With Unveiled Faces

And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit. ~ II Cor. 3:18

I started to write this post yesterday and intended to call it “Through a Glass Darkly” or even “Dark Glass Ponderings.” You see, these words have been rolling through my head for over a month now. I’ve been ruminating on their definitions and their impact on my life. What does it mean to see through a glass darkly? To look into a dim glass and ponder? What do we detect? Over time do we begin to distinguish shadows and shapes? Do our eyes attune to something very real on the other side?

Perhaps this all started when I picked up a book called Mystically Wired by Ken Wilson. Don’t worry, I’m not about to go all New Age on you. Simply substitute the word “spiritual” for “mystical” and relax. Wilson’s basic premise is this: we are all spiritually wired, but we are also spiritually challenged. Our minds have actually been created by God to fellowship with him and to discern the spiritual kingdom in and around us. Scientists have proven that prayer stimulates a unique area of the brain and that spiritual interest is at least in part based on genetics. As the Bible describes, we have spiritual senses, spiritual eyes and spiritual ears, perhaps even more. However, we are also mystically challenged, meaning we do not typically know how to use them.

Our normal five senses for detecting the physical world are so much stronger and clearer than our spiritual senses that we tend to dismiss them. I like to say that God is always speaking if only we’ll be quiet enough to listen. Our physical senses tend to crowd out our spiritual senses. They clamor for our attention. In order to regularly and efficiently commune with God, we must go to that still quiet place and learn to engage our spiritual senses. We must attune that inner ear and that inner eye. Take time to stare into that glass until the shapes and patterns become familiar enough that they begin to make sense. Until we trust ourselves to detect and understand them.

Wilson takes this analogy even farther by talking about something called “blindsight.” This occurs when a person’s eyes work, but the processing center for sight in the brain is somehow inhibited. Although individuals experiencing this condition cannot “see” in the traditional sense, they show a remarkable ability to dodge unfamiliar obstacles. While their brain is not giving them the visual messages in a logical manner, they are in fact able to see on some sort of intuitive level, and can even learn to better use and trust their “blindsight.”

Faith is like “blindsight.” Although we can’t quite grasp it with our minds, some part of us “knows,” and we must learn to trust in that knowledge and harness it to change our lives. Prayer can feel like “blindsight.” We can’t prove that God is speaking to us and giving us visions, and yet we “know” that he is, and that awareness of God will transform us into his image.

I had planned to leave the post there. Looking into darkness. Then this morning, I was having devotional time with my sons and came across II Corinthians 3:18. It seems that when we were dead to sin our spiritual eyes were completely veiled, but that as we are transformed into the image of Christ we begin to see his glory more and more clearly. Perhaps that glass begins to shine and glow as we stare into it and are changed by it. Perhaps our spiritual eyes can be unveiled as we are transformed into the image of Christ. Perhaps things don’t have to stay so dark on this side of eternity.

Something new for you and me to ruminate about over the next few months.

I encourage you to pray about this scripture and ask God to reveal a new depth of meaning to you. Which word stands out? What might God want to show you about this word? So many good ones to choose from “unveiled,” “contemplate,” “transformed,” “ever-increasing,” “image,” “glory” just to name a few. Consider journaling about one of these words. Trust your inner senses and allow God to speak to you. And if you don’t mind, share with us as well.

Top Five Reasons to Admire a Viking

Hi, friends. Here is a funny little post I think you will enjoy from my friend and fellow author, Michelle Griep. Be sure to read about her awesome newly released Viking novel at the bottom :)

Top 5 Reasons to Admire a Viking

1. Sweet Texting Skills

The Viking alphabet, the Futhark, is a series of straight lines. Super easy to carve into a stick, a skull, what-have-you. Much of their communication has been unearthed by archeologists, down to shopping lists, threats, and love notes.

2. Viking Men Put Metrosexuals to Shame

Contrary to popular belief, Vikings were a meticulously clean and well-dressed people group. Unlike the English, they didn’t hold any ridiculous superstitions about bathing opening the door to demon possession. Once a week they soaked in their bubble bath and daily combed out their hair. Clothing was bright and fashionable, often incorporating imported silks and furs.

3. Debt Free Living

These people paid their debts and paid them fast—or were kicked out of the country. Everything had a monetary value, even a life. If you killed someone, you had to reimburse the deceased’s family (called wergild).

4. CEO Determination

They knew what they wanted and went after it. Gold and silver, mostly, though land was high on their list as well. And if a Viking showed up on your doorstep, you’d probably better cooperate. They employed ruthless practices such as the ‘blood eagle’ (I won’t go into detail to spare the squeamish at heart, but let’s just say this activity involved surgical skill, bone cracking, and organ removal).

5. Packers Suck

Enough said.

Now that your appetite is whetted for big, beefy Vikings, there’s a book you really shouldn’t pass up. Take a trip back in time and experience these wild and winsome people in UNDERCURRENT…

People go missing every day. Many meet with foul play, some leave the social grid by choice, but others are never accounted for. Such is the fate of successful linguistics professor Cassie Larson. She leads a life her undergrad students hope to attain, until she tumbles into the North Sea and is sucked into a swirling vortex…and a different century.

