Why I write this blog

I have a passion for Jesus. I am captivated by his love and must tell others about it.  I firmly believe that Jesus Christ appeared on the earth in order to destroy the works of evil fallen angels bent on destroying humanity. Through his suffering, death, and resurrection, he  not only disarmed this horrible enemy, he also became the way through which humanity's relationship with the Creator God is restored one person at a time in a tangible life-giving manner.

I also firmly believe that Christian speculative fiction is a way to engage readers with an entertaining story founded on writing excellence that suspends disbelief and introduces readers to new way at looking at the world. The world is infinitely more complex and troubling with dangerous hidden spiritual dimensions than we can perceive with our ordinary senses .  So Christian speculative fiction can not only tell the Gospel story, it can raise questions about the world that the readers are compelled to answer for themselves by seeking the living God.

I write this blog to serve as a subtle witness to the power of a loving God, revealed in his three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  As a writer of Christian speculative fiction, I want to share how God has shaped my writing, making my story telling subordinate to his desire to touch human lives with his love. I try to share incidents in my spiritual journey that have drawn me closer to the lover of my soul.

I love the fantasy and science fiction genres and I write in the sailpunk and steampunk sub-genres. While these are fairly dark realms, the central message that I must tell is that no matter how dark and perilous the adventure, there is One who rescues and restores.

I am not aware of any other Christian writer who is writing sailpunk and steampunk stories, though I can't believe I'm the only one.  So by way of encouragement, in this blog I am sharing the fruits of my research to draw others into writing similar stories.

I expend a good deal of time researching my novels' background material,  particularly the setting's history and geography, and technology, clothing, and manners of by the story's characters.  Not only do I research the historical issues, I also try to keep the fantastical elements: angels, demons, miracles, and divine appearances grounded in incidents recounted in the Bible and through reliable witnesses. Ultimately I hope sharing this preparatory work might be useful to other Christian writers who want to tell Christian sailpunk or steampunk stories.

Finally, I had a great time writing my current novel, Black Flag, Black Ship. Much of the information I'm sharing is featured in some way in this novel, though I am trying really hard not to introduce any spoilers.

So, please enjoy the blog and let me know if you have strong feelings about  a particular entry.