Sex in the Christian Fiction Market

That may be a very enticing post title, but I'm really talking about the sex of authors, meaning whether an author is a man or a woman. :-) Sorry!

Randy Ingermanson has an excellent and funny essay in Christian Fiction Online about the challenges of being a man who writes inspirational fiction.

http://christianfictiononlinemagazine.com/biz_rooney.html

He describes the "Kindergarten Effect" that leads many women to begin writing fiction. In a nutshell, a woman's youngest child enters kindergarten. That kindergartener's mom finds that her earning power has dropped so precipitously in her years at home that she's better off trying to get published than trying to re-enter the corporate work force.

Poor men! It's true that they have a tougher road to hoe when they have to work full-time jobs in addition to writing their novels. But I also admit to a certain smugness about the Kindergarten Effect. As a stay-at-home mom whose child is about to enter kindergarten, I can testify to the sacrifices and relationship difficulties that staying-at-home engenders (pun intended!).

It's the same-ole, same-ole that both conservatives and liberals have bemoaned for decades. Since the end of the Victorian period, our culture has not respected "women's work" of child-raising and household administration. Therefore, many husbands subconsciously lose respect for their wives when the wives leave the workforce to raise children. Simultaneously, intelligent and educated women must sacrifice their time for socialization with like-minded peers (i.e., friends), unless they have unusually helpful and sensitive husbands. This is sad, but it's very difficult to prevent without a lot of work on personal attitudes, and most couples don't know how to do that work. I wouldn't trade my time with my daughter for anything, but the rewards of my decision to stay home came with hardships attached.

For me, the sacrifice was less than for many other women because I only have one child, therefore, my stay at home lasted "only" five years. I defer in awe to the women who have done it for ten, fifteen, or even twenty. They have more than earned their chance to pursue their writing dreams.

In most professions, women find their earning power and career success hampered by their family responsibilities. Most choose to put their children first, which is good. Let's hear it for one of the few professions in which it is an advantage to have put aside your own interests for years to raise children. You go, mob of scribbling women!