To: Joshua Schmidt
Re: Comprehensive Review of 18-Book(s) from your Portfolio & “Children of the Word” Series
Dear Joshua,
I have completed a comprehensive review of your submitted portfolio, covering eighteen titles ranging from your Children of the Word series to your adult theological works. After spending significant time with these texts, I have developed a clear picture of your authorial voice, your theological stance, and the specific market gap you are positioned to fill.
What follows is my professional assessment of the work, the writing style, and the strategic positioning of your library.
1. The Editorial Philosophy: “Anti-Fluff”
The most distinct feature of your writing—and your strongest competitive advantage—is that you refuse to baby the reader. This holds true whether that reader is six years old or forty.
For the Children’s Market: The vast majority of the Christian children’s book market is sanitized. We often see a focus on the cute animals in Noah’s ark rather than the flood itself. Your work (Ebed-Melech, Stephen, Jehosheba) boldly leans into the danger. You treat children as intelligent spiritual beings capable of handling heavy concepts like martyrdom, anxiety, betrayal, and political intrigue. Your branding of “Real Non-Fiction Superhero” is brilliant strategy; it allows you to compete directly with the Marvel/DC hegemony by offering grit and reality instead of fantasy.
For the Adult Market: Your adult titles, such as The Tear of God and The Truth You Won’t Chase, are aggressive in the best possible way. They read less like self-help and more like a wake-up call. You are not trying to comfort people in their complacency; you are trying to shake them awake. The writing is consistently punchy, declarative, and authoritative.
2. Structural Analysis: The Ancient/Modern Bridge
The specific formula you have developed for the Children of the Word series is a structural asset that separates you from 99% of the market.
The Bridge: Many children disengage from Bible stories because they feel like ancient history with no relevance to Minecraft or school hallways. By immediately pivoting from the biblical narrative to a modern parable (Austin, Taylor, Madelyn, Everett), you force the theology to become practical.
Character Selection: Your choice to focus on “B-side” Bible characters is a masterstroke. While the market is flooded with books about David, Esther, and Daniel, you are writing about Abijah, Jehosheba, and Ebed-Melech. This makes the series feel fresh and necessary, as these are powerful stories that are currently untold in the mainstream.
3. The Emotional Core (The “Why”)
Having Our personal Interview and having reviewed specific dedications to your children—Taylor, Austin, Madelyn, and Everett—the intensity of the books now makes perfect sense. There is a teaching and protective fatherly energy driving every page.
Gideon/Austin: This isn’t just a story about a man in a winepress; it is a letter to a son you feel has been beaten down by manipulation, telling him he is a warrior.
Elijah/Taylor: You are preparing a daughter to stand against a false narrative she has been fed.
Tabitha/Madelyn: You are validating a child who serves quietly to ensure she knows she is seen.
Stephen/Everett: You are teaching a kind-hearted boy that his kindness is a weapon, not a weakness.
Critique: This personalization makes the writing visceral. It does not read like the typical theology textbook; it reads like a father fighting for his children’s souls. That raw emotion bleeds through the text and is what gives the work its power.
4. Stylistic Breakdown
Pacing: You utilize short, staccato sentences effectively (e.g., “He didn’t scream. He didn’t perform. He just prayed.”). This creates a rhythm of conviction that keeps the reader moving.
Imagery: You excel at grounding high theological concepts in “dirt and sweat.” You speak of the mud of the cistern, the crutches on the marble floor, and the dust of the threshing floor. This sensory language makes the stories feel real rather than abstract.
The “Turn”: Every book contains a “Turn”—a moment where you flip the script. For example, reframing silence not as God ignoring us, but as God inviting us closer. You are highly skilled at taking a common complaint (unanswered prayer, loneliness) and flipping it into a spiritual strength.
5. Market Positioning & Verdict
If I were to offer one observation regarding marketability, it is regarding the intensity of the work. These books are heavy. Stephen deals with stoning; Jehosheba deals with the slaughter of infants; Crushed But Not Cursed deals with torture.
The Verdict: This is not a weakness, but it defines your specific niche. You are writing for families who want meat, not milk. You are writing for parents who are exhausted by the “soft” version of Christianity. Your marketing strategy needs to lean heavily into that identity. You are the alternative to the “Precious Moments” version of faith.
Summary
You have built a cohesive, gritty, and deeply personal library of work and I cannot wait to Read the other 80+ titles. You are not writing to entertain; you are writing to equip. The consistency across all the 18 books I have read is impressive, and your dual-story format is a winning formula.
Sincerely,
Brother in Christ A. Carter
Literary Reviewer
