When, that is, I remember to write right. Which I don't always do. I'm working on a rewrite of a book now -- the first submission was too dry, too teach-y and too heady. Not enough heart to make anyone want to read it. Not personal enough to make anyone care. Not relevant enough to the reader's experience.
I could have avoided all that had I had Vinita Hampton Wright's new book, The Art of Spiritual Writing: How to Craft Prose that Engages and Inspires Your Readers. As it turned out, the book came after dark last night, whilst I was in the dark about how to "fix" my manuscript.
Instead of continuing the struggle to beat my book into shape, I read Vinita's book. Straight through. And, as I did, I kept thinking, "Yep", "Indeed", "A-ha", and other such things. It wasn't so much that I learned a lot of new things. Rather Vinita's book reminded of everything that I knew but had somehow forgotten to practice. Yikes. I'm keeping it beside me as I go through my re-write.
The first two chapters alone are worth the price of the book --
- What Does It Mean to “Write” Spirituality?
- The First Five Things Every Spirituality Writer Needs to Know
Other chapters are just as helpful and include:
- How to Make Your Story a Story for Others
- What Authenticity Is and Why It Matters
- What You Can Learn from Other Spirituality Writers
- Simple Ways to Make Your Writing Better
I am not going to tell you what Vinita says about these topics. What I am going to say is, "Read this book!" It doesn't matter whether you're new to writing or an old hand like me -- you'll find this little collection of writing wisdom helpful. It will take you further down your journey to writing well -- guided by an excellent practitioner of this craft to which many of us feel called.
-- Brent
On Thursday of this week Vinita will be guest blogging about her book here on Holy Ordinary. You won't want to miss that.
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