Tyora Moody

Become a Thomas Nelson Book Review Blogger

You’ve probably seen this post by now. If not, here you go.

Join Thomas Nelson Book Review Bloggers today! Any blogger can receive FREE copies of select Thomas Nelson products. In exchange, you must agree to read the book and post a 200-word review on your blog and on any consumer retail website.

I decided to sign-up to read Field of Blood by Eric Wilson. There was a time I was really into vampire movies, so I’m curious to see how he incorporates this legend into a Christian fiction novel. Look for my review soon.

Click here to sign-up.

BOOK REVIEW | Single Sashimi

Single Sashimi
by Camy Tang

Venus Chau is a video game developer and she’s ready to start her own company. Her problem is keeping her secret game out of greedy hands until she finds an investor. When an offer from Drake Yau comes up, she considers it even though she has had a bad experience with him. When her Grandmother bribes her to take Drake’s offer, she has more incentive to look beyond her past issues. Plus it’s just temporary.

With that in mind, Venus accepts the Technology Officer (CTO) position for Drake’s sister’s start-up company, and continues to plan for her personal company’s launch. Being in male-dominated field, she struggles to obtain investors and also keep her game plans secure. Along the way, what she doesn’t expect is having to fight her feelings for Drake.

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Do I Want to Scare Myself Silly?

According to the CBA Industry blog, Friday, November 7th will be an interesting day for Christian marketing and products. The film House will be released nationwide in theaters. The movie is based on the novel of the same name by Frank Peretti and Ted Dekker.

The words “horror” and “Christian” in the same sentence seems strange. But I guess lots of folks say the same thing about Christian Fiction, which I love to read (and write).  Frank Peretti and Ted Dekker are definitely two of my favorites authors, but I have not read House. I prefer to read books first before seeing a movie, but at the rate I read these days, I might wind up seeing the movie first.

Now I took a peek at the trailer. The music alone freaked me out. Then, I saw the trailer. Uhm, I don’t know about this one. I don’t have the “boldness” I had when I was younger to just scare myself silly on purpose. Life is scary enough.  I still might just opt out for the book version instead.

What do you think?

Read the full CBA Article

Visit The House The Movie Web site 
(warning – the music will FREAK you out if your speakers are turned up!)

Zondervan Offers a Free Audio Book

For a limited time, get a free copy of Sin Boldly: A Field Guide for Grace (audio book) by Cathleen Falsani.

Award-winning author and columnist Cathleen Falsani says, “People regularly ask me why I believe in God. The simple answer … is grace.” In Sin Boldly: A Field Guide to Grace, Falsani explores the meaning and experience of grace through story and song, quotes and photos.

Falsani says, “Grace makes no sense to our human minds. We’re hardwired to seek justice, or our limited idea of what that means, and occasionally dole out mercy. Grace is another story.” Sin Boldly is an uplifting, multifaceted, and thought-provoking look at what makes grace so amazing.

Click Here to go to the Download page.

Are You Reading Outside The Box?

If you are not African American (AA), do you read books with predominantly AA or multicultural characters? If so, which book appealed to you an why?

I have my thoughts about the publishing industry and  Christian Fiction in general. I posted some of those thoughts in a column for Christian Fiction Online Magazine.

Are You Reading Outside the Box?

Some turning points in our lives stick with us. For me, during 2000, a slow transition took place on my beloved bookshelf. For many years, family and friends never saw me—the avid bookworm—without a book. But somewhere around 1998, a stirring dissatisfaction grew in my spirit. Back then I still was a babe in Christ, on fire and struggling with things I needed to let go. It soon became apparent to me that authors and books that used to appeal to me were now a problem. So, I stopped reading fiction until one day a dear friend introduced me to a book.

I admit to judging the book by its cover. I know you should never do this, but hey, I’m a graphic designer, and some book covers have serious issues. But I digress. Let me make it clear, this book’s design, to this day, covers one of my all time favorite books.

The young African American woman captured my attention. I immediately knew this story took place in a time that was not friendly to people of color. She held a bag in her hand and appeared to be leaving a place where she had experienced pain but loved. Although I grew up after the civil rights movement, I certainly didn’t grow up in a bubble. From a young age, I understood the world treated certain people differently.

