Grilling Mike - A Q & A With Michael Snyder on My Name is Russell Fink

[VLSmith]

After reading Mike's book, I had several questions running through my mind that I wished I could ask. Some were about the story while others were about Mike's creative process.

As it turns out, I was not the only one at CW who had an inquiring mind. Mike told us he would love to talk about Russell and Sonny. But be warned! If you haven't read the book yet, there might be spoilers within this thread. Also, although Mike says he's no authority on the matter, he will answer questions regarding his publishing experience.

I probably have a ton of questions, but I will start off with just a few to warm up Mike.

So, Mike, thanks again for helping us like this. It's always encouraging to see one our own break free from the slush pile and climb onto the book racks.

Here are the ice breakers:


1. Does the Miracle Ward really exist or is it based on something real?

2. Is there a character in MNIRF that is more like you than any other?

3. How long did it take you to write MNIRF?

4. Had you sold anything prior to that? Short stories? Articles?


That's it for now. !thumbsup!

[righter1]

I'd like to add some questions in myself, and will as I think of them!

Liberty's top question:

How did Russell's girlfriend at the end (the name slips my mind right now, and my copy of the book is downstairs) get pregnant? My top 2 theories are: ex-boyfriend, or when she found out she had cancer, she decided to visit a sperm bank. Third theory is she was raped, but she'd have acted differently, IMHO, towards men if this had been the case.

How did she manage to hide the pregnancy from Russell? If he was a smart man, he should have caught onto this... women gain weight in other places besides the obvious one when they're pregnant (I'm going through this right now!)

I'm sure the question that was popping around my head for a few hours last week will eventually return... can't remember what it was at the moment.

[michaelsnyder]

Great questions, VL and Righter...I think, to keep things easy on the eyes, and to allow folks to skip over questions that do not interest them, I'm going to post the replies to each separately. Hope that's okay.

But first, a question of my own...

To anyone who's read Fink, what was your least favorite part of the book? Was it a particular character you didn't like? A patch of questionable writing? Some thread that seemed to dangle without resolution? Just whatever it was.

I promise not to get offended or anything close. Generally, folks feel free to praise our writing, but are reluctant (for obvious reasons) to share constructive criticism. But I'm asking for it!

So thanks for that. Answers to follow...

Mike

[michaelsnyder]

Question: Does the Miracle Ward really exist or is it based on something real?

Answer: I’m not sure if there’s an actual group called ‘The Miracle Ward’. But I have seen how parents/families of potentially-terminally-diseased kids band together, both physically and emotionally in a hospital ward. So, in my mind (sorry, I’ll probably say that a lot!), it was easy enough to imagine what that kind of support group might look like and how it might form organically under such common duress.

For the sake of storytelling, it seemed natural explore the emotional trauma inherent to that kind of situation…namely the disconnect between the parents of little Charlie Baringer.

[michaelsnyder]

Question: Is there a character in MNIRF that is more like you than any other?

Answer: Ooh, scary question…I guess Russell is the most like me. But obviously (hopefully!) not a one-to-one correlation. I did have a basset growing up, but never once fed her whiskey biscuits or treated her like a soothsayer. I also had a surgeon say ‘Oops!’ while removing a mole from my chest.

On the other hand, I never believed I gave a sibling cancer, but had a friend who did. My day job is in sales, but I don’t treat my job like Russell does his! (And for the record, although my family has the regular amount of dysfunction, my mom is not a closet alcoholic, nor was my dad a healing evangelist—I made that stuff up!).

One of the best parts of writing (for me, anyway) is delving into conflict/problems as one of my characters…simply imagining what it would be like and how I would react if I were in that situation with that particular batch of neurosis swimming around my veins. The scary part, I guess, is the possibility of getting it all wrong. Or maybe it’s scarier if I get it right? What does that actually say about me?

[michaelsnyder]

Question: How long did it take you to write MNIRF?

