Part two of my experiences writing secular fantasy as a Mennonite.
At my first writers conference, ACFW, I was chatting in a little circle of sci fi and fantasy authors and the subject of Amish romance came up. Someone expressed confusion about why the genre is popular and I silently agreed. At that moment a passerby inserted himself to ask me if I write Amish romance. I dressed more traditionally then than I do now, but it was still startling. After I said no, he left, and we stood in awkward silence for a bit before the tension broke and we discussed how it’s silly to assume someone writes a genre just because they look certain way.
That experience taught me something. If I ever want to write a Mennonite story and be perceived in the way I want to be perceived, I will have a mountain to climb in my heart and the hearts of others. (If you love Amish fiction, this isn’t a criticism of you, just my personal experience.) Even if I was enthusiastic about writing a fantasy with Mennonite characters, it would likely be shelved in the wrong spot. It is frustrating to me that my own faith tradition has been—frankly—exploited by many authors with zero ties to it. Not all of them, but enough that the whole thing leaves a bad taste in my mouth. If this was done to another minority faith tradition, there would be a lot of canceling.
I prefer to simply move on. My ties to my faith tradition remain, still shaping how I write stories. Our values of peace, flourishing, courage, and connection to the earth will weave themselves into my stories almost without my help. It doesn’t matter that my characters don’t dress or appear Mennonite. The appearance is the least important part, anyway.
Secular fantasy allows me to draw characters through situations that bring out those values. To explore different avenues an explicitly Christian story would. I can dialogue with aspects of life that, in reality, are sacred after all.
Do you read secular fantasy? Why or why not?
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