Quite a while ago, I picked up a copy of unChristian, pulled in by its strange shrink-wrapped packaging .  I promised to read the book and report back on whether or not the marketing-induced purchase paid off.  (While the book is laced with anecdotes from interviews and reflections from Christian thinkers, the statistics-heavy portions were what I found fascinating.)  On Wednesday, I’ll be posting some of my own reflections on the research.

Today, we’re pleased to bring readers this interview with author David Kinnaman, who completed the three year study of how Christians are perceived in American culture and then co-authored UnChristian: What a new generation really thinks about Christianity . . . and why it matters. 

The Research Study:

Relief: The first line of the book is, “Christianity has an image problem.”  What led you to this conclusion? 

David Kinnaman:  It started when my friend, Gabe Lyons, asked me to conduct this research to help confirm a gut-level suspicion that people’s emotional and perceptual barriers to Christ were higher than ever.  And that’s exactly what our research ended up bearing out:  we have an image problem, but part of the reason for that is because we fail to understand or empathize with the skepticism and disillusionment that people have with us as Christians.  It’s nothing new that Christianity has an image problem.  Jesus himself promised that we would be misunderstood for our faith.  But it is worse than ever; it is harder to be a Christian these days—at least it is here in our American context.  We’ve been so busy trying to be a Christian nation, we’ve forgotten what it means to follow Christ. 

Relief: For our readers who may be unfamiliar with the book, can you give a quick overview of the goals and methods of the research study?

DK:  Well, the original goal of the research wasn’t supposed to be a book.  But the information started to “work” on us, changing us and altering the way we saw our faith.  It was as if the research was a mirror, helping us see ourselves as an outsider would.  So we decided to put it into a book form.  The method of the research was a scientific sample of young people ages 16 to 29.  Most of the people we interviewed were non-Christians, but we also talked with young Christians as well.  It didn’t start out as a book, but it ended up being a roadmap to understanding how to reach and catalyze the next generation, how to engage a skeptical culture.

Relief: The premise of the book is that many Christians participate in an “unChristian faith” that is at odds with what Christ really expects from his followers.  How do you think Christian culture sometimes creates a barrier between outsiders and Christ?

DK:  All of us are “unChristian” more often than we realize.  We fail to represent Christ effectively.  Of course, we make mistakes like any one else, but we are often pretentious and phony.  In my view, the best picture of unChristian faith is the older brother in the story of the Prodigal Son.  Instead of being like the loving father, those of us in the church end up engaging the world as did the older brother.  We get resentful, conceited, pietistic, and removed from the world as it is.  We’d rather look the part than help people who are affected by sin.  Self-righteousness—all talk and no action—is killing us as Christians in this country.

Relief: The book focuses on six key areas in which Christians fall short of a Christ-like persona.  The research shows that Christians are perceived as hypocritical, conversion-centric, anti-homosexual, sheltered, too political, and judgmental.  Were any of these findings surprising to you and Gabe?  Did any of them strike a chord with you?

DK:  I found myself resonating with all of the negative perceptions, because I began to realize that I have fueled all of those negative stereotypes.  In a very real way, I am a recovering Pharisee.  It’s a strange phrase, but I mean everything that idea entails.  It’s important for each of us to admit that frequently and honestly.  We’re judgmental . . . and Jesus is always there to forgive those we’re judging and forgive us for being judgmental.

One surprise was the intensity of the anti-homosexual perception.  Christians are seen to elevate that sin above other sins and to be contemptuous toward gays and lesbians.  Certainly this is a complex subject, and the Bible is clear that homosexuality is not consistent with Christian discipleship.  Yet, anytime we stray toward treating homosexuals in the “older brother” mindset—feisty, arrogant, non-relational, and condescending—it contributes little or nothing to restoring people to God’s purposes.

Some Content Questions:

Relief: You stated that your research found that “part of the problem” was the use of derogatory labels used to refer to those who aren’t Christian, like “pagans” or “the lost,” which seem insulting, or even “non-Christians” or “nonbelievers,” which defined people by what they were not.  So you settled on “outsiders” to define people outside the church—atheists, agnostics, and those affiliated with a faith other than born-again Christianity.  Has there been any negative response to the use of the term outsiders?

