Gratitude With Attitude

Given that we’re well into April (and partway through Holy Week) I thought I’d start with a Christmas question – what’s the most boring part of Christmas? Is it:

 

a)    Watching The Wizard of Oz for the thirty-fourth time?

b)    Peeling the sprouts?

c)     Singing an obscure carol with nineteen verses?

d)    Writing thank you letters.

 

I hate to admit this in such an illustrious company of writers, but for me – as a child – it was definitely writing my thank you letters. True, the first sentence was always easy – “Thank you for the soap-on-a-rope (remember those?)/chocolate orange/threepenny bit”. This was usually followed by a large sigh as I chewed my pencil and wondered what else I could possibly write that would be of interest to Great-Aunt Ethel (whom I hadn’t met since I was a baby).

 

However, thankfulness – or the lack of it – can be a useful tool in our writing. Do our characters frequently display gratitude, or do they tend to be critical of life in general? How would Ebenezer Scrooge’s approach to writing thank you letters have differed from Father Cadfael’s? Writing such a letter also offers our characters an opportunity of self-reflection, so can provide fresh insights for the reader.

 

Even in non-fiction, the writer’s tendency to thankfulness (or otherwise) can come across on the page and have an impact on the reader. I’ve recently read a review copy of That Gentle Whisper, by Bill Cahusac, which is infused with the author’s thankfulness to God. Reading through Twitter, on the other hand…

 

So, here are some suggestions for using gratitude in your writing:

 

·       Write a thank you letter from the perspective of one of your characters

·       Write a short piece on a topic that interests you using a thankful voice – then rewrite with a critical voice

·       Many of the Psalms are filled with expressions of gratitude – have a go at writing your own

 

Let me know how you get on – I’ll be very thankful/appreciative/obliged/indebted to you/grateful if you do!

Fiona Lloyd is Chair of the Association of Christian Writers and writes regularly for Together magazine. Her first novel, The Diary of a (trying to be holy) Mum, was published by Instant Apostle in January 2018. Fiona also works for Christians Against Poverty.

 

Twitter: @FionaJLloyd & @FionaLloyd16