Gospel Thoughts...

Continuing our spotlight on Michael Duncan, author of SHADOWS: BOOK OF ALETH PART ONE here is a guest post that gets down to the real truth about things...

THE TOW TRUCK

by Michael Duncan

I would like to try and equate the gospel to a simple illustration of a man who was stuck in a ditch on the side of the road.  For all his effort and skill, nothing he did could extricate him from the ditch.  He tried vainly to put his car in reverse, then forward, and then reverse again.  To his dismay, his efforts not only made his car filthy with the mud and grime of the ditch, but further entrenched his vehicle.  

During his great frustration, along came a man who, like the first, had been stuck in the ditch.  He spoke to the first man about a tow truck which was able to pull his vehicle clear of the hazard and put him back on the road.  The second man told how he had been in a similar circumstance and how much he appreciated the tow truck for its rescue.  The first man nodded and had to note in his mind that the second man was free to drive the road, but he doubted the story of the tow truck.  

The second man departed only to be followed by another and another, all sharing a similar story of being rescued by a tow truck.  He couldn’t deny that all the people spoke so highly of the tow truck and that they each insisted that the tow truck could help the first man from his plight.  He finally asked a solitary traveler how he could find the tow truck and be set free from the ditch.  He was told that when the time was right, the tow truck would find him.

Time passed and the man, in despair, cast his face to the earth and wept, longing to be free from the ditch.  When he did, he heard the rumble of a powerful engine roaring up the road.  Turning his eyes back to the road, he saw what appeared to be the largest tow truck he had ever seen.  His hope grew and he delighted to see the tow truck arriving to remove his vehicle from the ditch.  

Then, as it grew larger in his sight, he wondered how much the tow truck would charge him to free his vehicle.  He wondered if he could afford it or if it would be better to just keep trying to leave the ditch on his own.  As he looked at it he wondered if such a tow truck would even notice his small, insignificant vehicle stuck in the ditch.  Surely such a tow truck would never even notice a worthless vehicle as his.  

The tow truck stopped where the man was stuck and the driver came out to evaluate the situation.  The tow truck driver asked if the man wanted to be set free.  The man asked how much it would cost.  When the tow truck driver said it was free, the cost had already been paid; the man could hardly believe it.  He doubted the driver and told him so.  The tow truck driver informed the man that there was no other means of escaping the ditch, that he alone had the truck and equipment that could release his vehicle.  The man asked the driver how he could be sure and the tow truck driver told him that he had to trust and believe. 

Despite his doubts, the man received the tow truck’s cable and attached it to his vehicle.  Amazingly, the truck wrenched the vehicle from the ditch without any difficulty.  The tow truck driver helped the man clean off the mud and grime and asked the man if he would simply tell others when he sees them stuck in a ditch.  

With gratitude and joy the man drove off in his vehicle and, a few miles down the road, spotted a vehicle in the ditch….

“…because our gospel came to you not simply with words, but also with power, with the Holy Spirit, and with deep conviction.” 

– 1 Thessalonians 1:5

©2011

Michael Duncan

The Trouble with Relationships

   A continuing warm welcome to to my guest, E.A. West, who is going to talk to us today about something everyone can relate to...

As we all know relationships take work. Some take more work than others, but if the other half of the relationship is worth it, you’ll do whatever it takes to nurture that relationship. The same is true of relationships in fiction. The very foundation of romance novels is the development of the relationship between the hero and heroine. They can face all kinds of dilemmas and pressure, both internal and external, but in the end their love for each other conquers every challenge.

In The Key to Charlotte, Zakaria faces a unique challenge with being attracted to Charlotte -- she's autistic. While this really isn't as big a deal as you might think, it can create some interesting 

relationship situations. After all, one of the key components of autism is social deficits. This can mean a lack of social graces, an inability to participate in small talk without going insane, missing the subtle nuances of social gatherings, speaking out of turn, or even a complete lack of comprehension of what a relationship entails. This is by no means a comprehensive list, but I think you get the idea of what kind of challenges Zakaria could face by considering a relationship with Charlotte. To find out exactly what kind of social deficits Charlotte has, you’ll have to read the book.

Relationships are complex, evolving things that run a spectrum from flowing fairly smoothly from the start to seeming like nothing will ever go right. When it comes to romance novels, you’ll see both ends of the spectrum and everything in between. I like to write stories that fall somewhere in the middle, with enough smooth moments to give the reader hope all will turn out great for the hero and heroine and enough rough spots to make readers wonder if there will be a happy ending.

The development of relationships may drive you crazy or leave you feeling all warm and fuzzy inside. If the relationship is in a romance novel, the development probably involves a combination of the two. Non-writers may not realize it, but fictional people can be just as exasperating as real people. The biggest difference (aside from the fact that one is a figment of the imagination and the other isn’t) is that if authors get too frustrated with their characters, they can rewrite them with different personalities or make them conform to the author’s will in some other way. That doesn’t work with real people, which is just as well. If everyone did what you wanted all the time and you could make them act however you wanted whenever you wanted, life would be so boring.

So, enjoy your relationships with others, appreciate their differences, and realize that your hard work now is worth it in the end. Even if the relationship doesn’t work out, at least you’ll know you gave it your best shot, and that’s always a good feeling.

To celebrate the release of The Key to Charlotte, I’m giving a copy to two lucky commenters on this blog tour. The rules are simple. Between October 28 and November 6, leave a comment on any of my blog tour stops (including this post) with your name and email address letting me know you want to be entered into the drawing. You can find a complete list of the blog tour stops on my blog http://thewestcorner.wordpress.com. I will draw two names at random from all of the entries and announce the winners on November 7 (winners will also be contacted by email). The two winners will each receive a free PDF of The Key to Charlotte. 

Good luck to you all!