Frequently asked questions

Question: Do I need writing experience?

Answer: No previous writing experience is needed! That’s actually why our editor, Mackenzie Ryan Walters, wrote the book “Faith Storytellers: Unleash the Power of Your Story.”

Mackenzie put everything she knows about Christian storytelling and writing in her book, including how to address fear or apprehension about preparing and sharing your story for the first time.

In addition, she teaches Christian writing workshops you may consider attending. Check out our events page to connect with her in person.

Q: I want to write my faith story, but I’m looking for more guidance. Do you have resources you can recommend?

A: Yes! Mackenzie wrote a book specifically for Christians who have a faith story to tell but feel overwhelmed or don’t know how to get started. “Faith Storytellers: Unleash the Power of Your Story” is a step-by-step guide to the writing and storytelling process we teach. She’s even had traditionally published writers tell her they learned something new from her book or workshops!

Want to receive a preview? Join our newsletter and we’ll send you the first chapter and a handful of faith stories. Mackenzie’s also curated storytelling resources you can review for free here.

Q: What type of writing can I submit?

A: The only writing we publish at this time are true, first-person short stories about your relationship with the Christian God.

Please do not submit poetry, song lyrics, fiction, non-fiction devotionals, Christian living, or other types of writing. We’re always surprised when folks send this to us, and it’s probably because they didn’t read our guidelines. Please also mind your word count as stories far over our recommended length will rejected.

Q: I’m having trouble thinking of a faith story to tell. Do you have any advice?

A: Mackenzie always recommends starting with prayer. Humbly ask God to reveal which story he would like you to write and share. This story may be different than a story that comes immediately to mind, as often the first thought in our head is what’s on the surface. Many Faith Storytellers have shared how God revealed a different story or moment in time that they should write, and they were thankful they did.

We also recommend joining our newsletter, where we share writing prompts based off the faith story featured that week. Reading a story will often trigger a memory from your own life, and we’ve found this a helpful way to start writing a story, especially you desire to write a collection of faith stories about your life to share with friend and family.

Q: I just published a book, will you publish an excerpt?

No, for the reasons stated above. You are welcome to submit a personal faith story according to our guidelines. Please do not submit a story about writing your book, as we do not publish stories about writing, as they tend not to resonate with our wider audience.

Instead, please craft a faith story about a different moment in time and how God used it to change, shift, or deepen your relationship with him. We do want to help, however, so we typically link to one book in the bio and introduction that are published alongside your story.

Q: Will you look at my writing and just tell me what you think?

A: Our work editing stories for publication is free for the writer and part of our ministry-oriented focus at Faith Storyteller. If you do not intend to publish, you can book a one hour paid consultations with Mackenzie. During this time, you’ll be able to discuss your questions or review writing excerpts together.

Given Mackenzie’s 20 years of experience as a writer, editor, author, marketer, and national-award winning journalist, she charges a market rate for consultations and other client work. Please email Mackenzie to learn more.

If you're seeking lower-cost guidance, please read Mackenzie’s book, "Faith Storytellers: Unleash the Power of Your Story." If money is still an issue, we encourage you to ask your local library to purchase the book, as many librarians will order a specific book upon request or direct you to a partner library who has that book in stock. In addition, some churches offer a lending library and may be willing to stock the book as well. You can also review the many free resources available on this website.

Mackenzie’s writing and editing experience is limited to nonfiction and personal stories such as memoir, so she’s not the best person to seek advice on devotionals, fiction, poetry, prayer, or other types of writing.

Q: Can I submit a story that’s been published elsewhere?

A: We prefer to publish unique stories that have not yet been published elsewhere. This is for a few reasons:

We want to bring our audience a unique story and reading experience that they haven’t read elsewhere. We ask that you allow us to exclusively publish this written version of your story. You still own your story and can write in a different way with other publishers.

We do this for copyright reasons. If this written version was published elsewhere, other publishers may have the copyright as they likely required that written version of your story to be exclusive to them. Many writers write about the same moments in time but get around copyright by changing up the words, phrases, and approach they use when drafting their story.

We want people to find your story online. Unfortunately copyright violations occur all the time, and Google and other search engines are cracking down by “hiding” website pages that contain word-for-word copies that are published elsewhere. We don’t want to accidentally trigger this, which is why we ask for exclusivity.

We also believe that we each have many stories to share about our relationship with God. Pray about other stories that explore how God deepened your faith our grew your relationship with him. Maybe this is an opportunity to share a smaller, “mustard seed” story, which our readers love!

Q: What type of faith story should I write?

A: Generally speaking, there are four faith story genres that we publish. Pick one and let your Christian writing journey begin:

• Miracle Seed stories: Reflect on a seemingly small moment or coincidence that reflects God’s care and attention to the details of your life when you pray through it. These are stories about ordinary moments that reveal big truths about God. Looking back, what do you know to be true about God that you didn’t before?

• Journey stories: Remember a time that grew your faith and relationship with Jesus. Journey stories can be physical journeys (such as a mission trip) or spiritual journeys (such as confronting a misconception you had about God). As you pray through your story, ask God what he wanted you to know about his nature.

• Valley stories: Pray through a particularly challenging time in your life. How did your relationship with God change as you experienced grief, pain, or devastating circumstances? As you write your story, ask God to reveal where he was and how he cared for you personally during that time.

• Miracle stories: How did God interrupt scientific laws with divine intervention? As you pray through God’s miracle, how did he use this sign and wonder to deepen your faith? How did God’s miracle shift your perspective or deepen your relationship with him?

Q: Can I write under my pen name, using a pseudo name, or without my full name?

A: No. Because we publish true, first-person stories (i.e. Christian testimonials), we want you to share your real name with our readers. This builds trust and helps our readers know that what you are sharing is true and really happened.

Q: How do I send my story?

A: Email your story submission with the subject “Faith Story Submission” to mackenzie@faithstorytellers.com.

Please attach to the email:

• A Word or Google document with your story (follow the guidelines above)

• Three (3) photographs of you that you have permission to share. Please ensure these photos clearly show your face! Please include at least one with just you, and you may include other photos with other people if it makes sense with your story and if they have given you permission to do so.

Q: What happens after I send my story?

A: If your story fits, we’ll let you know that we’d like to move forward with edits. Here are some key things to know:

• We do not offer payment, but we’ll give you a spotlight on our site and a link to share with your people. We will also include relevant links to your book, social media pages, and website in your bio.

• We typically edit stories three times and ask writers to update and revise their stories based on our feedback. For questions on capitalization or word choice, please review our style guide.

• We will ask you to sign a Materials Release Agreement asks you to grant us the right to use your story.

• We ask you do not repost or republish the edited version that was created specifically for Faith Storytellers. You may share the link to the story on your blog; for example, you might write a post about your experience writing for Faith Storytellers and then share the link.

Q: How do I download the story cheat sheet?

A: Fill out the “Grab the story cheat sheet!” form below and you’ll see a link that will allow you to download our most popular storytelling resource as a PDF.