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'Left Behind" author wraps up hit series |
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Written by Paul Asay, McClatchy-Tribune
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Saturday, 07 April 2007 |
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Author Jerry Jenkins has teamed with Tim LaHaye to sell more than 60 million copies of their books in the "Left Behind" series that dramatizes the end of the world and the biblical book of Revelation.
The final installment of the blockbuster series — "Kingdom Come: The Final Victory" — went on sale Tuesday.
Jenkins, of Colorado Springs, shared a few thoughts, via e-mail, on the end of the age.
Q: One would think that, with the return of Christ, we officially would've hit the "happily ever after" stage of your narrative. But there's still quite a bit of tension in this last book, even though Christ has begun his thousand-year reign.
Why, even at this last stage, would people still turn away?
A: That, of course, is the question of the ages. Why did sin enter the Garden of Eden? Why couldn't people follow the rules during the Old Testament age of the Law? Why did (and do) people reject Christ during the age of Grace?
We find that even in the Millennial Kingdom, those born in sin must still decide for themselves what to do with Jesus.
It's as if God has tried all these different ways to reconcile people to Himself, and in the end He has to do all the work Himself.
Of course, for a novelist, it's great that there is still tension and conflict and even sin at the end of time.
This could have been a boring novel if the reign of Christ on earth had resulted in a thousand years of peace. No conflict, no plot.
Q: How large a responsibility is it to, in a sense, "speak" for God? Was it difficult to write dialogue for Jesus?
A: That's always a daunting challenge and the reason I stay as close to Scripture as possible for all of His dialogue.
Q: This is the last of an umpteen-volume saga that has become perhaps THE publishing phenomenon of our time (outside of "Harry Potter").
But what will be the series' literary legacy? Will people be reading these books 10, 20, 50, 100 years from now?
A: Two drawbacks to "classic" status: 1) I have never been mistaken for a "literary" writer, which is generally the style that stands the test of time. 2) We will likely have to go back and update the futuristic stuff, as some of it is already dated (i.e. Buck trying to wire his computer to the phone embedded in the headrest of the plane seat). I would change this to his having a computer that is functional wirelessly even at 30,000 feet, and it won't be long before we're there. Otherwise, the series could begin looking like those movies of the 1950s that try to predict what 1980 will look like.
Q: How has writing these books changed you as a Christian?
A: I have had much the same response as many readers: I am more passionate about my faith, more expectant of the return of Christ, and more concerned (not less, as some critics speculate) about current affairs and improving the state of the world as we know it.
Q: How did you and Tim work together all these years? Did you trade manuscripts back and forth? Were you sometimes in the same room with each other?
Did either of you have moments where you threw up your hands and said "That's it, I've had it with that guy"?
A: I do all the writing. It was his idea and he's the theologian and scholar (not to mention cheerleader), but I get the fun part. I would not have wanted to try to co-write fiction.
He's made it easy by acknowledging that he's not a novelist.
Also, he's 81 (this month), so there's a father-son dynamic that has served us well. I defer to him on the theology; he defers to me on the writing.
We start by his sending me a fairly ambitious workup that includes what the novel should cover biblically, his commentary on those passages, other stuff he's read and agreed or disagreed with on the subject, etc.
Then I write the manuscripts and send him chunks at a time to be sure I'm on track theologically.
Q: You've done so many things outside the "Left Behind" realm, but many readers know you primarily through this series. What are your thoughts and feelings as you put "Left Behind" behind you?
A: It's a melancholy feeling. I never lost enthusiasm for the project, but I needed to do other things between "Left Behind" deadlines to keep the batteries charged. It's been quite an 11 ½-year ride. I'll miss the characters and the ado about the series, but it's also nice to be done.
Q: What did you do to celebrate, after you wrote the book's final words?
A: Enjoyed a nice quiet dinner with my wife at our favorite restaurant in the mountains. I was quite emotional, actually.
The whole thing still seems new to me, but during the "Left Behind" season we saw our kids grow up and become parents themselves.
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