Lois West Duffy

Storytelling was one constant in our family life during my growing-up years. Another was the church we attended at least three times a week. Naturally, Bible stories were basic to who I became. But, have you noticed how few girls' and women's stories are told in the pages of Scripture? It's a mystery, who and where they were.

Other mysteries intrigued me; for example, who were the "Wise Men" who "came from the East" in the book of Matthew? Where did they come from? And where did they go?

As an adult, I studied Bibliodrama with Peter Pitzele PhD, teacher, author, and creator of this exciting form of biblical investigation and play, where participants take the parts in a story, the leader's questions helping them to tease out new meanings behind the text. (see www.bibliodrama.com) From him I learned to think of the scriptures as "written in black fire on white fire " --the words being the black fire, and the white fire, "the story, the song, the silence" behind those words. I'm grateful that his teaching opened new doors into the scriptures--and a way to imagine the lives and minds of Bible-based characters.

When I read The Hero's Journey by Joseph Campbell, then Chris Vogler's The Writer's Journey, I knew I wanted to write Biblical girls' hero's journeys. Zillah's Gift is the first of them, and I've started another. Perhaps I'll write at least one girl's story from each of the Abrahamic religions: Christian, Jewish, and Islamic. Meanwhile, readers tell me they want to know what happens next to Zillah--so I've started writing down more of her story too.

Keep watching . . .