So, this is a Thing: @AlphaOmegaCon20

[agilebrit]

And, you know, the idea sounds pretty cool. As a Christian, I like to think that I'm not the only one of us toiling away in the trenches here.

That being said.

I am unsure of my welcome at a thing like this, because while I'm a fairly fundy fundamentalist in my doctrine, barely anything I actually write qualifies as "family friendly." Yes, I write fantasy and science fiction, with a smattering of horror, so "realism" goes out the door just on the premise--but the characters populating those stories still have to be people that readers can relate to. These characters rarely share my beliefs, and they drink, swear, and kill people on a depressingly regular basis, because that's how real people act in the sort of situations I'm interested in writing about.

My fiction is not a platform for my religion, and I don't want to be pigeonholed like that anyway. Besides, I write short fiction. Where are the Christian markets for that? And do they pay anything? Because yes, getting paid is important. I don't sub to "for the love" markets and I'm not going to start just because they're Christian.

So, I'll probably be forever at the fringes of this thing, no matter which side I'm looking from. "Gritty Christian" might be a thing, and I've now penned four stories starring recognizably Biblical angels and demons (sort of, I guess), but the subject matter of two of those stories is frankly disturbing and I'm pretty sure that my sainted mother-in-law (who is a lovely lady I love dearly) would be appalled by them.

But, hey, the Bible isn't exactly filled with sweetness and light either. And maybe I'm wrong and I'd be welcomed with open arms. I'll definitely keep an eye on them and see who populates the guest list. Maybe I'll even go, if finances permit and it doesn't conflict with the local ComicCon...

Comments

[roseaponi.livejournal.com]

Let me know, because I have the same questions! It's kind of on the wrong coast for me, but I'd rather go to that one than MonsterCon SC, and well... You take what you can get sometimes :)
I do wonder why they didn't plop it down here in the Bible Belt...

[agilebrit.livejournal.com]

I'm betting they didn't put it in the Bible belt because the organizers don't live there.

And, maybe I'm not as alone as I think I am and there's a bunch of people doing the exact same thing I'm doing and keeping their heads down for the exact same reasons I do--because otherwise condemnation will rain down from both sides and ain't no one got time for that.

Wouldn't that be ironic.

[roseaponi.livejournal.com]

Oh, yeah, forgot - Secret Cabal of Unicorn Fundamentalists :)

We just need our own con, that's all :)

[werewolf-hacker.livejournal.com]

We really do, or at least a secret handshake or something so we can get together at the regular cons.

I mean, on the one hand, I like the idea of a Christian Convention in principle. But I can't help but think we're kind of ghetto-izing ourselves instead of being salt and light in the regular spaces, you know? And I'm not sure I want to do that.

[roseaponi.livejournal.com]

Nailed it, right there. It's a disturbing idea, that we who follow Christ - who was known for associating with prostitutes and lepers and tax collectors - are known for putting up walls around our precious ideals and traditions and blasting people who don't fit in.

There needs to be more fiction by Christians, for people who don't like "Christian fiction." Who may or may not be Christians.

[werewolf-hacker.livejournal.com]

That's part of the reason I enjoy writing this angel fiction so much. Because, okay, yes, they are overtly and obviously Biblical angels--but I've been able to put a spin on them that I think would appeal to people who don't like it when someone whacks them on the head with a Bible and hollers "repent, thou sinner!" at them (which, let's face it, no one likes that). Because even though they're all "Hey, you shouldn't do that bad thing," they've also got their own hopes and fears and self-doubts. They're still people.

Which probably means I'm Doing It Wrong, for certain values of that, but it's not like we have a lot to go by in the Canon, so.

[texanfan.livejournal.com]

The Bible is certainly not filled with sweetness and light and the gritty isn't restricted to the Old Testament either. There's stuff in there that is in no way "family friendly." I think you fit in just fine, and if you don't, I wonder just how much of the Book the people looking askance at you have read.

