Home Row: Just Keep Writing

Are you ready to tackle your writing in 2018? Here are 10 resolutions, goals, ideas, whatevers, for us writers as we get to work this year.

Sponsored By:

• Christian Standard Bible: Today's show is brought to you by The Christian Standard Bible. Offering an optimal blend of accuracy and readability, the CSB helps readers make a deeper connection with God’s Word and inspires lifelong discipleship. The CSB is equally suited for serious study or sharing with your neighbor hearing God’s Word for the very first time. Learn more at CSBible.com
• Baron Fig: Support for Home Row is brought to you by Baron Fig, tools for thinkers. As writers, we need paper, and the good folks at Baron Fig make the best notebook out there. The Confidant Notebook is a critical tool in my workflow. Why? It's well made, well designed, lays flat, and has great paper. Get one. Use code: HOMEROW and get 10% off your order. Promo Code: HOMEROW

Links:

• Cody Glen Barnhart's Reading Plan
• The 2018 Christian Reading Challenge - Tim Challies
• PDF of Challies' reading challenge
• Free Grammar Checker | Grammarly
• ProWritingAid - Grammar Checking & Manuscript Editing Software
• Confidant Hardcover Notebook • Baron Fig
• Freedom: Internet, App and Website Blocker
• Gospel-Centered Discipleship | Make, Mature, & Multiply Disciples of J | Gospel-Centered Discipleship
• Write a Book Proposal That Leaves Publishers Begging to Publish You — Overlook the hyperbole and you'll find this is helpful.
• Literary Agents Who Represent Christian Authors
• Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World by Cal Newport
• CSB Reader's Bible, Gray Cloth Over Board

On Ep. 29, I answer two listener questions: How can writers avoid idolatry in our writing, and how can we use Twitter to help our writing.

Sponsored By:

• Christian Standard Bible: Today's show is brought to you by The Christian Standard Bible. Offering an optimal blend of accuracy and readability, the CSB helps readers make a deeper connection with God’s Word and inspires lifelong discipleship. The CSB is equally suited for serious study or sharing with your neighbor hearing God’s Word for the very first time. Learn more at CSBible.com

Links:

• 20 Questions Toward Diagnosing Heart Idols by Tim Keller
• Uncle Ben- With Great Power Comes Great responsiblities--HD - YouTube
• Sam Braves on Twitter: "@mrmedders @micahfries @Svigel @DOBrienAJC"
• Mitchell Chase on Twitter: "@mrmedders you, @rayortlund, @M_Y_Emerson, @MattSmethurst, @BurkParsons, @bryanbaise, @TrevinWax, @daneortlund, @gavinortlund, and @between2worlds"
• Mitchell Chase on Twitter: "@mrmedders @rayortlund @M_Y_Emerson @MattSmethurst @BurkParsons @bryanbaise @TrevinWax @daneortlund @gavinortlund @between2worlds Ran out of characters. I'd add @GunnerGundersen @jaredcwilson to the list too!"
• Taylor Combs on Twitter: "@mrmedders @drmoore @JackieHillPerry @Mepaynl (non- baseball tweets) @isickadams @KSPrior @Lin_Manuel @TrevinWax @hbcharlesjr @james_ka_smith"
• Stephen Myers on Twitter: "@mrmedders @rayortlund @scottsauls @pastoremase @russwest44 @jaredcwilson" — Great list...except for Westbrook
• Sam Knecht on Twitter: "@mrmedders @drmoore @zugzwanged @JemarTisby @KSPrior @trillianewbell @MarkDever @BethMooreLPM @mrmedina"
• Colossians 3:4 CSB - When Christ, who is your life, appears, - Bible Gateway — Another name for Jesus: "Who is your life"
• 3 Reasons to Regularly Get Others to Preach - J.A. Medders — This post grew from a tiny tweetstorm.

Roy Peter Clark is professional writer. Boss-level. He has taught writing at Poynter to students of all ages since 1979. Roy teaches writing, reporting, editing, reading, language and politics, American culture, ethics, and the standards and practices of journalism. He is the author or editor of eighteen books. His most recent include Writing Tools, The Glamour of Grammar, Help! For Writers, How to Write Short, and The Art of X-ray Reading.

Links:

• Roy's Bio at Poynter
• Poynter - A global leader in journalism.
• Roy Peter Clark (@RoyPeterClark) | Twitter
• Writing Tools: 55 Essential Strategies for Every Writer by Roy Peter Clark — Get this one!
• Roy Peter Clark's Amazon Author Page
• J. A. Medders | Amazon Page — My books
• J.A. Medders - Expository Mutterings
• J.A. Medders (@mrmedders) | Twitter

Ready to learn from a writing professor? In this instant-classic, Helen Sword tells us about her book The Writer's Diet and what exactly are Zombie Nouns—and why we should avoid them like the living-dead.

