Adorning the Dark

Making something beautiful in a broken world can be harrowing work, and it can’t be done alone.

Over the last twenty years, Andrew Peterson has performed thousands of concerts, published four novels, released ten albums, taught college and seminary classes on writing, founded a nonprofit ministry for Christians in the arts, and executive-produced a film—all in a belief that God calls us to proclaim the gospel and the coming kingdom using whatever gifts are at our disposal. He’s stumbled along the way, made mistake after mistake, and yet has continually encountered the grace of God through an encouraging family, a Christ-centered community of artists in the church, and the power of truth, beauty, and goodness in Scripture and the arts.

While there are many books about writing, none deal first-hand with the intersection of songwriting, storytelling, and vocation, along with nuts-and-bolts exploration of the great mystery of creativity. In Adorning the Dark, Andrew describes six principles for the writing life:

serving the work serving the audience selectivity discernment discipline community Through stories from his own journey, Andrew shows how these principles are not merely helpful for writers and artists, but for anyone interested in imitating the way the Creator interacts with his creation.

This book is both a memoir of Andrew’s journey and a handbook for artists, written in the hope that his story will provide encouragement to others stumbling along in pursuit of a calling to adorn the dark with the light of Christ.

1. Opening Credits
2. Preface
3. Chapter 1: Bach’s Secret Weapon
4. Chapter 2: In the Beginning
5. Chapter 3: Scared and Sacred
6. Chapter 4: Behold the Lamb
7. Chapter 5: A Matter of Life or Death
8. Chapter 6: Longing to Belong
9. Chapter 7: The Integrated Imagination
10. Chapter 8: The Black Box
11. Chapter 9: Serving the Work
12. Chapter 10: Serving the Audience
13. Chapter 11: Selectivity
14. Chapter 12: Discipline
15. Chapter 13: Discernment
16. Chapter 14: Art Nourishes Community
17. Chapter 15: Community Nourishes Art
18. Chapter 16: Home Is Real
19. Afterword: Nuts and Bolts
20. Acknowledgments
21. Closing Credits