Blog
On death by drug overdose
Like many people, I was deeply saddened by the death of Philip Seymour Hoffman. He had some great lead roles (Synecdoche New York, The Master, Doubt, and of course his Oscar-winning performance in Capote which I wasn't crazy about). But we also remember him for many...
A Time to Quit – new article on Catapult
"Quitting for me wasn’t just a weekend fling, a lack of endurance, a fit of boredom or a childish sulk sparked by a temper tantrum. When it came time for me to quit pastoral ministry, it was as if I had quit myself, my goals, my calling and the self-understanding that...
All Things Vile and Vicious
Tyger, tyger, burning bright In the forests of the night ... Did he who made the lamb make thee? An interesting thing happens to many writers the first time they write a story with foul language, erotic scenes, butcher knives dripping with blood, or characters with...
Stories and smartphones dont mix
Compare the following props that might appear in a story: a pearl-handled straight razor an Egyptian broach a 1964 six-shooter pistol a bag of marijuana a faded polaroid photo of twin, pre-teen, strawberry blonde girls at a fishing trip cut in two with scissors,...
What’s your book about?
This is a question I get fairly often. Here is a synopsis. The Former Hero, by Jeffrey Mays An abusive, alcoholic, single mother goes into a frenzy when she learned her daughter, Penny, is abducted. City services have fallen into decay because of rampant corruption,...
What is it about heroes?
[Once upon a time, I had a blog called The Vale of Tears. I had to leave it behind. This is my new blog in which I contribute to the great conversation. You can get email updates by clicking "follow" out to the side. It wont hurt. It wont fill your inbox with spam or...
Catapult article
Here's an article I wrote that was published by Catapult Magazine. I did not choose the title - the editors made one up. Nevertheless, its up there in cyberspace for all to read. Michael and I stood side-by-side panicking. We were in third grade. Sam was about six...
Blue Like Jazz, or Why Evangelicals Still Aren’t Good At Telling Stories
I saw Blue Like Jazz recently, and although I liked some aspects of the movie (the actors, some of the characters, parts of the plot), and while I admired its attempt to break out of the strict verbal and behavioral codes mandated by ... Oh, wait, stop! Were you even...
Great Expectations – perhaps little read anymore, but a great book
1981. My 9th grade English class. The assignment was Great Expectations. It was a time when reading and literature was my enemy. Books were stuffy old furniture. Reading conflicted with my life goal of being a slacker. It threatened to tame the animal nature that was...
Profanity, vulgarity and abusive speech
My completed novel has a few places with strong vulgarities, F-bombs, and some references that many Christians would consider blasphemous. So there I was, on the phone with Westbow Press, the self-publishing branch of Thomas Nelson, a major publisher. They wanted...
