Interview: Scott Rankin, Author of THE CHRISTIAN CHRISTMAS CONDITION #Interview

Scott Rankin graduated with a degree in music education and spent his 20’s and 30’s as a successful music director, visual designer for marching groups, and a professional clinician for high school and college music programs.

In 2009 he was injured in a bicycle accident where he was instantly paralyzed. Today as a healing quadriplegic, Scott’s passion for teaching has been re-focused from music to writing Christian books and public speaking.

Scott Rankin is a gifted educator and effective public speaker. His ability to take complex subject matter, break it into bite-size pieces, and re-assemble those through simple, logical, and enjoyable teaching techniques makes his material easy to understand and hard to forget!

WEBSITE & SOCIAL LINKS:

Website:  https://www.ScottRankin.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/ChristianCondition

"So, what is the real reason for the Christmas season? How did Christmas celebrations begin? How does God want us to use Christmas to worship and honor His Son? These are some great questions, and that is what we are going to cover in this book."

--From THE CHRISTIAN CHRISTMAS CONDITION

 

Welcome to The Writer's Life!  Now that your book has been published, we’d love to find out more about the process.

 

When did you come up with the idea to write your book? 

When we had our first child my wife asked the question, what are we going to do about Santa Claus?  Vague question huh?  I didn't know how to respond because in my mind it was obvious that we would do for our kids what I had always experienced.  Our kids would receive all the joy I was covered with, or more.  My wife re-directed the question and focused in on the subject of lying to our children.  Honey, if we tell them that a fictitious character was indeed real and the one bringing them presents, then we are lying and God tells us not to lie.

Who is your publisher and how did you find them or did you self-publish?   

I decided early on to take the route of self-publishing mainly because I was ignorant.  I did not know anything about how the publishing world worked so when a good friend suggested that I consider self-publishing through Amazon because it was cheaper and easier, I simply took his advice and moved forward because I trusted him.  Oh my goodness!  In taking this path I quickly ran into challenging situations of having to seek out, interview, and manage the book editing company myself, coordinate and manage the book cover design by myself, researching and composing a good portion of the inside front cover material and Copyright all-by-myself.  All this to say, it was not as easy a task as I originally thought it would be to make sure that it was well done and that my book could hold it’s own against a sea of professionally published books out there.  In the end I learned much and have since developed a huge appreciation for those people who manage all these tiny but important elements of a book that not many people pay attention to between the front cover and chapter one.

Is there anything that surprised you about getting your first book published?   

Sure, all the mountains of tasks needed to be done after the text is complete!

Do you believe a book cover plays an important role in the selling process?   

Absolutely.  As much as I would dream about everyone spreading the word about my book from person to person seeing a viral explosion of excitement through personal word of mouth recommendations, I know that is not the case for thousands of great people out there who will come in contact with my book for the very first time.  Unfortunately, we live in a world that is both highly dependent upon and extremely critical of visual first impressions.  The decision to even open my book may be made in a split second from just a glance of the cover design.  Isn’t that sad but true for many of our life encounters? 

How hard was it to write a book like this and do you have any tips that you could pass on which would make the journey easier for other writers?   

Coming up with the content and ideas was not a problem at all.  The topic question, the direction, format, the research, it all seemed to come pretty easy, but not by my doing.  When I finally dedicated myself to sit down and design the flow, all I had to do was talk with my wife, ask her questions, pray to God and just sit back and listen for His answers.  All that credit goes to my wife and God who provided so much of the mental material.  However, as a quadriplegic it is very uncomfortable to sit, and because my hands have been locked up into a closed fist position since the accident, typing anything is a stressful and cardiovascular workout for me because I get winded and have to take breaks every few minutes.  I can turn my hands inside over and type with the tips of my thumbs one keystroke at a time pivoting from the shoulder joint, but because of those physical limitations what could have taken me just a couple of months to type out and refine was instead a lengthy and arduous 2-year process – but well worth it! Free tips for others… don’t give up.

What other books are you working on and when will they be published?   

I am thrilled to share that I have now sketched out the rough draft framework for three new book ideas.  One dives head-first into the topic of baptism, answering questions like - Is baptism required for salvation or just an optional choice of convenience?  Is baptism considered a work of our own deeds or necessary obedience to Christ?  Since I have a teenager and a twelve-year old coming up fast, this is an important topic I want to answer for myself, them, and others.  Another book idea picks up where The Christian Christmas Condition leaves off and engages the reader in asking specific questions about other parts of our lives that have been conditioned by the world.  A third book idea explores the topic of how our reactions to fear greatly affects our lives and testimony.  As Christians, should we be purposefully putting ourselves into positions of' fear?  How do the decisions we make which are rooted in fear trickle down and affect our promotion of God's kingdom and even the outcome of our own daily experiences?  What are we not seeing that is ripping us off spiritually from the blessings God already has laid aside for us?  This book would share tools of how to quickly spot and recognize fear and shut it down in its tracks so the we can start operating in confidence more often and reap the benefits that God already has in store for His confident children.

What’s one fact about your book that would surprise people? 
  

Even with a snowy Christmas book cover and discussions about Christmas activities, in the very end… it's not about Christmas at all!  And to add, the best time to read it is outside of the Christmas Holidays.

Finally, what message are you trying to get across with your book?  

 If I opened up and answered this question I would be revealing the hidden secret message!  But if you do need a teaser or a hint, you could try this:  If I did my job correctly as the writer, teacher, and most importantly an ambassador for God’s truth, then the reader should walk away with a vivid viewpoint of Christmas from God's perspective, actively loving differently, purposefully living differently, and how the world might describe it… boldly sharing a Christmas spirit all year long!

  

Thank you again for this interview!  Do you have any final words?

Let God lead.  Then be willing to follow!  He knows the most scenic and enjoyable route for you to enjoy your life and selflessly bless others at the same time.  It would honor Him the most and simultaneously it would be His gift to you.

-         Be blessed, Scott