Katie Schuermann led a session at the CCLE conference where we looked at stories. I need a handy place to keep my notes from the session. What follows is not a cohesive piece, but just my notes from the lovely things she talked about. If you disagree with something below, it's probably my fault as I reflect on what I heard that day, and no fault of Katie's.
A good story is simply putting the truth into the shape of a plot.
A good story takes the characters from life to death and back to life.
In a good story, the hero/protagonist is a savior.
Suffering in a story should be seen to bear fruit in sanctification.
A story's plot should reach its climax according to God's form and God's truth.
Poor writing is seen when the author doesn't answer his own foreshadowing.
~~ Such as when Alcott sets you up to expect Jo and Laurie to be a couple, and they marry others.
~~ Such as when Huck Finn longs for a mother and needs a mother, but rejects the offer to settle down with a good [surrogate] mother.
Poor writing is seen when the author turns God's good order on its head.
~~ Such as when Ingalls Wilder shows good family life throughout the series, with a wise and loving father, and then in the final book shows that Laura doesn't embrace the headship of Almonzo.
There are objective standards of what is true and beautiful and good, and these are found in God's word. It is a problem when we read books that speak against these standards.
If we feel unsettled or unsatisfied at the end of a story, it could be
~~ because the author intended to us to be unsettled or uncomfortable,
~~ because the author broke form with his own story-form, or
~~ because the author's story goes against the One True Story.