As a newbie Christian, I wasn’t sure if I wanted to read a book that dredged up history. That was one excuse. Another was that I loved mystery and suspense, and reading historical fiction was not something I ordinarily did. Finally, I cracked the book open and started reading.
I read, wept, grew angry, wept, and fell in love.
Sharon Ewell Foster’s Christy Award winning book, Passing by Samaria, catapulted my love for Christian fiction. She was one of a few women authors with Walk Worthy Press who wrote outside the Christian fiction box. Almost ten years later, multicultural Christian fiction is a phenomenon that continues to amaze and astound me. Now I look at my bookshelves (that often need to be transitioned due to my life as a book reviewer), I truly enjoy seeing the vast array of African American authors. It’s encouraging to me as a reader as well as a writer. Despite the strides that have been made, a barrier still exists.

I’ve been a Christian fiction book reviewer since 2001, and I have written hundreds of book reviews for ChristianBookwormReviews.com. As of 2006, I officially started writing Christian fiction and eventually learned of CBA and ABA. Many of the books I review are from CBA publishers. In the past few years, I’ve noticed books with edgier storylines, grittier scenes, more realistic characters, and even taboo topics are being explored. These books have a faith factor, but not much preachiness, which is refreshing.

What I have not read enough of are characters who look like me or even have my experiences as an African American woman. Sharon Ewell Foster continues to write beautiful, grace-filled novels, as well as a host of others under CBA like Marilynn Griffith, Stacy Hawkins-Adams, Claudia Mair Burney, Linda Leigh Hargrove, Tia McCollors, and Kendra Norman-Bellamy. The vast majority of multicultural Christian fiction is published under ABA. Nothing wrong with that, but why such a small percentage in CBA?

I’ve pondered this, as I know others have too. Let’s keep it real; we know publishers are interested in selling books. I’m not sure why CBA publishers don’t notice the explosion of African American literature and how we devour good books. So, I want to look at this question from a different angle. It’s easy to jump on the publisher, but who’s buying the books?
If you read Christian fiction, do you judge a book by its cover? Are you stuck on reading only certain types of books? I can be honest. I love mystery and suspense. But sometimes it is good for my development as a reader and a writer to read outside my comfort-zone box. It’s good for me to read historical, chick lit, or even fantasy/speculative fiction every now and then. And I have.

Let me give you an example of a recent “phenomenon.” A few months ago, Angela Benson toured with CFBA for her book Up Pops the Devil. It was a book several participants would never ordinarily pick up to read because the main character was a former drug dealer and now ex-convict. Once readers went past their hesitation, their responses to the book were very positive.

Let me urge you to read a book outside of your normal reading habits. When I do, I am blessed by the experience. In fact, why not make it part of your New Year’s resolution for 2009? To help you get started, I’ve listed some new and upcoming multicultural Christian fiction titles to consider:

• My Son’s Wife by Shelia Lipsey (Urban Christian— In Stores Now)
• My Father’s House by Dijorn Moss (Urban Christian—In Stores Now)
• Now and Then, Again by Bonnie Hopkins (Walk Worthy Press—November 2008)
• Talk to Me by Pat Simmons (Urban Christian – November 2008)
• Married Strangers by Dwan Abrams (Urban Christian—December 2008)
• The Bishop’s Daughter by Tiffany Warren (Grand Central Publishing—January 2009)
• The Someday List by Stacy Hawkins Adams (Revell Books—January 2009)
• Illusions by Wanda Campbell (Urban Christian—February 2009)
• The List by Sherri Lewis (Urban Christian—March 2009)
I invite you to visit my blog, TyoraMoody.com, as I journey toward publication. Also, check out WrittenVoicesBlog.com as I highlight “African American Literature That Edifies the Soul.”

Published online at:
http://christianfictiononlinemagazine.com/nov-08-best_multicultural.html

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Manuscript Update: I have finished my first manuscript, When Rain Falls. It took me 2 and 1/2 years to really understand the story that started as a very intense scene with a little girl in the back of a police car.

I will be posting more about my process in a monthly column for another blog (not mine, I know I have a lot of blogs – LOL!).

For the remainder of November, I will revise the final draft of my cozy mystery. I’m also cranking out the rough draft for the second book in this cozy mystery series via the popular NANOWRIMO event. Hope to post my word count progress this week, which right now, isn’t very impressive.