Answer: This one’s tougher to answer than it might seem. The easy answer would be: ‘about a year, give or take’. But in the broadest sense, I could say I’d been writing that story for about 30 years.

Distilling it down to actual writing time, I would say I toyed with those characters and situations for about two-and-a-half years via a series of short stories. But once I figured out that I had a viable novel on my hands, the conjuring and transcribing parts took about a year.

[michaelsnyder]

Question: Had you sold anything prior to that? Short stories? Articles?

Answer: I never got paid (other than contributor copies), but my favorite piece of writing was published by Relief Journal and was selected for an Editor’s Choice designation. Also, I had a story accepted by The Ankeny Briefcase (Donald Miller’s lit journal), but it never saw publication. Both of those stories were early iterations of MNiRF. Other than that, I did enter and place in a few online contests. Infuze published a couple of my stories. And I’ve been honored to write for The Master’s Artist for years.

Other than that, I just collected lots and lots of rejections!

[michaelsnyder]

Question: How did Russell's girlfriend at the end (the name slips my mind right now, and my copy of the book is downstairs) get pregnant? My top 2 theories are: ex-boyfriend, or when she found out she had cancer, she decided to visit a sperm bank. Third theory is she was raped, but she'd have acted differently, IMHO, towards men if this had been the case.

Answer: Ahh…here’s where I risk alienating readers or at least raising their collective ire! I promise I’m not being a smart-aleck or playing coy or any of that…but my absolute most honest answer is this: I don’t know. I never had that ‘conversation’ with Geri.

I do (like everyone else) have a theory though. In my mind, the scenario that makes the most sense was her former fiancé. But I never really could sort out if it was simply bad judgment on her part or if there was some sort of abuse (but I agree with you that her reactions toward men don't square with sexual assault).

However, since I’m actually toying around with a sequel, I suppose I’ll have to sit down with Geri and sort it all out. I have to admit I’m not looking forward to that ‘conversation’ though.

[michaelsnyder]

Question: How did she (Geri) manage to hide the pregnancy from Russell? If he was a smart man, he should have caught onto this... women gain weight in other places besides the obvious one when they're pregnant (I'm going through this right now!)

Answer: Very good point. And I would never have tried the concealed pregnancy angle if I hadn’t witnessed it firsthand.

Our youngest son is adopted and we got to know the birth mother a little just prior to the adoption. She was able to conceal her pregnancy from her parents and all but one of her friends the entire time.

As far as Russell goes, he was so absorbed and obsessed in so many directions, I didn’t think it was too big of a stretch to have him remain blissfully clueless. But I will admit, I asked myself the same question over and over again. I think what tipped the scale for me was my very own cluelessness!

[VLSmith]

Great start, Mike! And thank you!

As far as Liberty's questions, I guess I had put my own spin things as I read the book. I thought part of the method to Geri's madness with the odd clothes she made was to conceal her pregnancy. Somehow I had the impression they were rather loose fitting. All of the designs and odd prints would have been distracting as well.

I had the impression that the father of the baby was her ex-fiance. She seemed to feel her life was over and even said so at the zoo. I could see her wanting to spare him the same sad destiny by choosing to keep silent about the pregnancy. She didn't want to saddle him with the burden of a motherless baby, especially if their relationship was over.

However, if there's a sequel, Russell would have to do the honorable thing and tell the guy he has a child. That could prove to be sticky, too.

Was there something I didn't like about the book? Nope, it was great except for one thing...their impromptu wedding in the hospital room. No marriage license. Very romantic, but not realistic.

[Merry]

Well, I could see Russell being clueless about his girlfriend. I mean...I know some guys who have been even more 'unaware.' Was it just the lack of a license that made it seem unrealistic to you? Cuz I thought it was pretty good, no license seemed to fit at that point.

Maybe there we can just get into different opinions, but I don't know, I liked it.I'll have to go back and see if there are any parts I think I have a legitimate gripe about now!

