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Martin Roth - Christian Mystery Author
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Military Orders Novels In the Middle Ages, military orders like the Templars defended Christians and fought for justice. Now, in Martin Roth's latest series of novels, a church has established a clandestine new military order, to fight for today's persecuted Christians... |
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Texas writer Sidney W. Frost is an elder in the Presbyterian Church and a minister with Stephen Ministries, which works to provide Christian care to hurting people. He was an Adjunct Professor at Austin Community College, where he taught computer courses for 31 years. As a singer with the Austin Lyric Opera Chorus he has appeared in 42 productions. His first novel, "Where Love Once Lived
I received an email not long ago that said, "I find myself thinking about the characters in your book even after I've set it down for the night."
That is music to a writer's ears.
For me, the characters became real so gradually, I can't say exactly when it happened. Early on in the writing of my first novel, "Where Love Once Lived," I would sometimes go to the fictional biography I had written for each major character to remind myself about something distinguishing about the character. I didn't know the characters yet. I don't know when, but at a certain point in the writing, I quit doing that. In addition, the biography was no longer useful because the characters grew beyond what was in it and it happened so fast I couldn't keep the biography updated. But it didn't matter. By then, I knew them intimately. I cried when they were hurt. I laughed when they were happy. I thought about them when I was writing.
One caution for writers.
As the characters take on a life of their own, it is important to maintain control of them. I feel it is good that the fictional characters evolve, seemingly on their own, but you can't let them do anything to mess up the story. No matter how much you like a character, don't give him or her full rein.
In my second book, "The Vengeance Squad," the main character Chris was a young college professor with little experience with the seamy side of life. To counter his lack of knowledge needed to go after the killers, I partnered him with Tex, a student in his mid-forties who had been in the marines as well as in prison. Tex was also in a wheelchair, but his positive attitude about life only added to his likeability and strength as a character.
At first, my writing instructor, Bonnie Hearn Hill, loved Tex. But, soon, she was warning me he was taking over. She reminded me my main character had to take charge.
I had the same problem with Liz, the bookmobile Librarian in "Where Love Once Lived." All my readers love her. She says what she thinks, and gets into everyone's business. It was easier to control her because there were two stronger main characters. Liz is in "The Vengeance Squad," too.
No use wasting a good character.
The Vengeance Squad
Where Love Once Lived
Welcome to the first John 3:16 Giveaway Blog Hop!
Update: Congratulations to Mary Jo, winner of a signed copy of "Burning at the Boss."
As one of the members of this great network of Christian authors, I am excited to participate in this event! We have come together this week to showcase our books and to give you, our readers, a chance to win some great prizes as you "hop" from blog to blog. A different prize is offered at each blog site (no purchase necessary). However, if you want to have a chance to win one of two Kindles the network is giving away, please sign up for the John 3:16 ezine newsletter. (Located at the top right side column of the John 3:16 blog site.)
(See official rules here.)
At the other blogs, each author may require that you leave a comment (and a valid email address) so they can contact you if you win a prize offered on their blog site. May I also suggest that you show your love and appreciation to each blog host by either following them on Twitter, or "liking" them on Facebook or even subscribing to their blog. It won't help your odds of winning a prize but I know each author would be thrilled and very encouraged!
Please note - it is not possible to subscribe to, or leave comments at, this website.
WIN!!
I am offering one free signed copy of my latest novel "Burning at the Boss," due for release in late-May. This is Book 3 of the Johnny Ravine private detective series. Read more about it here.
To enter, leave your name and email address below. One winner will be chosen at random at the conclusion of the blog hop.
So tell your friends about the John 3:16 Giveaway Blog Hop! It's going to be a great week of fun!
Just click on the links below to go from blog to blog!
Happy hoppin'!
Ten years ago I launched the internet's first directory of Christian bloggers. I didn't intend to. But a misunderstanding with the Instapundit website left me little choice.
I was a fairly new Christian blogger myself at that time. And there didn't seem to be a lot of other Christian blogs (by which I mean blogs devoted largely to Christian issues).
But there were some, and often they were offering extremely provocative commentary. Yet back in those days relatively few Christians were even aware of this new phenomenon of blogging. So these excellent articles were being read by the bloggers' families and friends, but by few others.
