3 Prewriting Steps Every Christian Writer Should Take Before Starting Their Novel
A Guide to Building Strong, Relatable Characters with Confidence
3 Prewriting Steps Every Christian Writer Should Take Before Starting Their Novel
When it comes to writing a book, these three prewriting steps are key.
Have you ever stared at a blank page or wondered how to start your novel? Have you wanted to write a book but felt overwhelmed and intimidated?
In today’s post, I’ll walk you through three simple, step-by-step strategies to help you pre-write with confidence. After going through this, you’ll be ready to finally start writing your book.
The dream of every Christian fiction writer is to create stories that honor their faith and engage readers — without compromising values or feeling overwhelmed.
But with so much conflicting advice out there — especially from secular writing spaces — it’s easy to feel lost before you even begin. You start questioning:
“Where do I even start?”
“Can I really do this at my age?”
“Is clean fiction even relevant today?”
It can leave you feeling discouraged and stuck — like your writing dream is slipping further away.
You’re not alone — and you’re not too late. Today, I’m sharing three simple, faith-aligned steps to help you lay the foundation for your story — without the overwhelm. You’ll learn how to:
✔ Create a main character readers connect with
✔ Define what drives your character (and your plot)
✔ Use failure to deepen your story and your character’s growth
If you get stuck or have questions, just send me a message — I’m always happy to help.
Let’s get started!
What Are the 3 Prewriting Steps?
These steps help you:
✔ Anchor your story with a relatable, layered main character
✔ Create clear motivation and emotional stakes for your plot
✔ Show realistic failure and growth that deepens your message
If you’ve ever stared at a blank page or felt unsure how to start writing a clean, faith-driven novel, these steps will guide you. You’ll move from stuck and overwhelmed to clear, confident, and ready to write — with your values intact.
Why These Prewriting Steps Matter
Statistics show readers connect most with stories driven by strong characters, real struggles, and meaningful growth. But here’s the challenge:
✅ Many new writers start plotting without knowing who their story is really about
✅ Without a strong protagonist, your plot feels flat or disconnected
✅ For Christian writers, there’s the added pressure to keep stories clean but still engaging
These three steps help you avoid overwhelm, honor your faith, and build stories that resonate.
Prewriting Step #1: Create Your Main Character
Many writers fail to complete their novel for the simple reason that they don’t create a main character readers can root for. You should always start with your protagonist — because there’s no story without them.
If readers don’t have a character to connect with, they won’t finish your book.
Your main character is the heart of your story — the person your readers will root for, relate to, and follow through every challenge. In middle grade, YA, and clean adult fiction, your protagonist should be:
✔ Relatable and motivated by something personal
✔ Facing meaningful obstacles
✔ Growing or changing through the story
✔ Distinct, with quirks and personality that make them memorable
Example:
Reynie Muldoon from The Mysterious Benedict Society — a brilliant but lonely orphan, driven to prove he belongs. His layered personality and relatable fears keep readers invested.
Your Turn:
Who is your protagonist? What makes them unique, relatable, and capable of carrying your story?
Prewriting Step #2: Determine What They Want
Another critical step to writing a powerful novel is determining what your main character wants. This helps you define their goal, the obstacles they face, their growth arc, and your plot.
Before I realized how important this step was, I made some rookie mistakes. I wrote about characters with no real goals or problems — just perfect people in perfect scenarios. Unsurprisingly, those stories had no depth, no character change, and no reader connection.
Once I focused first on character creation instead of world-building or plot, everything changed. I started getting reader feedback like this:
“I just finished reading Book Club Murder, and it was really fun! I love Gabby, I also love Emory! I also love the part where she goes on a date with Detective Brandon right after she drinks wine 😂 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️”
When you nail this step, your readers connect with your characters — and your story becomes unforgettable.
Every great story starts with a character who wants something — belonging, purpose, justice, connection. That desire propels your plot.
Example:
Sera Craven from The Case of the Missing Person — determined to find her long-lost friend from the orphanage. Her quest drives every decision, mistake, and triumph.
Your Turn:
What does your character want more than anything? How does that desire shape your plot?
Master the first 3 prewriting steps — then keep going.
Grab my FREE Middle Grade Magic workbook with 5 practical, beginner-friendly tools to help you build your clean, compelling novel.
Prewriting Step #3: Decide How They Will Fail
It might feel uncomfortable, but failure makes your story real — and relatable. Readers connect with characters who struggle, fall, and find the courage to keep going. Just like we do in life.
Every great story has moments when the main character almost succeeds — but then something goes wrong. That’s what keeps readers turning pages.
💥 Disaster + Dilemma = A Story Readers Connect With
A disaster is the immediate failure — something goes terribly wrong.
A dilemma is what follows — the hard choice your character must make after failing.
Example:
Sera thinks she’s close to finding her missing friend, but when she agrees to meet someone who claims to have information, she realizes too late it’s a trap (disaster). Now she must decide: run for help or stay and gather more clues, risking her safety (dilemma).
Failure isn’t the end — it’s a turning point. In middle grade and YA fiction, failure tests your character’s determination, beliefs, and emotional resilience.
What matters isn’t that your character fails — it’s how they react. Do they give up? Try again? Learn something new? Great stories are built on failure because it forces characters to grow.
Your Turn:
What disaster will challenge your character? How will failure push them to grow, deepen their faith, or discover their strength?
Wrapping It Up
If you create a layered, relatable protagonist and define what they truly want, you’ll be well on your way to writing a story that connects with readers and honors your faith. These steps work together to help you build clean, compelling fiction with confidence.
You’ll get the best results by applying each step intentionally — one at a time — so your story grows naturally.
🎧 Want more guidance? Listen to The Christian Writers Podcast — 3 Prewriting Steps Every Christian Writer Should Take Before Starting Their Novel. In this episode, I’ll walk you through:
✔ How to create a relatable, layered main character
✔ How to define their core desire and motivation
✔ How failure deepens your character’s growth — and your story’s impact
You don’t have to sacrifice your values to write great fiction — and it’s never too late to start your story. [Insert podcast link]
Over to you — which step are you working on? Let me know in the comments!
Master the first 3 prewriting steps — then keep going.
Grab my FREE Middle Grade Magic workbook with 5 practical, beginner-friendly tools to help you build your clean, compelling novel.
Other Resources:
How to Write Complex Characters Without the Struggle
3 Tactics To Squash Your Inner Critic
3 Tips To Help When You Want To Give Up (The Messy Middle) When Writing A Book
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