[werewolf-hacker.livejournal.com]

Oh, I haven't been looked at askance.

Yet.

But it is a fact that my sensibilities are far more jaded different than the sensibilities of many of my co-religionists. (Funnily enough, my characters are more likely to drop an f-bomb than use "Jesus Christ" as an epithet. Go figure.) I think I am likely to be looked at askance, at least by some of the more, hn, strict adherents? Maybe? I don't even know anymore.

That being said, I do not write child-friendly fiction. I have stories that I have not read to my own child. And maybe that's something I should work on, but my fiction has had darker impulses since I was in high school and I'm a very old dog who doesn't particularly wish to learn a new trick, you know?

[texanfan.livejournal.com]

All perfectly understandable. I hate people using Jesus Christ as an epithet. I've asked my non-Christian friends to please refrain from doing so. It's not like we do that with any other religious figure, why do people feel free to do it with ours?

Sorry. Button there.

I hope all turns out well and you have a great time and all your reservations prove groundless.

[werewolf-hacker.livejournal.com]

It's one of mine too; no apologies necessary.

Having looked at where this actually is (Los Angeles), I really have my doubts that I'll go unless they get someone super-spiffy (such as Frank Peretti) as a GoH. I'm really wondering if these good folks have ever done something like this before and are aware of all the planning that goes into any kind of SF convention. Even for a one-day deal, it's extensive.

So, sadly, I probably won't go. I can't see flying all the way out to LA for a one day event--although we could make a vacation out of it. I hear the LA Zoo is pretty awesome, among other things.

[baron-waste.livejournal.com]

Yah, but a friend of mine linked me to this:

http://larrycorreia.wordpress.com/2014/01/28/ending-binary-gender-in-fiction-or-how-to-murder-your-writing-career/

The short version is, “You gotta message, use Western Union.” You'd be among people who think the “Left Behind” series is top-notch, just splendid, not because it's particularly well-written - that's irrelevant! - but because it Spreads the Word to the benighted and helps them towards becoming… just like us.

Which is, of course, all there should be. … Right?

This means that the moment you display Trotskyite deviationism, for example admitting that your characters drink and use profanity without incurring divine retribution for their sinning ways as is good and right, well, the conversation will be over, and there won't be any others. “Thanks for stopping by, have a nice trip home.”

[werewolf-hacker.livejournal.com]

I am pleased to count Larry a friend, and I'm there in the comments agreeing with him.

The problem with "Christian Fiction" is that it's preaching to a very small segment of the choir. No one who doesn't agree with the message of the Left Behind series is going to pick it up unless it's to point and laugh--because the writing in them is actually pretty terrible. Which is a problem in a lot of Christian fiction, sadly. The filters in that genre seem to be "message first," and the prose and actual story come a distant second.

I can't write like that; I refuse to write like that. In fact, most of the time I have no idea what I'm trying to say in a story until I've actually said it--even in the stories that star overtly Biblical angels and demons. Heck, in Hell's Process Server, the guy has more trouble with his inner demons than with the President of Hell who is standing right there in front of him, or with Lucifer himself, and isn't that interesting. At least, I think it is.

I would like to think that there are more people like me out there. In fact, I'm sure there are; the Secret Cabal of Unicorn Fundies needs a handshake or something, I think. I'm just... not sure I'll find them at a convention like that.

[roseaponi.livejournal.com]

We probably would go nose around if we lived right by a convention like that - but not bother to fly across the country for it :)

[(Anonymous)]

Hey Julie (and everyone who commented) for voicing your concerns. I am helping out on the social media side of Alpha Omega Con, and I just came across this post and thread. I've forwarded this post to the planners of the con, and feel free to direct any questions/concerns about the con (e.g., attendance, what types of content are allowed, etc.) to alphaomegacon20@gmail.com.

Best,

Justin Martin
R-Squared Comicz
http://www.rsquaredcomicz.com/get-comicz/free/store/