I decided that an article about Christian blogging could prove a consciousness-raising exercise. So I sent questionnaires to all the Christian bloggers I could find - a few dozen - and then wrote an article, "Blogging for the Lord," based on the replies. At the end of the article I added a list of the 12 Christian bloggers who had responded to my questionnaire.
I posted the article on my site and sent off an email about it to Glenn Reynolds at Instapundit. Just 10 minutes later the following appeared on his site:
HERE COME THE CHRISTIAN BLOGGERS. I think he's left out some, but I don't tend to sort people that way so I'll have to think a bit to see if I can remember who it is.
And just a little later:
UPDATE: Well, there's Amy Wellborn, for one.
I realized that Glenn had taken the list at the end of my article - of respondents to my questionnaire - as intended to be a list of all Christian bloggers. It was by now already after 11pm in the US, and Instapundit had shut down for the night. It was too late to alert him to the misunderstanding. So I decided to compile my own comprehensive list of Christian blogs, and over the next 12 hours (I live in Australia) worked to track them down.
To my surprise I found about 60, and the next day I posted the names on my site, under the title "The Semi-Definitive List." The implication was that while I had no doubt missed one or two blogs, this list was about as complete as possible.
Glenn Reynolds linked to me again, and a week later John Leo cited me in an article at US News and World Report. Quickly the list took on a life of its own.
I soon learned that it was far from definitive or even semi-definitive as I began receiving emails, dozens and dozens of them, from Christian bloggers asking to be included. The list rapidly grew to 100 blogs, then 200, and was occupying hours of my time each week. When I received an email from Dean Peters - a computer guru - offering to take it over and turn it into a comprehensive, fully searchable tool of Christian ministry, I was delighted to let it go.
So in July 2002 the directory moved off my site. For the benefit of cyber-archaeologists of the future I have preserved the final list here. More than 250 blogs. Amazingly, some continue to this day.
One Month to Go Until the Blog Hop
April 7th, 2012
Only one month to go until the John 3:16 Giveaway Blog Hop, May 7th – 14th!
Join over fifty authors and bloggers who will be offering great books and other prizes on their blogs during that week. As a reader, you just “hop” from blog to blog and sign up to win some great prizes at each blog.
But wait…you also have a chance of winning one of two Kindles!
How’s that for fun?
Tell all your friends and join us May 7th – 14th for the John 3:16 Marketing Network Giveaway Blog Hop!
Recently on Amazon I came across the writing of Roberto Ornan Roche, a young Cuban Christian. I read his book “The Cuban Christian Writer: Redemption, Encouragement & Restoration Stories
* You are a Christian writer in Cuba. Please tell me a little about your life.
Life in Cuba is somewhat routine and boring, though to be a Christian makes it worthwhile. I work as a small business landlord for computer facilities. My wife and I have a baby of ten months, and it is very difficult to make ends meet. For example, some strained fruit for our baby costs 25 pesos (about US$0.95), but the average wage of a worker in Cuba is less than four hundred pesos a month (about US$15.00).
When I have some free time I go on the internet to see how things are going with my books. But the internet is expensive and difficult to use, and sometimes I spend more money checking my books than I make from them. The internet is prohibited in Cuba, but we can pay to obtain some hours, and hope that the State does not take reprisals.
It is important, amid all that, to maintain our spiritual life and not lose sight of the Lord.
* How did you start writing?
I began to write because I felt that it was the best way to express my feelings about my life, and as an expression of my faith. For that reason my writings are devotionals, testimonies and simple stories. I wanted to express my devotion to God, who has a purpose for my life.
* Is it easy to be published as a Christian writer in Cuba?
The churches and denominations in Cuba have small magazines, but with few pages and very low circulations. These magazines are the only means for a Christian writer to say something. A national seemingly Christian publishing house exists, with the possibility of printing a great number of copies. This Publishing House is named "Roads."
However, they also mix in politics, and they live ostentatious lives, backed up by donations from overseas Christian organizations. But that type of "Christian" is known well and the true churches don't mix with them, although they are powerful and can offer useful opportunities, because they enjoy the privilege of the State.
* Is it easy to be a practicing Christian in Cuba?
I remember when I was a schoolboy that our teachers made us stand at the front of the classroom, so that the other students could make fun of us, because we didn't believe in Darwin's Evolution or in the ideas of Marx, Engels and Lenin. We were simply Christians, and the other children were trained to hate us.
