You’ve decided you want to write for God but now what? Most writers who feel they want their work to count for God’s kingdom in some way start out with that question. We don’t know how to write for God, what He wants from us, how to write what we feel He’s asking us to write, or how to get that out into the world when we’ve written it. Does it seem like a daunting task to write and publish something and even more so when our main audience is God Himself? I break all of that down in my new book,
The workbook has pages to jot down your thoughts and collect all the information you need as you discover how God created you for this new adventure. You’ll be able to decide what genre suits you best, which format aligns with you as a created individual, your natural talents and spiritual gifts, and how your personality shines through your work.
You’ll also see how you already have the experience you need to start writing now and hone your craft as you build your portfolio.
“God does not callthose who are equipped,He equipsthose whom He has called.” — Smith Wigglesworth
Don’t be fooled into thinking you have nothing original to write about. No one else has had the exact same experiences as you, so anything you write will be unique and from a different perspective. Write from your heart and people will be blessed
Til next time, remember you are created in the image of God who loves you very much.
The answer to this question will play an important role in the tone of your entire novel. We listen to other people probably every day in one form or another, in personal conversations, a lecture at school, a boss or characters on a TV show. Notice how the tone of their voice influences you. What tone do you want to convey in a particular scene or throughout the entire story?
Interesting
Funny
Lively
Friendly
Romantic
Quarrelsome
The characters telling the story have their own unique voice and, depending on that voice, will tell a scene in a specific way.
8 Points To Ponder For Point Of View
Have you thought about what tense you’ll write in? Will your story read better in past tense or present tense? Past Tense – “Suzie shopped at the mall”.
Present Tense – “Suzie is shopping at the mall”.
When you sit to write each scene, who do you hear talking in your mind?
First Person – “I love doughnuts”.
Second Person – “You love doughnuts”.
Third Person – “Suzie loves doughnuts”.
Omniscient (aka, all-knowing) – “Suzie loves doughnuts but she doesn’t realize they’re laced with a powerful hallucinogenic”. Use this voice sparingly, as when none of the characters knows something but your reader needs to know it.
Choose Your Narrators
Just like in a movie audition, test your characters’ voices to see which point of view sounds best for each scene. You may want to do several viewpoints throughout your story, but remember to not switch viewpoints in the middle of a scene or chapter unless you make a specific break in the narrative. It confuses the heck out of the reader. If you’re new to writing fantasy/fiction keep it simple and write one POV for each scene. You may feel like you want to write the entire story from one POV, but test other voices to see if you can spice things up, add some humour or simply add a different perspective to delight the reader.
Voice Test for POV
Write a paragraph from the author’s POV. This means you just write out the paragraph as it happens, without emotion or opinion. Then write it out in all the voices of your characters who are in that scene. Let them say what they feel and what they’re thinking.
Who sounds good for this particular scene?
Who has an emotional investment in what’s happening?
Who will it influence later in the story as your plot unfolds?
Who sees something no one else does?
Example:
“Suzie went to the mall again. I hope she’s not spending all her money. She still has two weeks before her next paycheck”.
“She went to the mall again. Who does she think she is, buying all those fancy expensive clothes? They look ridiculous on her anyway.”
“Suzie went to the mall this morning. She needed to choose a dress for her grandmother’s funeral”.
Do you see how each character changes the tone of the scene? What were they thinking and feeling? Ask them why. Draw the scene out from your chosen character’s point of view.
Til next time, know you are loved by the One who created you in His image.
Lynne
Resources to check out
Back To The Future – where the twists are revealed by other people’s POV and by the main character.
Apart from the actual storyline, our writing needs to include other elements in order to hold our reader’s attention. Look for ways to incorporate some of the things you find interesting and entertaining when you read a novel or watch a movie. What you find interesting will come through in your own writing.
Add These Elements to Your Stories and You’ll Grab Your Reader’s Attention
Humour
Romance
Relationships
Plot Twists
Fights
Chases
What Are 4 Of Your Favourite Books or Movies and Why?
