Nov 9, 20235 min read

Exciting News!

I have a super exciting announcement today, Clean Fiction Magazine is going audio, Clean Fiction Audio Episodes will begin to appear on our YouTube Channel: @cleanfiction. I could not have been more surprised by this nudge from the Lord, but when it became a full-on kick in the butt I could no longer ignore that this was the next step for Clean Fiction Magazine. What was the "kick in the butt" you may ask? Well, it started with an author friend of mine who voice message me one morning to tell me two things: she wasn't going to be able to send me the poem she had promised and the reason was that she had woken up legally blind. My first instinct after thawing from my shock was, "Why is she worried about me and Clean Fiction when she is going through such a crisis?" My next thought, of course, was prayer. Hovering my hand over my phone screen with her message (as I am prone to do in lieu of holding a person's shoulder) I spoke my prayer into the voice message recording and hit send. We talked back and forth for several days this way and I did my best to encourage her and she did her best to share her struggles. Her passion for writing and the written word was palpable, but she couldn't read anymore. "Well, I can do something about that." I thought to myself and so here I am with the fruits of that thought. But before that, I want to tell you the rest of my friend's story.

You see, I said to her via voice message that I really felt that God would restore her sight, which I really did feel was true at the time I said it, only to be absolutely crushed by her return message that said her doctors had confirmed that her loss of sight was permanent. I wept thinking of how my words must have hurt her and struggled with what to reply. I do believe I prayed for strength for her, but inside I was still crushed, imagining myself in her shoes. She had so many people praying for her including my own friends and family, but in my mind, it felt hopeless. Well, our God is a God of hope and He is also a God who answers prayers. And boy did He ever have a plan for my friend! Her sight was returned. She could see again! Tears, shock, praise, goosebumps, I couldn't contain the overflow of emotions. God had healed the blind right in front of me! He had used our prayers to create a miracle! It is not as if I don't understand the power of prayer or haven't seen Him perform miracles but this healing felt like the Bible coming to life. And I told everyone who prayed the amazing news! I felt like a firecracker and a lighthouse all at once. I wanted to show everyone His light. And that brings us to Clean Fiction Audio (YouTube: CleanFiction).

Just as my friend was unable to read our magazine there are many who love the Lord and love fiction but can only enjoy it in audiobook form. Now this in no way is to replace the Clean Fiction Podcast with Nathaniel Caldwell over on life-truth.com. If you have a passion for audio drama head over there. Clean Fiction Audio is simply a reading of reviews from our magazine for books that have an audiobook available. Many independent and small press books do not have audiobooks available, but for the ones who do they will be featured here. Unfortunately, I will not be able to do all of the reading for this. I am sure you will see me in videos from time to time, but the responsibilities the Lord has called me to do not leave me with much time. So the videos will be narrated using artificial voices. I agonized over this decision and prayed about it extensively. This is how I can accomplish the task that the Lord has set on my heart. Make our magazine accessible. And don't get me wrong, these videos do still take a great deal of time and effort, but in saving the time taken by narrating I am able to achieve this goal.

If you would like to support this endeavor, become a video sponsor. It is $25 and will give you a short ad in the video as well as a mention anywhere we share about the video or its content. These videos will also come out a whole week ahead of time on our Patreon. So if you want early access to Clean Fiction Audio uploads you can sign up for as little as $1/month at patreon.com/cleanfiction.

Oh and by the way, my friend's poem, the one who started this journey, can be found in the Winter Edition 2023 AND it is great by the way.

Winter Cover Art Contest: Voting has begun and will go through November 11. (Voting is also FREE) Vote for your favorites once per day. This Contest is Sponsored by Author Pam Halter. Find her books, blog, and editing information at PamHalter.com.

Winter Bookstagram Contest: WE NEED MORE SUBMISSIONS! SEND IN YOUR BEST BOOK PHOTO TODAY! While there’s no formal definition for the term, a Bookstagram can be loosely defined as a book lover’s Instagram account that features a collection of artistically composed photos of books. (Credit: Penguin Random House) For the purposes of our contest, a Bookstagram is defined as an artistic photo of a book set in a square format. Do I have to be the author or designer of the book cover to submit? Nope. A photo of your favorite book is just fine. Does my photo have to be recent? Nope. Feel free to submit a photo you have taken in the past. We ask that you don’t submit a photo that has already appeared in past contests. May I submit more than one photo? Please submit only one photo per person. Submissions go through November 11. (Submissions are completely FREE) Voting will begin on November 14 and go through November 26. (Voting is also FREE) See our website “Contest” page for the small print. The winner will receive a $20 Amazon Gift Card and the other Bookstagrams will be included in the magazine along with their submission information. The winner will also receive a certificate with a special 3D-printed medallion. (Available in the USA/Canada only) Simply email info@cleanfictionmagazine.com the following: Your Bookstagram Photo (In JPG or PNG format), Your Name, Book Title, Author’s Name, Social Media Handle, and an Email Address (for contact purposes). This Contest is Sponsored by Author Jessica Bertrand (jessicabertrand.com) and Author C.S. Wachter (cswachter.com).