Sponsored By:

• Christian Standard Bible: Today's show is brought to you by The Christian Standard Bible. Offering an optimal blend of accuracy and readability, the CSB helps readers make a deeper connection with God’s Word and inspires lifelong discipleship. The CSB is equally suited for serious study or sharing with your neighbor hearing God’s Word for the very first time. Learn more at CSBible.com

Links:

• The Writer's Diet: A Guide to Fit Prose — Get this one!
• Air & Light & Time & Space: How Successful Academics Write
• Helen Sword's Amazon Page
• air light time space — The poem Helen mentioned by Charles Bukowski
• The Writer’s Diet — The website
• The Writer’s Diet Test — Go here to take the Writer's Diet Test. Pop your writing in here and see the results.
• The Writing BASE
• Zombie Nouns (Youtube) — A very well done video by TED-Ed with Helen on Zombie Nouns.
• Nominalizations Are Zombie Nouns - The New York Times
• J.A. Medders (@mrmedders) | Twitter
• Expository Mutterings - J.A. Medders
• Gospel Formed: Living a Grace-Addicted, Truth-Filled, Jesus-Exalting Life — My first book.

On today's episode, I answer a listener question with an answer from C.S. Lewis on his vision for writing.

Sponsored By:

• Christian Standard Bible: Today's show is brought to you by The Christian Standard Bible. Offering an optimal blend of accuracy and readability, the CSB helps readers make a deeper connection with God’s Word and inspires lifelong discipleship. The CSB is equally suited for serious study or sharing with your neighbor hearing God’s Word for the very first time. Learn more at CSBible.com

Links:

• God in the Dock - C. S. Lewis - Google Books — You can see the interview in Google Books. Bottom of 289 to top of 290 is where you'll see Lewis's answer.
• God in the Dock: C. S. Lewis — Where you'll find Lewis's answer to the purpose of his writing.
• Great Reality Inspires Great Writing | Desiring God — Forgot to mention this great article on writing from John Piper.
• My books on Amazon
• J.A. Medders Dot Com — My site where I blog and you'll find my latest pieces at Desiring God and TGC and more.

Sponsored By:

• Christian Standard Bible: Today's show is brought to you by The Christian Standard Bible. Offering an optimal blend of accuracy and readability, the CSB helps readers make a deeper connection with God’s Word and inspires lifelong discipleship. The CSB is equally suited for serious study or sharing with your neighbor hearing God’s Word for the very first time. Learn more at CSBible.com

Links:

• Hope When it Hurts - Biblical reflections to help you grasp God's purpose in your suffering by Kristen Wetherell & Sarah Walton
• Kristen Wetherell (@KLWetherell) | Twitter
• Sarah Walton (@Swalts4) | Twitter
• Ligon Duncan's Sermons on Romans | First Presbyterian Church, Jackson, Mississippi
• Confessions of an Insecure Writer (Part 1) – kristen wetherell
• Confessions of an Insecure Writer, Part 2 – kristen wetherell
• Home Row Episode 24: How To Spark Your Creativity
• 5,000 Days - Tim Challies
• How to Write Short: Word Craft for Fast Times by Roy Peter Clark
• Trello — The program Kristen uses to organize her writing projects.
• How I Found Peace in My Pain | Unlocking the Bible
• the beginning of wisdom: advice to writers: get a “freditorial” team — Great stuff from Jen Wilkin
• Jared C. Wilson's Books on Amazon — The Gospel Poobah
• C.J. Mahaney's books on Amazon
• Christine Hoover Books on Amazon
• On Writing Well: The Classic Guide to Writing Nonfiction by William Zinsser — An essential.
• Writing Places: The Life Journey of a Writer and Teacher by William Zinsser
• J.A. Medders (@mrmedders) | Twitter
• J.A. Medders - Expository Mutterings

Sponsored By:

• Christian Standard Bible: Today's show is brought to you by The Christian Standard Bible. Offering an optimal blend of accuracy and readability, the CSB helps readers make a deeper connection with God’s Word and inspires lifelong discipleship. The CSB is equally suited for serious study or sharing with your neighbor hearing God’s Word for the very first time. Learn more at CSBible.com

Links:

• Creative Writing Prompts | WritersDigest.com
• The World Is God’s Classroom | Desiring God — Look at God's world and learn.
• George Costanza — "He was beep boppin and scattin all over me."
• Gospel Formed: Living a Grace-Addicted, Truth-Filled, Jesus-Exalting Life by J. A. Medders — The excerpt I read is from *Gospel Formed*, p. 59
• Writing Tools: 55 Essential Strategies for Every Writer by Roy Peter Clark
• On Writing Well: The Classic Guide to Writing Nonfiction by William Zinsser
• The Imperfect Disciple: Grace for People Who Can't Get Their Act Together by Jared C. Wilson
• The Writer's Diet: A Guide to Fit Prose by Helen Sword
• The Elements of Style — The standard for the rules of writing, grammar, and other vital junk like that.
• J.A. Medders (@mrmedders) | Twitter

Lots of people have ideas for a book, but that doesn't mean it should be published. Listen as author and acquisitions editor at Moody Books, Drew Dyck, pull back the curtain and tells you how it works.