This is an exercise in finding creative elements for your novels. You’ll write best what you enjoy most because it will come easier. Your story will take on a life of its own as you write so let it flow naturally and don’t think about getting it perfect the first time. You’ll probably find that you automatically write the elements you’re attracted to and, if humour is one of your favourite elements, go ahead and laugh out loud. If anyone’s listening and asks you what you’re laughing about, tell them they’ll just have to wait for the launch date.
As you read through your first draft later, look for lapses in your storyline and see if you can add more of your favourite elements. Creative elements also serve to bridge the gaps between scenes and break up long dialogue. Have you ever noticed how some movies are good at throwing in humour right in the middle of a battle scene? One of my favourite franchises for this is the Avengers. Iron Man is always cracking me up right before he clobbers someone!
Writing Creative Elements in Fantasy
How do you write humour, for example, into fantasy? I love the movie Guardians of the Galaxy, where misunderstanding of the English language stumps the character Drax through the entire movie, but the movie is packed with other elements such as adventure, romance, battle scenes and chases. And let’s not forget Groot! He doesn’t say much, but that’s half the humour. And who doesn’t love to see the baby Groot dancing? Remember to show, don’t tell. The key to making your story memorable is to engage your audience. Be yourself and your own voice will use creative elements naturally.
Til next time, know you are loved by the One who created you in His image.
If you’ve been writing your story along with me, you probably have a pretty good idea of who your hero protagonist, their main sidekick, and the evil antagonist and his henchmen are and what they’re doing when your story starts, but how did they become who they are? Why is your protagonist a charming young female who loves to wander the forests of a mystical land on horseback? Why is her companion an outcast from a faraway land? What led your antagonist to despise all Elves?
What’s the story behind your story?
How do you find out the backstory of your story? As you know, I’m learning this whole process as I go along – like most of you too, I expect, as I write my Dwarf story. Thank you for joining me on this journey.
In my research, I discovered that the best information to start with is the character’s birth. (Duh.)
Sleeping Baby by Tawny Nina on pixabay
I also found as I wrote my first NaNoWriMo novel draft in 2015, it really does help to plot all this before you start writing your novel. I wasted many hours going back to a previous chapter to correct something I didn’t realize about my character until halfway through. Did I mention I switched my focus halfway through the story? Yep, the first half was a superhero and the second half was – well, I’m not exactly sure but it wasn’t a superhero. Something I learned from a fellow NaNo writer was to write all the main characters on sticky notes or in a journal with their own page, then add anything you discover about them as you write so you don’t lose track of information. Scrivener is another, more technical, way to organize your work. (The link goes to their page for a discount).
Let’s start with the protagonist
Where they were born and were there any unusual circumstances surrounding their birth?
Was it an easy birth?
Was the father present?
Were they delivered by a doctor or a travelling healer?
Maybe in their realm, they were delivered by supernatural means.
How many siblings did they have?
Write as much as you know about the birth of your protagonist.
Then go on to childhood.
Did they go to school?
Who was their best friend?
What was their favourite subject?
Did they excel at anything?
Did their experiences as a child influence their career choice?
Were they homeschooled or sent away at a young age to apprentice with someone?
Were they born with all the knowledge they would need in life?
How did that happen?
Your protagonist as an adult.
What drove them to be in the situation they’re in now?
Did they suffer prejudice, health issues or a failed relationship?
Write as many life events as you can think of and delete each one as you write.
Be open to adding new things you discover about your protagonist as your story unfolds.
Let the story evolve and delete any notes that no longer apply.
Then do the same for your major antagonist.
Ask why they’re angry, mean, and vicious.
People don’t start out that way as a newborn baby so what happened in their past to steer them down that path?
Is the antagonist driven by fear, guilt or jealousy?
Why do they have metal teeth or wear a mask?
Do the same for a few minor characters. Write only what’s important for your reader to know, not their entire life story.
Take a look at The Watcher by Sara Davison as a great example of backstory for her protagonist, Kathryn Ellison. Check out The Watcher on Amazon.
and Great Expectations as a wonderfully written backstory for the antagonist, the embittered Miss Havisham. Check out Great Expectations on Amazon
So you have a nice fantasy/fiction story going on and you have a happy ending. Guess what? We’re going to turn that all upside down now! Get ready to throw your readers a curveball and upset the apple cart. Every story needs conflict – even children’s stories. Think about it. Where would Little Red Riding Hood be without the big bad wolf? We all love a villain to hate.
