Art? Or graphic design?

Google's doodle this morning recognizes the 102nd birthday of Agnes Martin.

I'm interested in the visual arts, so I clicked the link to learn more about her. She was an abstract painter who called herself an abstract expressionist, but others called her minimalist. I think the others nailed it. Here's a sample of her canvases from a Google images search:

How you can examine that body of work and not come up with "minimalist," I don't know.

I also don't know why artists like Martin win critical acclaim, and artists who produce work like this don't:

Young Sailors by Clyde Kirkpatrick

OK, full disclosure, that was a blatant plug for my uncle. But this really goes to the heart of what art is. I don't see any value in minimalist abstraction. Looking at Agnes Martin's work, I'm just not left with any sort of feeling at all. She's got some nice color combinations, but so do interior decorators and web designers.

Despite having written a novel about an artist, I have barely begun to study the topic. But one thing I am sure of. Art is not only the skillful execution of the steps necessary to produce a product: that's craft. Art evokes an emotional response. Not just "that's an interesting arrangement of _____" (words, sounds, colors). But "Wow, that really makes me feel _____" (peaceful, sad, joyous).

If art were just the pleasant arrangement of colors, then a lot more people would deserve the kind of recognition Martin got.

A must read for new writers

Writing in Obedience - A Primer for Christian Fiction Writers by Terry Burns

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


This is a truly wonderful book that will help Christian writers, especially novelists, clarify their place in the market. It helps us sort out whether our writing is a calling or an offering by describing the difference. It also examines the different types of audiences we may write for and how to tailor your writing for each audience.

The detailed breakdowns of how different stories need to be structured for these different audiences are alone worth the cover price. I have never seen that information anywhere else.

This book is a primer, so the second and third parts of the book contain a lot of information that will be very familiar to anyone who’s been around the writing block a few times. But then, this book is meant for the new writer, so that's OK.

The book is divided into three parts. Part One is packed with unique insights. Parts Two and Three contain a lot of the familiar material, but Burns's really excellent advice about how to keep readers turning pages is explained more clearly than I have ever seen elsewhere. Part Three is about how to get published, with an emphasis on the importance of perseverance.

The book is written in a casual, conversational style, as if you happened to wind up at a dinner table with Burns and Yezak at a conference and got to pick their brains awhile.

Even for those of us who already have a roomful of writing books, this book is a great refresher, and the inspirational angle is invaluable.

For a new writer, this book is a must read.

Disclosure: I received an advance e-copy of this book for review purposes.

This post originally appeared at kristenstieffel.com

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Heartfelt devotional for women with eating disorders

Hope for the Hollow: A Thirty-Day Inside-Out Makeover for Women Recovering from Eating Disorders by Jena Morrow

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This devotional is written for women with full-on, life-threatening eating disorders like anorexia and bullimia. I happened to pick it up while it was on a Kindle free promo, even though my dysfunctional relationship with food isn’t that severe.

This is a well-written, heartfelt devotional. It doesn't contain a lot of heady theological material, which for me is a downside. I realize for some, that’s a benefit.

The author uses the Message translation a lot, which bugs me because I feel Peterson takes a few too many liberties with the text. Nevertheless, the devo is packed with bedrock spiritual truth that can help anyone develop a right view of themselves and restore a right relationship with God and with the food he has given us to richly enjoy.



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Masterful storytelling and a thrilling ride

Prophetess by Keven Newsome

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I can’t believe I waited so long to read the sequel to Winter, a book I love dearly. Prophetess is one of the most amazing pieces of fiction artistry I have ever read. Can I give it six stars?

The book starts out with a puzzle to solve, and it rolls along, picking up speed until by the time you pass the halfway point, you are barreling at breakneck speed to an inevitable ending that is gripping, chilling, and jaw-dropping.

Newsome has mastered pacing. As in book one of this series, he tells two parallel stories set four years apart. This technique is hard to pull off, but he does it brilliantly. Every time he breaks from one story to return to the other, it’s at a moment when you cry “no!” because you want to know what happens next, but you also want to return to the other story, so you carom back and forth between them like a pinball, as the story bats you first one way and then the other full-tilt to the astounding climax.

Phew.

When book three comes out, it goes to the top of my reading list. Immediately.





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