Be sober-minded, be alert. Your adversary the devil is prowling around like a roaring lion, looking for anyone he can devour.
1st Peter 5:8 CSB
I walked into the kitchen, and there, tied up and in a pot, just waiting to be boiled, was my family. Yoda from Star Wars stirred them with a stick. I ran back into my bedroom, trying to escape the evil green ogre, but he ran back to my room and whispered something in my ear about how he was going to eat my family. I could feel his fuzzy hair, brush against my cheek. And then, I would wake up.
Having a recurring nightmare at 6 years old is hard to handle, but sadly it is not uncommon. While we can sometimes laugh off our childhood fears from the safety of adulthood, at the moment they seem all too real. And sometimes, they stick with us. While I’m no longer waking up in a cold sweat at the prospect of a green puppet eating my family, I have yet to finish the original Star Wars trilogy. I’m too scared. As a child, my mother was traumatized watching The Wizard of Oz and to this day, she hates the music and won’t watch anything with Judy Garland. I have a friend who was scared of E.T. as a kid, and I’m not sure one of my nieces will ever enjoy The Lion King.
A Unique Responsibility
While some childhood fears can be conquered, our personalities are shaped by those formative years. As children’s writers, especially as Christian children’s writers, I believe we have a unique responsibility: don’t give children nightmare fuel. Sure, we only have so much control over how a child will react to our stories. One child’s nightmare is another child’s favorite story. But we know as Christians that we are talking about more than just a child’s imagination running wild with terrifying dreams. Think about the verse at the top. While the context of this verse is talking about standing firm in the faith, I think it applies here as well. It’s not like the Devil prowls around adults like a roaring lion but leaves the kids alone. As much as Jesus loves the little children, the Devil hates them.
Generational Bias
As a Millennial growing up in what some people call “The Satanic Panic” I have a unique perspective. If you are unfamiliar with the term, it was a time around the 80s-90s, where fundamental Christians like my family were, well, panicking about spiritual warfare in our everyday lives. And we were especially concerned about what was going on in the popular culture. If you know anything about Fundamentalists and Homeschoolers, you know we are skeptical of anything that is popular. This is the reason I am hesitant to enjoy The Chosen. It feels too successful. Too mainstream. Whoopi Goldberg and I can’t enjoy the same Christian stuff!
I remember vividly the hot-button topic of Harry Potter. I remember there were Harry Potter book burnings. A kid wrote into Clubhouse Magazine, asking if Harry Potter was the antichrist because he had a mark on his forehead. I remember a kid at my local AWANA casting pretend spells while the leaders were talking about the Bible. Harry Potter, Voldemort, Hermione, I know these names because the franchise was inescapable.
From Legos to video games, to bookshelves, to movie posters. All the spells and witches and wizards and nose-less villains could give children nightmare fuel around the world. But the true irony, is that while I was afraid of my generation being seduced by the dark side, I myself was fearful of the stories without ever experiencing them. But as Christians, it is important to remember that we are not given a spirit of fear but of power, love, and a sound mind. And as Christian children’s writers, we need to equip this next generation to better handle fears.
Fear is so Scary
Fear is everywhere for a child now. It is inescapable. Even before the pandemic, anxiety was on the rise for children, and it is no wonder why. Their world is falling apart. America has the largest percentage of single-parent families in the entire world. There are violent protests, mass shootings, dire environmental warnings, and yes, a worldwide pandemic. But have secular children’s stories helped bring light to this new dark world? Have they given children hope? I don’t think so. Halloween is bigger than ever. Wednesday and Stranger Things are the biggest shows on Netflix. In this last decade, there were four Hotel Transylvania and two Addams Family films released. Check out this book from Scholastic.
Young Adult Horror is a rising interest on Google Trends. While some people may not see the connection, I think there is something to be said about the simultaneous rise in scary stories for children, and the rise in anxiety disorders among the young. Sure, some studies show scary stories can help children learn how to handle fear, but they can also make children convinced that a green puppet would eat their loved ones.
Personal Disclaimer
Now I will freely admit that I am a tender foot. I’ve never liked being scared. I remember not being able to sleep because of the Hardy Boys book The Disappearing Floor. The only horror movie I’ve ever seen was the 1954 film Them! Whose haunting giant ant sounds kept me awake at night. I am a lightweight. One of those sensitive viewers. I understand that not every kid is like me. But that is precisely why I am so passionate about this. Just as I grew up scared of watching new movies, TV shows, or reading new books, I know there are many children out there just like me who want nothing more than a fun, nightmare-free story. Somebody has to speak up for these kids, so it might as well be me.
As I begin to write my own Sci-Fi/Fantasy book, God has pressed on my heart to write for those kids. For the scared little kid who is still inside me. It is absurd when I think about my childhood fears. Dragons, zombies, vampires, monsters, wizards, and atomically enlarged ants are not real. The only reason children are scared of them is because someone has put that thought into their heads. But this problem goes deeper than just fantasy. There can be great Christian fantasy as we will learn about in our MasterClass this April. Sid from Toy Story is one of the creepiest villains out there. The bear in Fox and The Hound is nightmarish. “Injun Joe” in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer is a pretty scary, murderous villain for a child’s tale.
Call to Action
One of my older brothers got scared watching a Christian cartoon’s depiction of Satan. I have a cousin who got scared from VeggieTales. Secular children’s writers are under no obligation to tell sweet, nightmare-free stories. But as Christians, we must do better. We are called to be the salt and light of the world, and while there is nothing wrong with showing the evil that is in this world, let us also equally show the good. We cannot allow ourselves to be seduced by the darkness just because it makes our stories come alive. Besides, learning how to defeat an evil witch rarely comes in handy these days. Children are far more likely to have a Nellie Oleson or a brother like Rodrick Heffley in their lives instead of an evil witch who is jealous of their beauty and wants them dead.
So, before you give your villain glowing red eyes, a raspy voice, or a psychopathic personality, ask yourself “Could this give children nightmares?”
What book, movie, or TV show gave you nightmares as a kid? Let’s make the comment section below a virtual support group!
Just like his two older brothers, Kyle Morgan was homeschooled from Kindergarten through High School. When he is not busy writing, the next classic children’s book, Kyle loves spending time with his family, all things baseball, and watching black and white movies. He is a monthly contributor to Write2Ignite where he blogs about writing for children. His work has appeared in The Old Schoolhouse Magazine, The Caldwell Perspective and StarLight Magazine. You can check out his Facebook page or follow him on Instagram.