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Great Review Of My Book

January 20, 2012 in Books, Every Bush Is Burning with 2 Comments

A while back, Cindi Rose from the San Fransisco Christian Fiction Examiner posted this great review of Every Bush Is Burning, and I liked it so much I asked for her permission to re-post some of the review here. I really appreciate Cindi taking the time to review the book, and the more traffic and shares she gets the better for her, so if you like the review please click the link to the actual review and share it through Facebook, Twitter, or StumbleUpon.

Every Bush Is Burning by Brandon Clements is one of those books you start reading and think to yourself, “I really don’t like this guy,” (the main character) but you keep reading because you somehow understand exactly what he’s talking about.  And what Jack Bennett is talking about is his life; his work, his failing marriage, and his disgust with ‘Christianity.’

Jack is a thirty-something reporter who writes op-ed pieces.  He has the perfect life; house in the suburbs, beautiful and adoring wife, twin boys who are two years old… and a mistress.  But after he writes an article on how most of America’s Christians go to church on Sunday and look down their noses at the less-fortunate the rest of the week, his entire world changes.

He meets a homeless man named Yeshua, who tells him to confess his affair to his wife and do whatever it takes to win her back.  As Jack and Yeshua spend time together, Jack becomes more and more convinced that this man really is the Jesus of the Bible.

Jack shares the stories of his childhood; an absent father, a loving and hard-working mother, and the responisibility he feels about the sexual abuse his younger sister endured at the hands of an uncle.  The reader begins to believe that this is some supernatural relationship, just like Jack does. It’s not until the very end that the reader discovers why Jack is sharing his story with a complete stranger and realizes what the relationship between Yeshua and Jack truly is.

This is an enjoyable story, even though what the author is saying about the 21st-century American church is often painful to read.  But it’s painful in the way removing an infected sliver from a finger is painful.  It must be done if the infection is to be stopped so the finger can heal.  Although some may have trouble with a Jesus who drinks beer and listens to Nine-Inch Nails (this reader wasn’t particularly pleased with it), being able to move past these minor details is essential, especially in light of how the story concludes.  A look at the bigger picture is needed.

Each individual reader may recognize themselves in different passages of Every Bush Is Burning, but in order to make a real differnce in the lives of those we interact with every day, we need to do more than recognize our failings.  We must admit them and be willing to do the hard work that comes with being a Christian in a fallen world.

This is Brandon Clements’ debut novel, but hopefully it won’t be his last.

(Funny clarification: Yeshua didn’t actually listen to Nine Inch Nails in the book. I got a good laugh out of that.)

Thanks to Cindi for the encouragement and for posting this great review!

Why I Put Cursing In A Supposedly Christian Book

December 15, 2011 in Books, Creativity, Every Bush Is Burning with 17 Comments

I have already received a good number of emails from random readers of Every Bush Is Burning, and most of them have been incredible. It’s overwhelming to see the Holy Spirit using this story to speak to people in moving ways, and I am grateful beyond words for that.

I did get one email recently, however, from a person who was very unhappy with some of the language in the book. (For the record if you haven’t read it, there is some PG-13 language.) This person was, to quote, “perplexed and disturbed” that I as a pastor would allow cursing in a “supposedly Christian book.” The person said they were confused because if the book really was for non-Christians, then they would surely be perplexed as to why a pastor would allow cursing–and if it was for Christians, then they would be offended.

I was thankful for the person’s willingness to contact me and to be honest, I knew that this would come eventually. Seven years ago I probably would have said the same thing. So, because I assumed there would likely be others who had the same question but may not ask, I decided I would post some of my response to the email here on the blog to share where I’m coming from (it’s slightly modified for length & clarity). If you read it, I’d love for you to comment and let me know if you agree or disagree. (Genuinely, I want to know). Here goes:

 

First off, I just want to thank you for approaching me directly with your concerns. I appreciate that. I’ll try to keep this as succinct as possible.

