When you, as a minister and/or church leader, write books and articles, the gospel message extends far beyond the walls of your brick and mortar church. While your Sunday morning sermon or Bible study might reach hundreds or even thousands of listeners within your congregation, a book and/or article can reach millions of readers across the planet.
Whether you choose to write nonfiction books or novels, know that as a writing minister, you will bring God’s truth and soul-saving message to those who may never enter a church building.
In today’s world, like never before, people need to hear what evangelical ministers have to say.
Both nonfiction and fiction bring Christ’s message to a confused and hurting populace who need instruction, wisdom, encouragement and hope. Published books and articles have lasting power, and they enable you to continue bearing rich fruit for Christ long after your time on earth has passed. How fortunate Christians are to have the published words of ministers like Charles Haddon Spurgeon, Oswald Chambers and many others. Had they chosen not to write-to-publish, the world would be poorer.
If you, as a minister, want to step into a writing-to-publish ministry, know that writing a book and/or article takes much prayer, research, time, hard work and deep contemplation. Before you write your first sentence, here are six things you must know:
1. Know thy audience.
Pinpoint exactly who your primary reader will be. For example if you are writing a book titled “Teach Your Children to Pray,” your primary audience would be Christian parents with children. Choose a secondary audience to expand your readership. The book on teaching children to pray also might appeal to pastors, children’s ministry workers, grandparents, Sunday School teachers and others who work with children. Editors want writers to pinpoint a specific audience. They also want to reach a wide readership.
2. Know thy readers’ “felt needs.”
What are those urgent needs people today deal with and need guidance on? Fear? Finances? Marriage? Parenting? Put pen to paper and address those needs from a biblical perspective in book and/or article form.
3. Know thy message.
Decide exactly what you want to say to your chosen readers and use a “keyhole” technique. For instance: If you want to write about prayer — which is too broad a topic for a single book or article — narrow your focus to one aspect of prayer, perhaps “Praying Wordless Prayers from the Heart” or “How to Pray With Your Spouse,” etc.
4. Know thy format.
It’s tempting for a minister to want to publish a Sunday morning sermon straight from the pulpit, but most editors won’t publish articles or books in sermon form, fearing the format might sound “preachy.”
Take the same material and choose a format that will teach the reader. Think about how C.S. Lewis used great storytelling techniques in his “Narnia” series to engage the reader and teach them about Christ, the Lion. Or think about the amazing success of Tim LaHaye’s and Jerry Jenkins’ story-formatted books “Left Behind.”
It is no wonder that Jesus used narrative to teach His listeners. Choose a format that will be most conducive to spreading your idea and message to a vast audience.
5. Know thy marketplace.
Before you write a book, go to online bookstores, such as amazon.com or christianbook.com, type in your working title and topic/idea and see what has already been published in that genre or topic.
Has someone already written and published your book? If so, choose another slant on the topic or choose another topic.
Publishers want unique ideas or age-old truths written with a fresh new slant. If writing an article, then check the past three years of articles that a particular magazine has already published to make sure they haven’t recently published a similar article.
6. Know thy publisher.
Research and choose your book publisher and magazine editor carefully. Each has specific readers they address. Some may want nonfiction books while others may need fiction. Study the publishers’ needs, matching your idea and message with the readers they serve.
Find out if the publisher is connected with a denomination and if so make sure you understand and agree with their beliefs.
The annual Writer’s Market guide lists book and magazine publishers, defines their needs, pinpoints their specific audiences and gives you all the information you need to contact them with your ideas. You also can find this information on publisher websites under writer guidelines.
Become a minister and/or church leader who preaches, proclaims and publishes the good news of Christ — and reach out to a hurting world.
EDITOR’S NOTE — Denise George is author of 30 books. Her last three books, including “Behind Nazi Lines” and “Orchestra of Exiles,” were published with Penguin Random House. She is married to Timothy George, founding dean of Beeson Divinity School at Samford University in Birmingham. For more information, visit www.denisegeorge.org.
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