The Power of Fiction for Professional Development Question Bank
For Coaches, Facilitators and Leaders
Supporting Meaningful Conversations About Character Trait Development Through Reading
"Stories are perhaps the most powerful force for developing our humanity."
200+ Questions to Open, Deepen, and Guide The Power of Fiction Conversations
This question bank provides 200+ ready-to-use questions designed to help coaches, facilitators, and leaders open, deepen, and guide conversations with clients or colleagues using fiction to develop essential character traits like empathy, resilience, and integrity—transforming literary engagement into practical workplace capacity.
Nine Essential Conversation Frameworks:
- Opening Fiction Conversations – Questions that help clients or colleagues explore how reading develops character
- Reading Fiction for Character Discovery – Questions about engaging with stories to reveal traits
- Book Club Discussions That Deepen Understanding – Questions for both group and solitary reflection
- Extracting Protocols from Stories – Questions about creating practices from literary moments
- Developing Specific Traits – Questions focused on empathy, resilience, integrity, courage, compassion and patience through fiction
- Creating Workplace Applications – Questions for translating literary insights into professional practice
- Building Book Club Communities – Questions for facilitating group learning (or solo practice)
- Sustaining Practice – Questions for maintaining long-term fiction-based development
- Supporting Others' Fiction Engagement – Questions for guiding character development through reading and holding space for fiction for character development
Throughout the question bank, questions are organised by professional development purpose, allowing you to quickly find language that fits your client's or colleague's current moment. Each section includes questions that invite exploration, helping others discover their own clarity about how fiction can develop essential character traits that enhance professional effectiveness.
This resource stands alone as a practical tool for immediate use in professional development sessions, with deeper exploration of fiction-based character development available in School of WorkLife's The Power of Fiction: Developing Character Traits Through Reading.
One-time purchase. Unlimited professional use in individual and group settings.