On May 4th (yes, Star Wars Day), I moved the tassel and threw the cap, and now I await the nifty piece of paper to arrive in the mail that makes me what Anne Shirely reverently calls a “B.A.” Seeing as I am a writer and I succeeded in the venture which young writers discuss in hushed and worried tones, I would like to pause a moment from the pinnacle of my achievement and declare: “College didn’t ruin my writing dreams. In fact, college can be worth it for writers.” To illustrate my point, I will dismantle three common myths believed by young writers (including myself at one point) considering college: The Monstrous Debt Myth, The Time Gobbler Myth, and The Completely Useless Achievement Myth. If you’re a young writer considering college, in college, or advising someone in either position, allow me to employ some humor and common sense to...
Reorientation of the Heart: A Forgotten Function of Fantasy
Why do people enjoy fantasy stories? I’ve been pondering this as of late, noticing the modern world’s fascination with fantasy, sci-fi, dystopia, and so on—anything make-believe. (Certainly, the genres of contemporary and historical fiction haven’t died, but fantasy seems like the preference of many, specifically the younger generation.) Ultimately, how in line with Christian beliefs is this preference for strange worlds unlike our own? While Christ’s parables are often cited in support of stories’ power to portray truth, I’ve found fewer poignant arguments in favor of fantasy stories’ ability to be vehicles of the Gospel.1 Perhaps this is because there is an unconscious assumption that the marks of a Christian story are 1) explicit mention of God and matters of faith or 2) an implied Christian worldview of human affairs with no explicit mention of faith. Either of those can be used in a story with or without dragons...