Secular or Sacred? Writing Holiday Stories Without Losing Your Audience
Holiday stories are powerful. So much so that I’m taking two whole blog posts to talk about them!
One of the trickiest questions holiday writers face isn’t whether to write seasonal stories.
It’s who those stories are actually for.
Holidays carry meaning — sometimes deeply personal meaning — and when a story taps into that, it can resonate powerfully. But it can also alienate readers just as quickly if expectations don’t line up.
So today I want to talk about a tension I see all the time, both as an editor and an author:
How do you write holiday stories that feel authentic without accidentally narrowing your audience?
The Question Underneath the Question
When writers ask:
“Should my holiday story be secular or religious?”
What they’re usually really asking is:
“How do I include meaning without turning readers away?”
That’s not a small concern. Holiday stories often sit at the intersection of:
belief
tradition
nostalgia
grief
longing
hope
Handled thoughtfully, that mix is powerful. Handled clumsily, it can feel exclusionary or preachy — even when that wasn’t the intent.
The Spectrum: Secular to Sacred
Rather than a binary choice, it helps to think of holiday stories as existing on a spectrum.
1. Fully Secular Holiday Stories
These focus on:
atmosphere
relationships
seasonal rituals
emotional turning points
The holiday is context, not message.
Examples include many holiday romances, family comedies, and cozy mysteries. The story could only happen during the holidays, but it doesn’t require belief to resonate.
These stories tend to have the widest audience reach.
2. Faith-Informed Holiday Stories
These stories acknowledge belief without centering it.
Faith may shape:
character motivation
traditions
internal conflict
But the story’s emotional core remains accessible to readers outside that faith.
This is often the sweet spot for writers who want depth without narrowing their readership.
3. Faith-Forward Holiday Stories
Here, belief is the point.
The story’s purpose may be to:
affirm faith
explore doctrine
encourage spiritual reflection
These stories can be deeply meaningful — for the right audience.
They are not a problem. They are simply a specific choice.
Where Writers Get Into Trouble
Most issues don’t come from choosing one end of the spectrum.
They come from not realizing where the story actually lands.
Common missteps I see:
A story marketed as general holiday fiction that becomes overtly religious halfway through
A “cozy” story that shifts into moral instruction
Characters delivering theology instead of experiencing emotion
Readers don’t usually object to belief. They object to surprise sermons.
Leaning Into Sacred Themes Without Preaching
If you want to include religious or spiritual elements without losing broader appeal, a few principles help:
Show belief through character, not exposition
Let faith shape how characters act, not what they explain.
Let doubt and tension exist
Stories feel truer when belief isn’t effortless or unanimous.
Focus on shared human experiences
Belief often intersects with themes every reader understands:
forgiveness
grief
hope
belonging
renewal
When those lead, belief feels organic rather than directive.
Writing Directly for Non-Secular Audiences (On Purpose)
It’s worth saying plainly:
Non-secular holiday audiences are large, loyal, and underserved by vague marketing.
If you want to write for them:
be clear in your blurb
use accurate categories and keywords
don’t apologize for your story’s purpose
Trying to “hide” faith content doesn’t expand reach — it just frustrates readers who were actually looking for it.
Clarity builds trust.
The Hard Truth: You Can’t Write for Everyone at Once
Some holiday stories genuinely try to speak to everyone.
Most fail.
That doesn’t mean you must always pick a narrow lane — but it does mean you should be honest about your priorities:
Is this story about belief?
Or is belief part of the background?
Who do you most want to feel seen by this story?
A story that knows its audience almost always lands more strongly than one that tries to hedge.
One Last Editorial Thought
Holiday stories work best when they feel intentional.
Not because they avoid belief. Not because they embrace it. But because the writer knows why it’s there.
That awareness — more than any specific choice — is what keeps readers with you.
A Seasonal Gift from the Ledger
To mark Thryme’s Turning, I’ve released a brand-new World in Draft holiday short story — a quiet, magical tale about cycles, thresholds, misplaced divine attention, and the moments we choose to carry forward.
“Thryme’s Turning” is free for newsletter subscribers during December and January.
If you’d like to receive it (and future Ledger notes), you can sign up here:
👉 https://www.wondrouslegends.com/blog
Signed from the quieter days between celebrations,
S.G., Keeper of the Wondrous Ledger
