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Six Saintly Patrons for Writers in the New Year
We all need a little heavenly help occasionally
I have ended countless articles about books and writing with a simple line: “may Hemingway be with you.” I have also occasionally referred to Papa as the patron saint of writers, but he clearly is not; though he flirted with becoming Catholic throughout his life, he never actually did. This, combined with four marriages and a few minor vices, will surely keep his sainthood on permanent hold. It’s a shame.
If Hemingway’s not a viable option, who is there to appeal to when you need writerly help? What do you do when neither Stephen King’s On Writing, that overpriced weekend writing retreat in the Great Northwest, nor burning sage to the ghost of Eudora Welty helps you move beyond the blank page that has mocked you for the past week? You take things up a notch, that’s what.
Below, I give you six saints who actually are patrons of writers of various types, but first I should dispel a few myths about the saints so that some of my Evangelical friends don’t quit reading. If that sounds judgmental, I don’t mean it to be. I just know that it was not that long ago that my ex-wife told me that Pope Francis seems like a nice guy even though he’s probably the anti-Christ.
