We’re telling a story, and you’re supposed to be a part of it.
A week or so ago we told you about everything God has done at The Company over the last year. If you look back through The Company magazine, on The Pearl, or at all of the books we published, you’re going to find some names over and over again like Alli Prince, Thirzah, Noah Matthews, and Vella Karman, just to name a few.
I love those guys. They’re great. But they have a dark secret:
They’re just regular people.
Just like you, they love to write, they love to make stuff. They’re good at some things and other things they have to try really hard and improve upon.
Just like you, they’re cool and fun to hang out with, but they’re also imperfect and make mistakes sometimes.
The only difference, the only reason you find their names in the story, is that they showed up.
They said “yes” and took what felt like really big risks. Then they kept showing up and following through. They made big sacrifices and worked super hard to make the pieces fit.
But they’re just regular people, regular young adults with dreams. They couldn’t do this stuff before they showed up. Now they can.
This year, why shouldn’t your name be part of the story, too?
I’m going to give you the bird’s eye view of the next year, the parts I know about at least. Everything here isn’t just about what we’re doing, it can also be about what you’re doing.
If something looks interesting, stop and click the link.
Training Opportunities
If you want to be a part of this story, our full-time apprentices get the main roles. We are now accepting applications for our apprenticeship term which starts this September. Now is the time to learn more and apply. Get started here.
The apprenticeship is for regular people with big dreams—people who are ready to put it all on the line to pursue those dreams. Why shouldn’t that be you?
For a less intense online opportunity, we’ll also start new Arche Year cohorts in October. Learn more about that here so that you can put it on your calendar and be ready to roll.
If you just want to get your feet wet, don’t miss The Company’s Novel Challenge which starts next week on January 13. Learn more and sign up here. (We’ll likely also run a summer challenge again beginning in June.)
We’ll also be releasing a complete online copy editing course very soon! This course has been graciously recorded by my friend Emily Hitchcock, CEO of Boyle & Dalton. If you’d like to grow in this skill set, we have you covered!
Live Events
A great way to step into our story here at The Company is just to start showing up to the live events that we offer. We’re big believers in voting with your feet (and your clicks). If there’s stuff you like and want more of, get there!
Our Spring Retreat will be May 2-3. This is a great time to come hang out and write together, and it’s also a great opportunity to see what life is really like here for our apprentices. Mark your calendar, sign up for the newsletter, and watch your inbox for more details.
We also have some online events in the works, like our ProCritique on January 28th. Most of this stuff is completely free and open to everyone, it’s the easiest way to become part of the story. Get all of the details for that here.
We’ll continue to have critique sessions and workshops throughout the year, and we have an idea for a new kind of online event that we think will be super helpful. (Again, make sure you’re subscribed to the newsletter and that you look for an open our emails.) We’ll announce these events one at a time through the year.
Publishing Opportunities
We’ll continue to offer writing contests throughout the year, like the “A Peculiar Invention” Winter Writing Contest going on now. This is a super fun way to test your writing, maybe win a cool prize and see your story published, and it’s always completely free.
You definitely don’t want to miss Fantastical Summer, a new anthology led by Vella Karman, which is accepting submissions through January 30th. Get all of the details here. This will be a first-class professional anthology, featuring authors from our community just like you!
Upcoming Books
We have three books from our apprentices and graduates with firm release dates in 2025. A super fun way to step into this community is to join a release team, which are led by the individual authors. That’s super helpful to the author and is also a great opportunity to learn from someone else’s release.
Outlaw Blood
Noah Matthews, a current second-year apprentice at The Company, will release his debut book on March 3, 2025! This is one of the coolest books I’ve ever read and I can’t wait to see it in print. Hop over to his website and sign up for his newsletter so that you can join his release team. You’ll get the book at a special discounted price and be one of the first to read it. NoahJMatthews.com
An Ambassador’s Ploy
The third and final installment of Thirzah’s Adventures in Eldnaire series is here! Visit Thirzah’s website and sign up for her newsletter so you don’t miss it (or any pre-release offers)! ThirzahWrites.com
Thirzah was the first-ever graduate of The Company’s apprenticeship.
Fantastical Summer
Coming May 2025, Fantastical Summer is a new, whimsical anthology project led by second-year apprentice Vella Karman! This project is now accepting short stories for consideration. Learn more and submit a story at FantasticalSummer.com. This opportunity is open to everyone.
These are just the books with certain release schedules! Stay tuned as we see more books from our writers than ever before.
My vision for 2025
This year, I’d really like to see the network of great content produced by The Company expand. As more writers graduate from our programs, there are a ton of amazing stories, articles, podcasts, etc. that are published nearly every day. Some of it we’re directly involved in, some of it we just get to watch and cheer for.
I’d love to see us develop even better ways to promote and validate the good stuff, so that it can further enrich the Kingdom. The Pearl will continue to be an integral part of that, so make sure you’re signed up for the newsletter there as well.
Of course, here at The Company, we’ll continue to publish regular content and podcast episodes to keep you on mission, moving forward in your writing career, and equipped to leverage the book marketplace.
We’ll also be putting a greater emphasis on craft articles on The Company Magazine. The articles we publish to the magazine tend to focus on the spiritual component of being a writer who is a Christian, because that’s obviously the most important thing. I’d like to see us expand the amount of practical writing craft knowledge and advice we’re sharing on the magazine as well.
You’re invited
We have a lot going on, and a lot more will happen than just what’s listed here. This is just the stuff that we know for sure, but I’m certain God will raise up more opportunities and projects as we go, just like He always seems to.
But it’s not really about us, I think it’s about you. How are you going to be a part of it?
What will your story be this year?
How will you be a part of ours?
We’re just a group of regular people who do our best to invite the Holy Spirit and then we give 100%. If you want to be one of those people too, we’d love for you to get involved.
Of course the best way is to apply to our apprenticeship. That’s the big “yes.” But there are so many other ways that you can start showing up and being a part of what’s happening here.
And we’d love to see you.
Here’s to a great 2025. I can’t wait to see how God uses us.
-Brad Pauquette
Director, The Company
