Writing a bestseller, social contracts, & reading Annie Dillard

Table of (Mal)Contents

All of us live around Nashville, but sometimes it takes traveling to Indianapolis to make magic happen. That's what happens on this episode of Table of (mal)Contents, as Russ Ramsey joins us for a great chat about the art of writing, and that time he wrote a letter to Annie Dillard. Listen in as we discuss:

• The magical time in the mid-90s when all the baseball players were juicing
• Russ' book being endorsed by Leif Enger
• Are we doing readers a disservice by making them easier to read?
• The secret to having a bestselling book among evangelicals
• Why Christians need to be grounded in the rules of narrative in order to understand the Bible
• The social contract between readers and writers
• The origin of the phrase "the world is her oyster"
• Where to start reading Annie Dillard

A few of the books we discussed in this episode:

• The Abundance by Annie Dillard
• Pilgrim at Tinker Creek by Annie Dillard
• The Living by Annie Dillard
• Teaching a Stone to Talk by Annie Dillard
• The Advent of the Lamb, The Passion of the King of Glory, and The Mission of the Body of Christ by Russ Ramsey
• Struck by Russ Ramsey
• The Story of Christianity by Justo L. Gonzalez
• The Color of Compromise by Jemar Tisby
• Don't Panic: Douglas Adams and the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Neil Gaiman
• The Flash Vol. 9: Reckoning of the Forces by Joshua Williamson

And, as always, thanks to Lagares Roasters for partnering with us to make the Table of (mal)Contents blend. Pick up a bag (or 12) today.