Today we’d like to introduce you to Chris Ahrens.
Hi Chris, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
As a child I amused family and friends with fictional stories in which I was the hero. This habit carried into my teens when I become a surfer. Since our family lived inland, my surfing was generally limited to weekends. Monday mornings found me gathered in the school cafeteria with the few surfers there to share surf stories. Initially, I told how I shot the pier (riding a wave through the cement pilings) on a ten foot wave. Those who had seen me surf, however, quickly called me out as a liar. After that I felt compelled to tell the truth, that I had ridden a few small waves. Quickly realizing that nobody cared for such boring accuracy, I settled upon a middle ground, saying something like, “The surf was six foot when I borrowed a board and broke it trying to shoot the pier. The board’s owner, who was huge and known to be violent, chased me off the beach and I barely escaped. This was believable and everyone wanted to hear more. That, in essence, is how I began my career as a storyteller. My first published stories, which followed the template described above, made me realize that I could write for a living. From there I became a staff writer and editor for various magazines. That led to writing 11 books, ten of which are self published.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
It hasn’t been smooth, but it has been fun. Being a writer has given me an all-access pass to the world and I’ve found myself in the company of everyone from Ozzy Osbourne to Dale Evans. My struggles were never with have good ideas, but in the boring bits–namely learning to write clear, conscious English. I am not a good reader and have never taken a writing class, so I attribute any success I’ve had to a wide variety of experiences and being a good listener. Over all it’s paid about as much as a department store shoe salesman, but what a ride! If it wasn’t adventurous, it wouldn’t have been worth it.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
Many professional writers do little more than rearrange the dictionary. They are good at fancy language, but fail to move the heart anywhere. While risking committing the Mortal sin of sentimentality, my work is all about human emotion. When emotion is forced from someone, they feel violated, It has to be natural in the way Sherwood Anderson, John Steinnbeck and David Foster Wallace brought it to the surface. I am most proud of co-founding Risen Magazine where I interviewed celebrities like: Ozzy Osbourne, Hilary Swank, Wil.I.Am, Tony Hawk, Carlos Santana etc on their spirituality. Many of the aforementioned called me afterward to say that was the best interview they ever had. I feel that most writers are examining the exterior of the car while I look under the hood. Two of my signature questions as an interviewer were: “Where do you see yourself in 10,000 years, and “Do you have any recurring dreams?” My subjects often learned as much about themselves as I did. Yeah, I’m proud of that.
Are there any apps, books, podcasts, blogs or other resources you think our readers should check out?
I love history and Christian apologetics. I currently alternate between two audio books, “The Templars” by Dan Jones, and “Is Atheism Dead?” by Eric Metaxas. I gravitate toward books that show me something I thought I knew. Both books lay out complicated ideas in a clear, orderly way. As well as the information gathered, books like these help me organize my thoughts.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: godngangsters
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/christopher.m.ahrens/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chris-ahrens-645882162/
- Twitter: God N Gangsters@perelandra7
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/GodNGangsters
