Personal Limitations: An Introduction

Finally! We have reached the third and final part of the guideline building blocks: personal limitations.

Unlike maturity, which focuses on increasing growth that most of us pass through, personal limitations are very individual. For while personal limitations provide off-limit areas for you, those boundaries may not apply to your family, your neighbor, or the world at large. And if that wasn’t confusing enough, these personal gray areas may or may not change over time.

This makes personal limitations probably some of the hardest guidelines to set. There’s no template to follow, no clear-cut path to take or even a rabbit trail. I could simply tell you what is off-limits to me, but that will help you little since you might be a different from me as an elephant from a jellyfish.

Still I believe commonalities exist, and that’s what I’ll be focusing on in the coming weeks. Our individuality may force me to write in generalities, but the common ground can provide you the foundation of discovering your own limitations—if you’ll let them.

Wingfeather Saga: On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness

Title: On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness

Series: Wingfeather Saga #1

Author: Andrew Peterson

Genre: Mid-grade (8-12 years) Fantasy Adventure

Excerpt from “A Slightly Less Brief Introduction to the Land of Skree”:

The whole land of Skree was green and flat. Except for the Stony Mountains in the north, which weren’t flat at all. Nor were they green. They were rather white from all the snow, though if the snow melted, something green might eventually grow there.

Ah, but farther south, the Plains of Palen Jabh-J covered the rest of Skree with their rolling (and decidedly green) grasslands. Except, of course, for Glipwood Forest. Just south of the plains, the Linnard Woodlands rolled off the edges of all maps, except, one would suppose, those maps made by whatever people lived in those far lands.

But the people who made their homes on the plains, at the edges of the forest, high in the mountains, and along the great River Blapp, lived in a state of lasting glorious peace. That is, except for the aforementioned Great War, which they lost quite pitifully and which destroyed life as they knew it.
Three children reawaken rumors of the lost jewels that could destroy the evil lizard rulers.

The Writing: On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness (say that title five times fast) is a clean, fun adventure full of dry wit, as the excerpt I quoted above amply demonstrates.

Likeable characters fill the pages of this story, often turning out to be more complex than they first appear. The kids act like kids, with all the attitudes, flaws, and virtues real kids have. The plot pulls forward with pretty consistent tension. And all this is pulled off in a delightful storyteller's style

Nonetheless, I found it hard to connect with the characters and get into the story at first. Why? It’s hard to say. Perhaps my age hindered me from connecting with mid-grade characters. Maybe I found the head-hopping distracting. Or perhaps it was the episodic nature of the first half of the book.

But who am I to complain? Because, in the end, Mr. Peterson pulls it all together, wasting few events. (I’m still waiting for the significance of Leeli’s singing with the sea dragons; maybe that’ll come in a later book? I hope so.) But the climax and resolution were quite satisfying, and in combination with the book’s wonderful humor, that goes a long way in redeeming this story.

The Story: As I’ve already implied, On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness is a clean story. No magic, per se, though a few inexplicable events exist (the aforementioned incident with Leeli and the sea dragons). There’s a couple minor references to torture, which are never seen played out; a few rocks thrown to kill; and a couple scenes of violence of a small-scale war. But nothing is portrayed graphically, keeping the story very accessible to younger readers.

As for the spiritual aspect, it is kept low-keyed. This resulted in only a couple spots of minor preachiness. The themes of forgiveness, taking responsibility, and protecting others at cost to self are all intertwined with the storyline.

Summary: On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness provides a clean entertaining read for all ages, and the episodic nature of this story might work extra well for readers of short attention spans or for a family read-aloud book.

Rating: 3.8 out of 5 stars


Know someone who'd love this kind of book? Order it here. Still not sure? Have a look at book two, North! Or Be Eaten, as well.

CFSS: Starring Andrew Peterson

As I completely forgot yesterday, this week is the March Christian Sci-fi and Fantasy blog tour, where a bunch of us nutty readers and writers get together to chat about a book. This month’s selection is Andrew Peterson’s On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness. As the title of this first book of the Wingfeather Saga implies, this is a somewhat humorous and off-beat adventure tale targeted for mid-grade readers (8-12). But more on that tomorrow.

