Story EmbersStory Embers is run by a group of Christian writers who are committed to glorifying God with excellent craftsmanship. We accept article, poetry, and short story submissions from a number of Christian storytellers around the world. You can peruse our latest posts from contributing audience members below.
Some people write because they believe it’s their calling—others write for the sheer joy it brings them. In today’s episode, Daeus, Rose, and Martin share the values that drive each of them as authors and discuss the meaning of being “called” to write. They talk about...
You can’t avoid running into mythology, not when it plays a role in so many beloved stories—a few of which are probably on your favorites list. But does your faith give you a reason to feel guilty for enjoying or creating that kind of entertainment? Can writers who believe in the one true God justify the depiction of multiple deities, magical creatures, and mystical rituals? Or will those elements mock Him?
As the old saying goes, good writers are good readers first. But what books should writers be reading? In today’s episode, Josiah, Mariposa, and Lori talk about the importance of exploring genres outside the ones they write in and the lessons they’ve learned when doing so. They also give practical tips on how you can expand your own reading selections. Listen to their conversation here!
Stories from all over the world hold that wayfarers, especially sailors, often got tattoos of swallows. It was, after all, the swooping swallows against the blue sky they would see well before they could see familiar shores. Swallows meant they were home. When I got my first tattoo, I already had a foot in Costa Rica and Georgia. I was coming to terms with the hard truth that having made a home in two countries meant I’d never “come home” without leaving another.
After the longest dry season, you pour yourself into the cracks in the clay and your overflowing, lasting long after the clouds have passed us by, is the color green. Hope, after so many days wondering when you might arrive, that the days of the hunger season are numbered. That tomorrow I will not ache from sowing in dry ground.
The fourth resolution of our manifesto states, “We resolve to infuse our storytelling with truth, being bold and unafraid of our stance while presenting it with love and tact, recognizing that truth in storytelling is best communicated when shown, not told.” Telling the truth in love is a common mantra in Christian circles. But how do you apply it to fiction, and what does it look like in practice? Josiah, Daeus, Rose, and Martin tackle these questions and more in today’s episode. Listen to their conversation below!
Sister, I see your arms are trembling. Brother, I see your tears, your stone-set face, how this fire rattling in your bones, shut up no longer, has burned you in the telling.
In today’s episode, Josiah joins staff members Mariposa and Lori as they take an in-depth look at kidlit. They discuss what makes the genre unique, how the age of your audience affects the writing process, and the lessons authors of any genre can learn from children’s stories. Listen to their conversation below!
Brown leaves battered Mr. Cotter’s beat-up truck as he pried open its door. He shook his head. How much time had withered since he last drove it? A year. He sighed, remembering the plot he puttered it to last. The once-green paint peeled in his hands like a snake shedding its skin.
Mother’s favorite waltz warbled from the corner of the garage. I must have left the phonograph on a few hours ago, before the party. Behind me, the chipped door closed on the clink of crystal, the swish of silk, and the thrum of a cello.
