by Cindy Sproles @CindyDevoted

Everyone wants the novel that readers wrap their arms around and hug. It’s so engaging, action-packed, and emotional that readers can’t help but pass it along. Word of mouth is a beautiful thing – or a killer. It depends on the novel and how well it is written.

We’d all be lucky to create beloved novels like The Mitford series or as impactful as The Left Behind series. Ah, but we all want those. So, what is the one thing that makes Christian fiction readable, loved, and wanted?

The one thing I think makes a story sought after is believability. When writers can draw their readers into a believable tale that “rings true” with life, it becomes well-loved. Of course, a good story helps, but you can have a good story but miss the details, and it won’t work.

How do we make our fiction loved? The obvious is practice. It takes writing and rewriting over and over – practicing the craft, for us to learn and master it. A well-written work is like butter in the mind of a reader. They can slip smoothly from page to page, moment to moment, and incident to incident. A well-written story is fluid, and the pages turn quickly without hesitation. The characters are – believable. When this happens, the reader can’t put a book down. When it’s finished, they miss the characters.

Still, the question is, what makes a story believable? It’s a couple of things. But first, let’s address what is average. An average story is predictable. The plot is ho-hum, the characters have nothing unique about them, and the ending is tied up in a pretty bow. In essence, this is not believable. It’s blaa. Life isn’t this way. Life is real. Your story should be “real.”

It’s important to understand that when we talk about believability, we aren’t talking about telling only the truth. It was once said that to be a good fiction writer, one must be a good liar. The thought behind that remark is that a liar can spin a tale. They can continue to add to the lie and to make it believable. And that’s the key to writing believable fiction: spinning and building upon a story by adding things that can and do happen in reality. A liar has to keep up the story with believable facts and so does an author. When they fail to do so, the story collapses. Now this is not to say that as an author you are literally a liar. Take the analogy and work with it.

I am talking about writing reality into your story instead of a dreamy hope – things that happen in real life. This doesn’t mean you give gory details when there’s an accident. Instead, it means you allow the reader to see that things don’t always work out how we want them to. As Christian writers, if we lead readers to think God answers every prayer the way we ask Him to, yet He doesn’t do that for them, our story has lost credibility. For example, if we say a doctor has a 100% cancer healing rate and a person dies, that doctor’s credibility has just plummeted. Okay, that was a pretty far-fetched example, but you get the drift.

As writers, we must let go of the thought that a reading adventure is all Disneyland and present the reader with relatable work. Readers want to see how we work through loss, heartache, and pain. They want to see how we handle success, happiness, and family. Readers don’t want to see every story end ideally, rather they want to be satisfied at the end – pleased that even if things didn’t turn out as they had hoped, they are “good” with the reality and how the character fairs at the story’s conclusion.

In my second novel, the reader assumed that my protagonist and the leading man in the story would marry at the end. That didn’t happen. Instead, they kept the warmth in their relationship, realizing that the protagonist’s lifelong work was most important. The two remained close friends that were always there for one another. Readers continually commented, “I thought they’d get married, but a dear friendship was perfect.” The story ended differently than they’d anticipated, but they weren’t disappointed – the readers were satisfied because the ending was plausible in real life.

Fiction is meant to be a place where readers can retreat. But it doesn’t mean retreating into a fairytale. It simply means falling into the lives and situations of characters who show them how to maneuver their way through life. Readers walk away feeling good about how the tale ended. Every story doesn’t have a Prince Charming but can have a solid and acceptable ending.

Coupled with a good story, strong characters, and plenty of twists and turns, the polish on your fiction should be believable. When this happens, you will leave readers with an endearing story that remains in their hearts and minds. And that is what you want – a story that stays with your readers.

Practice writing away from the fairytale endings and work on writing in reality. You’ll see a huge difference in your writing and in your readership.

Cindy K. Sproles is an author, speaker, and conference teacher. Having served for a number of years as a managing editor for Lighthouse Publishing of the Carolinas and Ironstream Media, Cindy now works as a mentor, coach, and freelance editor. She is the co-founder of Writing Right Author Mentoring Services with Lori Marett and the director of the Asheville Christian Writers Conference. Cindy is also the co-founder of Christian Devotions Ministries and www.christiandevotions.us, as well as www.inspireafire.com. Her devotions are in newspapers and magazines nationwide, and her novels have become award-winning, best-selling works. She is a popular speaker at conferences and a natural encourager. Cindy is a mountain girl, born and raised in the Appalachian mountains, where she and her husband still reside. She has raised four sons and now resorts to raising chickens where the pecking order is easier to manage. You can visit Cindy at www.cindysproles.com or www.wramsforwriters.com.