Fantastical Truth

Twelve men on a boat are besieged by a storm. Suddenly they see, amongst the lightning, a spectral shape. Hundreds of years earlier, a king throws a party that’s interrupted by some thing that’s not on the guest list: a ghostly hand that scrawls a haunting message on the palace wall. Generations before that, another king with a tragic backstory sneaks into a darkened tent to inquire of the dead, n...

This spooky season, what’s scarier than real-world evil? Imagine that Nazis are hiding in a prison mine where they try to torture their victims—that is, until a mysterious enemy in the dark forest rises up to destroy them with zombie-like plant creatures, a granite face, and supernatural symbols. Pastor and paranormal novelist Marc Schooley, author of König’s Fire , joins us to explore the problem...

Happy “Banned” Books week, to all who celebrate. [1. Photo by Joshua Newton on Unsplash .] Yes, we’ve used scare quotes! Some of these books are scary and earn caution. Yet some people think you’ll be so happily scared by hearing these books are “banned” that you’ll want to support them automatically. About this trope, we have questions. Aren’t some books really horrible for some or most or all re...

A storm is coming, and it will change your dreary Kansas land from its 1939 sepia tones into a magical world with a Yellow Brick Road plus little people and urban studio legends and a famously wicked Western witch. From movies to musicals to the original books by L. Frank Baum, we’re exploring The Wizard of Oz . What are the wonderful things he does? And why has this older fantasy captured the ima...

Vincent is so done with Art and all that. But his mom and uncle just won’t stop going on about the amazing colors and composition of great masters like his namesake. Then his little sister disappears into a famous painting. What’s a lad to do? Join us for this fantastic journey Beneath the Swirling Sky with homeschool mom and middle-grade author Carolyn Leiloglou! Subscribe to Lorehaven middle gra...

What if sixteen-year-old Alice fell into that famed rabbit hole and discovered Wonderland is actually a dystopian world? A place where you must survive the annual and deadly Wonderland Trials , then confront The Looking-Glass Illusion ? Sara Ella, author of these two whimsical fantasy adventures, joins Lorehaven to explore how fictional stories reflect curious realities. Subscribe to Lorehaven mid...

“Hey there, pilgrim. Welcome to the world of the Real Man.[1. Photo by Saman Rashidi on Unsplash .] We’re hard-livin’, hard-drinkin’, gray-area kinds of scallywags. We ride fast horses an’ drive faster cars. We got eleventeen girlfriends and one on the side. Sometimes we even shoot folk with guns and abandon our families and never cry or get diseases and we don’t ask folks nicely...

We hear a lot about “evangelical bubbles,” even on this podcast.[1. Photo by Juliana Romão on Unsplash ] People say that Christians ought not live in their insular spaces, but make better stories that help reflect our world. Some encourage believers to plant oases of imagination to serve the common good. Others seem to put their own “oases” onto armored platforms to roll around the territory, firi...

Alas! We must report that another back-to-school season has come upon us, and we Muggles haven’t gotten our letter to Hogwarts.[1. Photo by Gabriel Kraus on Unsplash .] But since the 1990s, that infamous wizarding world has received plenty of Howlers, not just from concerned Christians but from zealous fans and even sexual activists. One recent podcast, “ The Witch Trials of J. K. Rowling ,&...

Our great and creative God has called every person to create stuff using his stuff. But as we know, many Christian leaders and churches have gotten busy or really ignorant. They don’t heed our sovereign Creator’s call to lead a rich imaginative life for the common good in our world. How can we cultivate this vital mission? Ted Turnau, author of Popologetics and coauthor of The Pop Culture Parent (...

We’ve explored much about alien theories, but now a whole new official cast of characters claims they’ve seen or heard about evidence that They’re Here. And now this common Christian response has become a meme: aliens are just demons. Well, are they? If these creatures exist, are they deceiving us? Or maybe if they fly all this way only to be seen or crash, they’re just kind of stupid? Or perhaps...

Great stories make us feel wonder, and also feel grief, joy, love, or even some temptations to sin.[1. Photo by Giammarco Boscaro on Unsplash .] Yet some of the greatest stories also help us ask big questions about God, ourselves, and the world. They help us practice thinking about the deep stuff, which we call philosophy. In today’s episode, Phil “-Osophy” Lollar, Adventures in Odyssey foun...

