Slipping in a personal confession here: The Spiritual Journey of a character is one of the most difficult aspects of writing Christian Fiction for me.
In examining why I struggle, I’ve determined it’s because every spiritual journey starts with a lie. Either believing something that isn’t true, or not believing the truth because it isn’t known yet. As the author, I KNOW it’s a lie. I’ve either already been taught the truth, or learned it through experience. The temptation is just to tell my character to stop believing lies and get on with their lives...
And yet, my characters need a spiritual journey, something that they either didn’t know about God when the story started, or something they thought they knew, but that turned out to be untrue.
The Spiritual Journey is the bedrock of the story, so I need to know and understand it fairly early in the plotting process. Once I realized this, plotting that spiritual journey got easier...not like super-easy, but easier than before.
The fun part now is exploring possible lies my character might believe, either through an experience they had, teaching they have been given, or because of their personality type.
- A child who had been abandoned by his parents might have trust issues when it came to his relationship with God.
- A child may have been told over and over that they were an accident, an unplanned, unwanted complication to an otherwise orderly life, and therefore might struggle with feeling unworthy and unloved.
- A type-A personality might struggle with surrendering control, or with the notion that God is Sovereign and His will prevails.
The key to a good spiritual journey is to find one that fits the character’s back-story and personality. If you choose something that is organic to the character, you will be less likely to be accused of sounding ‘preachy.’
Dun-dun-dunnnnnnn. Preachy. The wince-inducing word no Christian Fiction author wants to hear/read in a review.
Novels sound preachy when the author tries to teach the READER a spiritual lesson. Stories where a character learns the truth about a lie they believed, or that enlarge their truth through understanding more fully a spiritual reality, are rarely labeled preachy, because the spiritual journey springs naturally out of the character and plot. There is no "Block of Great Truth Because The Reader Needs To Know It" passages in the book, just a gradual awakening of the characters to a truth.
Truth can be revealed a couple of different ways in your story. Through the plot--what the character experiences can teach them the truth or falsehood of what they believe. Or through a mentor/wise person who counsels and reveals truth to the character.
One word of warning though. When you set your characters on a spiritual journey, you will travel right along with them, learn and relearn what they do, and as a result, both broaden and deepen your understanding of a fundamental truth or two about God.
Consider some of the possible lies your character could believe, and how you could weave that lie into their back story and personality:
Lies that a character might believe about who God is
· Doubt His sovereignty
· Doubt His goodness
· Doubt that He is truly all-knowing
· Doubt His kindness
· Will He be merciful?
· Is God truly faithful?
· Is God Never-changing, or is He capricious?
· Does He hear their prayers?
· Does God keep his promises?
· Does God hold grudges/is vindictive?
· God only wants to punish people for doing bad things
· God is impossible to please
Lies that a character might believe about who they are
· Unworthy
· Unlovable
· That they must get themselves cleaned up in order to approach God
· That God needs their help
· Unable to trust
· Too smart to need God
· That God is just for Sunday- I don’t need Him every day
· That they are a failure/don’t measure up
One word of warning though. When you set your characters on a spiritual journey, you will travel right along with them, learn and relearn what they do, and as a result, both broaden and deepen your understanding of a fundamental truth or two about God.
Consider some of the possible lies your character could believe, and how you could weave that lie into their back story and personality:
Lies that a character might believe about who God is
· Doubt His sovereignty
· Doubt His goodness
· Doubt that He is truly all-knowing
· Doubt His kindness
· Will He be merciful?
· Is God truly faithful?
· Is God Never-changing, or is He capricious?
· Does He hear their prayers?
· Does God keep his promises?
· Does God hold grudges/is vindictive?
· God only wants to punish people for doing bad things
· God is impossible to please
Lies that a character might believe about who they are
· Unworthy
· Unlovable
· That they must get themselves cleaned up in order to approach God
· That God needs their help
· Unable to trust
· Too smart to need God
· That God is just for Sunday- I don’t need Him every day
· That they are a failure/don’t measure up
These are just a sampling of possible lies for our characters to believe.
What others are out there? If you’re a reader, what spiritual journey lies have you read that resonate with you? If you’re a writer, what spiritual journey lies have you incorporated in your stories?