DK:  A little, but not much.  I think people appreciate how gracious we are in using the term.  Really, the only point is that we wanted to say this is what Christianity looks like from an outsider’s viewpoint.  There is no good term, and I hate putting people into boxes.  But it worked.  Ironically, it’s a term that is not just Christian “insider” language.  You also see the term used in journalism, business, and arts and entertainment. 

Relief: Early in the book, you state that Christians have “become famous for what we oppose rather than who we are for.”  How do you hope the book will help Christians in changing these perceptions?

DK: One of the great challenges of living in a media culture is that we are exposed to lots of information.  And lots of problems.  Sometimes I think it’s a natural response that Christians are so quick to define everything they are against.  But the Christian view of things is that we are salt and light, culture preservers and cultivators.  Our hope is that people stop thinking of Christianity as a fortress and more as a mustard seed.  You can’t solve all the world’s problems; and you were not meant to.  But each of us has the ability to do something tangible and specific that rescues and restores the broken parts of creation.  We plant mustard seeds.

Relief: One truth presented in the book is that many younger Christians are hesitant to admit to being Christian when meeting new people, not because they fear being unpopular, but because they fear being ineffective.  “They feel that raising the Christian flag would actually undermine their ability to connect to people and to maintain credibility with them.”  I’ve often experienced this in my life.  It’s sometimes months before a new friend or colleague admits to me that I’m not “like other Christians,” a statement that is always meant as a compliment.  How should young Christians deal with what you refer to as a negative “branding” of Christianity?

DK: The first thing is not to try too hard.  There are a lot of young Christians (and even some older ones) who are trying too hard to be “cool,” “hip,” or “relevant.”  These are not inherently bad things, but people recognize posers.  A lack of transparency and lack of authenticity rob us of deep relationships with people.  The second is to be truly great at what you do and radical in the way you do it.  Excellence coupled with integrity wrapped in a humble person is pretty irresistible.  And, by the way, I am trying to be like you!  I want to be one of the “exception” Christians—the kind of person that people notice is different from the other Christians.  I think that’s a great compliment.

Hit the Read More link to unwrap more!  

Relief welcomes Jill Noel Kandel as our guest editor for creative nonfiction. Jill is reading and editing for issue 2.3 (summer 2008). Our submissions period for issue 2.3 will remain open until April 1, and we still have slots to fill in all three genres. We are reading for fiction and poetry as well as creative nonfiction.

After her short essay, “Dill,” was published in Relief issue 1.3, Jill went on to have work accepted in journals like Image, Brevity, and Apalachee Review. Jill writes for a local women’s magazine in Moorhead, Minnesota, and she also teaches creative writing to homeschooled high school students.

Relief: Jill, welcome! We “met” you last year when we published “Dill” in our third issue. The piece was quite short—under 1,000 words—and it had so much punch. I see you have creative nonfiction forthcoming in Brevity, which is impressive. Do you always write very short material like this? Is the short-short work what you’ll be looking for in creative nonfiction submissions?

Jill: I started out writing all over the board, lacking in control. I attended a writer’s workshop and sat under the teaching of Robin Hemley, Director of the Nonfiction Writing Program at the University of Iowa. Robin introduced me to flash nonfiction. It has many names: Brief, flash, short, postcard. Basically it is writing a complete nonfiction story in under 1,000 words.

Writing short allowed me to learn how to focus. I had to understand this in order to move on to longer essay writing. I’d love to see more short and more experimental writing coming in to Relief for the summer issue. I also really enjoy traditional narrative, especially when it has multiple narrative lines running through it.

Relief: Please tell us a little more about “experimental” writing, and especially how nonfiction writing can be experimental.

