The C.S. Lewis of This Generation

In my current notebook, I wrote down some supersized goals at the beginning of the year. One of those was “To be the C.S. Lewis of this generation.”

What do I mean by that? (And what don’t I mean by that?)

I want to publish in a variety of genres. I want to write fiction and non-fiction, sci-fi and fantasy. I want to write for children and adults and young adults. I want to write poetry and devotional material and essays and more. I want to write and speak across a host categories.

I know. That’s a lofty goal. And there are plenty of places where Lewis has an advantage over me. He was on the faculty of two of the most prestigious universities in the world—first Oxford, then Cambridge. The credentials and connections that come from such places are hard to beat. I don’t have those credentials or connections.

The most important part of those connections though wasn’t to the publishing world. It was to friends and fellow authors. Lewis was a part of an informal club called The Inklings. This group changed the trajectory of the publishing industry by writing some of the most imaginative stories of all time. Lewis was a member as well as his friend J.R.R. Tolkien. But there were also several others of lesser fame that wrote poetry and fiction and histories such as Owen Barfield, Charles Williams, and Adam Fox. These friends would gather in a pub and talk writing and literature and language. They’d read what they were working on and argue about it with one another.

Part of the goal to become the C.S. Lewis of this generation is the goal of finding my own version of the Inklings.

It’s much easier to chase the other parts of the goal. Publish a fiction book. Publish a poetry book. Publish a devotional book. Those all sound relatively attainable. But to find a group of likeminded and (more importantly) like-ambitioned friends who are willing to dedicate the time and energy I’m hoping for from such a group…that is the most daunting part of all.

I sometimes feel like time is getting away from me and that I am somehow behind in chasing this goal. But I have to remind myself that Lewis published his most famous works (and truly the bulk of his work) in his 40s and 50s. And perhaps more importantly, I have to remind myself that fame is not a part of the goal. It’s about the work, the words, and the friends.

Thanks for reading.

Andy