In faith-based fiction, a character’s backstory is the thread that weaves depth and authenticity into their journey. As a Christian author, knowing how and when to share a character’s past is key to keeping your readers engaged without bogging down the narrative.
Category: Christian Fiction
First Impressions: Creative Ways to Introduce Characters in Faith-Based Fiction
Making First Impressions Count
When it comes to writing memorable stories—especially in faith-based fiction—how you introduce your characters can make all the difference. The first glimpse readers get of your protagonist, antagonist, or supporting cast sets the tone for how they’ll connect with them throughout the Christian novel.
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How Dialogue Builds Character: Crafting Conversations That Reveal the Heart
In Christian fiction, character development is central to storytelling. One of the most powerful tools a writer has is dialogue. More than just talk, dialogue reveals who a character is—what they believe, what they fear, and how they grow. Used with intention, dialogue becomes a mirror to the soul and a map for transformation.
Setting the Stage: How Environment Reflects and Shapes Character
In Christian fiction, every compelling character deserves an equally compelling world. Setting is far more than a backdrop—it’s a silent character of its own. It infuses mood into moments, challenges protagonists to grow, and often reveals the hidden truths of their hearts. Used with intention, setting becomes:
– an emotional mirror
– a source of conflict
– and a cradle for transformation
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Faith in Fiction: How Christian Stories Reflect Real-Life Struggles and God’s Grace
The Power of Storytelling in the Christian Life
In a world overwhelmed by noise and distraction, stories have a way of reaching hearts in a quiet, personal way. As a Christian fiction author, I’ve discovered how deeply faith-based stories can reflect our real struggles—grief, doubt, hope, and healing—and ultimately point us back to God’s grace.
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Character Development in Fiction Writing: A Very Important Question
If you’re an author hoping to connect with readers on a deeper level, one of the most important questions you can ask yourself is: Do my readers actually care about my characters?
Why Time Spent Creating Characters Really Matters. (Part 1: In the Beginning…)
Have you ever?
Have you ever picked up a book only to put it down after reading just a few chapters? Or, having finished a book, have you felt completely unsatisfied, as if the book failed you in some way? Someone told me once that probably the main reason we delve into a work of fiction is to escape. What I’ve found is that, while a book can be filled with exotic settings or fast-paced action, it can still feel “flat” to me. When I put some thought into it, I realized that the main reason the book felt “flat” to me was because I didn’t care about the main characters. I felt no sense of empathy for them. I found no reason to cheer them on. I didn’t like or dislike them. I simply didn’t care about them – or what happened to them. In short, I felt nothing. Surely, I can’t be the only one whose had this experience.
What It Means to Me
The Question
Perhaps one of the most-asked questions I’ve been on the receiving end of across my authorial journey is, “Why did you decide on the Christian genre?” I think the answer most expect is that I believe I was “called” by God to explore the genre. While that’s a very good reason to write in the genre, it never really felt like it was my reason. I’ve always believed that what I’ve been called to do is use the gifts God has given me to share the message of His love with others – some of which might not ever hear it outside of having possibly picked up my book by chance. A handful of years after stepping into writing in the Christian genre, I can still say that is my primary motivation behind everything I write (or hope to write).
A Look Behind the Scenes
Recently, however, I’ve been doing some pretty deep soul-searching because I couldn’t shake the feeling that there was another, more personal, reason behind just why I ventured into the world of the Christian genre author. The reason finally made itself apparent to me today as I was trying to put together a mental plot outline for my latest book, “More than Promises.” I started this book quite a while ago, and have written roughly 1700 words to date – and every thought was a struggle to put into words. I’d sit down and attempt to do so, but usually just end up walking away from it. Trust me when I say that there’s not anything that’s more frustrating to a writer than being at a loss for words. Why can’t I get it, I ask myself almost angrily. This just isn’t me, God – please help me with this. Please give me my words…
First Things First
It was as I was pacing back and forth through the house this morning that God gave me part of my answer. I suddenly realized that before I could write another word, I had to know why I wanted to write them – or, in this case, why I needed to write them. It became clear to me that the more personal reason for writing within the Christian genre – at least during this season God has put me in – is because I’m writing through grief. I’m trying to make sense of questions like, “Why does God let bad things happen to good people?” or “We prayed for healing…something we KNOW God can (and does) do…but that healing didn’t come – He chose not to heal that person. With those thoughts in my heart, I looked back on my first novel, Light of Grace, and could clearly see that I was trying to write through the grief of unexpectedly losing my mom in her sleep one night. When I started writing “More than Promises,” I had a general idea of where I wanted the story to go but couldn’t put my finger on the reason I wanted to write it. Lo and behold, there it was again – writing through grief.
When the Answer Doesn’t Come
Sometimes – most times, actually – when we’re suffering, we’re looking for answers that will help ease our pain. As a Christian, I look to God for those answers. But here’s the thing – sometimes – most times, actually – those answers don’t come. Or, at least not in my timing – when I want them to.