[righter1]

Well, I could see Russell being clueless about his girlfriend. I mean...I know some guys who have been even more 'unaware.' Was it just the lack of a license that made it seem unrealistic to you? Cuz I thought it was pretty good, no license seemed to fit at that point.

Maybe there we can just get into different opinions, but I don't know, I liked it.I'll have to go back and see if there are any parts I think I have a legitimate gripe about now!

The no license thing didn't really bother me at all. Thinking about it now, the logical thing is that, in a book of this type, the pastor would marry them before God and family/witnesses, and later, they could go get the actual license. To some people, marriage is less of a legal thing, rather a spiritual thing, so the important part is the pastor thing. (I personally feel both are important, with the spiritual aspect being a bit higher on the totem pole than the legal, but that's just me.)

Still thinking about what my question was...

[michaelsnyder]

That's really funny...hadn't thought about the marriage license angle. However...

I did bring back Dan in a veiled cameo in my second novel. The funny part is that I had him marry a couple only to learn later that his ordination was invalid and thus the marriage 'never really happened.' But in the end, that got nixed. So poor ole Dan lost his second fifteen minutes of fame.

Mike

[VLSmith]

Okay, I thought of a couple more questions for you. I think I remember reading that you had read 36 (?) books in 18 months on the craft of writing. Which ones were the most helpful for you?

Did you have an agent already when you finished MNiRF? If not, how many, if any, rejections did you get before you found one?

I heard your next book won't be coming out until March now. That's a bummer. On the upside, at least you have a second one coming out!

[wgjones3]

How close is the finished product to the original vision you had when you submitted the manuscript?

[Merry]

Uh...yeah...since I recently put a number of very kind friends through a 48 hour 'Mike-a-thon' (My novel, the Mysterious Calling of Mike Malone was requested by a publisher and...uh...I wasn't through editing) so...yeah...that's a real good question!

[VLSmith]

Hey, that's great news, Merry!

[michaelsnyder]

Hey guys, thanks for the added questions. I'm tempted to jump in tonight. But I just go back from a date with my lovely wife (went to see Expelled and thought it to be outstanding!). So I missed my nightly nap and am going to bed!

And Merry...Bravo! And big honkin' congrats!!!

Mike

[Merry]

Expelled rocked! I loved that interview with Richard Dawkins where Stein made him look like monkey! Lol!

[michaelsnyder]

Question: I think I remember reading that you had read 36 (?) books in 18 months on the craft of writing. Which ones were the most helpful for you?

Answer: I think it was actually 32, but it was still a lot. During that 18-month period, I would say the two books that really helped the most were Sol Stein’s books—Stein On Writing and How To Grow A Novel. (And of course, I read Bird By Bird by Anne Lamott a couple of times and listened to it about six times.) I think Stein does a really nice job dealing with both the art and the mechanics of writing. I’m sure others were good too, but my goal at the time was to keep filling my head with good information without having to memorize or obsess or become a slave to any rules or opinions.

Some of my all-time faves are these:
-Raymond Obstfeld – Novelist’s Essential Guide To Crafting Scenes
-Stephen Koch - The Modern Library Writer's Workshop: A Guide to the Craft of Fiction
-Stephen Kings’s On Writing
-Both John Gardner books
-Self-Editing For the Fiction Writer
-Orson Scott Card’s Character and Viewpoint
-Jack Bickham’s Scene And Structure
-Both Donald Maass books

[michaelsnyder]

Question: Did you have an agent already when you finished MNiRF? If not, how many, if any, rejections did you get before you found one?

Answer: No…and yes…and sort of…? I had an agent when the idea came to me. But I parted ways with my first agent sometime after I realized I was going to write the Fink novel (for lots of reasons, not just the novel). I was able to convince Steve Laube to represent me with the first three chapters of Fink and a rather unorthodox pitch over dinner at the ACFW conference in Nashville.

All told, I think I was rejected by two other agents while working on Fink. So that means the book that was eventually published was rejected by two agents and about 10 publishers. That doesn't even count the 15 or so I was able to accumulate on my first (still unpublished) novel.

