A flock of dodos?

Most of my rants have been running theological lately and except where my faith intersects writing, arts and culture, I wanted to spare readers any caustic splash-damage.

This little bit of brilliance by Jessica Thomas got my matching pair of brain cells working however.

Now seeing active groups like Grace Awards on GoodReads and the new CrossOver Alliance, I have to wonder from whence such portents of doom harken?

We can spend weeks debating the consequences of the self/indie e publishing phenomenon and it’s effects on the traditional publishing model, but it’s obviously opened tremendous opportunities for authors – Christian or otherwise – to offer their material to a global market. And Christians who write Spec-Fiction definitely seem to be taking advantage of it.

I would need a lot more coffee to research specific numbers, but from my own experience, CSF is far from uttering its death-rattle. Tired of consistent rejections or getting sanitized beyond recognition, plenty of Christian authors are opting for the DIY model. My friend Lee Stephen’s Epic Universe series spent weeks on Amazon’s bestseller list, and is still going strong. Sales of Running Black and the novella Clar1ty Wars: One Bad Apple are only increasing, with ebooks outselling hard copies 50/1. No, it’s not NY Times Bestseller list, but the publishing landscape is wide open right now. It’s going to take time for the new dynamics to get established. But they will indeed get established. No doubt.

Now whether Christian writers settle in to the work of actually writing, and take the long-view on their calling is a separate question. (As opposed to devolving into a bunch of whinging drama queens casting stones at the world/flesh/devil for their own infidelity) However, I firmly believe that’s the only way Christian Speculative Fiction is going to pass from this Earth. But knowing some of my fellow authors, I am oddly encouraged.

Call it faith.