You might be surprised at how many of the articles that have appeared in the Sentinel and Journal were written by people who didn’t really think of themselves as writers at first. Often, we’ll get e-mailed manuscripts in which the author adds something like, “I don’t think this is very good. It’ll probably need a lot of editing.”
But I think what matters when it comes to writing for the Christian Science periodicals isn’t so much skill in constructing clever prose (although that’s certainly appreciated!) as sincerity and a deep desire to share. One of my favorite parts of editing for the Sentinel is getting to work one-on-one with authors to polish and hone their pieces for publication. And it’s so rewarding when an author who might have felt down about his or her perceived writing ability recognizes that the worth of their pieces isn’t a function of their personal talent, but of their sincere desire to be a transparency for sharing God’s love for His creation.
I think I speak for all the editors here when I say I wish I could forge this kind of encouraging, one-on-one connection with everyone who’s ever thought about sharing their healings in print. But each of us can be on the phone with only one person at a time!