[michaelsnyder]

Question: How close is the finished product to the original vision you had when you submitted the manuscript?

Answer: Man, these are the times I wish my memory worked better. I think (hope) I’m getting this right. But I’m pretty sure the majority of the book remained intact through the various editing stages. Other than fixing some bad writing and nixing a few unnecessary characters, the big ‘change’ in the story was what my editor and I referred to as the ‘mystery thread.’ I’m better with characters than plot. So we really worked hard on that part of the story.

I really didn't set out to write a 'whodunit'. And my editor is the one that suggested the quasi-Agatha Christie ending. But the only way I could agree to do that was to run it through the goofball filter in my brain. I wanted to satisfy the reader without tying up every little detail or having things get too zany. Hopefully it worked.

I will say this…the manuscript I originally submitted was about 120,000 words. It ended up around 95,000. And believe it or not, I NEVER went back to see what all he cut. Good thing I trust my editor, eh?

[VLSmith]

So you haven't read the finished product?

[michaelsnyder]

Well, I had to read the finished product WAY more times than I ever wanted to!

The parts I didn't go back and read were the 26,000 or so words that were cut. I have the file on my computer...all done up in Track Changes and everything. But I just never took the time to go back and see what all my editor cut.

I turned in my second novel a few weeks ago, knowing full well that my editor will need to lop off about 30,000 words. I haven't decided if I'll go back and read through all the cuts or not. I guess it depends on whether I have the time and/or how it reads when he sends it back to me. It's a strange feeling to have that much cut. But I can honestly say the first book was much better off as a result.

As to your question though...I did indeed read the book in published form one time. I had to speak to a book club and (seriously!) my memory is so bad I wanted to brush up on the subject matter before trying to field questions about my own characters! Pathetic, I know...

[Katharine]

As to your question though...I did indeed read the book in published form one time. I had to speak to a book club and (seriously!) my memory is so bad I wanted to brush up on the subject matter before trying to field questions about my own characters! Pathetic, I know...


Oh, Mike, you have my undying affection! (For as long as I remember this conversation, that is.) I'm working on a fiction manuscript, and I can easily picture myself ignoring whatever chunks get cut -- and forgetting important details of what remains! So many scenes, so much mental processing, and too few brain cells.

I started reading this thread because I started reading your book because I saw your posts here on CW and was curious. I shouldn't ask questions or make comments until I finish reading, but I'd have to say I'm intrigued by your writing style. You're able to maintain a feeling of disconnectedness better than anyone I've ever read. Did this style "get in the way" for any of the folks who rejected your proposal? Did you have to cloak your presentation somehow so they didn't think you might be Russell's long-lost twin brother?

[michaelsnyder]

Katharine, great questions!

First off, thank you for reading my book. That's a very big deal to me.

As to your questions...some days I DO feel like Russell's twin. But most days we're okay!

If my memory serves (and it usually doesn't), only one of the many rejections on this manuscript came with an explanation. An editor I consider a friend sent a detailed list of reasons why the story wasn't working for him. And it was all about underdeveloped parts of the story, not the voice, that bugged him. Everyone else simply said, "No thanks."

Regarding Russell's voice...I think (although I'm not sure) that's what sold the manuscript. Like Seinfeld characters, Russell actually gives voice (at least in his head) to all his neurotic thoughts. Most of us in real life keep that stuff under wraps. In short, he says what a lot of us think. And oftentimes, he pays a price for it.

The editors/agents at writer's conferences talk a lot about 'fresh voices,' although no one (including me) can seem to pin this down. It's one of those "I'll know it when I see it" kind of things. By no means am I saying I actually accomplished this, but I do think that 'disconnected' feeling you mentioned is representative of a lot of America's youth right now. My editor calls it 'ennui' (I had to look it up...but it's a good word). I say all that to say, what's fresh to one person will probably sound tired and trite or cutesy to the next. And I say that to remind myself not to try too hard...to simply right the story rattling around in my brain with the 'freshest' voice I can find, to simply tell the truth as that character sees it...if that makes any sense?

