A lot has happened since I last posted about my book on the Letter of James! Firstly, the book is now going to be called From the Lion's Mouth. The book has always been about showing the teachings and commandments of Jesus (who is often depicted as a lion in the Bible) that James wrote, so I thought that title summed up the content really well. I'm still finalizing the subtitle and dreaming up possible book covers. Since you've been such a lovely audience, I'd love to get your feedback on which potential subtitle you like best (feel free to add your own)! [polldaddy poll=8855601]

Secondly, I have clunked out over 43,000 words and am just finishing up the second chapter. Yes, I know that there are five chapters, but since about a month ago I've been writing in the mornings and have greatly increased my word count per day. Also, the way that I have the Letter of James divvied up, I'm over halfway through the sections.

Thirdly, here are the major milestones that I've established for myself:

1. Maintain my current momentum and finish writing the book
2. Find an editor (if you know of any Christian book editors, PLEASE point them my way)
3. Select a subtitle for the book
4. Have someone create a book cover
5. Publish the book
6. Celebrate!

As an added bonus if you read thus far in this post, here's a draft excerpt from the book relating to James 1:1:

"The intense practicality of James is evident from the first words laid upon the page. The introduction is quick, effective and to the point, inviting us to play it back in slow motion to see all the intricate detail played out in such a short span. James’ Spartan writing style lends itself to brevity and effectiveness, but regrettably it does have its downsides. For the purposes of this section, the dilemma is this: The author only leaves a slight flourish of a signature before diving into the meat of the letter. However, we can glean some crucial information from this partial fingerprint that will help us better understand this letter.

While there almost certainly were many sides to this author – everyone is much more complex than they may seem on the surface – I’ve decided to go over a few of them to provide a better perspective for you. I’d like to look at James as a writer, a servant of God and of Jesus, a brother of Jesus, and a pastor."

Please subscribe to this blog so you can get more updates and excerpts from the book over the next few months before I publish. If you feel led, please be praying for me to have wisdom and endurance in my writing.

Everett