Jill: Writing can be experimental in form or voice among other things. Often experimental writing uses different structures. In nonfiction the structure can be fragmented with small snippet stories broken up by reflection. It can be braided, with two or three story lines—or history, or research—running simultaneously throughout. Writing or reading experimental work is a little like watching someone who knows what he’s doing play with a Rubik’s cube. At first the movements seem random, but in the end the colors all come together, the essay pulls into one piece. I was thrilled to see Chris Fisher’s “Scars” in Relief. It is a good example of a piece of experimental creative nonfiction writing.

Relief: We’ve gotten more positive comments from readers on “Scars” than on any other creative nonfiction we’ve published over the past year and a half since we started Relief! What is it about Chris’s work that is so appealing?

Jill: He doesn’t give it all away. I love “Scars” because as a reader it keeps me thinking. Where is he going? What does this mean? He weaves stories of his own intrigue with scars, his family history, and his chickens. While I’m reading it my mind is bouncing back and forth between these incongruous ruptures. But he is able to hold the story threads tightly as he slowly ties them all together. That is the beauty of it. In the end you are left not with the fragmented sections but with the whole story. All the puzzle pieces fit and it is very satisfying.

Relief: A number of our nonfiction submissions are more like articles or even sermons and not what we at Relief think of as creative nonfiction. How can writers be sure their work is appropriate for Relief before they submit?

Jill: Christian writing has many avenues. Doctrinal, devotional, and magazine article writing seem to be prominent. I would say that Relief wants to publish fiction, nonfiction, and poetry that is out of the Christian mainstream. If a piece is something I could read in Guideposts or Christianity Today for example than it probably isn’t right for Relief. I think that what I am looking for is of a more literary quality.

Relief  is trying to do something different. I love the definition given by the Relief staff:

Relief- An architectural term referring to a raised projection of figures on a flat surface. It is an image of a reality caught halfway between 2D and 3D.

This is precisely the type of writing that I will be looking for. Writing that reflects the reality and honesty of the world we live in tempered by the hope given to us as believers. Leave the cotton candy at the fairgrounds.

Relief: Please make a couple of comments on your own nonfiction writing and particularly the pieces you have forthcoming for publication in literary journals. How does your freelance work for the local Moorhead magazine Area Woman differ from the work you’re publishing in literary journals?

Jill: I do basically two types of writing. My work at Area Woman is journalistic. I’m given the name of a person and a story line. I do an interview and write up a story. There are strict deadlines and word counts. I get paid.

The essays I have coming out in journals are literary. Each word must carry the right sound, rhythm, and tone. I spend months working on each essay, looking for depth and meaning. Essay is more than a narrative arc. It is a journey. I write about things I don’t understand. In journalism it is often easy to see where a story is going. This is death to an essay. A good essay is a journey with the reader following the writer’s own path.

Relief: Is all of your own literary work experimental?

Jill: No, not at all! The piece I wrote that Image will be publishing has a very traditional narrative arc and is chronological. I love the essay because it can take so many forms. I’ve written everything from a five hundred-word, second person, fragmented essay to a five thousand-word narrative essay written in the traditional first person style. I get jazzed about the funky stuff. But I also don’t want to be confused as a reader.

Relief: What is it that makes a piece of writing absolutely Christian?

Jill: As a writer I am still trying to learn how to write faith. As Christians we walk by faith and not by sight. To write faith is not to write sight. What I mean is that as Christian writers we tend to want to write the end of the story, heaven, and angels wings. Throw in a little victory celebration. But as human beings living here on this earth we are often like Joseph sitting in Pharaoh’s prison. He didn’t know the ending of his own story. I try to write what I know today to be true.

Relief: What makes a good piece of creative nonfiction? And when I ask that, I’m really asking  what kind of work would really excite you and make you want to publish it in Relief?

Jill: I want to see stories that make me curious and are bigger than the narrative itself, whether experimental or traditional. I enjoy stories that pull me in with vivid language and then surprise me with added layers running through them. I like disparate images that are braided together.

Relief: What are things that make creative nonfiction fall short of the mark?

Jill: When a story is anecdotal, and that is all it is, it falls apart. When I’m left with, “Oh, that was cute,” then it’s not enough. A story must have more meaning than itself. If it’s only an interesting happening on a Monday morning on the way to school, then it’s not enough.

