^^ I find the best way to incorporate messages is to illustrate them through events, instead of just stating them outright. It takes practice, and it varies in each situation.

As for the second question, you could keep the Christian elements toned down (or non-existant) in the beginning, and gradually work into it. That way it's more realistic -- since people tend to realize things slowly anyway. Plus, it's not pushing it in their face or anything.

~Riella

A lot of that depends on the nature of the book. I truly could not avoid explicit Christian references in mine because the subject was spiritual warfare. But if you are writing about a fantasy world that you are just making up, you really have a lot of options. MANY stories have a 'Christ-figure'. Gandalf and Aragorn are both 'Christ' figures in that their goal and mission embody in some part what Jesus did. Gandalf gave his life to protect the Fellowship, died and came back to life as Gandalf the White. Aragorn is the picture of the returning king. Some even depict Neo of the Matrix trilogy to be a 'Christ' figure, even though Jesus would never do a lot of the stuff that Neo does, such as curse.

Truth be told, your Christian world-view is going to come out. You can still give glory to God without saying the name 'Jesus' all over it. Have your characters do something that embodies something that Jesus taught or one of the OT heroes did. You can illustrate the famed 'David vs Goliath' battle in a variety of ways. You can pull off a 'Gideon vs the Midianites' battle. You can do a 'walk by faith' like Abraham going to the Promised Land thing. Look at the Old Testament or even Acts for a story to use. It doesn't have to be almost exactly what happened but you can use it for inspiration.

I think CS Lewis says this issue the best: "We don't need more people writing Christian books. We need more Christians writing good books."

I heartily agree with *FencerforJesus *! Wasn't it C.S. Lewis who's first goal was to entertain, and not to just make good morals more palatable? And it is that kind of books that have the most impact!

I will admit that it is a hard line to walk, not being to pushy yet still not wanting to water down your story. From my experience, it is important to not try to make a perfect paralel, because that can be confusing. One book I read was so obviously trying to be a Christian paralel book it made it a bit hard to understand, and had no intrigue. Whereas something like Narnia is plain and obviously Christian, but more of allegorical (though Lewis denied that...)

Didn't mean to babble, just my opinion

Is it ok to use names already established in the world, or is it better to make up names like Tolkien did, like Frodo, etc?

Both are okay! In my story, I've done a combination of both. My fantasy world is called Mictaya, which is totally made up. My main characters are Toki, Chet, Indira, and Myka. Toki was totally made up (although I found out later it is Japanese for "time"), Chet is an actual name I just thought of (I think a character in The Hardy Boys has that name), Indira is a name I looked up for the meaning (it's Sanskrit for "beauty"), and Myka is a variation on a real name (I just "feminized" the name Micah). So really, you can do whatever! Don't worry about being accused of copying somebody or anything like that. Really, if your characters have a life and personality of their own, nobody's going to care that the name sound familiar. In fact, some people get a kick out of finding out a character has the same name as they do! (Besides, how many Ashley's do you think are out there, and how many characters have the name Ashley? Just an example).

How do you handle putting the message of salvation through Christ into books without it seeming too heavy laden and turning the reader off? I don't want to be writing a sermon into my novels, but I refuse to create something with no message and no glory. How do you all balance this?

This is a pretty big issue. For me it is a double whammo, because I'm a Mormon writer. A lot of Mormon writers try to shove in as much of our religion as possible, so we end up with stories about Mormon Bishops who double as FBI agents (those stories are entertaining for a while, but they soon grow old). Personally, I've found that my favorite stories written by Mormon authors are ones that just tell a good story (a good example is the Fablehaven series by Brandon Mull). Even though they aren't obviously trying, their Christian values tend to show through anyway. I think that if you sincerely try to write a good story, your personal values will still show through, even without seriously trying to include them.

ChristProclamer, I understand your struggle. My advice is largely the same as those who posted above me, particularly Fire Fairy. Write a good story first. That should be the first purpose of your novel. But don't worry! The Christian elements will naturally make their way into your story.
You can also use symbolisim to show these elements without making them obvious.
As well, I find it also helps if you create compelling characters that the reader cares about. Let the actions of your characters show your message, instead of you, the author, simply stating it.

I think Tolkien did a good job of incorporating Christian themes without smothering it in your face. Lewis was a little more obvious, but he still did a great job. I think the key for both of them is that they told good stories which pulled in both Christians and non-Christians.

About the name issue....
Names aren't actually copyrighted, so most things are fair game. However as Fencer pointed out, the only names I would really avoid are uncommon names that are iconic (Frodo, Yoda, Aslan, etc.) Other than that, I wouldn't be so worried about having a name for a character that someone has already used. Chances are, unless you create a completely wacky name, someone else will have used it before- that's fine. I mean, I'm not going to put a book down because a book has a character named Elizabeth and Elizabeth Bennet is a famous character.

I think that if you sincerely try to write a good story, your personal values will still show through, even without seriously trying to include them.

I definitely agree here! Write a good story first, and your worldview will be evident to the discerning reader (as the Lewis quote above also illustrates).

