Powerful Storytelling by Joy Margetts

 Who doesn’t love a good story? As writers most of us love to read and love a well written story, whether fiction or non-fiction. We love a well imagined tale that grabs our attention. We can be moved by true-life stories -  good biographies or memoirs. We go to the TV screen, theatre or cinema to lose ourselves in an engaging story.

We love good stories because stories are powerful. A quick search on the internet will tell you that stories are powerful when they connect with the audience in some way. As writers, particularly those of us who write stories, our aim is to connect with our readers. At least to get them interested enough to keep reading beyond the first page or two!

We explored the power of stories at our recent writer’s retreat. In one of our sessions we looked at HOW good stories connect with an audience. These were our conclusions:

Stories connect because

1.     They engage our imagination

2.     They engage our emotions

3.     They stay in our memory

4.     They encourage us to think in more than one dimension

5.     They can speak beyond our minds to our souls and to our spirits

I am sure we can think of stories we have read that have transported us to another time and place, where we have escaped reality through the power of the writing and of our imaginations. Perhaps we can think of stories that have made us cry, or laugh, or just left us feeling peacefully contented. Can you remember stories you read or heard as a child that have stayed with you in your memory? I’m sure you can.

At the retreat we looked at the power of stories using two parables from the Bible. Jesus taught in parables and they were definitely powerful. Jesus’ stories connected with His audience, by engaging their imaginations and emotions, but they did more than that. His parables had the power to speak beyond the minds of His listeners; they had the power to speak deep spiritual truths that would connect to their very hearts. If His listeners were willing to look for the truth behind His words, and to think in more than one dimension.

I want to write good stories that connect with my readers, that engage their imaginations and their emotions. But I also think it is possible to write stories that go deeper; that touch people’s souls and spirits. That is possible if God is with us in the writing. We can write powerful stories inspired by Him.

We called our retreat ‘Writing kingdom Stories’. There was a purpose in that. We wanted to focus on how powerful stories can be, and how perhaps we could be writing the sort of stories that speak the truths of God’s kingdom into people’s lives.

I know this type of writing isn’t for everyone. But even if you don’t write Kingdom stories, I am sure at some point you have read some. If you took a moment to think back over all of the books of stories that you have read, whether fictional or non fictional, could you highlight stories that connected with you beyond your mind and emotions? Did they speak to you spiritually? Did they even reveal spiritual truths to you in a way you hadn’t seen before?

I’ll answer that question. Yes! There have been many instances when stories have spoken deeply to me, which is why I believe Christian fiction can be powerful. In a time when I felt God was very far away from me (He wasn’t, it just felt that way!) I picked up C.S. Lewis’ Chronicles of Narnia many years after I last read them as a young teen. I reread those stories and as I did I was reminded of who Jesus was, how much I was loved, and how real and beautiful my Christian faith was. Powerful. God used those stories to reach out to me, comfort me and bring me back to Him.

Can you think of a story, or more than one, that had lasting spiritual impact on you?

Do you think it is possible to write powerful stories that point people to Jesus? Is it something you feel called to do?

Joy Margetts writes Christian Historical Fiction. Her debut novel 'The Healing' was published in March 2021, and her second ‘The Pilgrim’ in July 2022. Her third novel 'The Bride' will be published later this year. Joy makes her home in beautiful North Wales and takes her inspiration from its rich spiritual history and stunning landscapes. She is also wife, mother and grandmother and a lover of the Word of God. Her personal blog and more information about her books can be found here www.joymargetts.com