I have slowly been rolling out my answers to questions I received in an interview I did on Twitter back in November for #MounceChat / #HealthyFaith. This post is a continuation of that rollout.
A little over half way through the interview, a participant named Rachael Colby asked me, “Who is your audience? What age? Are they written for the Christian market, secular or both?” Here is how I responded:
I’d say “The Four Corners” series is written for kids older than eight. My wife is a teacher and she helped me put together a literary unit for schools which is a free download on the publisher’s website. We wrote a group Bible Study for families for that one, as well, which is also a free download. And, for the record, I know that a lot of adults have enjoyed the book, too.
Similarly, “The Gift of the Elements” series is written for teenagers and above but, I’ve had adults tell me that “The Gift of Tyler” is their favorite book. Hopefully, they feel the same way about “The Gift of Rio” and the others that haven’t come out yet.
The next series I’m planning (which is several books away) will be mostly for adults but,
I do like writing for a younger audience. Also, my hope (carried over from the earlier questions about faith and defining Christian novels) is that my books can be enjoyed by both Christian and secular audiences but, my faith is so much of who I am that I have reached a point in my life and my walk that I refuse to hide it and I’m sure some people will be turned off by that while others will identify with and appreciate it.
At this point in the interview, a participant called @mim526 joined in and asked, “I noticed in the description of The Gift of Rio that it’s chronologically book 1. For someone new to your books, do you recommend reading it first or after the Gift of Tyler?” Here is how I responded to their follow up:
The first four “The Gift of the Elements” books are stand-alone stories that are all connected but can be read in any order. “The Gift of Tyler” was the first book but the events in it technically happen fourth. You’re good either way.
I hope those questions and answers clear things up for people. More (from both the Twitter interview and elsewhere) to come!