Readers appreciate subtlety! Let them see it for themselves. Books, TV shows, or movies that blatantly hit one over the head with The Message (whether it be religious, environmental, or what have you) annoy me. (Star Trek has some notorious examples of this anvilicious TV trope). I think this becomes easier with practice, and as one's body of work grows larger.

Naturally, there will be times when a writer may want to be clear with a spiritual message, but that may result in the book being pegged as "Christian" - not necessarily a bad thing in itself - but may restrict its potential audience to people who are already familiar with the intended message.

So...good storytelling first. That's why people will want to read your work. Classic themes like good and evil, selfless love and sacrifice, caring for one's family and friends, and so on, will reflect your worldview without having to bring out the anvil.

On names, much depends on the setting. For example, I've been using ordinary names since my current work is low fantasy (fantastic elements set in a world very much like the one we live in, even if it is more advanced technologically). So it makes sense to encounter characters named Erik or Abby because those are the kinds of names people in our world have. (Fire Fairy, I never thought about the idea that readers might get a kick out of finding a character with a name that's the same as their own. Interesting!).

I agree that the writer's values will come through the writing weather we're being obvious or not. We can't help it! When you have a Christian world view, it affects how you view everything. Some writers have a hard time writing stories about good vs. evil; they have harder time defining what is good and is evil. Both C.S. Lewis and J.R.R Tolkien did a wonderful job showing both good and evil in their works. Both were also Christians.

In our stories, we can include Biblical themes like forgiveness, sacrifice, redemption, etc., since it's something we understand, but some author struggle with.

Okay, so what do I like to write? I like to write spec-fiction, fantasy, and sci-fi. I'm currently working on a science-fiction story about a lunar pilot loses her ability to feel emotion after soul experiments. I'm still working the first draft, which I hope to finish this summer. I have 80,000 words so far.

Okay, so what do I like to write? I like to write spec-fiction, fantasy, and sci-fi.

Heh, I'm mostly a fantasy writer, so when I was writing my movie script for my screenwriting class, I ran into some problems, because I was trying to write sci-fi. I needed help with the battle in the end, so I talked to my brother, because he plays all of those battle video games and stuff, and when he heard what I had planned out, he laughed and told me my battle strategy was really "medieval". I am a fantasy writer, after all!

And remember, Tolkien may have named characters Frodo and Aragorn, but he also named them Sam and Rosie.

I hadn't thought of that! Very good point, Thanks!

I know your problem!! I have the same thing oftentimes! What I usually do, if I see a name a famous author has created, is change the spelling slightly. For example, I would take Titania and make Titiana, or Titana. That way it sounds almost the same, but is different.

Thanks Narnian_Archer! I took your advice, turns out I had been pronouncing the name wrong, so I just changed the spelling to match how I was saying it!

The other thing I would be concerned about is having names too similar. There needs to be a reason for the similarity to use similar names. If they are in the same family or same culture (like the Rohirrim) and that separates them from the rest of the characters, that is one thing. But say the names out loud and if there is a chance that people might confuse the two, it may be better to change one name. Just a thought.

As always FencerforJesus your advice it greatly appreciated! I hadn't thought about doing that. I will be defiantly be rechecking my names out to make sure they all fit well together.

How do you handle putting the message of salvation through Christ into books without it seeming too heavy laden and turning the reader off? I don't want to be writing a sermon into my novels, but I refuse to create something with no message and no glory. How do you all balance this?

I stuggle with the same thing. The whole reason I wanted to write was to give God glory through story.
I'm aiming to get my story somewhere between Narnia (allegory) and LOTR (Christian Values).

I think CS Lewis says this issue the best: "We don't need more people writing Christian books. We need more Christians writing good books."

Another Great quote by Lewis! Thanks for the reminder.
I totally agree with Lewis.

Thank You so much everyone for your helpful advice! It's so nice to know that I can come here and ask questions and get such great help!

Wow *Arya*! That sounds like a very interesting story that I would like to read! And your wordcount is really good! How long have you been working on it?

About names, don't worry about stealing names much at all unless it's incredibly unique and iconic. Even if you randomly fabricate a name all by yourself someone has probably used it befor somehow somewhere! My sister made up this really origional name for a fictional land, and I looked it up just for fun. It turns out it's the name of a real place!

Thanks StarAsterisk! I've been working on my book for the last year and hope to finish the first draft this summer. If you'd be willing to read it, I'd love to send it to you! It's always helpful to get a fresh pair of eyes on a story.

Oh, yes, names. I originally came up with the name Arya, only to find out later the name is used in a published book.

~Arya

Huzzah. I got my computer back and all my files are intact. That means I did not lose my sequel. Now as soon as my final homework loads lets up (if it does in the next two weeks), I can get back onto it.

...How exactly would you send it to me Arya? I doubt my mom would let me give you my email...

Wow that is totally anoying with the name! Haha I suppose that is a comon thing to happen to authors...

StarAsterisk, hum...I hadn't thought of that...I'll PM you when it's done, and we'll figure something out.

~Arya

Arya, sounds good!