hurtful things into my life that have caused me to wrestle with Him... Like Susan, I swing between asking Him if I’ve failed Him somehow, or if He has failed me, and finally realizing it is part of the mystery of faith. In The Restorer a key theme is “the cost of discipleship.”

CH: Spoiler Alert: The following pertains to The Lion Vrie: If I were to pick a specific instance that was very autobiographical, I would have to point to a very powerful scene in The Lion Vrie (Book II) where the main character, Luik, is confronted with the death of someone very near to him. (No, I am not Luik; Luik is my son’s name. But yes, Luik has many pieces of me, as do all my characters). Luik desperately wants to pray for his fallen friend and see him brought back to life. But he can’t bring himself to do it, whether it be for fear of failure, intimidation, lack of faith, or simply lack of self-confidence. In real life, I had lost a very close friend who died suddenly during a routine hospital check-up at age 41. As I sat in the funeral home helping his wife pick out the tombstone (a horrible job), I wanted to walk into the back room and lay hands on his dead body, to pull a “Lazarus, get up!” But I didn’t. It was a deeply personal thing for me, and is to this day, but writing about it really helped. You could say it’s my own form of cathartic therapy.

Meet the Fantasy 4 Fiction Tour Authors, Part 3

Hey, all! I can't believe the Fantasy Four Fiction Tour is only a month away. This time next month, we'll be in Atlanta, GA at the International Christian Retailers Show(ICRS). Please pray about that event--especially for the Fantasy authors out there. ICRS is where a lot of new authors get their first contracts (or at least have a publisher get interested in them). It was just four years this summer that I went to ICRS (in Atlanta then as well) and pitched The Door Within books. A nice editor from Tommy Nelson took a real interest in the books and God did the rest.

But ICRS is also when Bookstore Chains and Indie Stores put orders in to their distributors for more or different titles. So, if you'd like to see your local Christian Bookstore stock more of what you like to read, please pray that Chains and Locals would buy lots of new fantasy/spec fic titles!

Tonight I've posted the third in a series of Meet the Author threads. The author's words are taken from a Q&A we participated in to promote the Tour. I'll post all four authors responses to one question in each thread. Hope you enjoy getting to know these wonderful fantasy writers.

Wayne Thomas Batson--The Door Within Trilogy and Isle of Swords
Bryan Davis--The Dragons in Our Midst and Oracles of Fire
Sharon Hinck--The Becky Miller Books and The Sword of Lyric Series
Christopher Hopper--The Rise of the Dibor and The White Lion Chronicles

I'll also be including a new piece of desktop art with each new post--Tonight's pic is from Sharon Hinck's The Restorer which released in stores last month. Feel free to save the file and use it as your computer's background. Share with friends or post wherever else you blog!


Q: Who is the intended audience for your novels and why do you write for this audience?

WB: I write for anyone who loves a pure adventure, but I guess you could say that my target audience is that 10-16 Tween/Teen age. I’m a middle school reading teacher. Over 16 years of rubbing elbows with them, I really developed a love and understanding of those interesting kids. By God’s grace I have NOT forgotten what it was like when I clawed my way through the 11-17 corridor. And as a teacher, I am reminded of it everyday. Once kids enter middle school, it’s like they leave the kind world behind and enter a place that is full of danger and cruelty—much of it self-inflicted. We adults sometimes forget the enormity of what they experience, the level of emotion, and the intellect.

BD: My intended audience is youth, ages ten to sixteen, or anyone young at heart. I even heard from one ninety-four-year-old reader who has enjoyed my books. Our youth culture has been attacked by forces far greater than what my generation encountered. They need spiritual weapons to defend against, and even to go to war against, those forces. Unfortunately, too many times our culture, and even the church, has told young people that it’s normal to be rebellious, that they don’t have the power to completely obey God. I believe young people still feel how God wired them, to be heroes and heroines for His kingdom. I want to fuel that fire before they’re too old to remember their wiring.

SH: (answered above)

CH: At first, I started writing out of my own life and all my experiences, so it would have to be for those in their twenties. But then I’m a youth pastor, so I’m always trying to make things relevant for Teens and Tweenies (those between being a child and a teen). Of course, I work with adults all day long in business and when I travel and preach, so I wanted that demographic to be impacted, too. I laugh at myself now, but I realize I feel like the Apostle Paul when he spoke about being “all things to all men.” So you can imagine how overjoyed I am to get an e-mail from an ecstatic 9-year-old when he says he loves the book, and the next day get a letter from a 55-year-old mom who is hounding me for book II. That’s just amazing to me.

If you are interested in the books written by any of the Tour authors, see my sidebar for links to Amazon. Or visit Christianbook.com where all books can be found.

Meet the Authors of the Fantasy Fiction Tour Part 2

In just under a month, four fantasy authors (including me) will be setting forth on a tour of the US East Coast. We'll be visiting cities from Atlanta to New York. Our schedule is listed below:

{This, incidentally is the back of our official Tour Bookmark}

Tonight I've posted the second in a series of Meet the Author threads. The author's words are taken from a Q&A we participated in to promote the Tour. I'll post all four authors responses to one question in each thread. Hope you enjoy getting to know these wonderful fantasy writers.

