Can You Write for God and Still Write for the Market?

I don't know about you, but I've pondered this question before. I've wondered if my novel, a story and characters close to my heart is suitable for what's selling now. Or if choosing to write a story based solely on whether or not it's sellable is still glorifying God.

In my over 15 years of writing experience, I've learned a lot. (By the way, feel free to leave a comment on how YOUNG I look for having written this many years :D) Every story I've written has helped to find an answer to this question.

Can you write for God and still write for the market? Here are some angles I've had to consider along the way:

Not All Stories are Meant to Sell

I wrote a story several years back that was...special. It was close to my heart because of trials I was going through in my personal life. It was therapeutic for me to write it. Anyway, I took the next steps of going about getting it published. Queries and all. I also pitched it at conference. To an editor. Eek! She paged through the first scene, said it was off to a great start, gave me some pointers, and chatted with me. Then she said something like, "This story is really close to your heart, isn't it?" She could see it on my face, hear it in the way I spoke about this project. It was a passion.

But you know what? She didn't request the story. And I pitched it to other agents. They didn't request the story. And I queried it with no bites. NO ONE wanted this story. Maybe because it wasn't ready, maybe because of the content, I don't know. And that's okay. I don't really believe this story, as it was, was meant to sell. It was a story God used to help me get through a tough time and because of that, it was completely worth writing.

Sometimes You Have to Go With Your Heart (no matter WHAT happens)

Ready for another story? Okay, so when I FIRST started writing Christian fiction (super quick after I became a Christian), I got a story idea. It was a God thing for sure. He gave me this idea and it made me completely uncomfortable. I can't write a story like this! It was about a woman coming back to Christ after several terrible tragedies in her life. How in the world would I even know about that when I'd just become a Christian myself and had no experience? Besides, no one would want to read a story like this anyway.

So I decided not to write the story.

I went along, wrote another story I wanted to write. And another story. Something that made me comfortable. But God wouldn't leave me alone. I gave in and finally wrote the story He'd given me. It made me cry, and moved me. I had great feedback on it.

Sure, it wasn't my niche, but I HAD to write it. I believe it could make a great impact in others lives it ever sells. And I'm fine leaving that up to God, because I (finally) wrote the story I was meant to.

Don't Forget to Consider the Market

You want another story? Okay, twist my arm. After all these other stories I'd written, I wanted to write something fun. Something fresh. Something that current readers would love! Which meant trying to write for the market. That was my main goal with the last story I wrote.

I did get a spiritual thread in there, though that wasn't my first focus. The cool thing is that the story ended up ministering to me. And if it ministered to me, it might minister to others. I wrote it specifically for the market and I must have done something right because it finaled in the Genesis. However, I really feel like God was in it as well, and that a message came through.

What have I learned from all this? God is in everything. He may give you stories just for yourself, a kind of therapy. He may give you stories you never thought you'd want to write. But His hand is in it all.

I believe in writing stories that are on your heart. They're important for a reason, even if we may not know that reason right away.

I believe in following market trends. These are the people you're trying to reach.

Can the two go hand-in-hand? In my opinion yes. Not ALL stories are meant to be published. But the rest? When feeling led to write, you can still follow genre guidelines and tweak the plot to fit with the current market. You can still deliver a message and you can, through your voice, still show your passion and heart for the story while appealing to current readers.

How do you feel? Have you ever written a God-inspired story you weren't sure would fit into the current market? Do you believe you can write what's on you heart and write for the market at the same time?

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Cindy is a Colorado native, living near the mountains with her husband and three beautiful daughters. She writes contemporary Christian romance, seeking to enrich lives with her stories of faith, love, and a touch of humor.

To learn more about Cindy, visit her at her personal blog, www.cindyrwilson.com

Hello Characters, Please Be Charming

Have you ever looked at your main characters and thought, "If only I could make you more interesting"? I know I have, especially when I'm writing the first draft and still trying to figure out all the quirks of my main characters.

Pepper wrote an amazing post last week on a similar topic after attending Susan May Warren's course at the Blue Ridge Mountains Writers Conference. I loved her idea of interviewing your characters to get to know their deepest thoughts. What a great method to use to discover the lie your characters believe about themselves and how you can use that lie to shape the plot.

So let's say you've taken Pepper and Susie's advice, and you've peeled back those layers your main characters have. What is the next step? How do you convey those deeper levels in the story itself?

This is something I've struggled with in my own writing. My voice tends to be more humorous and lighthearted, so at times I have to really make a conscious effort to step back and add in those deeper elements to really hook the reader's emotions. So, I thought I'd make a list of strategies we can all take to really pull out those layers and convey them in our writing.

1) External structure should mirror your internal character arc. A great DVD set I recently ordered on this topic is The Hero's 2 Journeys by Chris Vogler and Michael Hauge. Try to make sure all your turning points allow us to see a change in your character's internal arc. Really use those turning points to ramp up the characters' emotion as well as the reader's empathy. On the same token, strategically choose turning points that will allow you to do this well. If your character is afraid of heights, put her engagement ring on the top of the Empire State Building. If she wants to be on Dancing with the Stars... well, you get the idea.

2) Be sure your characters' reactions are appropriate. Give your characters something to react to. Think of it this way: would you find a ten foot hole in the middle of the street? Probably not, unless the Creature from the Black Lagoon showed up. You might, however, find a small pothole. Your narrative is the same way. You can give readers little glimpses of that lie your characters believe, but be sure you give them a major moment in the plot before letting them fall into a giant emotional hole.

3) Use secondary characters (in addition to plot points) to generate emotion. Secondary characters are great because they give us a lot more leeway in what we can get away with, both with their personalities and subplots. They can make terrible choices or be hilarious, and these characteristics give us a lot to go off when adding dynamics to our main characters' story lines. So when it comes to secondary characters, be creative in how you develop their interactions with the leading ones. And also be creative in how you allow your main characters to react. Think of the friend who's in a bad relationship, the one who's too obsessed with her job, the one who's flying to Africa to chase a guy.

4) Above all use, follow your heart. Allen Arnold, previous VP of Thomas Nelson and now with Ransomed Heart, always emphasizes this point, and I love the blog he wrote on this topic recently. Though he, of course, uses much less frilly language than "following your heart" because, let's face it, that's kind of a southern belle thing to say. The point is, God has written certain ideas and themes on your heart and into your story. You might not even realize that yet, but they are there-- I promise-- just waiting to get out. These inspirational messages are unique to you, to your calling, and it's very important that you trust God to let that out. Your story matters. Your. Story. Matters. So let your characters show that truth.

On that same note, sometimes it's really easy to hide the deeper layers of our story because we are afraid of rejection. Rejection stings, doesn't it? And after a while, it can be really easy to hide behind all the critiques we've gotten over time. (Side note: surround yourself with people who encourage rather than discourage you when they challenge your writing.) But if we aren't willing to be vulnerable first to our characters and then to our audience, what kind of story do we really have? So be brave and believe in your calling. Some people might not like it or get it. That's okay. It's not their calling. And the only life you're accountable for living, the only story you're responsible for telling, is your own.

I want to hear from you! What are your thoughts? How do you deepen the characters in your writing? Do you have any questions or advice to share?

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Ashley Clark writes romantic comedy with southern grace. She's dreamed of being a writer ever since the thumbprint-cookie-days of library story hour. Ashley has an M.A. in English and enjoys teaching literature courses at her local university. She's an active member of ACFW and runs their newcomer's loop. When she's not writing, Ashley's usually busy rescuing stray animals and finding charming new towns. You can find Ashley on her personal blog, Facebook, and Twitter. She is represented by Karen Solem.