Okay, okay, I haven’t been writing much these days, except for the writing prompts from Writer’s Digest. And I didn’t even do that this week, although it was a good one.
The reason: I’ve uploaded my book, Anticipation of the Penitent, on an online writer’s site called Authonomy.com, at http://authonomy.com/books/45790/anticipation-of-the-penitent/. It is a great site, where thousands of books are posted of every genre, and people read some or all of the book, comment and rank them. In order to get the most readers, you also have to read others’ books.
That’s where my time has been spent, reading and reading, and commenting and getting comments. It’s great and it’s frustrating. Some people love my book, others say it’s too dark for them, others don’t like the Christian aspect of it. In other words, there have been the usual feedback.
I’ve made some corrections to the book on Authonomy.com, have reread my book, and I have to say, I still love it! To me, the subplots, character transformations, inspiration and redemption themes by the end of Book I and the end of Book II, cause me to still be amazed by it all. (Some people who’ve read the whole book have called it amazing.)
Recently, I haven’t been submitting to too many literary agents either. I get comments from Authonomy.com that help me to see exactly how to describe my book and where things can be clarified. I want to get a few more comments and make a few more changes before finding out the best types of literary agents to submit to.
In that regard, speculative fiction in the Christian field, is fiction that has Christian ideology to it, but isn’t your typical “happy” Christian read. It includes Christian horror, sci-fi, and fantasy. I originally considered my book in the genre of Spiritual Warfare fiction, which during the San Francisco Writer’s Conference earlier this year, I had so shockingly learned wasn’t an accepted genre.
Another shock from comments I’ve received from my book is the amount of people who consider it to be horror. These are usually from people who have only read the Prologue and First Chapter. Of course, it is about a serial killer, and there are some disturbing descriptions, but I had never considered it horror. Dark definitely, thrilling maybe, paranormal maybe, maybe even a bit of fantasy, but horror? There’s no gore, the killing and other darker scenes are not explicit enough, I thought, to be called horror.
So, because of the comments I’ve received, I’m tentatively labeling Anticipation of the Penitent speculative fiction/literary Christian horror, until further notice. I hope to soon continue submitting query letters to more appropriate agents (once I find them). And I will start writing again on my other two books, should I say …soon?
Notice to readers of Anticipation of the Penitent: Because of the Authonomy website, I have changed my blog to not include the entire book. Instead, only excepts of the chapters are included. People who want to read the entire book can go to http://authonomy.com/books/45790/anticipation-of-the-penitent/.
I thought that I went back to where I left off with Thomas and his cousin being together, but perhaps you have changed some of it. I have read further and Thomas seems to be transforming. And apparently they are having a child. I'm interested to see if there will be a confrontation and war against Thomas' satanic father and a final defeat of evil. I know that people can be transformed and the greatest sinners can become the greatest saints, but I'm not seeing the crucible that would change Thomas, other than the love of a good woman and a family. Its possible, but how will he eliminate the murders from his consciousness. Like Moses, he may not be able to go into the promised land. In my philosophy all karma must be paid, it cannot be just left behind. Only God's grace can absolve, I know that some Christian philosophy proposes that a change of heart and profession of Christ wipes the slate clean. This is your book and story line, just some observations from a different perspective. I may have to go to the new site where you have downloaded the book as some of this seems mixed up to me on this site.
ReplyDeleteI did change the Prologue by adding chapter one to it, which changed the chapter #s. The previous chapter 2 is now chapter 1. Your comments here are interesting, but I will not respond to them until you've read the whole book. Since I've deleted most of the book from my blog, only leaving excepts, you'd have to either read it on Authonomy.com or I could email it to you again.
DeleteRegarding the writing buddy that copped out - no she copped out. She didn't like the idea of me reading her writing on a computer other than my private one, as I said I'd do a lot of it during breaks at work since I get home late. She had other excuses, but availability of time or computer wasn't one of them. She didn't give me a chance to work out alternatives, just said she didn't want to do what she had initially suggested. In the end, it's ok, since Authonomy.com is taking up much of my free time. I am submitting more queries.