The simplest answer to your question about the language is that I wanted the story to reflect real life and real people. I had a friend that read an early draft and one of the things he said was, “Jack is a non-Christian, a rough-around-the-edges kind of guy–it seems like he would almost definitely cuss. I think that would make his character ring more true.” Over time, I began to agree with him. I do think it adds an element to the characterization that makes it more authentic, and it would have been wrong for Jack to say “dang it” or “dad gum”. It just wouldn’t have been believable. I don’t know how many non-Christians you know, but in my experience, many of them do use rough language (as well as a lot of Christians I know). In other words, real people are messy. Very messy. I lead a Recovery ministry and if I’ve learned anything, I’ve learned that. When people are honest about their issues and struggles, it’s ugly. Even me, when I’m honest about the heart-level issues and broken motivations I struggle with. So I wanted the book to reflect that reality. Not to be too obscene or drastic (I made an intentional effort to keep everything PG-13), but to be real.

Because the book is primarily directed at non-Christians. They are who I’m most concerned about. I knew it would upset some Christians, and I’m a people pleaser so I don’t love offending people, but I felt it needed to be done. If I started making concessions for the Christian who is offended, then I think the book would have begun to lose a lot of it’s power and authenticity to the most important intended audience. Because if you try to write for everyone, you end up writing for no one.

You may disagree with me, but in regard to Christian art, here is what I think has happened: Christians have demanded clean, family-friendly books, movies, music, etc….stories and music and books that are not gritty or messy but clean, tidy and righteous. A lot of Christian art is kind of like a Thomas Kincade painting–very pretty and nice, but not realistic. Therefore, it’s entertaining and inspiring to some Christians because it’s exactly what they want. But for those outside the church, or even my generation? It can be off-putting. It doesn’t ring true because it doesn’t reflect reality. Most Christians I know close to my age do not read Christian fiction or watch Christian movies for that very reason. Some of this art is useful and serves a purpose in the church, but if you tried to use it as a missional tool to start conversations with culturally savvy non-believers? It would not be pretty. For many it would be seen as too tidy, unrealistic, and probably cheesy.

So, the bottom line is–my intended audience is those people. The ones who don’t want anything to do with church, who won’t hear a sermon, who think Christians are out of touch with reality. It truly is a missional novel that is intended to start conversations with those people, and I’ve already been able to have some really incredible conversations. So for Christians who are offended, I would ask for as much grace and understanding as possible, to really think about the possibility that our culture needs some gritty, messy, missionally Christian art that hopefully will resonate with people who are far from Jesus.

This is a secondary reason, but another thing is that I wanted to tear down any unnecessary barriers between people and Jesus. Growing up in the religious South, I felt like a lot of people thought that the essential message of Christianity was: behave. Stop cussing and drinking and then you’ll maybe be good enough for God to like you. Which is religion as described in the book–the direct opposite of the gospel, that the grace of Jesus meets us where we are–that we can’t clean ourselves up and earn salvation–but that it is freely offered to us in Jesus. And if we really get that, then our hearts will change to want to obey Him.

Let me know if you have any follow up questions or want to talk more…thanks again for your reply and I hope you are well!

 

So, that was my hope for putting some potentially offensive material in the book…to be a voice directly opposed to any messages they may have gotten to “Clean yourself up and then maybe we can talk about Jesus.” I’m not saying all “Christian” art should be gritty, I’m just arguing that there should be room for it. And I’m not trying to start some kind of “Cussing Is Cool” club or anything like that, but frankly, I think it’s crazy that our Christian culture has gotten to the point where a made up non-Christian character can’t say a cuss word in a story if it has a Christian message. Not only do we expect real non-Christians to adhere to our morality, we demand the same of fictional characters as well.

Okay, I’ve yapped enough for now. What do you think? Do you agree or disagree? Should a fictional non-Christian character be allowed to curse in a novel with Christian themes? Comment below and let me know. I think this is a conversation worth having.

(Also, if this post interests you, check out this great post from Mike Duran entitled “Let’s Stop Being So Easily Offended”).

Kindle Version Only 99 Cents!

