Reflection: On Fear and Fiction
It’s been a while since I’ve posted on the blog but that doesn’t mean I haven’t been writing. After devotional blogging through the Fruit of the Spirit this summer I decided to focus on fiction. In October I reviewed some of my favorite classic Christian fiction, Hinds’ Feet on High Places, Redeeming Love, and Pilgrim’s Progress, in preparation to participate in National Novel Writing Month. Since the mid 90’s NaNoWriMo has grown from a group of friends writing in a cafe to an international community of thousands of writers who participate in writing a novel (at least 50,000 words) in the month of November. I’ve been wanting to write fiction for a long time but let fear overwhelm and keep me from even trying. I chose to participate in NaNoWriMo as a way to dip my toes into fiction writing and track my progress at my first attempt.
How hard is it to write fiction compared to Bible studies and devotionals? Well, it’s different. I’ve been studying the Bible for over 20 years. I love Scripture and encouraging others through God’s Word. On the other side of that I haven’t written fiction in about 20 years. I had a lot of fear going in to the process. What if I fail? What if I find I have nothing to say? What if I’m bad at it? Overcoming that fear and putting my hands to the keyboard was the hardest part. Listening to other authors talk about having the same fears gave me the courage to finally go for it, and I’m so glad I did. Naming that fear and facing it head on has been a very freeing experience.
So how did it go? It went pretty well. Some days the words poured out and other days were not so easy, but I wrote every day and averaged 700-1000 words per day. I didn’t get to 50,000 but I made it over halfway to the big goal, writing just over 26,000 words in the month of November. Even more important, I proved to myself I could actually do it. I also met some great encouraging people, writers in my local area, who host writing groups for NaNo that continue all year round. The writing community is so open and encouraging, especially for beginners.
Why didn’t I blog at all in November? I kinda hoped I would be able to blog about my progress as I went along, but with working full time and writing fiction every day I just didn’t have the time to do both. What I found is that it takes a lot of mental, emotional and time investment to write fiction. When I wasn’t writing I was thinking about my characters and their journeys. As the characters and story grew they took up a lot more thought space and keyboard time than I anticipated.
Why bother writing fiction at all? I’ve asked myself this question loads of times. What does scripture say about fiction? Remember all those parables Jesus told? They weren’t real stories but they were little fictions to illustrate life, salvation and God’s Kingdom in a relatable way. Jesus told stories for both caution and encouragement. It was more powerful for Jesus to talk about a shepherd who went looking for one lost sheep then to just say God is looking for you. It was more powerful for him to illustrate “love thy neighbor” by telling a story about an outcast who rescued a beat up stranger. I believe imagination and creativity are gifts from our Creator and we should exercise them just like our other spiritual gifts.
Will I finish the book? Yes. Right now I’m in what’s called the “muddy middle,” but I’m still writing every day. The story is progressing slower than I want but it’s kind of like a roller coaster. The beginning uphill push is done and I’m at that pause right before the downhill rush where everyone throws their hands up and screams in delight. At least I hope that’s how the next bit goes. I set a goal to finish the book by January 1, but with the holidays I just don’t know if that will happen. Thanks to some podcasts I listen to I’ve been able to have a lot of grace for myself in this whole process but finishing is just as important as beginning.
Have you ever written fiction or done NaNoWriMo? I’d love to hear about your experience! Have any great fiction writing tips or resources? Please share in the comments below.
What’s next for Curated Faith? I taught a series in our women’s ministry called “Praying with the Kings” over the fall and will be publishing those studies on the blog in January.
I’m looking forward to Christmas but in a more subdued and reflective way than usual. My kids are older now, and we’ve been able to shift the focus from gift anticipation to really spending time worshiping together, and watching cheesy Christmas movies of course. I hope you have a blessed Christmas celebrating the greatest story ever told, our loving Father sending His perfect Son of Light to rescue the lost from fear and darkness.
Recommended Fiction Writing Resources
(none of these are specifically Christian and may contain language and topics that could be offensive)
Chelle V
Chelle Vess is a Christian author, wife, and mom of three kids. Over the past 20 years she's served in children’s, women’s, and prayer team ministries and started blogging the Bible in 2014. She's worked in Southern California as a professional seamstress in the home interiors industry for 24 years, loves fiber crafts, cooking, gardening, tattoos, and Crossfit.