I went to the Authorsatonomy (sic) I read the comments. Many seem to reflect my reaction to your book. Your visualization, your writing is far above par, but the story is difficult with unrelieved horror. I agree with a couple of posters that there are no good guys to relate to. Some of the issues that made it difficult for me to continue reading were the self-mutilation of Azela, this seems so anti-God to me, and actually selfish, I'm not sure I can relate at all to someone who does this, and she just becomes more weak and helpless to me, and for me, moral weakness is not an excuse for behavior. I don't know how this can empower her or exault her at all, everyone has to take care of her like she is an ameoba, she has brought this about and then everyone has to take care of her physically or cherish her or be loving to her, I don't find the reason for it. The incest between the mother and son was more horrid to me than the devil sex and I didn't want the description or reference in my mind. The cousin deal is over the top for me. Cousin sex is really disgusting to me. I know it was more common in the past. My knowledge of such unions is in the polygamist societies in this area of the country and from my book, you probably can tell, it disgusts me. Any relatives condoning or allowing the mating with a serial killer is inexplicable. I see that you curtailed some of the book on this site and the whole book is over on Authoratonomy, so as I can I will read it there.
ReplyDeleteThere is definitely a market for your book and much interest in serial killers. You receive many complements on your skill and your unique perspective and I definitely concur. I see that you receive a number of stars. I am very certain that you will become a successful writer. More later, if you wish me to continue, you may already have enough of my take and it appears the site you have published on is giving you a lot of valuable feedback. I read your comment about still loving your book, and yours is the most important opinion on the matter.
A lot of the topics in the book are things that are common in today's world, including the incest, not reporting criminal behavior of friends and family, and self-mutilation. I'd say the part that is most fantasized or exaggerated is when she harms herself. And of course the description of Satan.
ReplyDeleteAs I mentioned to you before, there is no end to the evilness people allow themselves to inflict on someone else, and that luckily all the answers I needed to explain this behavior is in the Bible. I no longer had to research evil behaviors, of which I have great examples of through my job trainings and my job in general.
Because the answers to evil have come from the Bible (as opposed to psychological exploration of behaviors, which truly provide no answers), I was able to limit my descriptions of these behaviors to emotional experiences than detailing the full extent of them. Thus, the perceived horror from readers of my book mainly come from their own imaginations than what's written on the page.
What I really hoped to portray from my book, and I think I have, is that everyone has the potential to live life according to God's will, no matter what their life has been or decisions they made in the past.
I certainly agree with your last paragraph.
DeleteYour job would bring you into contact with things many of us would not have to contemplate. And I agree with you the answers are in scripture and the phychological analysis doesn't have an answer about how to change or transform. I am not arguing with your perceptions and concept in the book, I am not criticizing, I am trying to give feedback.
I've always believed it took a particular type of individual to work in any area of criminal justice and law enforcement, people who cannot easily be pulled into it or affected by the evil of others. People of a certain inner strength and rectitude. After my son got out of the Marines he wanted to go into law enforcement, we lived in Newport Beach and he began applying for jobs around the area. I needed him to help me start a business and he did that, after the business was going well he went back to university and I think he still thought about law enforcement. He had some friends in law enforcement. If he had lived, I like to think he might have done that work if he still wanted to. Priests and ministers must also have this strength. It seems to me they must be able view evil with dispassion.
Paramhansa Yogananda cautioned to his disciples that only a master could walk through evil and degeneracy and not be affected by the low energy. He said environment is stronger than will. I am certainly no master so I guess you could say I live a very sheltered life and a deliberately reclusive life, I am sure you are correct about much of the modern world. I am not much in world. Just ordinary venality is enough for me to see.
I also agree the greatest sinners can become the greatest saints. There is redemption and transcendence. But I also believe for the mass of souls it is a long karmic re-incarnation road, that the law of cause and effect is iron, dissolved only by God. Nevertheless, Yogananda says for one to even think about these spiritual topics is a high karma. To put your ideas out there in an effort to inform and help others is very courageous.
You are very talented and with your drive and writing energy, I am not going out on a limb when I predict you will be successful. With strong enough will, you can manifest the opportunities and success you want. You are certainly doing the work. I marvel.