To map out a novel, some people utilize the greatest story of all time, the story of our Salvation.
Starting with the Garden of Eden as the Characteristic Moment, the Incarnation as the Midpoint, and Gethsemane as the Low Point.
But what if we narrowed that down and used a more insignificant part of our Salvation as a guide for the beats in our novel?
What if we used the Way of the Cross, Christ’s journey to Calvary, as an alternative to outlining our protagonist’s journey? Especially since we are Christian writers who write Christian fiction!
Is there no better example to use than Christ, whom we strive to model, and whom we also try to glorify through our writing!?
Here we go!
I'll break down the parts of the Passion by using the Stations of The Cross and show you how it can work.
Jesus is condemned to death: The inciting incident.
Jesus takes up His cross: The point of no return. The protagonist will either choose to answer or refuse the call to adventure.
Jesus falls the first time: Protag sees the cost of failure. The fall represents the protag struggling in the debate, but realizes what's at stake if they give up now.
Jesus meets His Mother: Meeting of the Mentor. Mary stayed by Him till the end and never gave up on Him. A mentor supports the protagonist in his journey and beliefs.
Simon helps Jesus carry His cross: The helper. Support from another character that maybe doesn't stick around but helps your protagonist physically or helps them change their flawed worldview/mindset.
Veronica wipes the face of Jesus: False victory. The protagonist renews some strength to fight the antagonist but finds out that it's only the beginning of the end.
Jesus falls the second time: Midpoint with trials and obstacles. The realization that the protagonist might not have the strength to go on, but knows what has to be done. Takes Action! With his new understanding, he makes headway.
Jesus speaks to the women of Jerusalem: Encouragement to complete the quest! This represtents what the protagonist cares deeply for and why he is doing what he is doing. The thing that is motivating him to go on and sacrifice anything for what is he sees as important.
Jesus falls the third time: Low point. Despair.
Jesus is stripped of His garments: Dark night of the soul for your protagonist. Loses everything!
Jesus is nailed to the cross: Point of no return! Confontation.
Jesus dies on the cross: Climatic moment. Protagonist’s Sacrifice.
Jesus is taken down from the cross: Sometimes the protagonist needs the help of other characters to finish what he started.
Jesus is buried in the tomb: Conclusion. The question ‘What next?’ arises.
Lastly, we could include the Ressurection as the Resolution:
This ties all storylines together.
Without the Resurrection all Chirst’s efforts would be in vain. Here we can see why we followed this particular character on their journey and why it was worth reading/writing.
You might need to fill in some little gaps along the way that I wasn't able to include.
If you want to, you could expand The Passion starting with The Agony in The Garden,(Gethsemane) and extend it past the Resurrection and end with Christ’s Ascension. Personally, I like the idea of using the road to Calvary, as a mental image, which makes it feel more like the ‘Hero’s Journey.’
This outline could be useful for writing chapters too!
Let me know what you think and whether it was helpful or not.
Happy writing, and a Blessed Lent to you!
See you Under the Lamp soon!✨
Your Leerie for the Lord,
M. G. Teagan