Here at Emanuel Studios, we strive to create the next generation of inspiring and imagination-grabbing stories. When writing, Jonathan Emanuel uses a unique worldbuilding method to bring his stories to life with a Christian flare. Each fiction he develops is created in one of the below styles; each designed to explore the Christian Faith through fiction in a different way…
The ALLEGORY METHOD…
A storytelling form where the Christian themes and ideas of the story are represented symbolically or metaphorically. Drawing inspiration from great classics like Pilgrim’s Progress, these stories will strive to showcase pictures and parables of the Christian Faith. Some of these stories may be bible “retellings”, set in alternate versions of history; whilst others will be more general bible subjects presented as fables. The Allegory Method does not seek to update the Bible narrative or modernise the timeless instruction given to us in the Holy Word, but rather to use fiction to celebrate and explore the treasures and truths of Holy Scripture.
The EXHIBITORY METHOD…
A storytelling form where a story is an adaptation of a Bible event, or when a story is a fictional expansion of a Bible reference. These fictions are direct inspirations drawn from the pages of Holy Scripture itself. Some are designed to explore the wealth of history contained within Holy Scripture. Others are designed to conceptualise and speculate about things that Scripture does not elaborate on. Since the Bible contains everything we shall ever need for life and godliness, those things which are mentioned in it but not elaborated on enough to be more than mysteries spark the imagination, and are a wonderful source of material for fiction.
The PARTICIPATORY METHOD…
A storytelling form where the main character or characters of a story are sent on a mission by the Lord God himself. These tales draw inspiration from the real history found in the Bible itself, where courageous men and women of faith were led by the Lord to do astonishing and world-changing things. They face great trials and adversities – and they equally make history if they succeed or if they fail. If these chosen heroes are to triumph, they will need to rally all their faith and lean on the light of Christ in the darkest of hours.
The SPECULATORY METHOD…
A storytelling form where Christian theology, themes, and topics are presented in entirely fictional settings that are entirely divergent from the real world. These stories are speculations on what Bible Faith might look like in such a world if that world existed. They draw obvious inspiration from the masters of this technique when it comes to weaving Christian subject matters into fiction – C.S. Lewis and the timeless Chronicles of Narnia, and J.R.R. Tolkien and the unparalleled Lord of the Rings and its accompanying Legendarium. These stories feature immense worldbuilding, designed to envelop audiences into immersive and imaginative worlds. whilst having a clear foundation in and representation of valuable Bible concepts.
The APPLICATORY METHOD…
A storytelling form where a fiction setting is devised and Christianity forms but one of its components. These stories draw inspiration from the real-life experience of every Bible-Believing Christian – that we are strangers and pilgrims in this world, and are often in the minority. These stories are about showing Christianity in fictional settings where other forces – religious, political, social, and militant – are also at play. Perhaps the setting is our world or perhaps it is in realms beyond us. The Applicatory Method explores the role of true Christians in those worlds, and the dangers to them imposed by counterfeit-Christianity, other false religions, and societal forces that would rather see Bible-Believing Faith erased. Many of these stories will feature archetypes used in dystopian fiction, but with the far more important message that the greatest threat to humanity is the rejection of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
The COMMENTARY METHOD…
A storytelling form that centres around the narrative of either one or a small group of characters who are not usually participants in the fictional events, but rather are observers of them. This “boots on the ground” literary device will draw audiences into the fiction through the eyes of other external watchers, making the commentary of those watching important for understanding the context of the story. The Bible mentions how Angels longed to look into some of the mysteries that God revealed over time through human history. That there are observers watching our history unfolding is the central inspiration for writing stories where we are shown glimpses of fictional universes that are being watched by others too.