Author: Paul Linzey

Through writing and public speaking, we provide coaching, mentoring, and discipleship.
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Busy Month Ahead

It’s starting to look like the next month will be a busy one.

At 5 p.m. on Saturday January 31 I’m speaking at Pressed Books & Coffee in Lakeland. Our theme will be flash fiction. Then I’ll be at the store at 4 p.m. each Monday afternoon in February to talk about writing and publishing with whoever wants to come.

The Writer’s Digest February Flash Fiction Challenge begins on Sunday the first and I’ll join several hundred thousand people committed to writing a flash fiction short story every day of the month. More importantly, all three of our sons are writing with me and we plan to combine our stories for an anthology at the end of the month.

On Tuesday February 3 at 7 p.m. is the launch of our brand new Word Weavers writers group at First Presbyterian church on Lake Hollingsworth Drive.

My new novel titled Bekker’s Burial goes live on February 21. Plus I’m getting started on a new nonfiction book.

Meanwhile, Linda is spending a week with a friend while I go to Colorado to see my son and grandson. So yeah, lot’s going on . . . but I love it!

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Bekker’s Burial Book Launch

John & Madison move from Northern California to Suburban Delaware to get a fresh start in careers and marriage but soon find themselves fighting for their lives. A series of events including murder, coercion, threats, invasion of privacy, and kidnapping leads to a discovery that may be worth millions—if they find it first, if they’re not killed, and if their marriage survives.

Madison Bekker is a corporate lawyer who inherits a box of books and papers from her father. She and her husband, John Verano, an NBA player, follow the clues hoping to discover her family’s heritage in seventeenth-century America.

Book One in the Village of Hockessin Novel series, Bekker’s Burial is a contemporary novel that starts in Walnut Creek, moves to Wilmington, and finishes in Amsterdam. The story is a search for happiness, identity, and meaning.

This novel is a combination thriller, suspense, and place-based fiction. It is international in scope, spans multiple generations, and includes themes of trust, fear, envy, and faith. The book can be pre-ordered as an ebook now and will be available as a paperback on February 21.

After completing an MFA in Creative Writing at the University of Tampa, Paul has written several nonfiction books. His fiction writing started with a collection of flash fiction short stories. Bekker’s Burial is his first novel.

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Bekker’s Burial Launch

I am excited to announce that the launch date of my debut novel will be February 21, 2026.

Ten years ago, I completed the MFA in Creative Writing at the University of Tampa with a dual emphasis in fiction and nonfiction. At the time, there were a few nonfiction books I was ready to write. But in the back of my mind, several fiction stories started to form and I began outlining them. Bekker’s Burial was the first one.

I wanted the background of the story to focus on early American Dutch history and started doing some research. That’s when I discovered the village of Hockessin, about eight miles west of Wilmington, Delaware. In October 2024, my wife and I spent three days in Hockessin in order to get a feel for the place: restaurants, churches, libraries, schools, parks, roads, and people. Together, we studied the history and took a lot of photos, and the story started coming to life.

Then in November 2024, I used the occasion of NaNoWriMo to write the first draft. For several years I had wanted participate in NaNoWriMo but life circumstances kept preventing me from doing so. This time, however, I succeeded in writing 71,000 words during the month. Here’s the plaque I got for completing the first draft in the month of November with NaNoWriMo 2024.

Many edits later, with the input of several beta readers and my editor, the finished novel has 84,000 words and the plot has more depth and texture. I am thankful for their input and pleased with the outcome.

The novel is Book One in the Hockessin series and here’s why. I originally intended the story to be about a young couple (John & Madison) with the primary focus on John. But as the story took shape, the light shined more on Madison and she took the leading role. So now I need to write Book Two to finish the story about John. My editor told me a week or so ago that there very well could be stories focusing on other characters in Hockessin, too. This is getting fun!

Here’s the cover of the book. The picture is one that I took when we were in Delaware. We saw the actual places I had studied online and in some books. Coffee Run Cemetery is the first Catholic cemetery in Delaware, and today is adjacent to an Assemblies of God church called Trinity Community Church. We met the pastor, and he’s allowing me to put him and the church in the novel.

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Happy New Year & God Bless

Dear Friends,

When Linda retired in 2024, we moved to North Carolina to be near our kids and grandchildren while pondering what might come next for us. We knew we’d be there just for a year. But what a wonderful year!

It was fun spending time with family on birthdays and holidays, playing miniature golf, dropping in for dinner, going to cross country meets, band concerts, dance recitals, and graduations. We went to church with them from time to time and visited our sons’ job sites: one in the Army at Fort Bragg, the other in the Navy at Camp LeJeune.

And of course, we took time to visit our son and grandsons in Colorado, followed by a family reunion at the United States Military Academy at West Point. Our son began his military career there twenty some years ago and retired there this year, the day before his son started his military career as a West Point cadet.

We were able to explore North Carolina from the mountains to the coast. We visited the Biltmore Estate and toured Asheville and the surrounding area that was devastated by Hurricane Helene. We explored the Outer Banks, home of the Wright Brothers flights at Kitty Hawk and the Cape Hatteras Light House. We experienced museums, botanical gardens, aquariums, and state parks.