This summer at the cinema, some movies are doing great.[1. Photo by Ben Hershey on Unsplash .] Others are flopping on their faces. Meanwhile, some streaming services are falling even harder, and thanks to the Hollywood strikes plus economic instability plus the threat of artificial-intelligence “art,” we could see a burst of the streaming bubble. How should Christians discern these big changes, wh...

Great stories should lead us to wonder, and lately, stories that don’t aren’t doing well at the box office. Meanwhile, writers and actors for these stories have gone on strike because they object to streaming services and AI that might cheat them out of their livelihoods. Scripture warns against employers oppressing hired employees, whether it’s a business or vocational ministry. How do Christian...

While many Hollywood creatives have gone on strike, hundreds of Christian fans, writers, teachers, and volunteers teemed in the hotel halls at last week’s Realm Makers 2023 conference.[1. Featured photo subjects, from left: news writer A. D. Sheehan , staff writer Josiah DeGraaf , publisher E. Stephen Burnett , staff writer Marian Jacobs , ship’s regent Lacy Burnett, reviewer Jessica Boudrea...

Artificial intelligence won’t destroy human beings, but as we try using AI to upgrade culture, we may find humanity itself getting downgraded. Today, we will explore the promises and dangers of AI for artistic creations. How will machine-generated content enhance or impede our own creativity? Subscribe to Lorehaven middle grade  •  teens + YA  •  adults  •  onscreen  •  author resources  •  gifts...

Most people think “Christian fiction” avoids “unclean” content like sex, violence, and bad language.[1. Photo by Clément M. on Unsplash .] But in fact, many of these stories have often pushed these limits. We know of a few books now that are experimenting. Just in time for Independence Day in the United States, we will ask—should these stories make very free to show their characters cussin’...

This week, Christians are asking all over again why a good God would allow people to suffer. Fifteen years ago in the summer of 2008, many debated the same topic after a little indie book hit it big. The Shack by William P. Young (and guests) followed a man called Mack who sought spiritual healing from fictional versions of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. This did and did not...

If we as Christians want our own great creative works, we’ll need to be the ones producing them. That means families raising up children to value careers in the arts. What does this look like in practice? Zackary Russell is joined by his wife, Naomi A. Russell, to share how they’ve been doing this with their own four children. From homeschooling to public school, to musical theater and dance class...

Summer brings the heat, especially among the Very Online. Not long ago lots of people were yelling at The Chosen because one of the crew was flying a heathen flag on set, as spotted briefly in one behind-the-scenes video. Then two of the disciple actors got bothered and started calling fans “phobes.” They’ve since apologized, but not before a lot of controversy. Behind all this yelling is on...

Summer is the perfect time to go camping or even just step under the sky to gaze out to the stars. When we consider the heavens God has made, we feel very small, yet also creative and challenged. So many stories take us beyond Earth’s orbit, only to reflect real-world realities and send us right back to our homeworld, better equipped to face these problems! B. L. Dean, author of the Shades of Star...

Many fantastical tales look okay, but may endorse ungodly ideas. That’s why more conservative groups are offering newer fiction to teach your kids moral values. How can Christian parents find the good stuff that will disciple your children’s heads and hearts? In this session recorded live at the March 2023 Teach Them Diligently conference in central Texas , Lorehaven founder E. Stephen...

As hundreds of homeschool families head to Florida for the annual FPEA conference, we flash back to this spring’s Teach Them Diligently conference in central Texas.[1. Photo from Teach Them Diligently 2023 in Pigeon Forge, Tenn., courtesy Scott Minor.] What growing challenges do homeschool families face in our culture? What kinds of fantastical stories do they seek for their children? Subscribe to...

Our podcast is Fantastical Truth .[1. Photo by Tom Radetzki on Unsplash .] Yet even seeking the truth can lead us into shadowy places. How can we discern these conspiracy theories without rejecting the truth that humans do often plot secretly, or falling into the trap of Gnostic “secret knowledge”? Mike Duran, author of the new nonfiction book Christians and Conspiracy Theories , will sneak into t...

Imagine a mind virus has taken over people you love. You have fought the good fight. Now you’re tired and feel like retreating. You and some old friends are desperate for a solution. Then one captain says he has a surprise. You open vast hangar bay doors to discover … a wonderful fantasy franchise, lovingly restored, with everything back as it should be, yet better. But how? “Well,” says the resto...