Best-selling, award-winning author Erica Vetsch loves Jesus, history, romance, and sports. She’s a transplanted Kansan now living in Minnesota, and she is married to her total opposite and soul mate! When she’s not writing fiction, she’s planning her next trip to a history museum and cheering on her Kansas Jayhawks and New Zealand All Blacks. You can connect with her at her website, www.ericavetsch.com where you can read about her books and sign up for her newsletter, and you can find her online at https://www.facebook.com/EricaVetschAuthor/ where she spends way too much time!
AVAILABLE NOW! Mail-Order Mishaps! Get your copy today!
The Galway Girl
Kansas, 1875
A mail-order mix-up sends Irish lass Maeve O’Reilly to the Swedish community of Lindsborg, Kansas. Will Kaspar Sandberg consider it a happy accident or a disaster to be rectified as soon as possible?
Good morning, Erica.
ReplyDeleteThis is such an interesting post. Many years ago, I saw a template for mapping out the spiritual arc along with the GMC and the plot. It was SO good, but of course I have never been able to find it again. It really would have been helpful to me now, working to fully integrate the strands. SO if anyone knows what I'm talking about, please send it my way!
"A type-A personality might struggle with surrendering control, or with the notion that God is Sovereign and His will prevails."
This applies to both the hero and my heroine in my current WIP. It causes clashes between them, but also within them. Thanks for all the ideas to help clarify as I work through this.
Cate, if you ever find that template again, let us know! That sounds like it would be super helpful!
DeleteI like reading stories where the Hero and Heroine struggle with the same spiritual journey, but often come at it from different directions.
Kinda like real life sometimes!
Great post, Erica! And great timing. I was just thinking about this with my current WIP last night (when I should have been sleeping!)
ReplyDeleteMy heroine's spiritual journey is clear to me. She has been a secondary character in the first two books in the series, so I had already laid the groundwork for her character.
But my hero's journey has been harder to put my finger on. Describing the beginning of the journey as a lie is perfect! He was raised by his grandfather who had a bad experience with religion growing up. That suspicion and distrust is my hero's lie - his beginning point. And once you have a beginning point, you can build the journey!
Thank you!
And I can't wait to read "The Galway Girl." It's one of the few books I didn't pack in preparation for our move later this summer. Lindsborg was one of my favorite towns to visit when we lived in Kansas, and I'm looking forward to revisiting it through your story!
I wasn't sleeping last night when I should have been, either! My business computer had been acting up all day, so I gave it a time out while I went to a writer's meeting. When I got home at about 11 pm, the silly thing decided to work, so I did company bookkeeping until the wee sma's.
DeleteI hope you enjoy Lindsborg via The Galway Girl. I love that story, since it is set about 20 miles from my hometown. :)
Erica, thanks. This is something I struggle with. I don't want to make it too formulaic and "come-to-Jesus," even though they are Coming To Jesus. Of course it has to arise naturally from the character. In my debut this September, Caroline is already a Christian, won by the patient love of her late first husband. But she still struggles with forgiving Michael for what he did to her, so that's her spiritual journey. Michael, on the run from what happened in Ireland, has no use for religion until he sees an example in her sacrificial love. And it all plays out against the rigors, and the horrors, of the Oregon Trail.
ReplyDeleteReaders probably don't like a paint-by-number approach to the faith journey, and they shouldn't.
My characters tend to a) think they're not good enough for God; b) see God as an exacting taskmaster, usually because of some experience with their own father; and/or c) think they can do it all themselves and are afraid to surrender control. Until they come up against something they CAN'T control.
Really this is what we're all about, right? I have so many memories of novels I read that taught me something about God. The Zion Chronicles were a game-changer for me, both professionally and spiritually, along with Teri Blackstock's series on The Pulse.
I usually try to weave it into my initial plotting -- the physical journey, the spiritual journey and the emotional journey.
In and out today, wish I were more "in," love to see how this develops.
Kathy Bailey
"A Home For the Heart"
Your story sounds delightful! Lots of conflict, both physical and spiritual! :)
DeleteI do have a couple of marketing questions, but I didn't want to get them mixed in with the craft stuff.
ReplyDeleteHas anybody gotten business cards from Vistaprint, and how did they turn out? Was it a good experience?
