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- Rank: Eccentric Mentor
- Total Posts: 1789
@writerlexi1216 You are too kind!
Don’t doubt this at all, girl! I know it will be perfect!
Tips? Well, there’s really only one thing you can say: pray.
Every conversion scene is different, because every character is different, and every message is different.
Before I start writing a conversion scene, or a spiritual scene, or anything, really, I ask the Lord to lead, guide, and direct me. Let His words come out through my fingers. Let His Spirit write the story. And He does! I know without the shadow of a doubt that He is the One Who has written my books–especially the most powerful moments. There’s really no advice I can give you but to let God guide you and even write it for you!
(Although, if you ever have any specific questions, I’d be happy to help!)
Sorry, it took me so long to reply to this post, *facepalms* * inserts an emoji that represents how annoyed I am with myself for that* Do they even have an emoji like that? I need one XD
But YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I mean you have NO idea how much I love this and how much this fits Newton so perfectly and how excited I am at the thought of him being an atheist-turned-Christian!!!:D I think this fits Newton’s character arc magnificently AND I JUST LOVE HIM A MILLION TIMES MORE WHICH I HAD NO IDEA WAS POSSIBLE!!! 😀 😀 😀 I mean I love this idea so much I can’t even express how much I truly love it!!!:D
Thank you:) I’m still on the fence about which way I’ll go because either way has a lot of advantages and drawbacks to the plot and timeline, but I practically have both ways written out, and now it’s just a matter of the ultimate decision:)
If I can remember anything about allegory writing tips, I’ll let you know:)
I’m so happy that my rambling post made sense and I am even more ecstatic that you found it helpful:D
Because, yes, that’s the one thing I’ve always noticed about stories, is that if a reader loves a character, they will literally follow them to the end of the earth and then some, no matter where they are going. That’s one of the reasons any famous book (good or not – though I am not excusing the ‘not’ ones in any way) becomes so famous because the reader relates, loves, and wants to follow the characters where ever they may go. And so it’s an extremely powerful and incredible thing to lead readers in the right direction through a character:) And Fortitude has the most incredible potential to do just that:D No, scratch that, Fortitude will do just that, I know it:)@gracie-j
Aww, thank you girl!! I’m glad to hear you like the idea!! I’m still trying to figure out when exactly I want to include the conversion, however, especially in relation to Newton & Caira’s romance. I’m thinking probably before that happens… though I’m not sure. What do you think? Agh, sorry. I’m rambling now. Anyways, thank you so much!!! I’m definitely going to pray about it and ask God for help, first and foremost, because I know that He’s given me this story for a reason and that He’s worked through my fingers to write the words, so prayer is very important, I know:) I appreciate all of your support!! <33 You’ve been such a huge encouragement/help to my writing, girl!! 🙂
Oh, girl you’re fine!!! Don’t worry one bit about it!!:) Aww, thank you so very much!! I was hoping that it fit the story and I don’t want to come across as being ‘pushy’ with the Christian message, but I thought that it fit Newton’s character quite well, especially with all the heartache he’s gone through. THANK YOU SO MUCH for saying that!!! I’m so honored that you love Newton so much–more than you’ll ever possibly know–and it makes me so happy to know that you like this concept!!! I’m still trying to decide when to include it, though (especially in relation with Newton and Caira’s romance), so do you have any thoughts/advice? This is still a new side plot, so I haven’t worked out all the details XD I’m so happy to hear that you’re including that in your story!! I think that either way would work out beautifully, and I just adore the idea of using allegories!! 😀 😀 Good luck with it!! And thank you so much for that–it makes me feel a lot better, and I hope that people will feel close enough to Newton by that point so that it will feel powerful like I’m hoping it will. I honestly appreciate your support SO MUCH, girl!! I’ve kinda been feeling down about it lately, so hearing this really made me feel encouraged again:) Thank you so very much!!
Oh yes, I think it works beautifully with Newton’s character! Especially with his hard past life and redemption arc and character, it’s just amazing!:D
Ah, this is something I have a hard time with too. Having to balance subplots and character relationships.
When in the timeline of his relationship with Caira does he begin the atheist-turned-Christian arc? Are they still enemies, are they beginning to make amends, or are closer to admitting their feelings?
My thoughts on this are to balance reality with fiction. Because in reality, we have to deal with multiple ‘subplots’ ourselves, at the same time. But yet fiction is fiction for a reason and it can’t be narrated exactly as it happens in reality, which is where my enemy comes in: pacing. Now you don’t need to pay any attention to these ideas, they are just thoughts I had on this:
Maybe there are scenes he has to himself and out of curiosity, he reads some from the Bible. Maybe he wasn’t expecting much from it, but he read something that bothered or moved him. This is more of an internal conflict than an external as he may have doubts about the way he has been believing. Maybe where the church was concerned, he hung back a while, and when the others have left, he wanders in and that would make a good scene for him and the pastor you mentioned. Maybe Newton leaves, not listening (or not wanting to listen) to what the pastor was saying, but later returns. It may not make his life easier, but it will ultimately change him for the better afterward.