This was not an isolated practice. Rather, it was mandatory for the teachers to embarrass the Christian children. Likewise, it was necessary for parents to deny their faith, so that their children could study in the University.
Currently, with the decadence of the socialist society, the State has been allowing certain freedoms and has been taking advantage of Christians to heal our society, although in no way do they want a Christian society. They simply want us to participate in the formation of a solid society – taking the good of the churches, but without giving much ground.
* Are there many churches in Cuba?
Yes, we have many churches, although we are not allowed to open up or build new churches. This has always been forbidden. Our local church is more than eighty years old.
* Please tell me a little about your church.
Our church is small, but after waiting decades for a construction licence, and jumping over thousands of bureaucratic barriers, the construction of a new church building, on the site of the old church, is almost finished.
Due to the construction work, some church activities have been rescheduled. But normally we have men’s, women’s, children’s and youth worship. We also have prayer groups, Sunday School in the morning and evening worship.
Our Pastor is a very good preacher. He is very inspiring and his sermons attract a lot of non-believers. We also have home prayer groups, and fasting and prayer in the mornings.
People in our church are simple and humble, very poor and unpretentious. Over many decades a lot of very good Christians have left their imprints on the hearts of the congregation. These were church brothers and sister who always stood up and gave moving testimonies.
A brother who traveled overseas remembered us with a donation that we used to buy an electronic piano for the church. We call these brothers and sister the Pillars of our church, and although they have moved to be with the Lord, we always have other older men and deacons who are the new Pillars of our church.
My mother Migdalia has been a very active person in the Ladies department and a teacher of Sunday School. In her youth she traveled hundred of kilometers to study and also to teach at Summer Schools in small towns.
* Roberto, thank you.
Roberto's two books can be downloaded from the Amazon Kindle store.
* The Cuban Christian Writer: Redemption, Encouragement & Restoration Stories
NB: The same book is also sold under the title The Lighthouse of Asaph: Unforgettable Christian Reflections
It’s 4:55 on a Sunday morning in Ho Chi Minh City, and a large crowd has gathered at a secluded home. These are worshippers at one of the city’s underground churches. The service begins at 5:00am, and lasts two hours, after which most of the people head for work.
Such sacrifice is rare – not to mention unnecessary – in the West, where church services are often timed to meet our hectic schedules.
Indeed, sacrifice is one of the hallmarks of the persecuted church, and, according to a new book, “The Privilege of Persecution
In the words of a foreword from Brother Andrew, the book’s authors “have studied the global church, much of it living under restriction and persecution, and they have discovered what it will take to bring new life to you and your church…The church under persecution experiences worship and prayer to a depth few of us have experienced. However, we can have that intimacy with God; they can show us how.”
The book covers six themes:
• making the Scriptures central to our worship
• authentic church worship
• prayer and dependence
• genuine community
• church leadership
• generosity and stewardship
The authors are scathing about much church life in the West. For example: “Many church leaders in the West are concerned with creating and executing services that will lure and entice people to come, using elements calculated to capture their attention, including large choirs, guest musicians, small orchestras and an occasional dramatic or humorous sketch…In contrast, Christians in Ho Chi Minh City come to church because they yearn for it. It is the stuff of life. They don’t come for themselves, or to be entertained.”
I wish the authors had included more – many more – specific examples of the sacrifices of members of the persecuted church as they remain true to their faith. I find such stories inspire me greatly. Far more than the criticisms leveled at the Western church, which make up much of this book, and which are no particular secret.
But still, this is a useful book. Persecution of Christians looks like it is on the increase in many countries. We need many more books that will inspire Western Christians into action.
Christian novelist Roger Bruner has an intriguing new blog, So You've Written a Book, Huh?, in which he interviews unpublished writers.
He explains: "As a twice-published novelist, I've had the pleasure of participating in many blog interviews at the time of my book releases...I also remember the painful years of waiting for that first contract...In searching for a new blog idea, this thought struck me: Why not do blog interviews with writers who have completed their first book, but haven't yet found a publisher? Give those people some practice doing blog interviews and give them a chance to get their name 'out there.' They might also get some excellent feedback--and hopefully encouragement from others who're in (or have been in) the same boat."
I personally was in that same boat for more than thirty years, waiting for that first contract. It finally arrived late in 2008 from Ark House Press, for my novel "Prophets and Loss."
So here is a completely imaginary interview, between me and myself, set in 2008, shortly before the arrival of that contract.
