Characters over Events

Recently, some of my readers have asked about what appears to be a gaping hole in Critical Times. Where, they ask, was the cry of peace and security?! In truth, the only time the words "peace and security" show up in the novel is in a bit of dialogue between Luke Harding and Agent Meade, who believes that the stamping out of all religion will bring about "peace and security". This, however, is unrelated to the initial cry made by the United Nations as per our current understanding of the global stage set before the outbreak of the Great Tribulation.

The cry of peace and security doesn't feature in the book because the events in the novel take place just after it occurs, as the US, and then other nations around the world (led by the UN), take aim at Babylon the Great. But why, readers might wonder, would I neglect showcasing such a momentous moment in Critical Times?

Answer: It isn't part of the plot. Critical Times begins as social attitudes towards religion are reaching a tipping point. Most people are already frustrated and disillusioned with the churches, making it a fairly simple matter for the governments to step in and strip the harlot of her wealth. The stage is already set to begin Luke's story, and this is the central plot.

More importantly, Critical Times is a story about characters and themes rather than events. I think, as a Witness writer, it can be tempting (and fun!) to write a story that focuses primarily on events. A good example of this was my first novel, All Things New. Although that book was host to a huge cast of characters, they really existed only to retell the events of the Great Tribulation, Armageddon, and Paradise. They were basically just narrating a historical documentary. (This style of storytelling, incidentally, is called an 'oral history'.) As I wrote in the foreword, the project was started with the goal of exploring the answers to such questions as:

"How would the U.N. attack false religion? How would the Witnesses later be targeted? How would Jehovah protect his people? What would Armageddon be like? What (and who) would be left? How would we reorganize? Communicate? Travel? Rebuild? What would return to perfection be like? How would a perfect child think? What would the Resurrection be like?"

In Critical Times, however, events are no longer the primary focus. Instead, the characters and themes are. While we do get a sense of the changing political scene, societal chaos, and anarchy, (events) these are primarily presented through news snippets that the characters witness as they move through their own personal journeys. While the characters are certainly affected by these external struggles, their conflict is fundamentally internal, and serves as the underlying themes of the book: Luke experiences a paradigm shift as he goes from perpetuating an establishment, to doubting it, to challenging it, to opposing it. Amy, on the other hand, struggles with being torn between her husband and the truth.

The reason I wanted to focus more on characters and themes than on events in Critical Times (and the reason that I will likely continue to do so for future books), is this: to me, the lessons we learn from characters' actions are more valid than guesswork of events that have not yet occurred.

Of course, writing detailed accounts about what may happen in the near future is interesting, exciting, and even thought provoking. But beyond starting conversations, how beneficial is it? This is the question I was forced to ask myself after the completion of All Things New. Don't get me wrong, I still enjoy the book, and if it helps readers to picture themselves in the New World, then mission accomplished.

For Critical Times though, the emphasis was shifted intentionally. Speculation is kept to a bare minimum as the focus shifts: Would Amy be honest with Luke about her studies, or string him along, leading to confrontation? Would Luke turn a blind eye to the violence and militarization of the police, or would he wake up to the insidious aims of his organization? Would the characters rely on Jehovah and listen to the brothers, or would they attempt to do things their own way?

By making the book primarily about the characters and their decisions, I hoped to write a novel that was both entertaining to read, and a tool for self examination. Because regardless of whether or not any of the events mentioned in the book will resemble reality, the lessons contained therein certainly will.