Patrick Luscri (right) with Louis Markos at the 2010 Southwest Regional Writers Workshop. Copyright Lancia Smith/C.S. Lewis Foundation

Thinking of attending the Southwest Regional Retreat and Writers Workshop? Patrick Luscri, attendee and long time friend of the C.S. Lewis Foundation, had this to say about last year’s Writers Workshop – “Writing Past the Watchful Dragons”:

Armed with pen and notebook, I girded myself for the task at hand—to learn the secrets of “Writing Past the Watchful Dragons.”

The “watchful dragons” C.S. Lewis describes in “Sometimes Fairy Stories May Say Best What’s To Be Said” were the inhibitions he experienced as a child toward religious belief, inhibitions brought on by the obligation to believe. The watchful dragons I seek to “write past” are the ones that stand in my way of writing with consequence.

Putting pen to paper, I leaned forward eager to hear tales from those who’d faced the dragons and learned how to slip past them. What of these crafty souls? Some have slogged the long and fearful road of writing past the dragons while others have helped writers like me do so.

A Creeping Fear

The most formidable of these dragons, it seems to me, could be called Fear. Fear feeds the writer’s insecurities: Do I have something to say that can change lives, that is worthy of readers’ time? My family and friends think so, but are they blinded by love for me? Fear paralyzes the writer, robbing him or her of hope and creative energy.

Fear also intimidates publishers. According to the workshop’s literary agent, many fear taking risks on new writers. They hesitate to go to bat for a writer who isn’t published. In a tight market, they fear tepid sales, so they stick with established writers.

The Serpent of Self

Ah, the question of motive. Thomas Umstattd, the workshop’s Web guru and speaker, posed a profoundly convicting question: Are you writing to be somebody or to do something? I must confess—I’ve battled the dragon of publication for self-glorification rather than writing with a heavenly mission.

The serpent of Self is a wily worm. He whispers cleverly and often convincingly, that when published, I will have arrived as a storyteller and writer, readers will clamor for my book, and God will be pleased to use me as a chosen literary instrument. “Has he not gifted you?” breathes the serpent.

Waylaying the Watchers

The workshop speakers armed us with some sneaky and effective weapons. We discussed captivating storytelling and divine poetry creation, secrets of effective author blogs and other Wed tools, trend spotting, and self-promotion and PR. I benefited mightily from the insightful editor and agent perspectives and invaluable personal consultations.

Randy Alcorn, our veteran dragon evader, helped fuel us for the battle by putting fire in our bellies with encouraging Q&A sessions. With candor and humility, he warmed our hearts with tales of slipping past the watchful dragons and glimpses of a heaven where neither dragons nor fear exist.

Writer’s Bio

Patrick Luscri earns his bones as a copywriter, but is working on a book of nonfiction book titled Chasing Clover: A Pursuit of Joy in a Wonky World. He also loves historical fiction and will be trying his hand in that arena soon. Patrick lives in Quincy, CA with his dog, Jack.