Relief: Are there sure ways a writer submitting to Relief can get your attention? Lose it?

Jill: I would love to see stories with Christian faith woven in, but I don’t want to see pages of Bible verse quotations. This is not a devotional journal. It’s a literary journal that I hope produces thoughtful writing and thoughtful reading.

I would like to read a piece and be able to see people living life, sifting through the confusions, reaching out and trusting that Jesus Christ is big enough, grand enough, God enough to hold it all  together, even when we can’t see it ourselves.

Creative nonfiction can err on the side of confessionalism. He who spills the most beans wins sort of mentality. I believe that good memoir sits on a teeter totter and requires an absolute balance between truth and respect. There are always going to be things that don’t need to be written. This is one of the difficult choices every nonfiction writer must make. I respect authors who respect themselves and those they write about.

To writers I say, take me on your journey. Let me see what you see and feel what you feel. Show me how it is in your world. Don’t write easy answers.

Relief: Thank you, Jill, for taking the time to twist the Rubik’s cube a bit and tell us what you’re looking for in creative nonfiction to publish in Relief.

To submit work to Relief in creative nonfiction, fiction, or poetry, click here.  

Relief editor Lisa Ohlen Harris and Coach’s Midnight Diner author Melody Graves met recently to discuss Melody’s upcoming reading at a Dallas area Barnes & Noble. This is the first time an author has taken on a major publicity effort highlighting one of our publications, and we are very excited about Melody’s enthusiasm and abilities—as a writer and now as a publicity guru! Lisa reports from Texas that Melody is a well-spoken, thoughtful writer … with a definite glint in her eye. Here’s the interview.

Relief: First off, Melody, welcome to the editorial team here at ccPublishing, NFP, where you’re the new layout editor for Coach’s Midnight Diner. How did you get yourself tangled up in Coach’s evil web in the first place?

Melody: Thanks Lisa. Glad to be a part of the “evil web.” It was one of those off-hand remarks I made to Coach in an email, saying that I was a graphic designer. Then, a few weeks later, he approached me about joining the editorial team because of my design skills. I’ve always wanted to learn more about the inner workings of small press publishing, so I thought it would be a great opportunity.

Relief: I read your short story, “The Looking Glass,” from the Diner on Christmas morning. I bought a copy of volume 1 for my husband, so I had to wait until he unwrapped it before I could dive in! Your story felt like something I might read in a college literature course along with “The Telltale Heart.” Very freakish and Gothic. Do you think that your particular genre is more appropriate for a bookstore reading than another genre might be?

Melody: Well, I don’t really think it’s the “genre” as much as the entertainment factor that makes a good selection for a book reading. I’ve attended several readings by well-known authors, and inevitably the most memorable ones are pieces that are very funny with a lot of dialogue, or jam-packed with a lot of emotion and soul. More internalized pieces don’t go over very well unless they have a certain dramatic quality about them. Ultimately, a reading is a performance, and you have to capture the audience’s attention with a piece that is entertaining—and usually, fairly short.

Relief: You’ve published a couple of short stories and you’ve done a reading and signing at Barnes & Noble and have another one scheduled at an independent bookseller in Austin, Texas, this spring. Wow, Melody! Either you are very gutsy or something is wrong with you! How did you come to schedule these events successfully?

Melody: Actually, “The Looking Glass” is my first and only story in print so far. But hopefully, those publication credits will start coming in soon! I have several stories under consideration at literary journals, and I’m at the point where I’m making it to the final editorial rounds at many of the journals. I’m at the stage where I have to be persistent, even though the rejections can be very discouraging.

I don’t really consider myself gutsy. I’m simply a survivor at heart. I’ve spent the greater part of a decade battling a debilitating case of severe fibromyalgia. My doctors told me I’d be confined to a wheelchair by now, but I’ve proven them wrong. I’ve made incredible progress with therapy, and now I’m getting into urban and road cycling, working a couple of different freelance jobs, and getting stronger every day. For me, being fearless and tenacious is essential. I have to choose to be fearless every single day. Self-doubt is the most crippling disease that afflicts most writers. At some point, you have to decide whether you you’re committed to doing this for a living. If you are, then you sharpen your skills and do whatever it takes until you’ve accomplished your goal.

