The Christian Writer

Spreading God’s Truth to the World One Story at a Time

Category: Writing Tips

  • The Positive Change Arc Theme

    Now that we’ve covered most of the major story elements, it’s time to talk about the Theme. The Theme brings the Lie, the Truth, the Want, the Need, and the Ghost all together to create a seamless framework for your story. Without it, the plot would be a jumbled mess, and the character arc would…

  • The Ghost

    So, if you’ve been following this series, your character now has a misbelief—the Lie—and a goal—the Want. But we haven’t yet discussed the reasoning behind it all. Why does your MC believe the Lie? Why do they desire to have the Want? The answer to that is the Ghost.

  • The Want vs. the Need

    What does your character want more than anything? And what do they need more than anything? These elements are referred to as the Want and the Need, and they’re both necessary in order to keep any plot moving. If you don’t have the above questions answered already, you will by the end of this post.

  • The Lie vs. the Truth

    Today, we’re addressing two terms you may have seen on my blog before, and will probably see many times again. They are the Lie your main character (MC) believes, and the Truth they will come to believe. Let’s take a closer look at these two important elements…

  • The Positive Change Arc Protagonist

    The protagonist. This is the most important character in your story—the character you want your audience to care the most about. So it goes without saying that you should make sure you’re writing your protagonist the right way. Today, I’m going to show you three mistakes writers make with their protagonists, and how to avoid…

  • Intro to Positive Change Arcs

    Last week, you may recall that I mentioned the three main types of character arcs. Today, we are starting to talk about the first of these… the Positive Change Arc.

  • Intro to Plots and Character Arcs

    This is the beginning of a series on plots and character arcs. We will be going through each element and plot point one by one—using the Three-Act structure—and providing examples along the way. So buckle up and hold on… it’s going to be a long and wild ride.