I recently lost a very dear friend to a glioblastoma. It seemed as if her diagnosis was sudden, but the cancer had been growing inside of her brain for a long time – she just had no idea. I mean, who would have ever thought something so unimaginable was going on? It wasn’t until her symptoms manifested themselves to the point that it was obvious that something was wrong that she was taken to the hospital. Within a day of this, she’d withdrawn into herself…and she never came back to us…to me. She underwent surgery but it made no difference. In four short months, this beautiful, godly soul was gone – and while I’m happy that she’s home with the Lord now, the hole left in her absence is one that I feel each and every day.
God chose not to answer my prayers. He chose not to heal her, but to call her home to Him instead. Even as a believer, that’s a tough one to deal with – to simply accept the fact that there are so many “reasons” that we will never know.
Back to My Journey
So…for now at least…the Lord has shown me that a big part of my journey as a Christian author will be to write through grief. I want to work through it in the lives of my characters as they struggle with the same questions I’m struggling with. And one day, in His timing…if it’s His will…I will walk through my season of grief and find that He did answer my prayers – only instead of healing my dear friend, He has healed me.
So, Join Me
I fully understand that not every one of us is immune to the grief the loss of a loved one brings to our hearts. My prayer is that we might walk through this journey together – that maybe we can join with the characters of “More than Promises” and learn from them as they walk the same paths with us. And if it’s God’s will – maybe someone will find healing within the pages. So, please join me. Please pray for me as I walk through putting this grief into words. May the peace of God that surpasses all understanding guard your hearts.
WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?
BEAUTY FROM ASHES
In my first novel, Light of Grace, the reader walks alongside Sara Jacobs as she navigates the path of shattered dreams and grief toward learning to live again. What God teaches her along the way is that He does, in fact, make beauty from the ashes of our lives if we are willing to let Him. I’ll be transparent here and admit that, in so many ways, I still haven’t been quite able to open myself up completely to learning that lesson. But, like each one of us, I’m a work-in-progress.
WHAT WILL COME NEXT?
That was a question I was asked more than once by a few people who were kind enough to read my book before I published it. As I fumbled around for a response only to answer, “I don’t really know,” it was suggested that I write a second novel focusing on a character introduced briefly in the epilogue of Light of Grace, Lilly Wilkes. Lilly was the gift God created from the ashes of Sara’s life.
I have to say that I wasn’t really captured by that idea at first. I pulled out my first novel manuscript (one that never saw the light of day and probably never will) and toyed with the idea of re-writing it, moving it from the Romance genre to the Christian fiction genre. I tried. Many times. But it just wouldn’t come together. As I prayed about it, it felt as if the Lord was steering me towards picking up where Light of Grace left off and following Lilly Wilkes’ story. To date, I’ve only written about 4800 words, but the idea is slowly coming together. Once again, the spark came from a song: Broken Together by Casting Crowns. I’m currently struggling with making a plot outline while simply sitting down and writing, to see where the story will go – but it is my goal to have the novel completed by the end of 2025.
COMING in 2025:
So, please allow me to introduce my next novel, “More than Promises.”
Lilly Wilkes left her hometown with her dreams and her faith tucked away in her heart. Being accepted into Julliard promised the chance to make those dreams come true. Choosing between pursuing the path she believed God had put before her and the road paved by the pressures to fit in was never part of her plan. When a chance meeting with Marcus Allen, one of the biggest names in the music industry, catapults her into living in the spotlight, choices are made and lines are crossed. With her innocence lost, will her buried faith be enough to save her? Or will the person she used to be remain lost in the darkness of who she had become?
In the meantime, please check out Light of Grace, available on Amazon, in both a Kindle and paperback edition. Thanks for your support!
What to Read in 2025?
It’s a New Year…
The arrival of a new year is typically accompanied by the desire for “new” things: new goals, new dreams, and even contemplating what the list of the best Christian books of 2025 might look like. Because of my own search for both Christian fiction and a new yearly devotional, I thought I’d go through my own book collection and compile a list of some of my favorites. These are not new titles for 2025, but titles I definitely would recommend as the books to read in 2025, with my own books taking the top spots on my list 🙂
Christian Fiction:
- Light of Grace by Lori Domingo (that’s me)
- Unlocked by Karen Kingsbury (this is one of my favorites)
- The Memory of You by Catherine West
- Where Hope Begins by Catherine West
- Mark of the Lion Trilogy by Francine Rivers (be aware – this one if tough to get through as it brings to light the suffering of the early Christians at the hands of the Romans)
- Ordinary Grace by William Kent Kruger
- Send Down the Rain by Charles Martin
Christian Non-fiction:
- Gentle and Lowly by Dane Ortlund
- The Pursuit of God by A.W. Tozer
- Instruments in the Redeemers Hands by Paul David Tripp
Devotionals:
- Journeys of Faith: Two Ordinary People, One Extraordinary God by Lori Domingo and William Obaugh
- New Morning Mercies by Paul David Tripp
Have Fun Reading!
I sure hope that sharing some of my favorites will guide you in picking out your best Christian books for 2025. Thanks in advance for (hopefully) choosing to add mine to your list!