November 29, 2011 in Books, Every Bush Is Burning, Writing with 0 Comments

Hey friends. In an effort to get the word out about my book as much as possible and make it as easy as possible to get, I’m reducing the Kindle price to 99 cents for a while. This is a great time to get it if you haven’t already, or you can gift it to a friend (there is a Kindle app for almost every computer or phone). A Christmas gift for less than a dollar is hard to beat after all!

Hope you are swell and that you had a wonderful Thanksgiving…

Release Party Goodness

October 20, 2011 in Books, Every Bush Is Burning, Writing with 3 Comments

So. Thursday was the official release of my book on Amazon, and thanks to several friends, the release party was incredible. So much fun. We had some great music, delicious coffee & desserts, a reverse book signing (where everyone signed my book), a couple of readings, and even a Garth Brooks sing-a-long! It was such a blast.

If you want to see more pictures, click here! (And while you’re there you can “Like” the FB page for me…)

After the party, I pretty much collapsed into a sleep coma for the weekend. And currently I’ve been at home for 2 days with strep throat, so I think my body must be trying to tell me something.

Anyways, it’s been amazing–so much fun to finally be at this part of the process where people can actually read it and we can talk about it. I’ve already had a couple of really cool conversations and I’m very excited for more.

Well, I’m gonna get back to resting for a while, and try my best not to drown in my own snot. You be good, okay?

And if you wanted to check it out but haven’t yet, you can find the book on Amazon here. $9.99 for the paperback and $2.99 for the Kindle version.

That’s all for now, friends. Peace and love.

Release Day Is Almost Here

October 10, 2011 in Every Bush Is Burning, Writing with 0 Comments

The past few weeks have been an absolute whirlwind and I’m still catching my breath. Three Sunday nights ago my Kickstarter campaign was successfully funded to publish my first book, Every Bush Is Burning. The past three weeks I’ve been working feverishly to get final edits, proofreading, and a million other last minute things done in order to get the book ready and printed. It has been very tiring and very, very fun. And despite a really long to do list I have left, it is coming close to an end.

The book officially releases later this week, and the Release Party is Thursday night (which I am SO excited about). The copies for the party are sitting on my kitchen table, and they look amazing thanks to my very talented friend Kent Bateman.

In other words, years and years of work and sweat are finally coming to an end.

Which is…awesome. And exciting. And…also weird and scary.

Because well, now people will actually be able to read it. And some of them might hate it.

Because now, if I have an idea or decide I want to change something…guess what? It’s too late.

I mean, I knew all of that in theory. I knew there had to eventually be a cut off day where I stop the potentially endless revisions and “making things better”…that one day I would have to actually “ship it” as Seth Godin would say. And I knew all along that I was writing it with a specific purpose for specific people, and that may mean there are some others who hate it and leave nasty 1 star reviews on Amazon and say that it’s a waste of the paper that it’s written on.

I knew all of that, but now it’s different. Different because it’s all here.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m still excited out of my mind. I believe it is a story the Lord has called me to write and I hope and pray He uses it to grab some people and shake them up. I think it was the right time to put “The End” on it and get it out into the world and I have no regrets. I guess I’m just going through the normal creative phase of putting something out into the world that you’ve poured your soul into, something that you love–and knowing that there will be those who don’t appreciate it or like it. I guess one way or another, if people end up loving it or hating it, it’s a good thing that my identity is in Jesus and not in what people think of me–because the alternative would only lead to either ugly pride or a sad despair.

So friends, I would like to ask for your prayers this week, and I would very much so appreciate them. Pray for the Lord to do what He wants with this story, for people to hopefully be stirred and changed and provoked by it. Pray for my heart and motives and for a steadfastness in the Lord that does not gravitate toward pride or despair, whether people love it or hate it. Pray for my sanity and productivity in the last stretch of this marathon. And pray for my wife Kristi as she has to put up with my tired, picky, and sometimes cranky self…

I could go on, but I’ll stop for now. Thank you so much for any prayers you can spare, for real. I’ll be in touch more later in the week.