Either way, thank you again for reading the book and for your very kind (and humbling) words!

Mike

[VLSmith]

Do you have any idea how many books you've sold so far? How often do you get updates on that? Or do you have a circuit of book stores you pop into every week where you count the number of copies left on the shelf? Barnes and Noble - oooh, sold twenty this week; Family Christian, up from last week to thirty, doing good, doing good...

[michaelsnyder]

Valerie...that's funny, I get that question a lot. And no, I don't really know. The thing is, I'm not sure I want to know either. Because no matter what the number is, I'll probably want it to be higher, but then there's really not much I can do (besides the things I'm already doing) to move the meter.

That said, we'll get quarterly reports/royalty statements. But of course the first one will be weird cuz it would have started mid-cycle.

But I DO INDEED stop in a lot of bookstores just to see if they have my book or see if they have LESS of my books! But again, there's no good answer to that either. B&N had about 20 copies at one time, which made me happy. But then then had about that many the next three times I stopped in, which did not make me happy. But the last time I went in, they had zero copes, which made me both happy (they sold them!) and sad (what? no books?!?).

The best thing to do (I'm preaching to me here...) is to just knock it off and sit down and write something good. But obsessing is just part of the deal, I guess...

[righter1]

I'm bumping this for those that want to chime in, but also sort of as a reminder for me. I wrote down a couple of questions for you, Michael, yesterday, but they're in my car. I'll have to get them out later and post them. They're not so much on the book per se, but on your own methods of developing the book.

[michaelsnyder]

Cool...looking forward to it, Righter1.

Mike

[righter1]

Cool...looking forward to it, Righter1.

Mike

Aww, shucks, you can call me Liberty... ;)



How'd you come up with your characters?
How did you do character deveolpment?
Did you follow any particular method or methods in character development?
What books or instructors did you find helpful before, during and after writing?

[michaelsnyder]

Liberty,

Man, I’m glad you asked. Seriously. I’m about to start another novel and am asking myself the exact same questions!!! So this should (or at least could) prove valuable for me.

Hope it’s okay, but I’m going to try and tackle all four questions as one. At the risk of sounding like a copout (and I promise it’s not), the books/instructors that help are quite literally everything I read, everyone I talk to (including my own family!), and every stranger I eavesdrop on. Structure and organization are not my strengths. But treating the creative regions of my brain like a compost heap (or a junk drawer?) seems to be my MO. I read as much as I can, write as much as I can, scribble notes all over the place—basically just keep tossing things in the mix. Then when it comes time to ‘meet’ a character, hopefully there’s enough fodder in the pile and they sort of emerge and introduce themselves.

What DOESN’T work for me is when I conjure up some odd quirk or personality trait and try to apply it to a character. And that’s a bummer, cuz I think I come up with some fairly interesting quirks! (Or at least it doesn’t work for main characters. I suppose I did a little of that with bit characters. But they still need to be well-rounded and properly motivated as well.)

So here’s how (I think) I develop characters:
-In the earliest brainstorming days, I’ll just start anywhere and begin writing. Just whatever comes to mind. Obviously, no great prose results. But the point is to find someone I can spend the next 12 months with
-At some point I stumble onto the ‘thing’ that makes the character who he/she really is. Oftentimes, this is some sort of trauma or misunderstanding or just anything that triggers some hint of doubt or fear or neurosis or something. In Russell’s case…I had his voice and the fact that he was vocationally challenged. But the character really took shape when I dug into his backstory and found that he felt totally responsible for ‘killing’ his sister. And it doesn’t really matter that he didn’t do it—the reader knows better, as do Russell’s family and even Russell himself. But, it affects him enough to affect pretty much every area of his life. (The thing with the dog was sort of invented…but it still had to be organic to the story.)
-With Geri, all I knew about her was that she was pregnant and no-nonsense and made her own clothes.
-Dan was easy. He was brilliant (we think) and always cold (we’re pretty sure) and liked to invent things (for sure!).
-The last (and hardest) step is to follow them around, watch them bump into each other with their differing scripts and motivations, then write it all down.

