Workshop Title:
“Show, Don’t (Just) Tell! Fiction Writing Strategies for Sermons”
Facilitator: Rev. Dr. Alyce McKenzie (Perkins School of Theology, SMU)
Date: Saturday, August 30, 2025
Place: In-Person on Austin Seminary Campus or Online on Zoom
Time: 10 a.m. - 3 p.m. (Hour-long break for lunch)
Description:
People want profound biblical and theological teaching, but they don’t want lectures. This 4-hour workshop will equip participants to use metaphor, scene and story to gain and maintain listener attention, so they retain the memory of Sunday’s sermon on Monday and beyond!
The workshop will be based on insights from Making a Scene in the Pulpit: Vivid Preaching for Visual Listeners and Novel Preaching: Tips from Top Writers on Crafting Creative Sermons. Participants will need to read Making a Scene in the Pulpit to be prepared for the workshop.
Two Ways to Attend
Dr. McKenzie will be on campus at Austin Seminary for the event, held in Wright Hall. Attendance is free and lunch will be provided. The in-person capacity is limited to 100 people.
Please note, the registration form is limited to one-at-a-time, so please fill out unique forms if you'd like to register more than one person for this workshop.
The workshop is available for interactive online attendance through Zoom. We hope the online experience will mean that even more preachers can benefit from Dr. McKenzie’s guidance and expertise.
Please note, the registration form is limited to one-at-a-time, so please fill out unique forms if you'd like to register more than one person for this workshop.
About the Workshop Facilitator:
The Rev. Dr. Alyce McKenzie is the Director of the Perkins Center for Preaching Excellence at SMU, a Center dedicated to fostering excellence in preaching through innovative workshops, preaching peer groups, and online resources. She is frequently called on to be guest teacher/preacher at various lay and clergy gatherings and to consult with groups of clergy around the country.
Dr. McKenzie is the author of numerous books and articles, both for scholarly and popular audiences. Her research has focused on preaching the proverbs and parables of the Bible, preaching and imagination, what preachers can learn from novelists and creative writers, how to preach to shortened attention spans in our visual culture, and how to use the divine gift of humor in sermons.
She is currently at work on a book entitled Real Presences: The Invisible Companions of Everyday Life that compares/contrasts children’s creation of imaginary friends with adult experiences of Jesus, our invisible, but very real, friend.
Publications:
Preaching Proverbs: Wisdom for the Pulpit (Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 1996),
Matthew: Interpretation Bible Studies (Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2002).
Preaching Biblical Wisdom in a Self-Help Society (Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press, 2002).
Hear and Be Wise: Becoming a Teacher and Preacher of Wisdom (Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press, 2004).
Novel Preaching: Fiction Writing Strategies for Sermons (Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2010).
The Parables for Today (Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2010).
What Not to Say: Avoiding the Common Mistakes that Can Sink Your Sermon. (Co-authored with John C. Holbert) (Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2011).
Parental Guidance Advised: Adult Preaching from the Old Testament, co-edited with Charles L. Aaron. (St. Louis, Missouri: Chalice Press, 2013)
Wise Up! Four Biblical Virtues for Navigating Life (Eugene, Oregon: Wipf and Stock, 2018)
Making a Scene in the Pulpit: Vivid Preaching for Visual Listeners (Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2018).
Humor Us! Preaching and the Power of the Comic Spirit, co-authored with Owen Hanley Lynch (Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2023)