We spent time in Raleigh, Charlotte, and Wilmington and visited friends in Maryland, Virginia, South Carolina, and Georgia. Linda and her sisters met in Iowa, then went to The House on the Rock in Wisconsin for their annual sister trip. We went to Texas to visit with Paul’s cousins. It really was our first rodeo!

In July we decided to return to our home in Florida. The house needed some major cleaning, painting, repairs, and remodeling, so we’ve been pretty busy the past few months. But it feels good to be back. We’ve already started reconnecting with friends, colleagues, and students. Last weekend, Linda hosted a group of former students for an afternoon tea, much like they experienced during their annual study abroad trips to England.

Paul is re-engaging in the Florida writing community, which was a big part of his life a few years ago, and starting a new book. Thanksgiving was at Camp LeJeune, and we stayed a few days longer for our son’s promotion.

Then just last week, we realized this was our 50th Christmas together.

We want to keep in touch because friends & family are important to us, but we don’t have complete contact info for everyone. Would you send us your address and contact information. You may use the contact page in this website or you may use Messenger. We love you and hope the new year brings good and amazing experiences your way.

Happy New Year & God Bless

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Metamorphosis

While preaching through the New Testament book of Romans a few years ago, I came to chapter twelve, verse two, and quickly realized the significance of the word μεταμορφουσθε (metamorphousthe). Britannica defines it as the continuous, remarkable “change of form or structure in an individual after hatching or birth.” The word is metamorphosis and it is translated into English as transformed.

Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will (Romans 12:1-2).

There are many ways to discuss discipleship, what it takes to grow spiritually, and how to become the people we are meant to be, but it seems to me that metamorphosis may provide the best analogy because the changes are drastic and visible, as are many of the changes that take place when we come to Christ. The end result of the process is beauty, which is also an apt description of what the Lord brings into our lives.

From the introduction to Butterfly Believers.

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Books Available Almost Everywhere

I really appreciate the independent bookstores that have carried my books. The first to do so was Wordsmith Bookshoppe in Galesburg, Illinois. And recently, Pressed Books & Coffee in Lakeland, Florida said they’d be glad to find space on the shelf for my books.

I recently found out that all of my books are now available at the major booksellers websites. A few weeks ago I was on the Barnes & Noble website and decided to type in my name and see what might show up. I was surprised to see my books there. Then I checked Books-A-Million and a few other sites. Same thing!

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Thanks for Being My Chaplain, Too

As a battalion chaplain, I was asked to say a prayer before lunch at the annual family Christmas party. I love to pray. I love being visible to my Soldiers so that they know who they can go to when they need help or guidance or counseling. So I was glad for the opportunity. I also love telling my Soldiers about Jesus, but the annual family holiday party isn’t the place to preach the gospel because it is a command event . . . not a religious service.

When the time came, the commander invited me to the microphone and I prayed. I thanked the Lord for the families of the Soldiers. I asked for divine safety and protection. I prayed for the marriages and child-parent relationships. I expressed hope that the events of the day would be meaningful, fun, and encouraging. And I finished the prayer not by saying “in Jesus’s Name, Amen.” Instead, I finished by thanking the Lord for his goodness and blessings, Amen.

I returned to the table where I was sitting with my wife, and after a few minutes a young Jewish officer approached me, held out his hand to me, and said, “Thank you for being my chaplain, too!”

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Do You Need a Mentor?

One of the ways to avoid getting into trouble is to establish accountability measures and allow key people in your life to hold you answerable for what is morally right and what is helpful in your career. It is important to establish professional and spiritual mentoring relationships. We all need someone we can turn to when we are tempted, when we’re hurting, and when we’re about to do something unwise.

When I became a chaplain and went to the Officer Basic Course, Ron Casteel was the class leader. He and I became friends and kept in touch throughout our careers. Not only was he a friend, he became my mentor. Ron knew more than I did about how the military worked. He understood people. And several times when I needed guidance, he was there for me.

Fourteen years after completing the basic course, I had the opportunity to work for him at a senior command. Not only was he my friend and mentor. Now he was my boss. It was a great experience. After he retired, there was one more time that I needed his help professionally, and he was there for me. Having him as a mentor made a powerful impact on my life and career.

Perhaps you should consider finding a mentor. In fact, you might want to identify two mentors: one for spiritual accountability, and one for professional development. Allow key people in your life to hold you answerable for what is morally right, and what is helpful in your career. And listen when they speak or offer guidance.

Wherever you are in your career, it may be important for your growth, development, and success to find one or two people who can speak into your life as a friend and mentor.

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Driving Up the Mountain

I was a chaplain with an infantry battalion that was conducting field exercises in Yakima, Washington. While visiting our soldiers at remote locations, I asked my Chaplain Assistant if he would go up and over the mountain instead of taking the road around it. He agreed, but soon stopped and said he couldn’t go further because it was too steep. I told him the Hummer was built for steep inclines and asked him to proceed.

That’s when he said, “Chaplain, I’m not stopping because the vehicle can’t make it. I’m stopping because it’s too scary. I don’t want to drive up this mountain!”

“I understand. Let’s trade places and I’ll drive.”

Being a good, responsible NCO, he insisted that I show him my military driving license. And I did.

Driving up that mountain was so much fun. We got to the top, got out, and looked around. We could see for miles in each direction. Coming back down was even scarier because it seemed we were looking straight down. It was exhilarating. We were now ready to go and visit our Soldiers.