Tips for Using Allegories in Fiction by Denise Hunter

This Manuscript Monday, we're continuing our series on including spiritual elements in our writing. Have you ever thought of including allegories in your writing? This is Denise Hunter's specialty. Please welcome her today as she shares some very helpful tips.

Tips for Using Allegories in Fiction
by Denise Hunter

Allegory--a story, poem, or picture that can be interpreted to reveal a hidden meaning.

An allegory can be a subtle yet powerful way to offer insight, spiritual or otherwise.

Should you use allegory in your story and, if so, how do you incorporate it effectively?

Think about it: Jesus used allegories to teach. He called them parables. The story of the prodigal son comes to mind. You can use an allegory to highlight a point in your story or you can build an entire story around an allegory. Let me explain.

In Driftwood Lane, circumstances beyond her control force Meridith from her comfortable home to a dilapidated bed and breakfast in Nantucket where she must become guardian to three siblings she doesn’t know. I chose driftwood to represent Meridith. Ironically, her father, who had abandoned her, was a sculptor of driftwood.

In order to open the readers’ eyes to this allegory, I needed to include some key hints. At one point of the story Meridith finds a piece of driftwood, which has washed up on the shore. She has the following thought:

Some time in the past it had been pulled from its home by a storm and spent heaven knew how long drifting aimlessly before reaching shore. Only to lay here, discarded for months or years.

During such passages, the astute reader will see she’s talking not only about the piece of driftwood, but also about herself. The oblivious reader will go happily on her way, none the wiser. *smile*

Allegories can also be used in broader ways. In Surrender Bay, my goal was to show that God will never leave us. I used the love story between the hero and heroine to demonstrate this.

Samantha has been abandoned by everyone she loves and is now afraid to love and trust. The hero, Landon, loves Samantha unconditionally. Samantha represents us, always pushing God away, and Landon represents God, always loving, always wooing. No matter what Samantha does, no matter how much she rejects Landon, no matter how much she hurts him, he continues to love and forgive her.

If you go for this broader approach and don’t use any other spiritual elements in the story, you’ll need to include some phraseology and symbols to help your reader see the deeper meaning. Here’s one such segment from Surrender Bay:

He pressed a tender kiss to the top of her head, and she melted. Why can’t life be like this? Why can’t I stay here forever and let him love me? Only when he held her did she realize she was a starving beggar, and he was the bread she so desperately needed.

Most Christians know that bread is a symbol for Christ. When writing Surrender Bay, I actively sought symbols used in the Bible and ways to use those symbols when referring to the hero. The trick is to use enough symbolism to clue the reader in without overdoing it.

I love using allegory in my stories. But if you choose to do so, be aware that no matter how well-handled the allegory, not every reader will pick up on it. For those who do, though, the story becomes a much richer experience, and the spiritual content becomes more meaningful.

~~~~~

Denise's latest book, Driftwood Lane, released in June, 2010.

Meridith can handle anything: guardianship of three distant siblings, a dilapidated Bed-and-Breakfast, even an ever-present handyman who's dismantling more than her fireplace--or can she?

When the death of Meridith's estranged father leaves her with custody of three siblings she's never met, she reluctantly goes to Nantucket to care for them--but only until their uncle returns from his trip. Little does she know, the uncle is already there under the guise of her friendly handyman, with plans of his own.

Will the love that grows between them be strong enough to overcome the secrets that brought them both to Driftwood Lane?

~~~~~

Learn more about Denise and her writing at her Web site.

Why I Write Allegories by Denise Hunter

Happy Monday everyone! Annette here. Welcome to our first Featured Genre Day. Every now and then we're going to host writers who will share about why they write the genre they write. Gives us an inside look at the many facets of Christian books.

Denise Hunter has been publishing fiction for years. But I didn't read her work until the well-received novel Surrender Bay. I kept hearing great feedback on this book and finally had to see for myself. So glad I did. You can read my review of Surrender Bay here.

Surrender Bay was followed by another allegory in the Nantucket Love Story series, The Convenient Groom. Her new book, Seaside Letters, will release in October.

I've had an interest in the symbolism of allegories for years and have wondered about writing them myself. So, I was curious about why Denise chose to write allegories.

Here's what she said:

I love the way Jesus told stories. His parables made his listeners think for themselves and draw their own conclusions. In his story of the Prodigal Son, Jesus never said, “Listen folks, the father in the story is God, and the Prodigal Son is you.” The son never had a “come to Jesus” moment, he simply returned to his father and was welcomed home with open arms. Jesus required the listeners to draw the connection for a reason. An allegory allows us to see the familiar in a fresh and powerful way, and that’s what I hoped to do with Surrender Bay.

Just for fun, readers, here's the blurb about her upcoming book:

Their letters could lead to lasting love . . . or expose Sabrina's mortifying secret.

Sabrina Kincaid didn't intend to fall for Nantucket native Tucker McCabe, the man she serves coffee to every morning-a man tied deeply to a past she deeply regrets. But she has. And she's fallen hard.

But she's kept this a secret from her handsome customer. And now Tucker wants to hire Sabrina to help locate his friend "Sweetpea"-the mysterious woman he's falling in love with online. Sabrina is not inclined to help, but if Tucker hires someone else, it could spell disaster. Because if someone else sifted through the emails and figured out the truth-then Tucker would discover that the person he's trying to find is . . . her.

Thanks for dropping by, Denise. We wish you the best!

Denise Hunter lives in Indiana with her husband Kevin and their three sons. In 1996, Denise began her first book, a Christian romance novel, writing while her children napped. Two years later it was published, and she's been writing ever since. Her books often contain a strong romantic element, and her husband Kevin says he provides all her romantic material, but Denise insists a good imagination helps too!