McAnally's (The Community Pub) > Author Craft
Christian influences in Fantasy writing
Quantus:
--- Quote from: Nickeris86 on April 12, 2012, 07:40:10 AM ---So I am a Christian and have resiliently gone through a spiritual reawakening which has done wonders for me personal level. I have been trying to figure out where God wants me and what he wants me to do with my life rather than what I want to do. I believe that God me my gift for writing and creating a story but I am not sure if what I have been writing is working towards Gods goals for me.
What I am trying to ask is does anyone know a good way to incorporate Christian themes and morals into a dark fantasy novel. The only example I have of a fantasy novel with strong Christian influences and messages is The Chronicles of Narnia. Are there others out their and I just don't know about them?
Your help is much appreciated.
--- End quote ---
As far as the technical writing aspects of it go, Id give the same advice as others already have: Dont be heavy-handed or preachy, show Virtue rather than announcing it, and keep your audience in mind so you dont alienate the wrong people (every word ever written alienated somebody, so also dont get over-stressed by that). Michael is a powerful character in my opinion because he is an example of what a person living the Ideals if the faith rather than the more common stereotype of being closed-minded, self-righteous, or some other variation of the Inquisition. But he does it by example, and he even has the grace to be a little embarrassed by it when he gets preachy. Father Forthill is another likable example. But if you are going for contrasting the Spiritual Path vs the Dogmatic Path, you are probably going to need Paragons of each to act as foils to each other.
As far as finding your Message, Id say take a very close look at your reawakened faith and and find your characterization in that. You say it has helped you profoundly on a personal level.. How? You want to use the Trinity idea to know God through a more human Figure (ie Son/Daughter) then ask yourself What would your God be like if made Flesh, what would his/her personality be like? How would such a person react in human situations, when the moral path isnt very clear.
At the end of the day it is the story you are trying to tell, the Message you are trying to get out. If you believe God has given you a Life experience for the better and a calling to share what you learned from it, Id go with that. One of the central tenants of writing is to "Write what you Know, what you Believe" That seems the logical place to start.
Good Luck :-)
nefarious:
I personally am not a christian but there are places where a story could reflect one's ideals. Such as with Jim's books I've noticed a lot of smartassery that I can only surmise has come directly from the author. In a way I believe that a lot of Harry Dresden's own personal quirks and responses would be shared by the author, a way of venting his own demons through his writing. First person perspective in the story I fell backs me up.
Now the fact that you are a christian might be reflected in your character or even characters depending on the dark fantasy story. The world is a dark place at times and in certain situations and places, we can all agree on that, Though with a christian viewpoint your characters could show a bit of a different perspective on their views of those circumstances.
Though as far as the Chronicles comment further up the board, that was an allegorical christian book and I don't feel it represents a dark fantasy so much as just a fantasy. I think that's like referring to Harry Potter as being a dark fantasy which I do not feel it is.
the neurovore of Zur-En-Aargh:
--- Quote from: nefarious on June 19, 2012, 12:08:49 AM --- In a way I believe that a lot of Harry Dresden's own personal quirks and responses would be shared by the author, a way of venting his own demons through his writing. First person perspective in the story I fell backs me up.
--- End quote ---
I don't know. I've always thought part of the point of a really good convincing first-person voice was to make it distinct and unlike anyone else, and I really hope that nobody's going to take my first-person narrators' personal quirks and responses as hints at what mine are.
Quantus:
--- Quote from: the neurovore of Zur-En-Aargh on June 19, 2012, 02:41:48 PM ---I don't know. I've always thought part of the point of a really good convincing first-person voice was to make it distinct and unlike anyone else, and I really hope that nobody's going to take my first-person narrators' personal quirks and responses as hints at what mine are.
--- End quote ---
How much of an author is in a given character probably varies from author to author and style to style. Some authors choose a voice specifically because it is counter to their own perspective, others may use it to vent some inner voice, still others may be basing on somebody they've met so that its a sort of caricature of that individual.
That being said I think it would be pretty hard to write a convincing smartass if you don't have one inside you somewhere.
the neurovore of Zur-En-Aargh:
--- Quote from: Quantus on June 19, 2012, 03:09:51 PM ---That being said I think it would be pretty hard to write a convincing smartass if you don't have one inside you somewhere.
--- End quote ---
There are some writers of first-person smartass characters where I suspect that part of the point is "sometimes if I think about it for hours I can come up with really good lines but I never can in time for them to be good comebacks in conversation, so I'm going to write someone who gets the benefit of my hours of thinking of good lines to say them in the moment", so in that case the writer in person may not come across as a convincing smartass at all.
(On the other hand, Steven Brust is a totally convincing smartass in person.)
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