Has anybody done anything with Drop Cards? My crit partner was researching ways I could sell my e-book (YOU CAN'T HAVE HER SHE'S MINE), and she found a thing called a Drop Card where I believe you have a code loaded on to the card, kind of like a credit card, and then you sell the CARD at events and the buyer downloads the card to their Kindle?
Oh boy this is going to be a wild ride...
KB
Can't help with Drop Cards, but I can vouch for Vistaprint. I've always been happy with my business cards from them!
DeleteThank you, Jan.
DeleteYes, Vistaprint has done all my business cards, and they're great! As for Drop Cards, I have seen them but never used them myself. The only thing I can think of is that you'll need to be sure to include instructions on the card. You might have people who can't figure out how to use them. Another option might be to use the cards to send people to Book Funnel because I've heard they have great customer service and their people can walk your readers through the process if they're technically challenged.
DeleteYes to VistaPrint. They've done nice work for me in the past, and lots of authors I know use them for bookmarks, business cards, etc.
DeleteI've not heard of Drop Cards before. I'd be interested to see how that works.
I use VistaPrint! They're great!
DeleteErica, this is really good stuff. I always have a hard time with "THE LIE" and I've never been sure why. But maybe you hit the nail on the head with the idea that I (the writer) already know how the lie is wrong but I don't want to hurt my characters in the process of their learning what I already know. And isn't that the way with God and us? If He didn't let us learn these things on our own, we wouldn't have a story to tell.
ReplyDeleteSo my WIP has a woman who once overheard that her mother never wanted her along with a father she's never known and a husband who left her. She feels unwanted and unworthy. My hero was in an accident and is fighting to figure out who he is if he can't do what he's always done. He needs to find his own worth in himself and who God says he is, not in his achievements. Both lessons this author needs to discover as well :)
Phew. That was pretty heady on only my first cup of coffee! I'm bookmarking this post. So much good stuff here! Thank you !!
Glynis, I think those sound like great lessons to learn! Lots of room for conflict in there, too.
DeleteGlynis, I'm so glad you found the post helpful. Sometimes, just knowing why I'm having a hard time can help me find a solution to the problem.
DeleteYour story sounds loaded with spiritual conflict! Well done!
Erica, what a great post! I totally agree about learning something in my own faith journey with each book. I often find myself writing about what God is teaching me at the time. It makes the writing so much more meaningful!
ReplyDeleteMissy, you're quicker on the uptake than I am. I often don't know what God is teaching me until after the story is finished!
DeleteErica, this wonderful post just helped me nail the final part of my heroine's GMC! I knew I was missing a piece of her character and it was her LIE. :) Thank you - I've bookmarked this post as well. I just needed that extra bit of conflict for the two of them. I always learn so much from you Seekers. Thank you for kickstarting my week! :)
ReplyDeleteLaurie! Yay! So glad you found this helpful. Happy Monday, and I hope the words flow like Niagara Falls (Do you have any idea how many times I had to type Niagara before I got it right? Yikes!) for you this week!
DeleteGreat post, Erica. Lots of good things for me to think about in my writing.
ReplyDeleteHi, Sandy! Happy Monday! I'm glad you enjoyed the post! :)
DeleteI love this post, Erica!
ReplyDelete:) Thanks, Mary!
DeleteHi Erica:
ReplyDeleteOne can believe all the right truths and renounce all the right lies and yet without an abiding faith all is naught.
I think an important question to answer will always be what events along the spiritual arc motivated the acquisition of that kind of deep faith?
Vince
I agree, Vince. No one believes what they do outside of context. And a character's backstory will inform their faith. Without it, they won't have depth, and you can come across as 'preachy.' Which no one wants!
DeleteIt is one of the joys of writing that I didn't expect--the way God uses the story to work in the author's heart right along with the characters!
ReplyDeleteIt can be a bit disconcerting, can't it? And yet refreshingly wonderful. An assurance that God is Sovereign and All-knowing, interested in our lives and weaving our stories together for His glory!
DeleteDead humbling, isn't it?
What a great post with so much information! Thank you for sharing!
ReplyDeleteEdwina! So nice to see you at Seekerville today!
DeleteI especially enjoy reading about characters that feel unworthy or they don’t measure up. Thank you for your insight.
ReplyDeleteLucy, isn't it neat how we can find a particular spiritual journey that resonates with us? I love reading stories about characters who doubt the Goodness of God, and then He comes through for them in an unmistakable way.