Little Red Riding Hood and the Fox
10 Things To Consider Before Writing Conflict
Some elements to think about as you write the outline of your conflict.
What motivates both your hero and the villain so they’re drawn into the upcoming conflict?
Love
Greed
Pride
Anger
Duty
Other ideas…
What keeps your hero and villain locked together in this conflict?
Past History
Jealousy
Mutual Love Interest
Loss of Someone or Something
Misunderstanding
Other ideas…
12 Key Elements On Writing Conflict
Your hero tries to understand what just happened in the inciting event and what it means to them and their way of life. This is the start of Act 2.
Reveal the power of the antagonist (villain) and the true nature of the conflict arising.
The hero begins to recognize what’s at stake and searches for ways to fight the battle.
Your hero recognizes the true reason behind the conflict.
With new knowledge and understanding, your hero gains headway in the conflict.
Foreshadows Act 3 (sets up the base for what’s coming next) and reminds the hero what’s at stake. (We’ll look at foreshadowing more later).
Your hero rallies everything they’ve got and launches it against the enemy with a seeming
A defeat for your hero after the seeming victory in Act 2. This begins Act 3.
The hero questions their goal, commitment and choices. They begin to doubt themselves and their ability to win the battle.
Your hero comes face to face with the enemy.
The next event is a duel to the death for the hero and the villain. This can be physically or metaphorically. The reader needs to be kept on the edge of their seat here because they know one or the other will lose.
The hero wins and the conflict is ended.
The ending of your story should give the reader ‘breathing space’ and ease them into the hero’s new reality.
Watch a favourite movie – it doesn’t need to be fantasy – and see how the conflict escalates and is resolved.
Til next time, know you are loved by the One who created you in His image.
Most best-sellers and box-office hits have a main character that goes through an enormous transformation and either becomes a hero or ends up becoming a villain. (Anakin as he turns to the Dark Side). The result is what keeps us talking about it long after the story has ended and we’ve slid back into our own reality. It’s this change that intrigues the audience and keeps them riveted to the story, not wanting to put the book down or leave the theatre for a refill of popcorn for fear of missing something huge.
Darth Vader
4 Key Elements For Character Arc
Award-winning novelists seem to agree that there are four key elements to a character arc which drives a compelling story arc.
Need
Yearning
Weakness
Desire
Your story will usually begin with your main protagonist and their setting. His life lacks something he needs and causes a sense of something unfulfilled.
The need may be fuelled by a yearning which he may or may not be aware of.
The yearning may come from a backstory that caused them to feel weakened by a loss of love, ability, or perhaps a sense of purpose, and makes them fearful, limited by their circumstances and feeling unable to change. The yearning is most likely to be the opposite of what the protagonist’s life is like now. Identify their yearning in a single sentence and let that drive the story arc, for example, he wants to be free (of something or someone), to find true love, to go home again (or make a home for himself).
Something happens to your protagonist that changes their view on their daily life and stirs a desire for change. This is the Inciting Event.
This will all happen in Act 1. After the event that happens to your hero to stir their desire, you’ll be ready to think about your story arc and which scenes belong in Act 2. This took me some time to figure out, but I think I have the most important points now. Remember we’re not writing yet, just outlining. Simple point form or one-sentence sticky notes will do.
The Anticipated Conflict
Create intensity towards the anticipated conflict. About a quarter of the way into your novel, the hero will be frantically searching for a reason behind the villain’s antagonism. The hero may not yet realize there’s an underlying cause for the building conflict, or they may have a vague idea but not yet know what’s at stake. The villain may still be taunting the hero to make them give up and turn back.
Before the halfway point of your story, the hero will realize the true nature of the conflict which is imminent and the ultimate power of the villain. Do your notes on story arc build up to your halfway conflict? Include your notes on the hero’s personality and flaws that hold them back, how their mentor tries to persuade them to believe the truth, plot twists, and some fun scenes with their companions for comic relief (The Avengers).