In my upcoming novel, the ‘trauma’ for my main character stems from the fact that he’s a heart transplant survivor and he’s pretty sure he’ll only live till he’s thirty or so. So he came up with a list of things to do before he dies…but all he can manage is to just scrape by and play a lot of Solitaire. I gave him a rather serious and bizarre wakeup call, then watched him try to worm his way out of it.

So I think what’s happening here is similar to Stephen King’s idea of excavating a story. The same is true for characters. Although it’s possible to do the paperdoll approach, starting with a familiar form, then applying different clothes to see what fits, I don’t think that will develop into memorable characters. I really do believe we as writers have access to this entire population of characters. The problem is they’re not all stepping forward and saying Hi (at least mine aren’t!). The really great and memorable characters need to be coaxed and lulled and tricked and scolded into existence.

The biggest problem with my current WIP is that I came up with the character’s occupation first. And although it’s interesting, it only hints at who he really is and what really makes him tick. So before I can start composing the story, I’ll have to keep coming back the compost heap (or junk drawer).

Sorry to be so long-winded. And I hope that answers the questions…at least sort of???

Mike

[Katharine]

Although it’s possible to do the paperdoll approach, starting with a familiar form, then applying different clothes to see what fits, I don’t think that will develop into memorable characters. I really do believe we as writers have access to this entire population of characters. The problem is they’re not all stepping forward and saying Hi (at least mine aren’t!). The really great and memorable characters need to be coaxed and lulled and tricked and scolded into existence.

And just how many forums are there, whether virtual or physical, where you could come right out and say this aloud? You've got to admit, it sounds totally crazy to be coaxing and tricking and scolding these people who have no existence outside of your own head! Good thing you're a writer, so you can give them some kind of form that allows others to share your delusions.

I don't have any particular questions, but wanted to tell you that I finished reading MNiRF last night and have talked about it a little with my dogs. Blackie and I had at least three crying sessions. She liked the character development, and would like to spend time with a couple of your characters. Rufus, who's significantly less literate but infinitely more athletic, couldn't get past Russell's vision of Sonny not chasing a ball in heaven.

I was continually impressed by the voice of your writing. It put me off at first... okay, for almost half the book, all I could think about was how detached it felt. But then, somewhere in the middle, I realized I had begun to care for Russell. Huh. How'd you pull that off? I guess it was Russell who drew me into his world, as he lost a little of his control and started feeling things himself.

Thanks for sharing so openly here, for responding to so many questions, and for sharing your success with us! Oh, and I definitely relate to everything you said about developing characters and watching them interact, but I believe Blackie when she tells me I'm okay despite all this.

[michaelsnyder]

Katharine...no I must thank YOU for reading my book and saying nice stuff about it here. And at the risk of offending Blackie (a perfectly good name)...I must say Rufus is like the coolest name ever. I've tried it out on many characters before and one of these days it's going to stick!

And both Blackie and Rufus should be happy to note that there were several more Sonny scenes that ended up getting cut. I loved writing them, and if I may be so bold, think they turned out pretty well. But alas, my editor knows best...

And the image of you crying along with one of your beloved doggies is simply the best (although I'm pretty sure it's fictional too!). I sincerely hope--for your sake and your readers'--that you write about your dogs in your stories. That whole paragraph about you talking about MNiRF with your doggies is just delightful--great us of casual voice, mixing in irony and a bit of surrealism, yet believable and fun. Can't ask for much more than that in a paragraph!

Thanks again for chiming in here and allowing me to spout off about all this stuff.

[VLSmith]

I love seeing all the questions and answers pop up here because they trigger even more in my head.

1. You have another book coming out in a few months. First, will you tell us again the name of that one? (My apologies, I forgot it, but I need to put it on my wish list.)