Alarik, son of a Viking chieftain, is blamed for a murder he didn’t commit—or did he? He can’t remember. On the run, saving a half-drowned foreign woman wasn’t in his plans.

Ragnar is a converted pagan shunned by many but determined to prove his Cousin Alarik’s innocence. He didn’t count on falling in love with Cassie or the deadly presence of evil that threatens his village in Alarik’s absence.

UNDERCURRENT…dare to be swept away. Available now at Amazon or Risen Books

From the Editors Desk

In the past few months something new and exciting has happened in my career. I’ve become an acquisitions editor for WhiteFire Publishing, the small press that recently contracted my medieval novel. If you don’t know what an acquisitions editor does, in layman’s terms, I help pick the books we publish.

On one hand, I was surprised to realize that after spending so many years figuring out how to write books, I actually knew exactly what I was looking for. How to spot the duds, the not-ready-yets, the don’t-fit-our-lines, and even the true gems. I realized I can detect plot holes, pacing issues, point of view problems, and even restructuring needs. On the other hand, I’ve learned so much about life on the editor’s side of the desk in just a few short weeks. Walk a mile in someone else’s shoes and all that.

I’m not quite sure I’ve gone a whole mile yet ;) But I’ve certainly discovered enough to fill a blog post. So I’m going to tell you what it’s like to be an editor. What they’re looking for. What makes them happy. What makes them sad. What makes them gag. And I think most of this information applies to agents as well.

1)      Editors are cheering for you. They want to find good books. Every time they open a file their fingers are crossed, and they hope against hope that this will be “the one.” Even if the query letter is not perfect, they think maybe you just didn’t spend enough time on it. They peruse your proposal hoping to find something to get excited about. And even if it’s not perfect, if there’s some potential in the proposal, they peek at the writing sample dreaming that it will wow them. Unfortunately, it rarely does. So after the mediocre query, the so so proposal, and the lackluster first page or two, they give up, hoping the next one will be better.

2)      Editors are looking for something special. As you may have noticed in point number one, editors are looking for some aspect of your book that will wow them. A great voice. An exciting premise. A cool plot twist. An unusual character. An amazing bio. Something—anything—that will stand out from the crowd. You probably have five minutes to catch an editors initial interest. If you do catch it, you might have 20-30 minutes to convince them they should read the full manuscript. If they request the entire book, they are definitely on your side hoping it will work. At this point you’ve proved your book is at the least a diamond in the rough. If it seems easy enough to polish, they will likely recommend it for publication.

3)      Editors are looking for something that will fit. While editors want something special and unique to stand out about your book and catch their interest, they also want something that will connect to their company’s goals and their existing titles. For example, WhiteFire’s current books are historical, romantic, spiritual, artistic, adventurous, edgy, and exotic. So we’re looking to branch out with books that overlap our existing line in certain areas and that will appeal to our customers in some way.

4)      Editors are looking for people to say yes to. Often editors say no to good books because they can only say yes a limited number of times. They might like your book, but like another book even more. Or they might need a different book to fill a certain slot in their line. I know that next year WhiteFire will be looking to expand in certain directions. So we will be especially looking out for those books. The following year our needs might change.

5)      Editors are looking for books they like. Editors are people. Readers. Booklovers, not so different from you. If they don’t like a book, they’re not going to get excited about it. They’re not going to want to work with it for a year or more. They’re not going to try to convince a committee to purchase it. So in addition to learning about the company, learn what the specific editors enjoy and chose.

6)      Editors will not dig out the gem in your book. Sometimes an editor will look at a proposal and say, “Hmm, there might be something here.” But if your writing doesn’t quickly and clearly demonstrate that you know your business and have the skill to properly execute your idea, then forget it. While an editor might be willing to chisel off a few rough edges, polish up your gem, and put it in a pretty setting, they are not in the business of starting with a lump of coal and trying to find diamonds. You have to prove to them that you’ve done the work and the gem does indeed exist.

7)      Editors get annoyed. When people waste an editors (and especially agents for this one) time with proposals that aren’t professional, books that don’t fit their guidelines, amateur writing, sloppy manuscripts, etc…guess what—editors get annoyed. Don’t annoy them.

8)      Editors are nice to people they know and like. Now please don’t take this the wrong way. I’m not talking about nepotism here. No editor is going to publish your book just because they know you and like you. But the simple fact of life is that people go out of their way for people they like. So an editor will give more time to a proposal from a writer that they like. They’ll search a little harder for that gem. If they think it might be there somewhere, they’re more likely to offer advice and ask for a revised version. Or to ask you to write something different that will fit their current needs.

I think there’s a common thread to all these points. Editors are real live people. So go to conferences. Meet them. Find out what they’re looking for, what their interests are. Do they have any pets? Treat them with respect, but get to know them as real people. If you don’t connect, that’s okay, find one you do connect with. The acquisitions process isn’t as cryptic as you might think.

Editors buy quality books they enjoy and can sell from people they want to work with.

Pretty simple.

Do you have any questions about the editing or acquisitions process? Have you had any positive or negative experiences we might learn from? If you had the opportunity to be an acquisitions editor, what would you look for in a book?