It might help to write it so he is saved before the confession, which will help their relationship be even stronger, (no matter how bad things went) and could be great timing. After he’s saved, it will affect how Newton sees things and what he does. So it helps to keep in mind his new perspective. Um, the only other thing I thought of was maybe he starts to have feelings for Caira, but after he reads a part of the Bible that affects him, he will be some type of struggle with himself. This could result in some confusion, because he may try to act as he always has or try to smile and behave like he never read it, even though deep inside he knows that he can’t ignore it no matter how hard he tries. Maybe there are times he can act normal, as in life-threatening situations or things that take up his full attention, but what he read will always creep back slowly to him and that is where he finally needs to do something about it.…So, yes, just a couple thoughts:) (I know, I know, that was more than a couple XD I couldn’t help it though:) I hope it helps you somehow and I think this is just the awesome-est thing ever for Newton!!:D
I’m glad that I was able to be encouraging:) Because this story is just so awesome, I rarely (almost never) can find a story that I love 100% like I do this novel. And that’s coming from a girl who can spend three straight hours in the bookstore at a time:)Thank you so much!! <33 I’m very happy to hear you think so!!:) And thank you so much for that very helpful reply and advice!!! I was struggling to decide when I should include the conversion scene, but that was EXTREMELY helpful and sparked so many new ideas and bits of inspiration!! I love how you worded all of that, and I especially love when you mentioned Newton reading from the Bible privately and finding passages that really touch his heart. I can envision that so perfectly! And when you said that about the church and him speaking with the pastor, that’s exactly the missing piece I was looking for! I knew I wanted scenes with him speaking with the pastor in the church, conflicting over salvation and wondering if he was too much of a sinner to ever be forgiven, though I wasn’t sure how to exactly write that (again, this is a new idea). And that would definitely work very well!! Thank you so much for giving me these incredible ideas!! You worded it so flawlessly and I think it fits Newton’s character very well to have those scenes:) Yes, I was thinking before the confession for certain, because, quite honestly, Newton is still pretty cruel and heartless before his redemption, and Caira (who also learns about Jesus) obviously wouldn’t want to start a romantic relationship with him at that point. But after he goes through a drastic change and becomes a very compassionate and kind person, I believe that would be the perfect chance to write it in. And I just love everything you wrote, because that’s exactly what I needed and will definitely use. So thank you SO MUCH for writing this post for me, because it’s 100% what I needed and has given me so many new ideas to work with!! <33 And thank you!!! I really appreciate every single word, it means the absolute world to me and I’m so thankful for all of this advice!! You’re such a huge help/encouragement/motivation to my writing, so thank you!!! 🙂
- Rank: Eccentric Mentor
- Total Posts: 1789
@writerlexi1216 Good question. Honestly, I would go with the flow. For example, in Held Captive (I just realize this may be kind of spoilery for you, so the names have been changed to protect the actual character’s identities), one character Frank (who is a Christian) is already in love with Dorcas and told her so before she converts. But in Prisoner at Heart, one character Eli doesn’t really move forward in his relationship with Rose until after his conversion. And in Bound and Determined, both Keaton and Daisy (which are their real names this time) are already Christians.
I think, especially with all of Newton’s insecurities, it would be good to go ahead and start a little of his romance with Caira. And in one of his weak moments where he feels less-than and unworthy, he can meet God. Then he’ll be ready to go the next step with Caira and (hopefully) admit he likes her. See what I mean? But it’s all up to you, and to your characters, really. They oftentimes have their own ideas about how their story should be written–trust me, I should know. I had a character propose before I was even ready for him to admit he liked the girl.
Girl, it was no problemo! I’m just so glad I could be of service!!
@gracie-j
I sincerely appreciate all of your help with this, Grace!! <3333 This whole new arc of Newton being an atheist-turned-Christian is still fairly new and not outlined, so you’ve really helped me figure out a lot of how I want to write it!! And also, thank you for switching the names! I like spoilers, but for Held Captive? I’d rather keep the suspense!!:) And I agree with having Newton interested in Caira before his conversion rather than after his confession, because of course Caira is a Christian at that point so I didn’t want to portray it wrongly or inappropriately. Anyways, thank you so much for the help! I know I can always count on Grace the Wise to give me some extremely helpful advice 😉 And of course you were! You really helped me move further with this side storyline:)
Your so welcome girl! I’m so beyond glad that I was able to help you with this utterly magnificent arc and helped spark new ideas for it:) I totally understand how hard it is putting the pieces together with these type of themes and scenes, so I’m just so happy that my post helped:) 😀 😀 😀 😀 😀 😀 😀
- Rank: Eccentric Mentor
- Total Posts: 1789
@writerlexi1216 Grace the Wise? Girl, you flatter me! XD It’s my pleasure! I’m just so glad that you’re including Christianity and having Newton become a Christian!!!! If you ever need any more help, just let me know, girl!
Of course you did!!! You really helped me understand better how to outline this and plan out how I’m going to write it!! Thank you SO MUCH!!:D You’re posts are always beyond helpful!!
@gracie-j
Aww, of course!!:) You’ve helped me immensely with this novel, and I really can’t thank you enough!:) I’m honestly SO glad you like it. The sub-plot is still quite new–hence why I haven’t outlined it yet–and I was hoping you guys would enjoy the idea. Thank you so much!!:)
- Rank: Eccentric Mentor
- Total Posts: 1789
@writerlexi1216 Girl, there is no way I wouldn’t enjoy it! It’s absolutely perfect!!!
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