In the meantime, hop over to Andrew Peterson’s website or take a peek at what others are saying:

Sally Apokedak, Brandon Barr, Jim Black, Justin Boyer, Jackie Castle, Valerie Comer, CSFF Blog Tour, Gene Curtis, D. G. D. Davidson, Janey DeMeo, Jeff Draper, April Erwin, Beth Goddard , Marcus Goodyear, Todd Green, Jill Hart, Katie Hart, Michael Heald, Timothy Hicks, Christopher Hopper, Jason Joyner, Kait, Carol Keen, Mike Lynch, Margaret, Rachel Marks, Shannon McNear, Rebecca LuElla Miller, Pamela Morrisson, John W. Otte, Deena Peterson, Rachelle, Steve Rice, Cheryl Russel, Ashley Rutherford, James Somers, Donna Swanson, Steve Trower, Speculative Faith, Robert Treskillard, Jason Waguespac, Laura Williams, and Timothy Wise

Four Levels of Maturity: Summary

First, if you’re looking for the Christian Science-Fiction and Fantasy tour for this month, yes, I will be posting. But I prepared my fiction and faith post that I usually do on Mondays before I remembered that. So enjoy browsing my work on fiction and faith, and then return during the next couple days for On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness.

As for today’s post, I’m summarizing how our maturity level, both physical and spiritual, impacts our guidelines for fiction, the topic I’ve been focusing on for the past couple months. (For a complete discussion on this, check out the folder labeled “maturity” on my sidebar). Then next week, after blog tour, I’ll move onto the third and final foundation for fictional guidelines, personal limitations.

Infancy

Characteristics: Infants are helpless, unable to do anything for themselves and lacking any discernment. They absorb everything and learn best through the concrete.

Advantages: Because they absorb everything going on around them, infants are exceptionally teachable and receptive to outside influence.

Dangers: An infant’s receptivity to outside influences makes them susceptible to lies as well as the truth; they cannot discern one from the other.

Safeguards: Stories for infants need a clear, true message focusing on the concrete rather than the abstract. For spiritual infants, this means a diet of Christian-only material (which I don’t recommend for the long-term) is advisable, along with a spiritual “parent” to keep track of what is being absorbed.

Childhood

Characteristics: Children are curious about everything, live in a rule-oriented world, and learn basically through imitation.

Advantages: A child’s sense of wonder and the ability to learn by example, whether real or fictional, are unparalleled.

Dangers: Kids will mimic evil as well as good and can carry a prejudice against anything different.

Safeguards: Stories for children (physical and spiritual) should focus on heroic heroes, where good is rewarded and evil is punished, thus capitalizing on the ability to learn by example. Supervision by a parent or mentor is recommended.

Adolescence

Characteristics: Teens relish increasing supervision from parents, foster a “sky is the limit” mentality, and learn largely from experimentation.

Advantages: Adolescents bring variety and vision to the world.

Dangers: The “sky is the limit” mentality, taken too far, can result in an attitude of invincibility, the kind that says it doesn’t matter—I can do, go, read, watch what I like without it affecting me.

Safeguard: Sampling a large variety of fictional types is encouraged, but should also be monitored in order that personal limitations can be discerned and developed. An accountability partner is advisable.

Adults

Characteristics: Adults are the widest varied group. Now focused more on maintenance than growth, they bear great freedom with the weight of responsibility of teachers, parents, and mentors.

Advantages: No longer wholly dependent on others, adults are freed to serve rather than needing to be served.

Dangers: Maintenance can cause adults to become stuck in a rut, solidifying personal guidelines into rules for others.

Safeguards: Enjoy the wide variety the fictional world can offer—and not only for adults, but also for children, infants, and teens! The best way to avoid ruts is to trek off your normal path occasionally.

A UTCH Conference Experience

I went. I vendored. It flopped.

Well, maybe not completely, but I didn’t reach my expectations.

However, that isn’t a surprise. I tend to approach anything I do with big dreams and high hopes, especially when I have no idea what to expect at all.

So it was with my attendance at the UTCH Conference. Big dreams, few realized.

Yet I did learn one thing. As an introvert, I’m not good at handling crowd situations and I often hang back, struggling to maintain even basic conversations. This conference proved to me that I’m able to engage a complete stranger in a semi-coherent conversation. I guess I’m so passionate about fiction, the Christian faith, and how the latter impacts the former, I can talk all day about them—literally. In fact I nearly lost my voice during the day, I talked so much.

And for a marketing-wary writer, that was a good thing to discover.

Four Levels of Maturity: Adulthood, Part 2

During the past few months, we’ve been looking at maturity and how it affects the world of fiction, and each level we’ve examined thus far (infancy, childhood, and adolescence) has carried very specific dangers. Adulthood is no different.

But before we look at the dangers, let’s quickly review the characteristics of adults (both physical and spiritual), which we talked about a couple weeks ago:

• Adults are very diverse.


• With adulthood comes much freedom—and much responsibility.


• The focus is on maintenance rather than growth.


• Adults are viewed more as teachers/mentors than students.

In short, adults have developed discerning minds, understood their limitations, and now pass that knowledge onto others.

The Dangers

But as stated above, while adults have the most freedom of any maturity level, their freedom comes with the price of responsibility. The responsibility to care for the infant. The responsibility to be a good role-model to children. The responsibility to guide adolescences through rocky terrain.

