The Writer Will Take Your Questions Now (#41) -- Drawing the Moral Line

Is it moral for a writer to /choose/ to write just any kind of story? -- James Wynn

I would say no, James. And that's a great question.

For example, because I don't believe (based on my Christian worldview) that life is essentially meaningless and purely about survival, I couldn't and wouldn't write a traditional nihilistic slasher film. Would I write one about redemption and self-sacrifice and the search for meaning in death? Absolutely.

But I see those as theme issues, which is where I draw the line. Morality issues are a grayer area because my characters must have different morals than me and each other in order to fully realize them as "people" in the illusion of the story. If they are all moral people who use the same guideline, then the story has no "truth" to it. It's just a setting for preaching to a choir (pick your choir, religious or political or socio-cultural, propaganda is propaganda).

===============================================================

Post Facebook discussion addendum (warning -- theological content, proceed at your own risk):

I couldn't agree more that that morality is objective. I belive that we in the Christian community have confused morality and (what we call) holiness for way too long. Morality is culturally based, whereas the biblical principal of holiness is an objective one (in our belief). And we tend to care less about that objective one (with its dictates to feed the poor, take care of the widow and orphan, have no other gods before me, extend grace, love others like God loves them, be one in spirit etc.). 

That's one of the core reasons we Christians get into such a cultural/philosophical argument with the world, because we criss-cross our terms so much and try to argue an objective concept using words that reflect connotatively to the average listener a sliding scale.

I know its a semantics question for some, but in a world of deconstructionism, it's an important one, I think. To the rest of the world, morality IS relative, and that undercuts any argument of what's intrinsically right in any given situation. Therefore we must use words that speak to the issue.

For my part, I can only respond to the question by exposing what I mean when I say morality, i.e., is it moral for ME to write just any kind of story?

Emphatically no. 

When the theme of such a story opposes my values as I understand them, no.

When the content in such a story may however require understanding and grace from the reader to understand and not immediately judge my moral standing before Christ because of said content's presence in the story, that's a different matter.

Which brings me back to the morality/holiness semantics issue. I'll trample morality underfoot in my writing all day because it is inconsistent depending on the time period in which is standardized. Preachers can use "suck" or "crap" in the pulpit today in some places without a shocked face in the pew (or nice comfy chairs). Forty years ago, they would have lost their jobs. Why? Because the morals around what is profanity change. Besides, biblically, everything I've found about language involves speaking truth and not using oaths. And while we are biblically instructed not to engage willy nilly in sex, writing about sex is clearly not a sin or else it wouldn't be in scripture. Not even writing designed to titilate (i.e., Song of Songs, which would have hit readers in its context a lot stronger than it hits us today).

As long as I can write what I write while my soul remains clean before God (to couch it in Christian terms), I feel that is between me and God. As Mike Yaconelli once said, (paraphrased because I can't remember in which book I found it):

I stopped worrying about my behavior when I realized that it wasn't offending the least of these out of the kingdom and causing them to question the truth of faith (which is the meaning of that verse). It was only causing those within the kingdom to question whether or not I had it, and I could live with that.

If writing something causes me to stop loving God with all my heart, soul, and mind or loving my neighbor as myself, then I will not write it because to do so would be wrong based on God's standards of holiness. To practice some of the things I write about would be wrong based on that standard. To write about others practicing them, not so much.

That's the long-winded answer. How's that?

The Writer Will Take Your Questions Now (#34) -- Christian Comics

What advice would you give to other Christians who are considering making comics?

-- Justin Martin  (from an upcoming interview with R-Squared Comicz)

I get this question a lot, actually, and I used to get it even more when I used to work for one of the major worldwide Christian denominations at one of its missionary agencies.

My response today is the same as it has always been.

If you are a Christian who is considering making comics, then be a Christian making comics. Don't make Christian comics. The world doesn't need more Christian comics. But it does needs more Christians making comics.

It's the same thing I'll say to musicians, artists, and actors. The world doesn't need another Christian band, or Christian paintings, or Christian movies. It needs more Christians being salt and light in the real world who are musicians, painters, and actors.

Just like it doesn't need Christian plumbing or Christian network installations or Christian stationary sets.