Relief: Wait a second, Melody. Your doctors said you’d end up in a wheelchair … talk about a hook! Have you written any nonfiction about your experience with fibromyalgia?

Melody: I’m writing a book with the occupational therapist responsible for my great results, and we’re working to develop an online training course in conjunction with a live seminar tour in the next year or so. For more information, you can visit my website at www.melodygraves.com.

Relief: It’s great to know about your website. I personally think that even emerging writers should have an online presence. It sounds to me like you’ve presented yourself professionally for a long time now, in anticipation of one day having published work. Was the bookstore event something you planned ahead of time, or did this all happen unexpectedly?

Melody: I suppose I had a basic plan in my head for what I wanted to do, but the truth is, I simply prayed that God would open doors for me if He wanted to do something amazing with this book. I didn’t “plan” on paper to do a regional book signing tour, but after I got a really generous Christmas bonus from one of my other jobs, I decided to use that money to go promote the anthology and see what happens. I’ve been preparing for this moment for many years, reading books on publishing and marketing and accumulating all kinds of random work experience. I believe everything happens for a reason, and I feel like all the pieces are finally coming together. I’m not at the helm here. It’s more like I’m water-skiing behind the Boeing 747 of God’s sovereignty. I’m just hanging on for the ride!

Relief: The few times I’ve attended book signings I haven’t seen great galloping sales. But bookstores keep hosting these events. Is the purpose of a reading and signing to sell books or something else?

Melody: I think book signings are more for the community rather than actual book sales. People want to connect with the authors that inspire them. And for me, that’s really the goal of doing a reading and signing tour. To spread the word about my work, but also to show my appreciation for all the people who have believed in me and supported me emotionally over the years. It’s also a great opportunity to meet new friends and fans and stir up interest in the faith-based fiction concept we’re trying to promote.

I’m not going to judge whether the event was successful by the number of books we sell. It’s a personal milestone for me, and I just hope everyone who comes has a great time.

Relief: How much publicity did the bookseller do and how much fell to you?

Melody: Barnes and Noble does in-store signage, a front-of-store display of your book, and will hand out your promotional bookmarks to customers who buy the same type of book as yours. Other than that, everything else I’ve produced and distributed on my time and out of my own pocket.

Other bookstores seem to have varying degrees of publicity they will provide for an author, but if they spend time on promoting your book, they usually charge a fee for their services, which is only fair.

Relief: What kind of publicity materials did you produce? What were the steps involved?

Melody: I have a distinct advantage over the typical author because of my graphic design and printing skills. I created bookmarks with the time, date, place, and standard artwork (headshot and book cover photo), and postcard-size invitations with a snappy graphic on front and personal invitation on the back, with a brief description and marketing tagline for CMD’s mission. My goal with the postcards is to stir up interest in the concept of hard-hitting, faith-based fiction. I want people to understand why this is different from everything else they’ll have seen before in a bookstore.

I’ve also printed up a few 11x17 posters to try to get placed in strategic locations at university campuses, other highly trafficked public places, and some 8.5x11 flyers to hang on community bulletin boards at public libraries, coffee shops, anywhere I think readers might gather, along with free bookmarks to have available wherever people will let me.

Oh, and I’ve printed up a couple of souvenir mugs with the Coach’s Midnight Diner cover on it, to give away as “door prizes” as a value-added incentive for people to stay until the end of the reading. They also make good gifts for the bookstore manager or library director who hosts the event.

[Editor’s note: If you’re interested in having similar publicity materials printed for your own event, please contact Melody via her website www.melodygraves.com ]

Relief: I love the idea of a gift for the bookstore or library event coordinator. Here’s something I’m wondering about, Melody. How will your reading—from an anthology, where you are one author of many—differ from that of an author working with a book that’s exclusively her own title?

