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"Bad storytelling is bad theology, forwarding an immature view of God, self, and neighbor."
—Daniel Bowman Jr.
This section of "On the Spectrum" had me cheering.
Good, honest stories are often difficult to read and harder to write. But they're vital.
Bad storytelling is cringy at best. At worst, it reinforces our bubbles with deceivingly simple perspectives on people and morality, until we can no longer understand or communicate with the rest of the world.
In the same essay, "The Insidious Nature of Bad Christian Stories," Bowman expresses a worry I share:
"[B]ecause I'm a person of faith and an artist, I fear that someone might associate me with such kitsch."
I edit fiction from writers of all backgrounds. I also have significant experience in Christian nonfiction. I hesitate to mention that around novelists, partly because of the kitsch.
I don't want them to assume I think flimsily disguised sermons make for good dialogue or some such thing.