Well On Our Way

September 13, 2011 in Every Bush Is Burning, Writing with 2 Comments

A week ago, I kicked off the Kickstarter campaign to raise the money to publish my first book, a novel called Every Bush Is Burning. I’m beyond excited that we are well on our way to accomplishing the goal and we have 5 days left to reach the goal of $3000 (currently at $2610). I’m so pumped that it looks like this project that I’ve been working on for so long is hopefully going to go through! If you haven’t checked it out yet, click the link above…you can get your name in the acknowledgements, get an invitation to a private release party at 701 Whaley, & other cool stuff.

Also, thanks to the ever-talented Stephen Bateman, the website for the book is now launched and it looks amazing! Go to EveryBushIsBurning.com to watch the trailer & sign up for a free preview of the book and be notified as soon as the book drops in stores.

Oh, and sorry for the blog absence. This project has had me a bit tied up the past few months. But I look forward to being around here more soon!

Every Bush Is Burning: A Life Update on My Birthday

June 24, 2011 in Books, Every Bush Is Burning, Writing with 3 Comments

Friends and family, peeps and tweeps…I hope Friday finds you well. Today is my birthday and I am a whopping 26 years of age. Woo hoo! I have a fun trip to the DMV (to get my license renewed) and an allergy shot planned to celebrate. (Also dinner with my smoking hot wife so it’s not all bad:) I figured now would be as good a time as any to throw out a general life update.

Many of you know this already, but for the past few years I’ve been working on writing a book. I’ve long had a passion for writing, but this particular book started out in college as a narrative non-fiction, Don Miller-esque book about how Jesus is so often tragically misrepresented by the sins and failures of the American church, and it attempted to straighten some of that mess out (Bathing Jesus anyone?…). But then I realized a few things. 1. That I wasn’t as funny as Donald Miller. 2. That I didn’t have near as many cool stories. And 3. That the book in general was terrible. So that was fun and all, throwing a gazillion words in the trash.

Then about 2 years ago I got the crazy idea to do the book idea in fiction and make a novel out of it. I started brainstorming and wrote a lot more terrible crap and threw a bunch of it away. I kept writing and then one day last Spring started emailing a freelance editor named Andy Meisenheimer. I started working with him and he waded through the mire of early drafts and pointed me in the right direction and in general started shaping me as a writer (I’m embarrassed to think where this book would be without him). It’s been a year and a half of ideas and revisions and hard work, and I’m very happy to realize that the process, at least for this book, is coming to a close.

In October of this year I will be self-publishing the book. It’s titled Every Bush Is Burning, and it explores the aforementioned themes and more. It’s a story set in Columbia about a guy named Jack Bennett, and it may have a few familiar figures in it if you’ve been around Midtown a while. I’m really excited about getting it out into the world and seeing what happens, and praying that God will use it to speak to people.

For those of you who may wonder, the reasons I decided to self-publish are basically: 1. It’s too “Christian” to be in the secular market. 2. It’s a little too raw for the Christian market (not vulgar–just for authenticity since it’s in a way a missional novel). 3. So I can make the prices as low as possible and have more control over the process. 4. Because I have very talented friends who are helping tremendously with the process (from editing to cover design to website building to shooting the trailer for it).

If you are my friend and you love me and want to help in this process, there will be plenty of opportunities to do that (and I will let you know what they are at the right time). I will likely be doing a Kickstarter campaign to offset the costs of producing a book and self-publishing, and also to hopefully raise a little bit of money for marketing since all of that weight will be on me with self-publishing.

For all of my friends who have already helped in this process, I can’t thank you enough. I am in the middle of the last revision and I’m excited about where it’s going. And for those of you who have read previous drafts to give me feedback…first of all, thank you. And secondly, I think it’s gonna be a lot better (even those of you who read the later draft). So that’s good.

Thanks friends for listening to my little update. I will keep you posted if you want to grab a copy when it’s ready, or if you want to help in the process. I will need all the help I can get spreading the word.

Peace and love!