Update (April 22, 2019) Southern Comfort, my novel with a blind character, came out earlier this year. I happened to recall my old blog post and wanted to let all know about this wonderful, deep, thought-provoking love tale! 

I haven’t read the first two books listed below, but I do plan on buying them and reading them sometime in the future and featuring them on my blog. The reason they interest me is because both books have a blind person as the main character. Also, I think it’s a strange coincidence that both books were released in June by two different publishers! Just odd, that’s all. I’m not saying it implies anything, but I have to wonder if more Christian publishers would be open to the idea of having a blind protagonist in the novel. I’m under the impression that I’m having a hard time finding an agent for my novel because of the blindness in the novel, but, it’s just purely speculation on my part.

I’m currently working on a contemporary fiction novel with a blind male character. I’ve recently had two agents to show interest from my sample chapters and proposal, one agent said that the way I wrote the story from Carl’s (my blind hero) POV was startlingly realistic since I used no visuals and she requested the full manuscript. However, she warned me that it might be a hard sell, and she was interested in me as a writer (like where did I see my career in the long run.) The other agent rejected it yesterday. She said she was impressed with my writing, but said she was having a lot of trouble selling literary fiction these days. I don’t really think of my novel as literary, but, go figure! She went on to say that she’d be happy to represent me for romances that I wrote in the future, though. I’ve been searching off and on for an agent over the last year or so for this project, and, so far, they have glowing things to say about the manuscript, but don’t offer representation. Sometimes, they’ll offer to look at another project, or, they’ll say they don’t see a place in the market for this novel. This book is my special baby, and I want to give birth to it! Since this novel is not contracted, I’m going to have to abandon working on it until August. I need to switch gears and work on the novel that Barbour has contracted from me that is due August 1. I’m hoping to have the full manuscript completed by the time of the conference. I would have completed this project sooner, however, when Barbour offered me contracts on three novels, I had to abandon my baby and only work on it as time allowed.

The reason why this book is special to me is because I’m using bits and pieces of my husband’s life interspersed within the story. I know a lot about blindness because my hubby is totally blind, and he works for the federal government as a computer programmer. So, I have knowledge about blind people in the working world, the special equipment they’d use, and the way their daily life may be. I believe that is why I was able to portray my hero so realistically.

I do recall reading a novel with a blind heroine in the Amish community a long time ago. It was a Beverly Lewis novel. I also have that novel listed below. Like the other ones listed, this character loses her sight later in life.

Have any of you read any other Christian fiction with blind protagonists? If so, what are the titles and who are the authors? I want to add them to my to-be-read pile.

This whole subject came to mind for my blog when Marlo Schalesky was a guest on one of my writers’ loops for a week. We read her bio and were invited to ask her questions. When I read about her books, I had lots of questions for her! I’m looking forward to reading her novels in the future. When I read that the character in her current book was going blind, I asked her how hard it was to write from that point of view.

Then, last Friday, I was going through the registration process for the ACFW conference in Minneapolis. As I was researching different publishers’ websites to help me decide which editors I should request an appointment with, I found the book entitled Together.

My novel differs from the ones listed below because my male protagonist was born blind, so I’m writing from the viewpoint from somebody who has never had any vision. It’s a bit of a challenge writing this way because I have to rely on all the other senses when I’m in his point of view.

Do any of you think you’d like to read a book written like this? I have another point of view from the heroine, who is sighted. I don’t think I could have written a full 400-page novel from one viewpoint! Although I’ve seen this done!

Also, if you’ve read any of the novels listed below, feel free to leave your comments about those, too. I will be posting the winners to my last drawing either tomorrow or later this week.

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Together
A Novel of Shared Vision
Jacketed Hardcover
By Tom Sullivan
Thomas Nelson Publishers
Hardcover: 240 pages
Publisher: Thomas Nelson (June 3, 2008)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1595544569
ISBN-13: 978-1595544568
From Amazon.com
Sometimes you can’t see what matters most until it’s gone.
Brenden McCarthy feels like he’s lost everything. His fiancee. His
independence. And his passion for life. All due to one tragic misstep
while mountain climbing that cost him his sight.
But he’s about to gain the last thing he ever expected.
A big-hearted black Labrador named Nelson who’s given one last shot at
being a Seeing Eye dog.
Both are beyond hope and resigned to live alone. And both are about to
experience a bond of friendship that develops when they least expect
it.
Together is a heartwarming story for anyone who’s ever lost sight of
what matters most in life . . . but has hope that there’s more.

Beyond The Night
by Marlo Schalesky
Paperback: 304 pages
Publisher: Multnomah Books (June 17, 2008)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1601420161
ISBN-13: 978-1601420169
From Amazon.com
Product Description
They say love is blind. This time they’re right…

As a woman lies unconscious in a hospital bed, her husband waits beside
her, urging her to wake up and come home. Between them lies an ocean of
fear and the tenuous grip of memories long past. Memories of wonder. Of
love. Memories of a girl named Madison and a boy named Paul…
Madison Foster knew she was going blind. But she didn’t want
pity–not from her mother, not from her roommate, and especially not
from her best friend Paul–the man she secretly loved.
Paul Tilden knew a good thing when he saw it. And a good thing was his
friendship with Maddie Foster. That is, until he started to fall in
love.
With the music of the seventies as their soundtrack and its groovy
fashions as their scenery, Maddie and Paul were drawn together and
driven apart. Then one night changed everything…forever.
And only now, when life tiptoes past the edge of yesterday, along the
rim of today, can they glimpse the beauty that awaits them…beyond the
night.

The Crossroad by Beverly Lewis
Paperback: 320 pages
Publisher: Bethany House Publishers; Repack edition (January 1, 2007) THIS IS THE REPACK EDITION. I READ THIS NOVEL WAY BEFORE 2007, SO IT WAS ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED SEVERAL YEARS AGO.
Language: English
ISBN-10: 076420341X
ISBN-13: 978-0764203411
Book Description
After the dramatic conclusion to his discovery of a long-lost postcard, journalist Philip Bradley simply cannot forget the Amish people he met while on assignment in Pennsylvania–particularly Rachel Yoder and her young daughter, Annie. Rachel’s cheerful outlook, in spite of her blindness, and her appealing, uncomplicated lifestyle beckon Philip amid the high-paced existence of his New York career. Philip’s newfound knowledge of the true reason for Rachel’s loss of sight spurs him on to uncover what he can about the possibility for a cure. In Lancaster County, Rachel has her own ideas about the way her vision might be restored, and it doesn’t include the local healer and his black box. Now, Rachel firmly believes the God she serves is the only One who can grant her sight, but as the memories of the trauma she suffered begin to resurface, Rachel questions whether she can bear the agonizing road to recovery. Drawn back to Lancaster County over the Christmas holidays, Philip struggles with the vast gulf separating him from the beautiful Plain woman. Rachel has suffered unbearable heartache; will his growing affection for her only bring more of the same? Or must Philip and Rachel sacrifice a future together for the sake of all they know and love?

There’s a review posted for John’s Quest at the cataromance site.

~Cecelia Dowdy~