2. Isn't it also written in the first person? Why or why not? I thought I read a glimpse of it at the end of MNiRF, but maybe it was my imagination. (I borrowed MNiRF from the library and I can't recall for sure. My brain is fading these days.)

3. I've heard people in the business talk about an author finding his or her "voice." Do you feel that you have found yours? If so, how would you describe it? How did you find it and how did you recognize it once you found it?

4. Do you have an overall theme or mission or purpose that you feel guides your writing?

Okay, I guess that's enough for now. :D

[michaelsnyder]

Valerie, thanks for the additional questions...I'll try to be more brief this time!

1. The title of the new book (now due in March of 2009) is Return Policy.

2. And yep, it's also written in first-person...times three! The story alternates between three different first-person POV's. I didn't realize when I started that madness that I was writing three intersecting novellas instead of one novel! As to the 'why' part of it...it's just what the story called for. I actually switched back-and-forth between first and third a few times AFTER I was like 80 pages in!!! That was painful, to say the least.

I will say that I love the intimacy of first-person stories. It's hard to NOT know the character when you 'become' that character (or those characters) for such a prolonged time.

3. Wow, your 'voice' question is brilliant! I think 'voice' is THE most critical element in any story. But your question distinguishes between the author's voice and the voice of the character's...not necessarily the same thing. I may end up rethinking this answer, but here goes anyhow...

I think the voice of the author could be distilled down to a couple of factors--confidence and experience. (Or perhaps, it's simply one's confidence in their experience.) My wife and a few trusted readers say they can tell my writing is me, no matter what the story is about or the voice of the character. I suppose that's a good thing (hope so anyway!). That would definitely be my voice shining through.

But I know for me, that until I tap into the character's voice, I don't really have a story. I'm just brainstorming (or treading water!) until that voice emerges. I think Russell Fink has a strong voice...stronger than mine, in fact. Whereas the characters in my new novel all have distinct voices, they're not as strong as Russell's.

I'm not sure I can describe 'voice' completely. But I definitely remember the light going on...or going on in stages (like one of those three-way bulbs...getting a little brighter with each click!). It was when I made a conscious decision to ONLY write exactly what I wanted to write, without any consideration of markets or what anyone else thought. And it's funny, cuz I really don't think I was overly guilty of those things before. But it was during the writing of Russell Fink, that my 'voice' took a large step in the right direction. Of course, as I'm staring at the mostly blank pages of my new novel, I feel like I need to find it again!


4. As far as what I want to accomplish with my writing, it's pretty simple. I want to tell the best stories I can. I want to move people. I don't have any real lessons or themes I'm intentionally trying to get a across, although I'm sure my worldview (as well as my insecurities, interests, fears, prejudices, artistic tastse, etc.) all leak into the stories as well. I really don't like the term 'Christian fiction' all that much. But I am a believer and I trust the Holy Spirit to redeem whatever I put on the page. My job, as I see it, is to always tell the truth in my fiction. (In other words, I refuse to accept the pressure or responsibility of doing anything other than telling the stories rattling around in my heart and in my head. I liken it to witnessing to someone...if they accept Christ as a result of talking with me, was it me? The words I chose to use? Or rather, was it in spite of me? My job was the telling of the gospel, not the result. And that said, I don't feel particularly called to 'tell the gospel', as it were. I believe all stories are God's stories. So I pray about it, sit down and write it, and mostly just try to stay out of the way!!!)

Okay, sorry...I went long again, didn't I?

Thanks for asking/listening!

Mike

[Merry]

Lol! Man, I was just reading over this thread and it's great! Heck, we have Mike Snyder not only grilled but deep fried, broiled, and now I'm just waiting on the flambe'. Good questions and great answers, folks!

Carry on!

[michaelsnyder]

Flambe is such a great word...

I'm just glad no one's tried to skewer me...yet!

[VLSmith]

Thanks for the reply, Mike, and for being such a good sport!