Still my Favorite Book

 by Sharon Dunn

One of the things we as writers do is ask "What if?" questions. The inspiration behind the very first book I had published over twenty years ago was a What if question. Before my first book was published, I was reading a lot of Christian fiction trying to get a feel for what was out there and I noticed a pattern. Most of the characters were pretty close to perfect, didn't have much of a faith crises and weren't prone to give into temptation. Also, the characters usually had a great relationship with their perfect parents who always gave wise advice. 

It is true that we look for ourselves in the characters were find in books. We want to relate to the people we read about and feel a connection. I couldn't relate to the characters in the books I was reading. I became a Christian when I was eighteen, had not been raised in a Christian home and my father was an alcoholic. 

So I started playing the what if game and going to extremes. What if your parents were far from upstanding citizens? What if in fact your mother had done jail time before becoming a Christian? What if the main character became a Christian later in life and had had a sordid history with men? 

You see, when I read those books with perfect characters they sent a message that I think is a lie: that only good people who have not made any true mistakes from good families can be Christians. 

Thus the first book in the Ruby Taylor mystery series was born. Romance Rustlers and Thunderbird Thieves is the story of Ruby and her mother getting to know each other again after the turmoil of the past in addition to being a mystery. I used a great deal of humor in the series to get the message across that God can rescue anyone from anyplace at anytime. 

I think Christian fiction has come a long way in the last twenty years and now when I read novels in that genre, I find much more nuanced characters. 

How about you? Do you have a favorite books series or character you relate to? Leave a comment with your email address for a chance to win a copy of Romance Rustlers and Thunderbird Thieves.