Fawkes: Representing God in a Vibrant Way

By Rachel Leitch

If you’ve talked to me for any length of time, chances are you know that Fawkes by Nadine Brandes is one of my favorite books.

In the writing community that I’m a part of, this has become such a widely known fact that if anyone posts a question about the book, other readers automatically tag me on the conversation.

I’m a little notorious that way.

But how can I help it? The character’s struggles were so deeply relatable and personal, the story world so unique and vivid, and the theme so richly woven throughout. (If you’re not familiar with Fawkes, take a quick minute and google the synopsis. And buy the book. And read it all in one sitting. I’ll wait.)

Since reading Fawkes and discussing it with other readers, I have learned that it is a “you love it or you hate it” book. Those who love it will defend it to death. (*slowly raises hand*)

But the difference with Fawkes is that the haters’ arguments almost always, ninety-nine percent of the time, boil down to one aspect.

It wasn’t that the characters were unrelatable or annoying. It wasn’t that the plot was boring and uninteresting. It wasn’t that the theme didn’t matter or was too subtle.

It was the portrayal of God.

What? Why Was Fawkes Controversial?

Fawkes is an allegorical novel to a certain degree, and its God figure (White Light) is the origin of all the other magical colors in the story. Against all the “rules” society has for him, he grabs Thomas Fawkes and starts speaking into his mind. (Which sounds weirder than it really is.)

But none of that hung the readers up, either.

White Light also has a very snarky sense of humor. While he’s making sure Thomas knows what he needs to know, he is also dashing off these brilliant one-liners.

(One of my personal favorites is when White Light informs him that he’s more handsome than Thomas.)

Many readers felt that this was too irreverent of a portrayal of God. I mean, really, Thomas and White Light are arguing over who is more handsome. Can you imagine God informing us with a grin that He is more handsome than us? (I should imagine He is.)

Others (myself included) were refreshed to find a different aspect of God’s character. Something other than the monotone speaking from the sky Hermie and Friends God (which if you don’t know what that is, please don’t look it up. I’ve warned you). Something other than the wise old owl. Something different than the cryptic prince who speaks in riddles.

My God is so Big . . .

If God is in our lives, then no matter what we write, He will be in our story. We can’t help it. It will flow naturally.

There are many ways for this to happen.

As you can see from the examples above, this representation can range anywhere from explicitly stating Biblical beliefs to nodding in God’s direction through a character’s actions or the culture. Think of the book of Esther! Even a book in His own Book points to Him without ever mentioning Him.

As Christian writers, God will appear somewhere in our writing, even if we never say His name.

That can be an intimidating thought. In part because God is so big, and we are not. He is limitless and we are limited in everything. We can’t understand Him completely, no matter how hard we try. We know this.

. . . But What if my Story’s Not So Big?

So what if we write something wrong? What if everyone hates us because we wrote God wrong? What if God is mad because we wrote Him wrong?

If you have this fear, then good for you. It shows you really care about how you’re glorifying Him through your book, and you’re not just slapping words on a page every which way.

But if left unchecked, this fear will eat away at your writing until there’s little left to give God. (Remember, He’s not the spirit of fear.)

Let’s take a look at how Fawkes portrayed God in such a unique way, and maybe learn how to portray God in our own unique ways, too.

Where do we begin when it comes to portraying God? As I mentioned above, He is so big and we are not. Where do we even start? How will we ever portray Him completely?

The thing is, we won’t. We can’t. And He doesn’t expect us to. He wants us to do our best with the words He alone has given us.

When it comes to beginning your portrayal, don’t try to drink from a fire hose and provide the most complete picture of God you can. Even if you wrote for the rest of your life, you’d never get to the end of all the things there are to say about Him.

With a novel, a great place to start is with one characteristic to portray really well. This gives you the opportunity to narrow down your research (thereby doing better research). It also keeps both you and your reader from being overwhelmed. They are able to get a more complete picture of whatever aspect you choose, which completes their view of God bit by bit.

Put simply, it allows you to go deeper in the long run.

Questions to Ask About Your God Figure

Question One: What is a characteristic of God that is often overlooked?

When you read enough Christian books (especially allegorical ones), you can usually pin who the God figure is. Like I mentioned above, He either talks in a monotone voice, is the disconnected wise old owl, or constantly speaks in cryptic riddles.