Welcome Martin. Please tell me about your first novel.
Thank you. My first novel? Goodness. That would have been in the 1970s, when I was a journalist in Tokyo. It was a sultry pot-boiler, full of sword-wielding Asian gangsters, voluptuous Oriental women and lots of steamy sex. I wasn't a Christian back then.
And what happened?
The first person I queried - a very well known US agent - returned it with the comment that I knew more about Japan than I did about how to write a novel. The second said he would be interested if I ever wrote a non-fiction book on Japan. I kept trying, but finally gave up, and wrote a second novel.
And?
I decided to aim at the British market this time, and I actually found a well regarded agent who liked it. She sent it to all the leading publishers, but with no better luck than the first time around. I still have the letter she forwarded to me from a Random House director: "It's sharp and fast...Martin Roth can certainly tell a story. But...events are too hurried. One can readily believe all the boozing and whoring...but the thriller element is so rushed it is as though Roth wants to get them over so that he can take us as fast as possible into yet another red light district."
How discouraging.
But I kept trying. I wrote one or two more - I don't actually remember how many - and then in 1993 I moved to Australia to live. And a local agent expressed interest in one of my novels. She told me she thought she could find a publisher. But then something dramatic happened.
Something dramatic? Tell me, tell me.
I became a Christian. At the age of forty-four. You can read my testimony here. And I decided that I didn't want published a novel with lots of sex and swearing, so I withdrew it. I went to Bible College part-time for a few years, then began praying that God might somehow use my writing for His glory. And at some point I received what was to me a very powerful message that it was God's plan that I write novels. So I wrote "Prophets and Loss," a private eye thriller. I finished it around 1998.
Ten years ago.
I spent several years trying to find a publisher, with absolutely zero interest. Eventually I became so discouraged that I decided to place it on the internet, for anyone to read, together with a little Paypal button for people to make donations if they liked it. I raised a total of $15 over fifteen months.
Oh dear.
But then I found an agent, a Jewish lady in New York, who told me bluntly: "This novel will be published." That gave me a lot of hope. But a year later she said she could do no more for me. So I queried all the leading Christian agents, and one of them actually took me on. I still remember how excited I was when he subsequently sent a copy of an email from an editor at Moody Publishers expressing enthusiasm for "Prophets and Loss."
I'm already fearing the worst.
It seemed the sales team made the ultimate decision about what got published. And they didn't like it. One reason was that it was set in Australia. So I decided to re-write it totally, setting it in the US, with American characters.
Wow. That must have been difficult.
I remember spending days and days with Google Maps, changing all the Australian locations, which I was very familiar with, of course, into American locations that I had never before heard of. I set it in Orange County, California, for some reason. Anyway, it didn't do any good. And that led me to do something I'm a bit ashamed of.
Yes?
I decided to write another novel. But like the ones I used to write before I became a Christian. With swearing and sex. I was angry at God. It was a comic novel, about the sex problems of older men, about men who can't get an erect...
Martin! This is a Christian website!
Oh yes. Right. Sorry. (Pause.) There were also a lot of lesbians in it.
A "bit" ashamed. Martin, you should be totally ashamed.
I was angry with God. I was so sure that it was God's plan for me to write my novel "Prophets and Loss" - I'm still certain of it - that I couldn't understand why I was being tossed around like a shipwrecked sailor. Not to mention all the expense. It can cost forty or fifty dollars to airmail a manuscript from Australia to the US. So I was kind of challenging God, saying hurry up and arrange a publisher for this novel that glorifies You, before I find a publisher for one that does the opposite. It was actually rather childish of me.
I presume this new novel wasn't published.
A local agent liked it. But no, she could never find a publisher.
And are you still angry with God?
It's funny. Ten years ago, after I finished writing my novel, I was so excited. I almost took it for granted that God had this plan to turn me into a famous, best-selling novelist. Then I got discouraged, and after that angry. But now I've reached a kind of peace. I've done all I can. I know that now it's totally in God's hands. Maybe it's not His plan that it actually be published. Maybe it'll only be in Heaven that I'll understand what's been going on. I don't know. But I don't worry about these things any more. I know that my life is good, whether or not I'm a published novelist.
So what's the latest with "Prophets and Loss?"
Just recently I heard of a new Christian publishing house in Sydney, Ark House Press. They're looking for novels, so I've sent them my manuscript. Please pray for me.