Sponsored By:

• Christian Standard Bible: Today's show is brought to you by The Christian Standard Bible. Offering an optimal blend of accuracy and readability, the CSB helps readers make a deeper connection with God’s Word and inspires lifelong discipleship. The CSB is equally suited for serious study or sharing with your neighbor hearing God’s Word for the very first time. Learn more at CSBible.com

Links:

• Yawning at Tigers: You Can't Tame God, So Stop Trying by Drew Dyck
• Generation Ex-Christian: Why Young Adults Are Leaving the Faith. . . and How to Bring Them Back by Drew Dyck
• Gospel Formed: Living a Grace-Addicted, Truth-Filled, Jesus-Exalting Life — My first book.
• Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life by Anne Lamott
• On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft by Stephen King — This is a classic on writing. Some salty language. And some pepper too.
• On Writing Well: The Classic Guide to Writing Nonfiction by William Zinsser
• The Writer's Diet: A Guide to Fit Prose by Helen Sword
• The Curious Christian: How Discovering Wonder Enriches Every Part of Life by Barnabas Piper
• Test « The Writer’s Diet — Great way to assess your write. Just copy and paste your writing, run the test, and get the report.
• The Glamour of Grammar: A Guide to the Magic and Mystery of Practical English by Roy Peter Clark
• Steal Like an Artist: 10 Things Nobody Told You About Being Creative by Austin Kleon
• Drew Dyck at CT Pastors
• The God-Haunted Life — Drew's blog and site.
• Expository Mutterings - J.A. Medders — My blog and site.
• J.A. Medders (@mrmedders) | Twitter
• Drew Dyck (@drewdyck) | Twitter
• For The Church
• Resources by J.A. Medders at For The Church
• Articles by J.A. Medders at Desiring God
• Confessing The Sin of Platforming - J.A. Medders

At nineteen years old, Jaquelle has published her first book with Crossway, written for Desiring God, and helps lead a workshop for writers. Listen in and learn from this writing veteran. I sure did!

Sponsored By:

• Christian Standard Bible: Today's show is brought to you by The Christian Standard Bible. Offering an optimal blend of accuracy and readability, the CSB helps readers make a deeper connection with God’s Word and inspires lifelong discipleship. The CSB is equally suited for serious study or sharing with your neighbor hearing God’s Word for the very first time. Learn more at CSBible.com

Links:

• Jaquelle Crowe's Blog
• Her Podcast: Age of Minority – A Podcast FOR Youth ABOUT the Gospel
• Young Writers Workshop
• This Changes Everything: How the Gospel Transforms the Teen Years: Jaquelle Crowe: 9781433555145: Amazon.com: Books — Get her book.
• This Changes Everything by Matt Papa on Apple Music
• Overcoming Sin and Temptation: John Owen, Kelly M. Kapic, Justin Taylor: 9781433550089: Amazon.com: Books — Get this edition of Owen's three classic works. Let Taylor and Kapic help you.
• On Writing Well: The Classic Guide to Writing Nonfiction — An essential book on writing—if you wanna write gooder.
• Steal Like an Artist: 10 Things Nobody Told You About Being Creative by Austin Kleon
• Letters and Life: On Being a Writer, On Being a Christian by Bret Lott
• Jaquelle Crowe at Desiring God — Check out all Jaquelle's articles at DG.
• Expository Mutterings - J.A. Medders — My blog
• Portfolio - J.A. Medders — My writings around the web. Books too.

On this episode I start to answer listener questions and address what is a vital step in being a writer. You gotta sit down and do the work. No more procrastinating. Do the work.

Sponsored By:

• Christian Standard Bible: Today's show is brought to you by The Christian Standard Bible. Offering an optimal blend of accuracy and readability, the CSB helps readers make a deeper connection with God’s Word and inspires lifelong discipleship. The CSB is equally suited for serious study or sharing with your neighbor hearing God’s Word for the very first time. Learn more at CSBible.com

Links:

• B&O PLAY by Bang & Olufsen Beoplay H6 Over-Ear Wired Headphone, 2nd Generation (Black): Home Audio & Theater — Love these headphones.
• A Perfect Beginner Fountain Pen
• Confidant • Baron Fig — My favorite notebook.
• Palomino Blackwing Pearl Pencils — My go-to pencils.
• Novel Coffee Roasters | Dallas TX
• Aeropress Coffee Maker
• The Danger of Small Group Systems - J.A. Medders — I mentioned this blog post in the episode. Wrote it real quick. Couple of points. Few hundred words. Read thousands of times now. Do the work.