Finding Aslan: Part 3
Discovering Your Novel's Spiritual Theme
Welcome to Part 3 of the Finding Aslan workshop series. This workshop will be presented in four parts and includes slide graphics and a workbook. The full slide presentation and complete workbook will be available for download at the conclusion of the series.
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Workshop Description
As authors of faith, we often struggle with how much of what we believe to include in our novels. But, because we are authors of faith, we have the unique opportunity to bring light into the darkness through the stories we tell. We want our readers to see Jesus in our stories without overexplaining or “telling” them the moral or lesson we want to convey.
That’s where Aslan comes in.
In this workshop, we’ll tackle the topic of weaving a spiritual theme into our stories that is both subtle and powerful at once. We’ll look at the difference between preaching and presenting spiritual truths, how to handle criticism of faith in our stories, and writing for the general market versus writing for the Christian market.
If you’re ready to dive deep and discover the spiritual theme your novel’s been missing, this is the workshop for you.
Where we left off . . .
In Part 2, we concluded with our first “supposal,” and I challenged you to change the script of defeat, self-doubt, and lies the enemy whispers that keep you from writing. Instead of “always winter and never Christmas,” let’s commit to seeing whatever season of writing or creativity hardship we are in as “right now winter, someday Christmas.”
Whether you’ve completed the pages in the first two parts of the workbook or you’re still working your way through, feel free to continue with this workshop at your own pace. Here’s what we covered in Part 2:
Writing even when you don’t have all the answers yet.
Universal vs. spiritual themes.
Combatting the villains of self-doubt and imposter syndrome.
In Part 3, we will continue to explore C.S. Lewis’s idea of “supposing.” In this part, we will cover:
Dealing with criticism and cancel culture as a Christian author.
The world’s expectations vs. God’s expectations.
Tackling tough story theme questions.
