Some of what I write isn’t award-winning material. So it was with the original title for this blog, “What’s Your Epitaph?” It’s not very motivational. I’ll admit it, I feel most of what I write falls short. Yet I’m compelled to keep writing and hopefully get it right at least some of the time.

This is the time of year when those in media produce their year-end “who left us” review. We wax sentimental, practice thankfulness, consider what legacy we’ll leave for others. If we’re really Christ followers we let that compel us to live out our faith more faithfully. In late November 2018 President George H.W. Bush died. Historian Jon Meacham wrote that Bush was the, “inveterate letter writer”.  To Bush, writing was a long established habit rooted deep in who he was. He was prolific.

I want to be prolific. How about you?

Here are six approaches that I use in pursuit of being a prolific writer—and a faithful steward of the gift God has given me to use for His purpose:

1. THE GAUDIT UNTIL YOU GOT IT – BE INSPIRED

I used to work at a major corporation that had an annual audit. We thoroughly prepared and then voluntarily exposed ourselves to a third party team who would come to the office and examine everything – finances, documentation, processes and more. Nothing was off limits. To be prolific ‘Christian’ writers we too need to get everything together and in order for God to come into all areas of our life for the audit — a ‘Gaudit’. Pray, listen closely, take notes, identify corrective measures and ultimately be inspired to what’s next, a better you. Prolific is beautiful when it’s continually inspired by God.

2. QUOTABLE YOU – BE READY TO TAP RECORD

We’ve all heard the saying that a picture is worth a thousand words. It’s the magic of a well-developed moment that strikes us as profound. Here’s the deal – You’ve got it in you more than you realize. It can be easy to miss seeing the diamond in the rough. Fortunately, I think technology is making it easier for us to be responsive and capture the many conversations God has with us. Consider this: prayer isn’t just when you say, “OK God I’m ready to talk to you.” Some of the really good prayer is the live streaming of His Spirit that is constantly going on in your head and heart. Tune into it and be ready to tap record on your phone’s voice memo tool. From there you can play it back later, develop it further and find the inspiring quotes that God gives to you to give to others.

3. A LEGACEY OF LETTERS TO THOSE YOU LOVE

Let’s consider H.W. again for a moment. His grandson, Pierce Bush shares that after crashing his grandfather’s boat and subsequently using Barbara’s car without permission, he received a short letter from his grandfather. It said, “I hate to see you worrying and down. You brighten my life, so forget yesterday and today’s little incidents.” We often think of prolific in terms of frequency but depth of passion is a key quality to prolific writing that makes it synonymous with ‘rich’. This transforms your words into expressions of how God is moving in your heart. When you can be a humble vessel willing to capture that essence it is nothing short of profound.

4. IT TAKES A TEAM

I often apologize in advance to those who write for my magazine. When they get that email reply from me that says, “Brad’s comments in red”, it is not a pretty thing. Sometimes I’ll call the author, read a line she or he wrote and then ask, “What are you saying? I don’t get it.” The long awkward silence may be followed by an inarticulate explanation. I’ll then ask, “Yeah but what do you really mean? What do you want me to understand?” We dig together for the depth and when we get it – Wow! Build your team for grammar, Biblical accuracy, readability and style, audience appropriateness, fact checking and more. The best writers have access to this kind of team. So, give yourself what the best have.

5. FROM DELIVERY ROOM TO PRESSROOM

As a father three times over and as a grandfather, I’ve had a good number of nine-month preparations building to the delivery room. Childbirth is prolific in the most literal sense. The nine months of preparation offer perspective not only on what people do leading up to delivery but how they manage the same amount of time that everyone else usually has for the same outcome. The pressroom on the other hand has delivery deadlines on a daily basis. I think being a prolific writer is a balance of these two. We need to be able to do both long term and quick delivery and find even more opportunities between them. Whatever the schedule we need consistent process with a clear goal that we achieve. When we quote the Bible, “I press toward the mark…”, all the pressing can be pointless if we fail to reach the mark and deliver.

6. THE AWARDS CEREMONY

I have a friend that recently won two Emmys. One was for writing. They are two more in the growing collection. There’s a process that leads to award winning caliber writing. Moreover there’s a process that leads to greater success at the awards ceremony. There’s another process. It is what you do to achieve an awards ceremony mentality. It is your commitment to self-evaluation and self-improvement. It is the personal celebration of thankfulness to God that He gave you the opportunity to be faithful and that you were faithful. More than an Emmy on the mantle it is your spiritual ceremony of giving your words to God in faith that they will positively impact lives in ways you’ll likely never know — perhaps the highest award you can ever achieve.

Even when you feel your writing falls short be prolific and be compelled to keep writing. These six approaches to prolific writing can help increase the quantity of the work you do and deliver strength to your readers. During my session, A Brand Knew You, at the 2019 Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writers Conference I’ll help you explore further how being a prolific writer evolves you into the ultimate creative brand that God can use.

Brad Bloom, Publisher of Faith & Fitness Magazine, Shout! Outdoor Lifestyle Magazine and map Travel Lifestyle Magazine. 

He is president of Lifestyle Media Group, a ministry that develops and distributes content to help people fuel their passion to connect daily living and Christian faith. Bloom draws a distinct difference between secular and his faith-centered brands, “Life should be lived way beyond training harder, living adventurously and going further. That’s all good but God is great. We can be equipped to be great when we get beyond all the doing and actively Be Life – the life of Christ to others.”