Next time we’ll look at how to generate conflict and why it propels the story.
Til next time, know you are loved by the One who created you in His image.
A Beginning – The comfort zone of the protagonist and the inevitable separation
A Middle – Resistance of the oncoming event and the struggles moving forward
An End – The hero’s transformation and return to a new normal
Organizing Your Work
Use whatever method you’ve discovered works for you as you collect your ideas for your epic fantasy story; sticky notes, mobile device, notebook, dry-erase board, whatever. Use something you can manipulate. You’re going to want to move things around when you realize a particular scene needs to switch from the beginning to the middle, for example.
For this reason, I like to colour-code the scenes once I figure out where they belong. Highlighting them makes it easier to spot them in the array of my imagination on the screen. Then write, write, write!
Every scene that’s been playing around in your head and kept you awake all night or distracted you during a sermon (it’s ok, it was God who gave you your imagination so He’ll forgive you if it veers you off once in a while). Then put them under the headings Beginning, Middle and End, or if you prefer, Act 1, Act 2 and Act 3.
Once that’s done, rearrange your scenes in the order you think they need to happen.
Remember you’re only writing what’s going to happen in your scenes, not the entire scene right now. This is extremely important if you’re using these blogs to prep for NaNoWriMo where you’ll need to write 50,000 words in 30 days. These blogs are about outlining (preparation) before you actually start the writing process.
The Beginning – Act 1
Begin at the beginning. Sounds like a good idea – very logical. The beginning is where all the groundwork for your story belongs. Here too, you introduce your reader to the when and where of your story. So here is where you put your world-mapping and world-building ideas and make them into scenes (something happening at the time and place in the world you’re describing). Write one or two sentences about what your scene will be.
The Status Quo
Introduce your main protagonist (hero) in their normal everyday life and the world they live in. (In LOTR, Frodo is a Hobbit who lives in a small house in a shire. He loves life and he likes people).
The Catalyst
The event that calls the hero to act on something and leave their status quo. (His uncle vanishes and leaves Frodo a magical ring).
They embark on a journey, either physically or emotionally. Usually, in fantasy, it’s a journey away from home. (In LOTR, Frodo sets out on his adventure).
The Denial
Your hero rejects the quest at first either from fear, hesitation or pride. (Frodo is reluctant to leave his comfortable life).
The Mentor
Your hero will need a mentor, someone who has experience and wisdom which will prove vital to the hero on their journey. Introduce the mentor here. (Gandalf is Frodo’s mentor as he leads him on the adventure).
The mentor will aid the hero through some sort of transformation.
Acceptance and Action
Introduce minor characters but introduce one at a time to give your reader a chance to familiarize themselves with everyone in the story. (In LOTR, we’re introduced to Sam, Pippin and Merry).
Their journey begins.
“Don’t do a lot of world-building before you start writing. Do just enough to get the basics clear in your mind, then let the characters reveal things to you as you work”. – J. Anderson Coats, author of The Wicked and the Just.
The Middle – Act 2 Trials, Tribulations, Friends and Foes
The Edge of the Abyss
Your hero will encounter all of the above; characters who will help your hero or hinder their quest. There will be tests to determine who is a friend and who is a foe. (Orcs, a stranger who becomes a good friend and ally, dark riders on horseback).
Your hero will need to decide if they will carry on with the quest, turn back, or run. There is a crisis. (Frodo has a crisis of courage, feeling that he cannot go on).
“Write short, sharp, heart-clutching scenes that propel your characters through conflict, adventure and resolution. Let your characters guide you”.– Elizabeth Sims, Novelist, Writing Coach and Editor.
The End – Act 3 The Climax and The New Normal
The Climax
Your hero faces their biggest test/fear in a confrontation with death or another big event. (Frodo knows he needs to destroy the ring but it beckons him, and he shows his weakness).
The Resolution and Reward
Your hero earns the prize and journeys home or on to a new normal. (Frodo goes back to the Shire, but his life will never be the same).
