By Denise Turney

Adapting Christian books to real life is becoming increasingly popular. That’s a good thing. People who read Christian fiction books want to believe that the events in the novels could actually happen. Widespread media coverage of traumatic events and trends like hard divorces, child abuse, pastoral indiscretions, poverty and domestic violence have alerted readers of Christian books to more of what goes on in the world.

Empowering Christian Books with Realism

If an author writes a Christian book that depicts characters as flawless, that doesn’t take on any of the above and other challenges inherit in the world, readers are quick to notice. After awhile, readers might start to feel as if they are being cheated. Why? Readers want to easily connect with characters in Christian books; they want to be able to see themselves in scenes depicted throughout the stories. They don’t want to feel as if they are being forced to believe that the world is spotless, that the world has no struggle, disappointments or frustrations.

Another thing readers look for in Christian books is real language, the type of language that people spoke at the time stories are set in. For example, if a story is set in the 1920s, readers appreciate characters using slang and dialect that people actually used in the 1920s. They don’t want to have characters using terms from the 2000s.

To adapt Christian books to real life, inspirational authors could:

• Develop storylines that mimic real life stories trending in the news
• Interview area residents, asking them to reveal the top three things they would like to see change in their lives, then adapt their Christian fiction books to those top three things
• Write Christian books that align with scenes that consistency show up in their dreams
• Read non-fiction books, picking out the strongest character, research and historic traits in the books
• Think about their own life experiences, as well as experiences their relatives and friends have had, then have characters in the Christian books they write deal with similar events

Fortunately, it’s possible for authors to pen Christian fiction books without abandoning the moral fiber of their stories. Authors don’t have to line the pages of their books with profanity or explicit sex scenes. That’s not what it takes for a story to feel realistic. It’s also not what readers love. Readers love an entertaining and inspirational Christian book; they also love a book that mirrors their own life, a story that feels real. As authors start writing these types of books, the more they might attract the attention of Christian and non-Christian readers.

Thank you for reading my blog. To learn what happens to Raymond, Brenda and the other characters in Love Pour Over Me, hop over to Amazon.com, B&N.com, Ebookit.com, or any other online or offline bookseller and get your copy of Love Pour Over Me today. And again I say – Thank You! Consider Love.