DeleteLove the LIE!!! I'm working on a secret baby story. Yes, there's a lie! :)
ReplyDeleteooo, That's a lie packed with spiritual implications! Don't we put our characters through the mangle sometimes???
DeleteOh, my goodness. This is such a wonderful post, Erica. Loads of great information here. No lying there. Ha! I have some characters who are believing a few lies. This makes me want to torture them. And I don't even write suspense!
ReplyDeleteWe are so terrible to our characters, aren't we? And yet, no conflict, no story!
DeleteI just finished reading " Wooing Cadie McCaffrey" and the lie she believed about God was that not all things were possible with God. The lie was subtly weaven throughout the story and it was such a huge reveal and turning point for Cadie when she realized she actually believed it. It was well done. Thanks for sharing this post Erica. From, Lee-Ann
ReplyDeleteHi, Lee-Ann, that is a wonderful spiritual arc for a character. Bethany writes great rom-com, doesn't she?
DeleteYes! This was the first book I've read of hers and her writing just drew me in. Looking forward to reading more of her stuff.
DeleteVetsch, this is a marvelous post... and I was farm working yesterday or I'd have told you then!
ReplyDeleteI love the spiritual journeys for characters... now I find it hard to write a solid story without that embedded because I want them fixed! I want them to realize that it's not all about me, me, me or them, them, them...
To get over themselves and move on, the goofs!
But that journey is like that flesh and blood of the story and weaving it makes me so happy... except that I always weave it too quickly the first time through, then have to go back and pick up those warp threads and fix things.
But I love the premise of lies! :)
You had me at hello!!!!
:) You do such a good job of bringing people to the realization of truth that has been there all along!
DeleteIn fiction AND in real life!
:D
ERICA, Thank you for this wonderful post! Unable to trust is the lie that resonates with me.
ReplyDeleteHi, Caryl, that one resonates with me too because it's such a daily choice.
DeleteRequest for Part II
ReplyDeleteHi Erica:
You did such a great job on listing the reasons to doubt God and believe the 'lies', I love to see a part II in which you list ways to overcome each of these objections. I think not having real strong reasons to overcome these objections is one of the weak spots in Christian fiction.
BTW: I've come up with a slogan for Sunday School:
It's not enough to believe,
you have to believe enough.
Vince
Vince, I'll have to put some thought into that one. It might be more difficult to nail down, because the motivation to overcome would be unique to each character/story situation. The reason to search for a different answer would have to grow organically out of the plot and the character's personality, mindset, and who might be a voice of wisdom to that character to inform them of the fallacy of their current thinking.
DeleteErica, I love your approach! Thank you so much for a thought-provoking post. I heard what I believed to be a lie about God just yesterday. My termite inspector told me that termites have a place in God's kingdom--eating trees that fall in the forest--but God didn't realize back at the time of Creation that his children would eventually build houses of wood. I am certain that this man was sincere in his statement, but it is in direct conflict with my belief that God is all-knowing, the Alpha and the Omega, unbound by our construct of time. When you're writing, how do you pick a good lie? How do you decide what lies to let slide and what lies to pursue? How does this sort of theological difference of opinion play out with your publisher? I am really curious. This kind of discernment could be invaluable to those of us still on unpubbed island!
ReplyDeleteI'm with you, Elizabeth. God knows all of it, and He's not surprised that termites eat our houses.
DeleteThe spiritual lies I pursue in my fiction all have to stem from the characters, the plot, and the story I want to tell. It almost picks itself by the time I've set up the story structure. Either that or I have to write a few chapters and really dig into who the characters are, and then what they believe is revealed to me.
As to theological differences of opinion...each publisher, and each editor are different, but there are overarching themes that are always similar. God exists. God loves. God is good. God listens. Those are broad stroke issues.
I try to keep in mind that I'm not writing a dissertation on my eschatology or soteriology. I'm writing a story. My story plots don't hang on whether my character is a pre-millenialist or an amillenialist, or whether I'm a Calvinist or Armenian.
When it comes to choosing a spiritual arc for my characters, I keep it fairly basic so that the truth can come through naturally without me having to break out my college theology books. :)
Thank you for taking the time to answer. I love a good tangle. I need to stick to the basics. God is with us.
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