Writing as Ministry First, Vocation Second

Yesterday I made my February 1 deadline for the Courageous novel. I sent it off 11:56 p.m. Pacific time—hated to waste 4 minutes, but I needed a margin in case it got stuck in my outbox and I had to reboot. :)

Many thanks to all of you who prayed. There’s still much editing to come, but I’m grateful for God's grace and kindness in an exhausting project that has consumed the last four months.

Tips on Writing from C.S. Lewis

For the past few days, I was at a cabin at the Oregon coast to do some extensive, uninterrupted writing on the Courageous novel. Related to writing, my friend Justin Taylor posted this a few months ago on his excellent blog. Loving Lewis as I do, I've heard it before, but part of it not for years.

What are the Challenges and Payoffs of Writing?

I was asked recently about what the biggest payoffs and challenges in my writing are. One question was whether writer’s block is one of the difficulties.

Writer’s block hasn’t been a problem. Maybe it's because I do so many other things besides writing. When I finally get to writing after pushing all else aside, I'm so ready that words tend to pour out.

I learned long ago that I should never wait for inspiration or a good beginning. I ask God’s help and jump right in. I'll either cut it out or clean ...