I'll certainly do that. Martin, thank you and good luck.
The Open Doors ministry has published its annual World Watch List, a ranking of the fifty countries where persecution of Christians for religious reasons is worst.
This is based on extensive research that includes questionnaires, news reports, interviews and country visits, with a point value given to each country.
The research covers persecution of Christians of all denominations, through the entire country, with a focus on persecution for faith, rather than for political, economic, ethnic or other reasons.
For the tenth year in a row North Korea heads the list. I spoke about conditions in North Korea with Emily Fuentes, Communications and Public Relations Coordinator at Open Doors USA.
Q. We have just seen a change of leadership in North Korea. Might this lead to an improvement in conditions for Christians, or do you see little change? Or, indeed, might things get even worse?
A. This early into Kim Jong Un's reign, it is difficult to know. However, every action he has taken thus far has emulated the leadership of his father and grandfather. With the way things are going, it seems there will be no change in North Korea, but only God knows. That is why it is vital for us to be praying for the country at this time.
Q. Can you tell me a little about the state of Christianity in North Korea? Is there actually an underground church movement there?
A. The church has to be underground in North Korea, because it is illegal to be a Christian (citizens are only allowed to worship Kim Il Sung, Kim Jong Il and now Kim Jong Un - anything else is seen as an act of treason).
Q. But are there underground pastors? Secret evangelists? Is there a secret house church movement?
A. There are an estimated four hundred thousand Christians in North Korea [from a population of around twenty-four million]. They meet in secret. Sermons, evangelizing, etc must all be done with extreme caution, because being caught could mean being put in a labor camp or being put to death. An estimated seventy thousand Christians are in these camps for their faith. Nowhere in the world is it more dangerous to be a Christian.
Q. Christians in the West can pray for our brothers and sisters in North Korea. But what else should we be doing?
A. Advocate on their behalf. Christians in North Korea have no voice, so it is important that we be their voice. Raise awareness about the situation in North Korea. Ask your elected officials to act on their behalf. Share their stories.
One of the unexpected joys of doing research for my novel "Brother Half Angel" - set in China, and the first of my Military Orders series - was discovering the gorgeous and moving Canaan Hymns.
These are Christian hymns, to be sung in church - in China.
So they are somewhat different from the hymns we sing in our Western churches. Different from our traditional hymns, and different too from our modern praise-and-worship music.
How different?
The best explanation I can give is that they carry a slightly sentimental tone to them, a sense of nostalgia, with unpretentious melodies and lyrics that speak of the beauty and majesty of China and of a simple life spent in the presence of God. They are slow, melodic and a little dreamy. They are not deeply theological. They will not be to all Western tastes.
When I lived in Japan I became a big fan of the Taiwan singer Teresa Teng, who died tragically of an asthma attack at the age of 42. She specialized in folk songs and romantic ballads, with a voice that was described as conveying "seven parts sweetness and three parts tears."
That's what the Canaan Hymns sound like.
But just as moving as the hymns themselves is the story of how they came to be written.
One night in 1990 a young Chinese peasant girl named Xiao Min, unable to sleep, found a song flooding into her consciousness. Over ensuing weeks and months more songs arrived, unbidden, often while she was at her work in the fields picking cotton.
These were songs about God, about His great love for the Chinese people, about the Christian life of prayer, worship, joy and sacrifice.
Traveling evangelists realized the songs were a direct inspiration of the Holy Spirit, and began to spread them throughout the country. Soon Chinese believers everywhere, especially those in the underground home churches, were singing these songs whenever they worshipped.
Over the years Xiao Min received many more songs from God, until their number reached around one thousand. They were named the Canaan Hymns.
Go to YouTube and you can find examples, as well as some documentaries about the hymns and about the composer Xiao Min.
Here are some of the lyrics for "Dark Night," one of my favorites:
In the dark night, flowers are more fragrant.
In the dark night, footsteps become surer.
A journey in the dark is nearing its end.
Stay true to God.
Listen to it here, and experience, as I have, the warm feelings of love and compassion that percolate from these tender and very special hymns.
* Martin Roth is the author of the Military Orders series of novels, about a church that has established a new military order to fight for today's persecuted Christians. He is also the author of the Johnny Ravine private eye novels.
Books
Click on image for more details.
Military Orders
Johnny Ravine