The danger in this comes when all that freedom and responsibility goes to the head. As adults, it’s easy to forget that, though we may have more knowledge and experience than those under our care, we have much to learn, even from those with less experience.

If we forget that, a whole multitude of problems results. Having the greater authority, we are tempted to enforce guidelines as hard and fast rules. Limitations that we personally have become measuring sticks to judge others—“You should never read/watch that; it’s evil!” Ruts develop as we read or watch only certain genres, limiting our perspective. We have come to falsely believe we’ve “made it” when there’s so much more to learn and experience.

But perhaps the greatest danger is that adults like this risk losing all the good of the earlier stages: we endanger the receptiveness of infants, the wonder of childhood, and the “sky’s the limit” enthusiasm of teens.

The Safeguards

But these dangers don’t have to take root. Not that there is an easy answer. There isn’t, maybe even more so for this level than any other previous one simply because of the diverseness of the group. However, there are a few rails that can help us stay on the right track:

• Interact with all ages—and their fictional worlds. Watch Veggie Tales with a four-year-old. Read an adventure story written for 8-12 year-olds. Chaperone teens to a movie. Then listen to what the kids of those ages are saying; their observations might just surprise you.


• Take a risk. Do you usually read romances? Try a fantasy or a thriller next time. Prefer the dark and creepy? Watch an old comedic movie. It will help balance out your perspective and deter de-sensitization; and by pushing your personal limitations occasionally, you may find a new appreciation of the familiar and expand your old boundaries. Don’t always say “no,” but “I’ll give it a try” occasionally.


• Remember, you’re still learning too! That’s why we form guidelines in the first place: so they can change when we and the world around us changes. It also allows for adaptation because—gasp!—we just might be wrong. So be willing to consider those things outside the box; you might discover a brand-new world.

The City of God, Part 3: Retribution

Title: Retribution

Series: The City of God #3

Author: Randall Ingermanson

Genre: Time Travel/Historical

Excerpt from Chapter 1 of Retribution:

Rivka woke from a light sleep, her heart aching. The room was pitch black and smelled of incense and sweat and cheap wine. Like her apartment building back home in Berkeley.

A dull sigh caught in Rivka’s throat. She was not in Berkeley. Not even in America. She was in Jerusalame, a city of shimmering white stone, simmering with rage. And she was in the biggest trouble of her life.

Beside her, Ari moaned quietly. Dear, sweet, opinionated, lovable, infuriating Ari Kazan. They had been married for five year, and she knew now why people said it was a mistake to marry an unbeliever. More accurately, a half-believer. Ari believed in God. He did not believe in Yeshua. Three days ago, that unbelief had saved his life.

Deep grief welled up in Rivka’s heart. She felt so very grateful Ari had been saved. But not that way.

She could smell him in the deep darkness, the stale sweat rank on his naked body. Rivka touched a gentle finger to his jagged back. Thank God, Ari had survived the flogging. Blessed be HaShem, as they said here in Jerusalem, where they were too polite to say God’s name, but they had not qualms about torturing in his name.

Stranded in 1st century Jerusalem, 21st century couple Ari and Rivka prepare for the impending destruction of Jerusalem.

The Writing: Retribution carries all the strengths of Premonition: clean and straightforward writing; strong characters; steadily building tensions; thorough research that adds flavor to settings and characters; a satisfying climax.

Actually, I should say a mostly satisfying climax. The ending left me vaguely discontented. Too many loose ends remained for my tastes.

The end probably would have been fine, if it weren’t for the fact that this is the last book in the series, and that final bit of closure was lacking. Why? I’m not wholly sure. Maybe some false expectations on my part or perhaps this book was never intended by the author to be the final book. It’s hard to say.

Nonetheless, the writing provides a good reading experience overall, and the flow is smother than in Premonition.

The Story: Retribution is…intense. The time surrounding the destruction of Jerusalem ran high with emotion—emotions that bleed through the characters and across the page. The basic themes—relinquishment of rage and the power of sacrifice—don’t ease the mood any either. But the story brings to life this history and the Jewish heritage like few books I’ve read.

However, be forewarned: This deals with the brutality of this period with historical accuracy. This includes a long, detailed section covering the random and mass crucifixions by Governor Florus, for those familiar with ancient history (necessary to the story). This is not for the weak of stomach.

Summary: The lack of closure is a bit disappointing with this final book of The City of God Series, but overall Retribution is an excellent but intense story—a good read if you can handle the violence. Not recommended for kids under 16.

Rating: 4.0 out of 5 stars

Order Retribution here.

(Book 2 reviewed here.)

Out of Town

This week, I'm out of town, visiting my sister's family before heading to the UTCH conference tomorrow. So in a way I'm on vacation and except for work like this blog--

Yeah. Can you believe it? She just ejected the escape pod, never saying a word to me or anyone else...