Wayne Thomas Batson--The Door Within Trilogy and Isle of Swords
Bryan Davis--The Dragons in Our Midst and Oracles of Fire
Sharon Hinck--The Becky Miller Books and The Sword of Lyric Series
Christopher Hopper--The Rise of the Dibor and The White Lion Chronicles

I'll also be including a new piece of desktop art with each new post--Tonight's pic is from Christopher Hopper's The Lion Vrie which releases in stores later this month. Feel free to save the file and use it as your computer's background. Share with friends or post wherever else you blog!




Q: What makes your fantasy tale different from most other fantasy books?

WB: The Door Within is different in two ways: 1. As a teacher of tweens for 16 years now, I have insights into the lives of kids—their hopes, dreams…fears—depths of insights that other authors may not have. One of the comments I hear most often from readers is that they can identify with the main characters. “That’s just how I’ve felt.” Or, “How’d you know?” I know that kids of all ages are aching to ask the BIG questions of life, and to be taken seriously. In The Door Within Trilogy, I give them that chance.
2. The Glimpse Realm is different from any other fantasy world that I’ve found in other books. Yes, it is medieval. Yes, there are strange settings. Yes, there are strange and wonderful creatures—lots of these! {Wait til you enter Falon’s Labyrinth in book 1!!} But Glimpses are entirely different. They are the other half of our being, tied precariously to each of us by an invisible thread. When Aidan or anyone else for that matter enters The Realm—completely unexpected events occur!

BD: Most of the action takes place in our contemporary world rather than in another realm like Middle Earth or Narnia. I bring the fantasy elements into the everyday lives of “real” kids. My readers can identify with their circumstances and go along for the fantastic ride with them. I have heard from hundreds of readers how these fantasy characters were so real, they wanted to be just like them, including taking their faith as their own.

SH: When I began to write fantasy for adult Christian readers, I looked for the reasons that many of my friends (the core demographic of CBA readers) didn’t chose to read fantasy. Women with overfull and exhausting lives didn’t want to wade through difficult invented names, histories, and geography descriptions. They also needed a “keyhole” character they could identify with—some one to take them into the story. So I took a very “ordinary” soccer mom who was longing to find more meaning and purpose in her life, and told the story first-person point-of-view through her eyes. I kept the writing voice contemporary and lighter than some of the classical fantasy styles. The completely unique blend of genres contains the drama and adventure of other worlds, holy calls, and epic battles—yet sets it in a context that speaks to contemporary women. Women today ARE pulled into worlds they didn’t expect, and face roles they don’t feel prepared for. It happens when a child is diagnosed with a learning disability, a doctor says they have cancer, or a parent slides into Alzheimer’s.

CH: Honestly, I had to ask my wife this question, because I really was having a hard time with responding. And when she answered me back, I thought she should be the author here. It was beautiful. Jennifer said, “It reaches into the soul of a person to change him or her, rather than to reach into the soul of a person to entertain him or her.” And I would agree. When I sit down and write, yes, I hope the reader is entertained. But my primary thought, with every sentence I write, is that his or her life would be literally transformed by my stories; that something in my writing would challenge the way they are living and point them towards the Lord. There is an eternal destiny in mind why I compose, and an eternal reward for its success.

Also, please note that RealArmorOfGod.com is our Official Tour Sponsor--some of the coolest medieval weaponry and clothing you will ever find!

Random facts continued...

There was a little speculation about random fact #1 and #7. Here's the proof. Lol

8 Random Facts…

Okay, so Becky Miller from "A Christian Worldview of Fiction" has tagged me. Yup, my first thought too. What does that mean? I was beginning to think I'd need to recommend some sound Christian counseling for Becky. After all, pyramid schemes are not very Biblical. But…turns out, this "tagging business" is not so sinister. Here are the rules:

The first rule of the game, however, is to post the rules of the game. Here they are:

Each player starts with eight random facts/habits about themselves.

People who are tagged need to write their own blog about their eight things and post these rules.

At the end of your blog, you need to choose eight people to get tagged and list their names.

Don’t forget to leave them a comment telling them they’re tagged, and to read your blog.

My only problem is that I don't know enough bloggers who haven't already been tagged. lol

Anyway, here are my 8 Random Facts:

#1 I used to play lead guitar in an 80's Heavy Metal Band.

#2 I was introduced to Jesus in a strawberry field.

#3 I collect hot sauces.

#4 My favorite recent movie was LOTR (duh)

#5 My favorite movie prior to that was The Matrix (not the sequels).

#6 My favorite movie in high school was The Breakfast Club.

#7 I used to have blond hair down to my shoulders (see #1).

#8 I dream of having a medieval-themed basement.

And now, who to tag:

• Michelle Black
• Mark Goodyear
• Kevin Lucia
• Chris D
• SolShine7
• Gene Curtis
• Leathel Grody
• Jim Black