Melody: Obviously I only have one story in the anthology, so I’ll be reading that and a new literary piece from my current work-in-progress, a short story collection about the light and dark natures of transformative love. The story I’ve chosen is also dark and atmospheric, so I think the pieces will complement each other in tone and mood.

Relief: What would you say to your fellow authors from Coach’s Midnight Diner—or for that matter, writers in any anthology or literary journal—who might be interested in doing a reading? Are there some how-to steps you could list about how to plan and accomplish something like this?

Melody: There needs to be a big round of applause for Coach Culbertson in getting the book into the Baker & Taylor and Ingram distribution databases. This is a key factor in getting a signing. If the bookstore can’t order it to sell for themselves, it’s not really very beneficial to them to host a signing. After all, they are booksellers!

So if you don’t have good distribution for your book or journal, I’d say the chances are much less likely the bookstore will host your event. If you have a stash of books you can consign to them, they might be convinced to do it. But that means you have to keep your own inventory of books.

Beyond that, it’s pretty basic. Find out who the community events coordinator (Community Relations Manager at Barnes & Noble) is at the bookstore you’re targeting, and go in person to meet them. It may take a couple of visits until you hit the right time, but don’t be afraid to ask the staff what the manager’s schedule will be, because there is no substitute for face-to-face contact.

I can’t stress this enough. Go in person and look and act like a professional. Give them your pitch (a concise description of who you are and what you’re asking for), and then smile and wait for them to say yes! Don’t act apologetic for asking them to waste their time with you. You have to be the most passionate advocate of your project, or no one else will champion it. So just fill your heart, know your worth, step into that place of power, and ask. If they say no, you haven’t lost anything except a little bit of your time.

So, to recap: Do your homework. Find out who you need to talk to and go in person. Dress professionally. Be prepared with your pitch and your sell sheet. Follow up by phone or in person if you don’t get a firm date and commitment. These people are busy, and if you meet them in person, they usually won’t be near their desk, where the actual scheduling takes place. Have your business cards with you.

Relief: You just used the terms “pitch” and “sell sheet.” You told us earlier what a pitch is, but what is a sell sheet?

Melody: A sell sheet is a piece of paper with all the information a bookseller needs to know in a nutshell what your book is and how to order it. Coach prepared a sell sheet for Coach’s Midnight Diner, and authors can download it from my website . It includes pricing, ISBN number, distributor information, and of course an image of the anthology’s cover. A sell sheet might also include endorsements or a list of awards the book has received. Bookseller won’t stock your book if they don’t know how to order it.

Relief: What’s one piece of advice you’d like to give to your writing peers who are wondering whether or not to pursue a bookstore event like this—is it ever “too soon” in your career to begin marketing yourself?

Melody: I think every author has to take personal responsibility for marketing his or her work. The world of publishing is extremely competitive. Publishers and agents are looking for people who can prove that they have the ability to market and sell their own work. In order to be successful, you have to hone and practice those skills even if you’re not naturally inclined that way. So, no, I don’t think it’s ever too early to market yourself. Everything you do before you have a big novel to sell is valuable experience that will help you learn to balance the demands of writing new work and promoting your existing work at the same time.

Relief: What has the hardest part been in the planning of this event?

Melody: The biggest challenge was the short lead time. I had just under a month to plan the event. Most bookstore events are planned 2-4 months in advance. I actually got a slot from a previous author who canceled, and it was difficult to produce and distribute marketing materials during the Christmas and New Year holidays. So we’ll see how this one goes and learn from it for future dates. The easiest part for me was booking the signing. After that, I went into planning mode and realized I had a lot of work to do!

Relief: Melody, thank you for taking the time to talk with me. I’m very excited about seeing you again at Barnes & Noble on Friday, January 11th at 6:00 p.m. This is going to be great fun!

Friday, January 11th at 6:00 p.m.

Barnes & Noble Booksellers

3909 S. Cooper Street

Arlington, TX 76015

Please note: This is not a family event for young children. Melody’s short stories deal with mature subject matter.

To keep up with Melody, watch www.melodygraves.com