Current Events in Fiction

Story ideas are plentiful. A bit of conversation, an unusual act of kindness, a child’s innocent question—these and a thousand other things may spark stories in our imagination.

Current events also can be fertile ground for stories because we already share these experiences with our readers. We know the frustration and sorrow of a pandemic. We share the pain of war victims. We feel the despair of illegal aliens fleeing violence in their home countries. Any of these events could grow into meaningful stories of faith.

Think about how you might use a current event as the seed of a story. Suppose a family is divided by war. The mother and children make their way to a safe haven while the father stays behind to fight. You could tell about the trials and triumphs of the refugees, the heartache of the father, or the anguish of a young couple separated by the demands of patriotism.

How about a college freshman who contracts Covid 19 just before classes begin? Since she can’t attend class for the first two weeks, ­she loses her scholarship. Now she has the stress of being out of sync with her friends and having to pay several thousand dollars of tuition by herself. What might she learn about God’s provision through such an experience?

Many more ideas emerge from each day’s headlines, but they come with risks. The source of your story idea may disappear before your story can appear, which could make it obsolete. The pain associated with some events could make readers avoid them. Escapist readers want to read about anything but traumatic true happenings.

Yet there are good reasons to write a story based on current events. Your characters can demonstrate how to cope with problems that seem too difficult to handle. Your heroine can discover a meaningful, life-changing relationship with God. Your protagonists can realize that God is always with them, despite unexpected turns their lives may take.

Watch the evening news with a notepad. List the problems that threaten people in the news. How might God enable them to cope with these problems? That could be the start of your next novel.

Joe Allison writes both fiction and nonfiction, and has been a member of the Indiana chapter of American Christian Fiction Writers since 2010. His most recent book is Hard Times (Warner Press: 2019). He lives in Anderson, IN, with his wife Maribeth.