Brian Stansell

Good evening @crazywriter,

Thank you for your response.  I always refer back to Scripture, for whatever we may think about a concept, it should always return to God’s Word as a starting point:

All scripture [is] given by inspiration of God, and [is] profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: [2…[Read more]

I have thought a little more about the question:

Is it possible to maintain innocence without living in ignorance?

There are two things which I may suggest as to speak to that question.

James writes:
Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man: [James 1:13 KJV]

And…[Read more]

Daeus wrote a great article about depicting violence:

How Should Christian Authors Depict Violence?

He raises some valid points, so I defer.

I recommend reading 1 John chapter 5 on salvation and the security we have in belief, and the evidence that we who accept Jesus as Savior are children of God.

Whoever has the Son…[Read more]

@joelle-stone

I have good days and times when I just struggle in my humanness from missing her.  The Lord does help me in that pain.  I am going through a Bible study called “Finding Meaning in Mourning” and being open to God’s healing.  There are many things about her death that I cannot fully express because a lot has come to light since th…[Read more]

@joelle-stone

Okay, Joelle… I caught you mentioning “audio book”.  Please do it!  Share samples in the “Audio Cinema”!

https://storyembers.org/groups/fantasy-writers/forum/topic/audio-cinema/

We would love to hear them!

For those who don’t know, Joelle did a spectacular job with a recording from a short fiction piece she did entitled “…[Read more]

What should be the limits on violence in Christian books?

I think this one should be approached prayerfully and with thoughtful consideration of your target audience.  Some stories organically call for a certain degree of violence, however, there is a point at which the portrayal of violence can do more harm than good.  There is a term often u…[Read more]

Hi Denali, @denali-christianson

Yes, please suggest away. 🙂
What’s on your mind?

Okay, I give up….what is a Flabbit?  (a chubby Hobbit?) 😉

Here’s just a little something I wrote which shows some misdirection:

Rathburn did not know what he was in for. We had found strategic positions and lay in wait for him. There was not a lot of cover, so we had to find safe positions behind the austerely furnished room. Getting access had taken months of planning. Rathburn often worked late nights…[Read more]

I am very glad to have helped. Your insights have helped me many times, so I am pleased to return the favor.

Another thing I would mention is to layer misdirection or false trails within the story. Sometimes these are called “red herrings” in the writer’s guides.
Have several characters have reasonable motives for wanting to off the victims. …[Read more]

Kimmi,

That is amazing and heart-wrenching.  Very evocative and poignant.  Great job!

Some pain can only be mitigated by being present and connected.

Be happy with those who are happy, and weep with those who weep. [Romans 12:15 NLT]

Hi Rose,

I have been wanted to respond all day, but it has been so busy at work.

I agree with Joelle. You have to reverse-plot a mystery.  Determine what will happen and be revealed at the end and then work backwards.

You need to determine the main motivation for your villain.  What would drive them to commit a homicide.

There are the usual r…[Read more]