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Why Fiction Is as Precious to God as Nonfiction

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By Nicole Bay

When I first began writing, I dabbled in YA fantasy, early readers, middle grade fiction, and picture books. I loved all these genres and the worlds I had created, but after a while, I started to wonder if I was spending my creative time wisely. I wondered if, rather than writing fantastical fiction, I ought to be researching and writing family history stories or writing nonfiction related to the gospel of Jesus Christ or the Restoration of the Church. I started questioning the value of what I was writing and the wisdom of taking time to write fiction that might be better spent using my talents to build the kingdom of God.

I thought about it, worried about it, and prayed about it. My prayers were answered in several ways over the course of a few years.

The Desire to Create Is God-Given

In the October 2008 General Conference, President Dieter F. Uchtdorf shared an important thing we can do to feel God’s happiness—we can create. “The desire to create is one of the deepest yearnings of the human soul,” he said. He emphasized that as children of a creator, we have a desire to be like Him, to create something that did not exist before. This is something I have felt. Ever since I was little, I have known there was an artist inside me. I took classes and participated in activities that allowed me to learn principles of drawing, writing, sewing, and acting, and I basked in the inner glow that creating provided me. 

The desire to create is one of the deepest yearnings of the human soul.

Dieter F. Uchtdorf

President Uchtdorf continued, “Creation brings deep satisfaction and fulfillment.” Even when I struggle to get just one sentence on the page, I feel better for having taken time to work on my art. And nothing beats the floating-on-clouds feeling of being able to type the words “The End” when I finish a draft of a new story. 

Taking time to be creative has more benefits than just feeling good. President Uchtdorf added, “We develop ourselves and others when we take unorganized matter into our hands and mold it into something of beauty.” Over time I have realized that development of self and others isn’t just referring to the development of talents. This development is all about the sometimes life-changing effects our work can have on us and those who experience our art. Both parties can learn. Both can grow spiritually, intellectually, emotionally, and socially. And both can discover truth through art.

“Out of the Best Books” Includes Fiction

The Lord commands us to seek words of wisdom out of the best books so we can teach each other and strengthen each other’s faith (DC 88:118). Of course, He is referring largely to the standard works and inspired writings of members of the Church. The truths found here are the most important truths to develop a testimony of. 

But there are also many, many other works that can build our faith and lead people to be better for having read or experienced them. As an avid reader growing up, I was touched by fiction and nonfiction stories of heroism, triumphing over trials, clever thinking, kindness, and forgiveness. I will not soon forget the moving themes woven throughout my favorite books of sacrifice and redemption, good versus evil, the power of love, or the huge effect that one person choosing to stand up for what is right can have on the world. And if those stories can resonate so strongly with me, might I not also be able to tell a story that inspires someone else?

If fiction stories can resonate so strongly with me, might I not also be able to tell a story that inspires someone else?

I hope so. Because I believe that the best books can do just that.

God Cares about Your Creative Gifts

I’m grateful for a commandment to seek out the best gifts and to develop my talents (D&C 46:7–33). My desire to create is a way that I can enrich my own life and bless the lives of others. 

And because this is a gift that is important to me, it’s important to the Lord as well. Amulek advised us, “Cry unto him over the crops of your fields, that ye may prosper in them. Cry over the flocks of your fields, that they may increase” (Alma 34:24–25). Whether creating art is my hobby or my living, the Lord wants to bless me in my efforts, so I can pray for that guidance, and my work will be better for it. 

Any Genre Can Be a Conduit of Light

When Christ exhorted His listeners, “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven” (Matt. 5:16), I believe He was talking about letting our testimonies shine through our actions and work. And that includes our creative work. My writing, whether nonfiction, fantasy, or humor, is a conduit for my testimony.

I’m thankful for the divine desire to create, for the understanding that all can learn from the best books, for the knowledge that God wants to support me in my work, and for the calling to share my light through my work.

Nicole Bay teaches linguistics and English language courses at BYU. She is also the Internships Coordinator for the Linguistics Department. She loves to write for children, especially when she can include fun facts about language and linguistics in the story. She spends her non-work time gaming with her family, reading, writing, doing New York Times crosswords, and volunteering for writing conferences. She currently serves as LDSPMA’s director of education.

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