For all authentic believers in my chosen faith, it's impossible to hide what you really are through any art your create. (Ask Billy Tucci, for example. His new book "A Child Is Born" is a global big deal, thanks in no small part to his amazing Shi work) Trust that your nature will come through your work. Don't force it in order to fit into a certain market.

So I say: address topics about faith and forgiveness and grace as a writer and tell redemptive stories, but don't hide your stories and art in a Christian bushel (to flip the phrase over) in a subculture where only other believers will see it. Be Christian in all that means (not just the political involvements) in the world. Feed the poor. Help the helpless. Forgive others. Extend grace. Live an exemplary life. Be like Jesus. But for heaven's sake, please don't create any more so-called Christian stuff. We've already got stockpiles of it, both good and the lackluster and the blatant attempts as cashing in on Christians' dollars, filling up our subcultural landfills.

To put it in a more "spiritual" way, don't ever assume your art is your ministy. YOU are your ministry. What you say, what you do, how you live, how you treat people. You art is your art. It is not a means to a religious propaganda end. It's an outgrowth of who you are as the child of a Father who is also a Creator.

A caveat, if I may... If you are creating a comic book format to make a more effective teaching tool (i.e,. as in -- don't get me started on -- Chick Publications) , go for it, but don't call it art. You're creating a tool for a particular purpose. Art is more expansive than that. Art opens itself up to interpretation and takes a chance.

The Writer Will Take Your Questions Now (#8) -- Dark Stories

I know you're a Christian, so do you ever feel any trepidation working on stories 

with dark gods, cults, magic and other satanic or darker elements? As Maude 

would say, do you think "God will get you for that!"? -- Jen Contino

Not really. As a person of faith, I tend to err more to the side of not compartmentalizing my life into artificial boxes of sacred and profane, or the spiritual vs. the secular. Because of that, I can look at just about anything as a faith story in some way or another. I don't see Blackthorn, Rick Ruby, Lance Star, zombie tales, Gene Simmons Dominatrix or Fishnet Angel as any different. I'm just trying to tell a fun yarn and not write a sermon. Certain elements of my worldview will slip in because I can't stop being who I am, but I'm certainly not of the camp that tries to turn everything into a tool of religious propaganda either. I figure if the Bible is a liberal enough book to contain stories of violence, revenge, supernatural battles, rape, child killing, incest and romantic erotic stories, then I figure any of the topics must not be off limits to me as a writer either.

I'm still old school enough to believe that good conquers evil, but I'm also postmodern enough to believe that sometimes good and evil are really, really difficult to measure and quantify and it's often hard to tell one from the other. Besides, if good has to get dragged through the supernatural muck for a while before it eventually wins, that just makes the victory all the sweeter, right?

Seriously though, you're not going to find me writing things that go against my worldview. For example, I couldn't really write a typical slasher film and feel honest as a writer because I believe there's more to life than mere survival. But I have no qualms at all writing a violent horror or slinky action story that shows a genuine conflict between good and evil, or a story that honors the sacrifice of brave people who either succeed or fail in destroying a great evil. I'm not afraid of writing darkness. Bring it on.

My Favorite Films with a Redemptive Theme

If you know me at all, you know I'm an easy sucker for a redemptive story. Not necessarily a religious one, but one that has the inner changing of a lead character from darkness to light in some way, usually at the sacrifice of another. (Okay, maybe a little religious, but without all the trappings.)

Don't be surprised not to find these recommended by churches or anything, necessarily, but at their core, films all have messages that "preach" better than most sermons.

And yes, if you're a moral majority type, be warned that a lot of these are rated R and include things like "bad words" and some nudity.

In no particular order...

1. The Spitfire Grill
2. The Apostle
3. Saved
4. The Shawshank Redemption
5. Chocolat
6. The Sky Is Watching
7. Black Snake Moan
8. Shadowlands
9. Cool Hand Luke
10. The Green Mile
11. Meet John Doe
12. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
13. The Poseidon Adventure
14. Luther
15. Spirited Away
16. The Return of the Jedi
17. Blade Runner
18. The Matrix Revolutions
19. Unbreakable
20. Pulp Fiction
21. Kal Ho Naa Ho
22. 16 Blocks
23. The Dark Knight
24. Superman
25. The Reaping
26. The Exorcist
27. Star Wars: A New Hope
28. Ghost in the Shell
29. Stephen King's Desperation
30. Stephen King's The Stand
31. Ikiru