Oh, pardon my interruption. My name is Cora Remain. I don't know if Chawna has talked much about me, but we've been working together the last two years on my story, which we've tentatively called Mark of the Vine. Chawna has done a good job on it thus far and we're into tweaking it. Or so she tells me. I'm not the writer. In fact, I don't like writing at all, especially speeches--though these days I seem to be writing many of those. But that's another story.

As I was saying, Chawna didn't tell me that she was going to launch on me in this way. I had fully planned on having another chat with her this coming Galaday. But when I tried to get a hold of her, not only did I discover that she jumped ship, she ejected without my story! But she does deserve it, I suppose. She has been piloting through some pretty dangerous asteroid fields, not only for my story but also two others, from what I hear.

And that's why I really got on here. If Chawna needs a vacation so badly that she feels it necessary to abandon ship in order to escape the orbit of work, the least I can do is man the helm until she returns. After all, she's flown to my aid at the weakest distress call I have sent for nearly two years.

But don't worry. She'll be re-enter some time next week--if her messages are reliable. With a fiction writer that's always a bit hard to tell.

The Dark Foundations

Title: The Dark Foundations

Series: The Lamb Among the Stars #2

Author: Chris Walley

Genre: Futuristic/Apocalyptic Science-fiction

Excerpt from Chapter 1 of The Dark Foundations:

Over four hundred light-years beyond Farholme, Sentius Lezaroth, Fleet-Captain of the Tenth Dominion Task Force and Margrave of Cam Nisua, scrutinized the main pilot’s screen on his low-orbit lander as it entered the final moments of the descent. There was nothing for him to do—every aspect of its descent from the battleship Strallak Ravager through the turbulent atmosphere of Khalamaja had been handled by the planet’s control center.

I hate remotely handled landings. I have no control over events. I feel vulnerable. And today, I don’t even know where I’m going.

His screen showed the sprawling, dirty city of Khetelak, the planetary capital. Within moments the lander was heading toward a tiny landing pad high on the spire of what seemed to be the tallest building.

“We are landing, Admiral!” he called out, and braced himself.

The touchdown, however, was gentle. As soon as the lander was stable and all the other parameters looked normal, Lezaroth initiated the power-down procedure. That much they allow me to do.

He adjusted his uniform and glanced at the only other occupant of the lander, Admiral Kalartha-Har.

Kalartha-har, a bulky man with a worn, heavy face and thinning silver hair, stared out of a window, drumming his fingers against the seat.

He’s nervous. Both of us are. But then, who wouldn’t be when you’re suddenly called to a meeting with our elusive and mysterious Lord-Emperor Nezhuala—a man I’ve never met. Few of us have.

“Sir, where are we, exactly?”

“We are, Margrave, on the summit of the Tower of Carenas at the citadel of Kal-na-Tanamuz. In short, we are at the heart of the Dominion.”

Forester-turned-military-commander battles growing, ancient evil from without—and within.

The Writing: The Dark Foundations is equal to the precedent set by book one, The Shadow and Night, and exceeds it in many ways. For while the descriptions remain on the lengthy side and the book is somewhat slow in the beginning again, the pace picks up quicker than in book one, and the reader can better identify with the chacacters, somewhat sadly due to the increasing evil.

Beyond that, the writing is clean and straight forward, with little outstanding in my mind.

The Story: Again I’m greatly impressed with the spiritual threads in The Dark Foundations, just as I was in The Shadow and Night. This book provides some fascinating peeks into supernatural realms, both good and evil, and the war so often unseen by humanity.

In addition, The Dark Foundations show how far evil can spread, how nothing and no one is immune to it. Yet while this casts a dark tone over the story, flickers of light pop up throughout: you can, by the grace of God, defeat evil and overcome its insidious influence.

However, be aware that The Dark Foundations is a novel about war, not just internally, but also externally. So battles and combat are an unavoidably large chunk of this story. That said, this is one of the most bloodless wars I’ve read about. Though detailed, it’s not graphic and most of the “graphic violence” is enacted against machines, not humans, so it doesn’t carry the same horror factor of most wars. Probably the worst points are the couple, brief mentions of evil’s practice of human sacrifice, which is best skimmed rather than visualized. However, the writing allows you to do just that, since most of it is left to the imagination.

Summary: The Dark Foundations is as good as The Shadow and Night, bringing with it my high recommendation. While the writing may not be the most outstanding I’ve ever read, The Dark Foundations have much to offer for Christian readers of every genre.

Also, because of how the descriptions and violence are done, this story is fairly accessible to teens of all ages, especially if they have not been exposed to excessive amounts of graphic violence in the visual mediums (thus preventing them from filling in the blanks implied by the descriptions).

Rating: 4.7 out of 5

Click here to order.

(The Shadow and the Night, book one, reviewed here, and The Infinite Day, book three, reviewed here.)