Fawkes flipped this on its head when its God figure appeared as a snarky voice inside Thomas’ head.

God’s sense of joy and humor is often overlooked. (Not only do we have a sense of humor, and we’re made in His image, but really. He made a platypus. ON PURPOSE.) Fawkes works so well because it explores a side of God that is usually left out of sermons. It feels fresh and original.

What is something you’ve experienced of God or seen in His Word that you also see being misconstrued or overlooked?

Question Two: What aspect of God will work with your storyworld and character arc the best?

I’m not suggesting we mold God to fit our own ideas. But He does have hundreds of characteristics to choose from. We see them manifested differently in real life situations. One person may really need to accept that God loves them, while another person needs to accept God’s limitlessness.

In Fawkes, the culture very much had ideas of who White Light was and what He should do. He didn’t conform to any of them. Which worked perfectly for a book about a teenage boy trying to find his sense of truth.

If you’re writing a fantasy with a tribe of infamous warriors, perhaps you want to showcase what true loving justice looks like through your God figure. Or maybe you want to bring His mercy into that situation.

Think about the culture your story is set in. Think about what your character struggles with. What attribute would mean the most to them? What attribute do they need to understand the most?

Question Three: What characteristic has meant the most to you?

In the acknowledgements for Fawkes, Nadine Brandes acknowledges White Light herself, saying that she “loved exploring the playfulness in their relationship.” She didn’t set out to write His joy just because it was an overlooked quality and it fit her storyworld. Those things are both good and very important, but they’re not enough to carry a story through.

For something to last the very long process from Chapter One to The End, it has to matter to you. Usually this means it’s something personal, something you’ve experienced in one form or another, just like Nadine Brandes did.

How have you seen God work in your life? What characteristic means the most to you? What is something you’re still struggling to understand or believe in? What intrigues you and makes you want to know more?

In Real Life

Now that we’ve explored three ways to brainstorm your God-figure, now let’s look at what we need to put it into practice. We can talk about ideas all we want, but here’s where the heavy lifting starts.

One: Research, research, research.

Keep a Bible on hand at all times. (I mean, God is kind of the expert on Himself. The only one, in fact.) This is always your number one place to go. God knows what you need to know and will help you understand.

Find Bible studies and books written by other Christians that will teach you more about the attribute you’re working to portray. (When it comes to the characteristics of God, I highly recommend In His Image and None Like Him by Jen Wilkin.)

Talk to other Christians you know you can trust, whether that be family members, friends, church staff members, etc. Just remember, you don’t always have to take their opinions and in some occasions, shouldn’t.

Two: Do your best and leave the rest.

Hear me: You are not going to get everything perfect.

Not in the first draft. Not in the last draft. Not when your book is published on a shelf.

We are not perfect. Even though our creativity is God-given, it’s still imperfect.

Good news. God doesn’t look at the outside. He looks at the heart. He’s not looking to see if you used the correct theological definition. He’s looking to see if you love Him, are trying to show others His love, and trying to do your very best for Him. That’s what matters to Him.

So do your best. Question as much as you can. But know when you’ve brought it as far as you can. If you’re simply worrying what people will think, it’s time to stop or take a break.

Three: Trust God will guide you.

Have I mentioned God is big? That means He’s in control. And that means, if you’re truly trying to do your best to serve Him, then He will let you know if you’re making a mistake.

Seriously. He’s big enough to do that. And it took me a long time to understand that.

If you’re genuinely seeking Him, He will get you on the path He wants you to be on. More often than not, when we make mistakes, it’s not because we were really trying and just made the wrong choice. It’s often because we knew what was right and didn’t choose it.

So take a deep breath. Exhale. Relax! God’s got this. You do your part, because you know He will most certainly do His. If you have the expert on God working with you, how can you go wrong?

We’ll never make everyone happy. It always makes me kind of sad to think about how many reviews and letters Nadine Brandes must have received bashing her portrayal of God.

But the fact is, it’s not about people. It’s about God.

I believe Nadine Brandes can end the day knowing God is pleased with her efforts to glorify Him. And I believe we can know that, too.

How have you seen God in your life? And how will others see God in your story?