Why We Need More Compassion in Christian Fiction

Once upon a time, Christian Fiction had a bad reputation for being overly preachy and browbeating towards those who do not place their hope in Jesus. While, yes, we are supposed to call out sin for what it is, we are to do so like Jesus does and not take our methods from the Pharisees.

In recent years, I’ve noticed that some Christian Fiction books have taken a turn for the better. Instead of hitting readers over the head with the Bible through their narratives, Christian characters are showing more, or learning how to express, compassion for non-believers. When I say “compassion” I don’t mean that these books aren’t calling out sin; rather, they’re doing it in a loving way, showing readers how sin is harmful and that God instructs us to not partake in it out of His love for us.

As an Indie Christian author, I’m excited about this for the Christian Fiction world, and hope more authors join in on writing compassionate Christianity into their books.

If you’re a Christian author or aspiring writer and may not understand what I mean, let me explain why making sure Christian Fiction contains compassion is such a vital part of our books being lights for Christ.

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Follow the Arrows is Finished!

I don’t even know how long I’ve had this blog image made and sitting in my Drafts, but now, I’m finally able to use it!

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Things Books and Movies Portray Incorrectly About the American South

As a native of North Carolina and someone who has spent all of her 30+ years living in the southern United States, I often have beef with how the American South is depicted in books and movies.

So, buckle up, y’all. Let’s go off-roading into what books and movies often portray incorrectly about the South and how you can avoid these cliches in your writing.

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My Advice for Teen Writers

Once upon a time and many moons ago (half my life ago, to be exact!), I was a teenage writer drafting my first novel. Now that I’m in my early 30s and have more writing experience and published novels under my belt, I would like to share some advice for teen writers, advice I wish someone had told me when I was sixteen years old writing Can’t Beat the Heart of a Carolina Girl.

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Crucial Editing Mistakes that Writers Often Make

Whether it’s an apparent lack of editing, issues with the book’s pacing, or inaccuracies concerning content, I’ve come across works that, if more time had been spent polishing these areas, they would have been much better stories.

With that being said, how can we as authors aim to not make these mistakes? Join me for the next few minutes, my friend, as we explore the top crucial editing mistakes that writers often make.

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The #1 Practice That Has Helped My Writing

Ever since I fell in love with storytelling when I was seven years old, I’ve been writing my own stories. In the almost 25 years since then, I’ve tried a few different writing hacks to help me write more often and improve the quality of my writing. However, one practice I’ve implemented has had a significant impact, surpassing all the others, and it’s not one you’ll often see writing gurus recommend.

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Ways Readers Can Pray for Authors

Over the past few years on Bookstagram, I’ve seen a few posts from readers where they ask authors how they can pray for us. As a Christian author of Contemporary YA books, I think the gesture is sweet and one that can genuinely help Christian authors of all genres. So today, as an author, I’ll be sharing 5 ways that readers can pray for authors.

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Dialogue VS Descriptions: Which is More Important?

If you’re a writer, you most likely fall into one of two camps: Either you excel at writing dialogue, or you’re a master of creative descriptions.

Is one aspect of writing more important than the other? Let’s find out!

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