We had a major rainstorm up in the northland yesterday – roads washed out, a river coursing through our yard. And, of course, the internet was down…so I had to pack up my computer and forge my way into town to send it from my husband’s hotel. As I left the house, my daughter said, “Are you sure you want to brave the elements?”

Of course! Because I was focused on the end goal of getting my blog up (and, of course, checking my email1). I drove around downed trees, and navigated a small river with m SUV, and dodged piles of dirt but I finally made it to town.

And my blog.

On your hero’s spiritual journey, he’ll have downed logs to traverse and rivers to wade through, and dirt to dodge….how do we keep him on track and focused?

Here’s a few hints I’ve discovered:

Focus on one central truth. My primary purpose to getting to town was to blog. Now, if I accomplished picking up some groceries, or even a skinny vanilla latte from the local coffee shop, that’s an added bonus. But my focus was….internet access. In the same way, keep your spiritual theme/plot simple and focused. One verse, or one passage, one song, one line from the song. Don’t do the buckshot method of sowing the seeds…pick your ammo and aim well. Some possible ways of communicating the theme/truth/message:
i. songs (hymns or other songs)
ii. sayings (quotes they read, hear….could be anywhere – graffiti, on a menu, on a bus, on the radio…)
iii. a wise friend, relative, pastor. Even something someone says in passing. (a fisherman? A store clerk? In my book Happily Ever After, I used the director of a group home)
iv. Confrontation – an argument with another character that surfaces a truth, an accusation, or a dilemma.
v. A memory, jogged by a memento.
vi. A letter, or journal entry.
vii. I’ve also used landscape, weather, even animals to convey a truth. (Karen Kingsbury used an eagle in A Time to Dance.)

Make him teachable: in other words, show your character’s desire to change. I rose early, packed up my computer, dressed for the weather…in short, I displayed my desire to get to town. Likewise, show a yearning in your character to want something different, deeper in his spiritual walk.
Ie, Happily Ever After, Joe WANTS to forgive his father for the crimes of the past, but he’s not sure if it is worth it. I give him a glimpse of the “fruit” of forgiveness by having him go fishing with his brother, and seeing the simple joy he can have in that.
Ie, in Francine’s Classic, Redeeming Love, the heroine, Angel, wants to love her husband, Hosea, and each time she runs away from him, it is a little bit harder.

How can you show your character is willing to change? Here are some hints:

1. Show their Desire for change. Simply an awareness of emptiness. Perhaps a longing, something he sees in another person, or where he was and fell from.
2. Apply Pressure Points that show his spiritual emptiness, through friends, memories, failures.
–ie, in HEA Joe, gets a letter from his father and wishes he could have their old relationship. He begins to enjoy his brother’s company, and his brother’s example of forgiveness causes him to be ashamed of his own behavior. Also, he falls for the heroine, but because of his walls and spiritual fears, is unable to commit to her, despite his deepest desire.

Finally, cumulate in an epiphany or Ah Ha! moment. As I drove to town today, I passed a football field sized log jamb at the mouth of a local river, piled up against the bridge. Like the log jamb, all of your character’s lessons/moments/challenges should pile up to one moment where he realizes a truth about his life. Often, it’s at the darkest moment, either right before, or right after.

There are many kinds of epiphanies —

a. Gradual “light” turning on, naturally, over time. A series of small changes lead to the big change until they finally stand in a place where their destructive behavior might be repeated and they see their change (or have someone see the change for them).
b. The “Big Bang!” method. Suddenly, the character is at his/her lowest point, and things they’ve seen/heard/learn along the journey flood back to them and they get it. Have them make a change of behavior in that moment, a different decision than they would normally make.
c. The Reader Ah-ha Method. This is where the characters don’t realize their change, but we as the reader see it. (Often in an allegory). At the end, often the character does something that they would have never done in the beginning, to illustrate this change.
d. The Oh No, am I like HIM? Method. In this scenario, the hero/heroine sees themselves in reality and how much they are like the villain, or someone he despises. This jolts them into change.

Now, so I don’t have to drive in again tomorrow…here are some tricks to weaving in the spiritual plot:

1. Don’t make the change too easy. Have them fight it. (C’mon, how many of us embrace our faults?)
2. Don’t use too many devices, (and don’t use coincidences!) Have something pop out at them when they are reading, or listening to a song. Instead of having something jolt them, have them embrace understanding from something they hear.
3. Let the reader see the change…validate their changed life through a changed behavior, decision, words.

But Susie, what if I’m halfway into a book and I’ve lost my spiritual thread? To keep the fabric of your spiritual story from unraveling, simply stop in every few chapters and start your chapter with a question to your character – what do you think God is doing in your life? How do you feel about God? What has been happening around you that makes you uncomfortable spiritually?

You might even have to take another look at your theme – is your character leading you to a new place where you might have to tighten your spiritual plotline? Refine it further? Maybe (like in real life!) your character is going to learn something you didn’t expect! Be flexible and go with the story. Trying to keep a story too tightly inside the “confines” of your theme can make it seem contrived and even unrealistic.

Writing the spiritual thread for a story will deepen your story, allow your readers to participate in the character’s spiritual journey, and hopefully, they’ll walk away with a deeper understanding how God might work in their lives, also.

On Monday, we’re going to be talking about that Special Someone in your Hero’s life…and how to weave in the elements of ROMANCE! Have a dry weekend!