BBAW Guests: Ann Dayton and May Vanderbilt

(A shout out to those who blog about Christian fiction...)

The Virtual Body

When we started blogging, a little over two years ago, we didn't have any grand plan. We talked about the idea of blogging, and we both thought that at first we'd just hop on now and then when we thought of it. We weren't sure if it would be worth the time investment. We weren't sure anyone would care. But it seemed like good discipline to have to come up with topics and write about them regularly, and we thought it might be a good way to share a little bit more about ourselves than would fit in an author bio. We took the plunge. We started small, and our little blog sort of stumbled into this world instead of proclaiming its presence loud and proud. Two years later, our blog has not only changed how we connect with our readers, it's completely changed our lives.

Anne:

When we started blogging, I was hoping people would read our posts, but I kind of suspected only my dad and a few close friends would follow it. What I didn't expect was to find friends. Real, genuine people I care about. I guess I always thought the nature of the virtual world set up a kind of distance between bloggers and readers, but it's actually been the exact opposite experience for us.

I've found myself powerfully drawn into the lives of people I never would have met otherwise. I've been surprised how easy it is to get drawn into someone's life, to care about them and their family and their world, and to make a real connection. I never really understood how powerful it can be to share your life with someone, but that's something we do—all bloggers do—every day. I've found friends all over the country, and all over the world, who are a part of my life now, whether or not I ever meet them in person.

I think my favorite unexpected thing about blogging is when readers write to us and suggest a blog topic. Maybe they've been wondering about how other people feel about yoga, or they found some crazy apocalyptic video, or some hilarious Christian art (for some reason the apocalypse and bad religious art seem to come up on our blog a lot, now that I think about it…) that they know will make us laugh. It constantly amazes me how people who we've never met know what amuses us and what we like to talk about, and it makes me realize I am a part of something much bigger than I ever imagined. It feels good.

May

Sometimes it's hard being a Christian who lives in San Francisco proper, loves America's Next Top Model, and lives a very human, utterly flawed life. What I hadn't anticipated about blogging, and what has been the biggest gift it has given back to me, is the feeling that I'm not alone, that there are other Christians like me. Too often on TV and in books, Christians are 100% holy and perfect--and I don't always feel that way in my personal journey. But with blogging, I've discovered that so many people struggle. It never fails, every time I blog about something like how I hate passing the offering plate without putting something in, even though I know that I give electronically, our readers will chime in and say, "Me too, May!"

In the early years of the church, a huge emphasis was put on building a body of believers and living as a community. In today's modern world, it's harder than ever to accomplish this. I work in a little cube all day, I go to the same church each Sunday, and frequent the same cafes. Blogging has given me the opportunity to vastly expand my community and connect across thousands of miles, many different age groups, and extremely different backgrounds.

As much as we put into the blog, I have come to believe that we get so much more out of it in return. It's really fun to share our struggles, triumphs, and woes with a vast body of people. Plus, we have many readers who are not Christians, and to me, that's very exciting. It's important to be welcoming to all people and to learn how they see the world and what issues concern them.

Anne Dayton graduated from Princeton and has her MA in Literature from New York University. She lives in New York City. May Vanderbilt graduated from Baylor University and has an MA in Fiction from Johns Hopkins. She lives in San Francisco. Together, they are the authors of Emily Ever After, Consider Lily, and The Book of Jane. Read more about them at their blog www.anneandmay.com.

They also wrote The Miracle Girls, which I loved a lot. You can read my review here.
Hachette Book Group is giving away two copies. I think you know the drill by now with Hachette giveaways, open through Friday, United States or Canadian mailing address. Leave a comment and tell me about a unique friendship you have in real life or through blogging.