More than Writers

On Sunday a couple of weeks ago my vicar preached a sermon that really spoke to me. He was preaching from John 21 when the disciples have returned to fishing after the exciting events of the crucifixion and resurrection. The disciples are in the boat and see Jesus on the shore.   'Then he said, “Throw out your net on the right-hand side of the boat, and you’ll get some!” So they did, and they couldn’t haul in the net because there were so many fish in it.'    John 21:6 NLT       My vicar was challenging us to try something different. Apparently fishermen would not have fished from the right side of the boat, so the right side was the wrong side. I really felt God was speaking to me personally through this verse about change - a need to do something a new way. I am praying into this verse now and await more input from the Holy Spirit. Isn't it exciting when you know that the Creator of the Universe is speaking you.  This h...

Hot Releases from ACW Members Last month on the ACW blog we brought you the ACW reading challenge. This month I am even more excited to bring you news of upcoming releases from ACW members.  As the webmaster for ACW, I consider it a privilege meet so many outstanding authors who are also Christians. They may write Christian books or secular books with a Christian worldview, but what they all have in common is their love for good literature and their love for God.  So without further ado, I bring you the ACW Hot New Releases Blog Trying to Fly by Annie Try (Angela Hobday), date of release 16th February 2017, Publisher: Instant Apostle - Haunting memories arouse a dormant Mystery. Jenny Drake has never forgotten what she saw on that Devon beach. Just a small girl at the time, those frightening events have overshadowed her life ever since. Preorder on Amazon Out of Silence Annie Try (Angela Hobday) date of release September 2017 Publisher: Instant Apostl...

Our writers’ group has recently experimented with holding the writers’ group online. It saves on travelling time, which is especially helpful in winter, when weather conditions can be unpredictable. It also allows people to attend who would otherwise not be able to come. One of our writers sometimes joins us from Spain! However, I am also aware of the many challenges involved when communicating via the internet. There are a lot of technical issues that can get in the way of clear communication. There is the internet connection at either end, which can be slow or drop, leading to distorted voices and frozen webcam images. In an age where most people have internet-ready equipment, the problem may be that I or the other party are not using our equipment correctly. (I have on occasion forgotten to switch my speaker on, stopping the other party from hearing what I am saying…) Other technical issues that can prevent effective communication are issues with the access circuit, powe...

There’s this amazing crime fiction competition on at the moment, hosted jointly by ACW and Alfie Dog Fiction .   Click on http://www.christianwriters.org.uk/competitions for more information.   Submissions should be emailed to me at competitions@christianwriters.org.uk and non-members should pay their – very reasonable – entry fees via a PayPal link on the ACW competitions page.   Haven’t computers revolutionised the way writers write! I remember scribbling stories by hand, typing them up, then submitting by post.   I used to write in pencil, so that I could use a rubber to edit as I went along, although, I believe, some authors used to bash out their stories straight on to typewriter.   ( Did they never edit at all? )   Being a rotten typist, I frequently needed to anoint my pages with Tippex, and, often, had to them off the platen because there was too much Tippex, or, worse, eraser holes in the paper.   What a relief to move on to Wor...

We live in a time of digital outrage. The conversation in social media about issues of public importance has degenerated into a series of soundbites directed not at the ‘opposition’ but at those of similar beliefs. I can join my own interest group on Facebook and I may be gratified that the noise we are all making is turned up to eleven, but in truth nearly all of that noise stays in the echo chamber of our group. There’s no real conversation, no real communication. What is a writer to do in this situation? What is a Christian writer to do? As ever there are some clues in scripture. 1.        Reasoning is better than ranting  In the first chapter of Isaiah the prophet speaks out God’s displeasure at His people, there is anger and discord, God is angry, but the it’s interesting to note that the process by which He seeks to resolve His issues with His people is through reasoning. In verse 18 He says “Come, let us reason together.” I...

We bought a table. Six foot long, extending to nine foot, 100% oak. The old table, which was bought by my parents-in-law thirty years ago, was given to us in the mid nineties when we needed to furnish the house to rent out while we were abroad. We gave it away on Freecycle. The first lady who viewed it said we were mad. "Do you know how much you'd get for this in a retro shop?" she panted, trying to bludgeon it into her boot. We will never know. Nor will she. The second lady brought a bigger car and took it away, proclaiming her gratitude. We waved her off, smiling. It's pleasing to give away something for nothing, although as I didn't actually like the table, I wonder if this counts? Every morning, I open the kitchen door and get a frisson of pleasure when I see the new one. The smooth lines, the square corners, the light teasing warmth from wood. I love natural materials - wood, stone, wicker. I could fill my home with them ten times over, look at them ...

I am sticking my head above the parapet here. I am identifying as a former Iwerne boy. The Christian holiday camps at Iwerne Minster in Dorset - camps aimed specifically at public schoolboys (see below) - were indispensable to my growth as a Christian. They helped bring scripture to life, and helped me see this dusty old religion thing as actually being alive and exciting. I learnt about grace. I learnt that Jesus really was God. I saw why the Holy Spirit was so important. I am not the only ex-public school Christian to have a Iwerne-shaped hole in his heart, and nothing but positive memories of the place. And yet, a story broke last week that one John Smyth QC, the former head of the Iwerne Trust, abused several of the boys under him. Once the allegations began to be made, he was quietly removed from his position in the Trust. This was in 1982, which is a couple of years before I started going to the camps, and he subsequently left the country. Justin Welby - also a former Iwer...