Rearrange your scenes until you’re satisfied with the order they’re in so the story outline starts to make sense to you. Fill in the Middle with several action-packed scene ideas. As always, learn from the masters by reading fantasy and watching fantasy movies. Keep a notepad handy and try to draw out of the story all the points in this blog.
How is your novel organizing coming along? Would a novel planner help? After I wrote my first rough draft of my first novel for NaNoWriMo I created a planner along with my super talented graphic designer, Kirstie Shanks. It’s now available on Amazon. It’s also available as a printable version in my White Rose WritersEtsy shop. (White Rose Writers – The Business Of Being An Author is my source of income).
Til next time, know you are loved by the One who created you in His image.
Researching this week, I discovered we need to go back to our premise and plot twists to see if we can now add more interesting content to the ideas we wrote. What can you glean from the premise you’ve written?
5 Epic Moments That Will Define Your Story Outline
Can you think of five major events that will occur in your novel? Can you think of five ways to add your plot twists to each of those events? When adding your plot twists, think about how these will affect the story:
How will this affect the protagonist?
Will you need to add backstory for your protagonist to show this effect?
Who else will be affected by this plot twist?
Is this a good place to add conflict? If so, between which characters?
Will this interfere with your protagonist getting what they want? How?
Will it cause a disaster for your protagonist?
Does your world-mapping need more of a fantasy backdrop for your plot twist to be epic?
Do this exercise for all your major events and you’ll have a good outline started. Try to write a rough scene for each one to revise later. If you hit a wall don’t give up. Read a book in the same genre, or brainstorm with your writing group, then just start writing and ‘pants‘ for a while. Letting the juices flow freely may stir a firework display of creativity.
VisualWritingPrompts
If you don’t have any scenes spinning in your head yet, watch a TV show in the same genre as your novel. This works great for me. I’m glad I have a pause button so I can write notes as I watch. You can also find some great visual writing prompts on my Pinterest board. Later, you’ll keep what fits and file the other ideas for another time or maybe another novel.
Sunset Silhouettes
Here’s a prompt to get you started. What do you see in this picture? A peaceful sunset at the beach, an approaching storm, or perhaps a scary scene from The Walking Dead with a horde of zombies approaching?
Til next time, know you are loved by the One who made you in His image.
As you write your story, look for ways to add an unexpected twist to the plot. These are commonly known as the ‘What If’ scenarios of fiction writing. They throw in something the reader isn’t expecting to happen in the story to add conflict, drama and adventure. Go back to your premise sentence and see where you can spice things up a little. Keep your readers guessing.
How to Write a Plot Twist
What’s expected and what would happen if it didn’t turn out that way?
Write a sentence about something in your novel your reader will expect to happen.
Now write a What If.
What if that didn’t happen at all? What would happen then?
Now turn that idea upside-down.
What if this other thing happened instead? How would the story unfold?
Example of a great plot twist
In her poignant novel, Rescued, Donna Fawcett (Dawson) writes about two women;
“Charlene McTaggart can’t conceive and badly wants a child. Dr Jason Steadman goes against those who would do all they can to stop a unique procedure from being performed. A procedure that will save an embryo, prevent a death and give an infertile woman a chance at motherhood”. (back cover logline)
Then Fawcett asks these questions:
“What if there was a solution to abortion?”
“What if pro-life and pro-choice could join forces to see the war over the issue end?”
“Is it possible?”
The answers to these questions fuel a powerful and emotional novel which touches the heart of the reader. As I read Donna’s book I was drawn into the world of possibilities for the female characters and eager to find out how their stories were resolved. Check out Donna’s book:
What If Your Story Just Got Really Weird?
Readers crave a plot twist to keep them interested. What can you add that they may not have been written before? Write as many plot twists as you can think of. Try these exercises to get your inner Tolkien flowing:
It’s expected that the villain will be arrested. What if he suddenly vanishes?
It’s expected that the rain shower will stop. What if it turns into a red storm?
It’s expected that the hero will get the girl. What if she doesn’t like him one bit?
Will this plot twist change your logline? Your logline can change to accommodate your developing story as long as you remain true to your premise. Remember, your back cover isn’t published yet.
Til next time, know you are loved by the One who created you in His own image.
on Amazon.
Lynne Collier 