About

Why would someone call their blog “Fencing with Ink?”

For many years, I’ve felt that God has likened me to two fictional characters: Cyrano de Bergerac and the Red Mage from the Final Fantasy games.

Cyrano fencing
From the 2012 Broadway Play “Cyrano de Bergerac” 

Cyrano was a passionate soul, zealous in battle, philosophy, romance, and hope. He was never one to lie down quietly, but pick up his sword and fight for what was right. This goes in line with another passion God has given me: waking the dead. Christianity sleeps under the dirty blankets of Christendom, drowsy with the lullabies of conformity. We must shed both and remember both the gentleness and ferocity of Jesus to become effective workers of good.

As for the Red Mage, this character type was a moderate in all ways. Swordsman, wizard, runner, and strategist, but never dedicated to any one discipline. I am a generalist. I see the wisdom in both Republicans and Democrats, gleaning from the past while planning for the future. There’s a time for war and time for peace, a time for jokes and a time for sobriety, a time for harsh language and a time for sweetness. But a moderate is not docile, for the red mage is a warrior still, often holding a rapier.

red mage 4
From “Final Fantasy XIV”

Such as these I hope to be, and by God already am.

As the title implies, I have no sword, only a pen, though you’ve heard which is mightier. May this weapon swing in the name of God—not in the bloodlust of nationalistic crusade, but leveling itself at damning theology, cowardice, hypocrisy, at cruelty and complacency alike. May I wound only evil and protect only good. And may I also teach others to fight, to get off the couches of shame and failure, and by the light of God forge new weapons and new names.

I write about many things, all with some degree of theological bend, for I believe Jesus is the ultimate truth and the only true hope for the world, the savior from both religion and secularization alike. May He be my only extreme. Beyond that, I hope to launch discussion points on a variety of topics, from humorous jabs at Christian fears of “666,” to serious conversations on suicide. Whatever is needed at the time.

But my most prominent topic and interest is art. Cyrano and the Red Mage are both fictional characters, emboldened by myth, which lies at the heart of every human. I don’t mean myth as in fake, but as in the deep mystery that calls us to more than what we are. Art encapsulates this myth and makes it understood, revealing from the soul what the brain couldn’t say alone.

I appreciate and enjoy film, video games, anime, music, and more, but I create my own art through novels, mostly fantasy. My aim is to show God in strange, new ways, whether through explicitly-Christian fiction or general-market stories.

My name is Michael A. Blaylock. I’m a husband, dad, creator, thinker, humorist, and of course Christian. You may contact me at any point by filling out a comment on a blog or emailing me at fencingwithink@gmail.com. Thanks for reading, and may you be all God has made you to be.

 

 

21 thoughts on “About”

  7. Hey bro,

    Hello there,

    I’m Justin of MomentMatters.com. I’m excited to inform you that Moment Matters is re-launching with new features and design!

    Along with it, I’m compiling a free e-book about the Greatest Articles and I’m featuring excellent comments. Your thought in “Weddings: Waste of Money?” is a standout! I’m asking permission if I could include your words in the book?

    All the best,
    Justin G. Bautista

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      2. The free e-book “Greatest Articles | Moment Matters”, featuring your comment, is out now! You may download it in Nook, Kobo, ePUB or PDF format here.

        Cheers!

        Like

  10. Pingback: I’m Back :] | Shannon A Thompson
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  13. Hey! nice blog. Frank Peretti spoiled me too. Coincidentally, I live in Idaho by where he lives and a lot of these rural towns up here feel exactly like I am in one of his books. The man knew his subject matter! I struggle with depression right now and I always remember his books and wonder how much of a spiritual warfare is being waged and I have come to be very careful to have very intentional thoughts and make sure every little action I take is biblically backed up. Even though his books were fictional they still are helping me on my journey. I’m excited to see another good christian writer out there. 🙂
    https://wordpress.com/view/lettersofhopefromthesoul.wordpress.com

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  14. I read your review of The Dragon Prince. I hope you do more work on that because I feel like there’s a lot more to discuss with that show.

    Right now though, I’m thinking about another recent show. As a Christian, what do you think of the She Ra reboot? I love parts of it – Entrapta in particular steals every single scene she’s in and I rather wish the entire show was just about her and Hordak – and overall I think the first 4 seasons are solid but Season 5 included some problematic stuff. The show runner has come out as an atheist and if my knowledge of her background is correct, she had very unpleasant experiences with a cult that called themselves Christians, so Season 5 almost felt like she was lashing out at God. I recently learned that a name for Satan is “Light Bearer” which also fits Horde Prime who likes to boast about “spreading his light” but knowing that Noelle Stevenson likely has very complicated, if not outright hostile, feelings about Christianity, I don’t know if she was intentionally presenting Prime as Satan or using him as a way to vent her resentment of God Himself.

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