In Texas, the University Interscholastic League sponsored contests between schools covering a wide range of academic topics. In Junior High, I tied for 6th in a U.I.L. spelling contest. Unfortunately, the powers that be at that particular contest failed to notify me of the tie. I missed the ensuing spell-off, only to later find my test with “7th Place – Didn’t show up to tiebreaker” scrawled across the page. My little, proud, Junior High mind was crushed, not only at the fact that I wasn’t first place, but that I also didn’t even get the chance to compete to sustain my 6th place position.

So, years later, after stuffing my feelings by devouring as many words as I could, I attempted the journalistic competitions set forth by the U.I.L. It’s been far too many years since then, but I recall participating in Feature Writing and Headlines. I did so poorly in both of them that I can’t even recall my place in either competition. This may have been the beginning of a subtle aversion to the pursuit of writing as a legitimate means of self-sustainment.

Now, even more years later, writing (thankfully) is a part of my job. Learning to craft concise, creative, compelling copy (while attempting to avoid the adolescent allure of alliteration) is an art form I enjoy attempting to master. It’s a journey without a final destination, but if I can inch ever closer with each new day, each new writer I read, and each new voice that speaks wisdom into my life (and there are many of those at my current job and in my real-life circles), then I’ll consider it a day well-spent.

But headlines still cause me a tightening of the throat, a muddling of the mind, and a blankness of the brain. Consequently, I’m highly appreciative of posts like Matt Thompson’s 10 Questions to Help You Write Better Headlines.

While headlines have to convey much more information in a smaller amount of space versus your standard tweet or Facebook update, there are similarities to be found. The pressure of limited space leaves little room for error or vagueness, but carefully crafted content calls out for a memorable, clickable headline. As with your updates, so too with headlines. You want something that tells the truth, but begs for interaction.

Maybe the essence of any headline is this: How do you compress your meaning so that it’s an irrepressible invitation to interact?

So . . .

• What inter-scholastic competitions did you compete in, and where did you place?
• Or, what’s the best or worst headlines you’ve ever read?
• Or, when you compose a tweet or Facebook update, do you linger over exactly what you want to say and how you want to say it so that someone will reply, click, or like the post?

Wrong answers, but the leading question is still appropriate.

Friend and author Brad Whittington recently released What Would Jesus Drink: What the Bible Really Says About Alcohol, a short work that looks at every line in the Bible that refers to wine or strong drink—all 247 of them (references, not types of drink).

With wine as such an integral part of first century life and oftentimes such a divisive issue among Christians today, a short treatise on what the Bible really says about drinking is long overdue. Brad was even kind enough to include the reference list at the end of the book, as well as a list of other works on the same topic from those who may disagree with his conclusions.

What are his conclusions? You’ll have to get the book to find out. The Kindle edition is currently only 99 cents too, so if you’re even remotely interested, the information far outweighs the cost.

Additionally, any book that’s able to pull an endorsement quote from A.J. Jacobs, author of The Year of Living Biblically: One Man’s Humble Quest to Follow the Bible as Literally as Possible, is worth reading in my book. (Year is a book you should read as well). Little known fact: Year quotes from Brad’s early material that eventually led to What Would Jesus Drink.

And, for what it’s worth, everyone knows that Jesus would drink Guinness because this book (and good taste) say so.

What are your thoughts on drinking and the Christian life?

nuttakit / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Inspired by the Top 10 Worst End-of-the-Year Top 10 lists list that we posted at FaithVillage, here is my own Top 10 End-of-the-Year Top 10 lists list.

10. The Best Selling Video Games of 2011
Sadly, my absolute favorite of the year, Portal 2, was ranked #10. It’s one of the smartest games in existence. I’m playing through #8, L.A. Noire, during my Christmas break, and it’s a little unnerving to have more than a few actors from Mad Men (including the game’s lead actor) appear in the game.

9. Top 10 Words of the Year
As a writer, I felt like I had to include this, but the words this year are lame. I’ll save you the trouble: The word that was most looked up online in 2011 was “pragmatic.” Additionally, “‘austerity’ also made the top 10 list in 2011 along with ambivalence, insidious, didactic, diversity, capitalism, socialism, vitriol and ‘apres moi le deluge.’

8. Top 10 Most Bizzare Tech Stories of 2011
This list exists because someone failed to tell someone else that just because you can do something doesn’t necessarily mean that you should do something. A self-hugging vest? An internet-enabled kissing machine? An MC Hammer search engine? At least they all have this in common: They make me say, “What the what?”

7. Top 10 Gorgeous Gadgets of 2011
Function does not have to follow form. These gadgets remind us that useful tech doesn’t have to be just a metal box.

6. 10 Most Viewed YouTube Videos of 2011
#1 makes me weep for humanity. My favorite is #2, embedded below.

5. Top 10 DFW Sports Moments of 2011
As a recent resident of the DFW area, I couldn’t have picked a better place or year to root for the home team. Having never lived close enough to an NBA (or NFL or MLB) franchise to attend games, I had the opportunity to attend multiple Mavs games, two Cowboys games, and multiple Rangers’ games. I even went to an FC Dallas soccer match, but don’t tell anyone. I was thrilled when the Mavs took home the Larry O’Brien, but I fear this year is going to be quite different. I still plan to attend the games though.

4. Top 10 New iPhone Gaming Apps for 2011
No list can exist on my website if it doesn’t refer to an Apple product at least once. My faves on this list include Jetpack Joyride and Scribblenauts Remix. I’m also addicted to Tower Run, which isn’t on the list, but should be. For more 2011 iPhone fun, check out the Best iPhone Apps of 2011 (get Flipboard A.S.A.P.) and the 50 Best iPhone Apps of 2011.

3. The 45 Most Powerful Images of 2011
Yeah, so it’s not a Top 10 list, but the pictures are powerful. Many of them deal with the devastation that’s been wrought throughout the world this year, whether through natural catastrophe or human depravity. You’ve been warned. While each picture elicited a certain response from me, #20 was the most moving to me.

2. Rolling Stone‘s 10 Best Movies of 2011
I’ve seen five of them, including Peter Travers’ intriguing, brutal pick for the best of the year. I still don’t know what to think of #8, but I do know that I counted 20+ people who walked out of the theater when I saw it. It was as equally sublime as it was pretentious. As for the ones I haven’t seen, they’re on my to-be-seen list.

1. The Top 10 FaithVillage Posts of 2011
One of my articles (a Top 10 list itself) barely eked onto the list, but I’m proud of our team and highly appreciative of our contributors. I’m also pleased that our list is topically diverse and by multiple writers. One of our goals is to always have quality content that’s sure to connect with nearly any type of reader. In other words, if you’re a Christian, you should be able to find something helpful or inspiring on our site. I hope you’ll bookmark us, subscribe to our RSS feed, or sign up for our email newsletter. I’m anxious for 2012 at FV!

What was your favorite Top 10 list of 2011?

10. American Dreams

My girlfriend coaxed me into watching this Dick Clark produced TV series set in the 60s, centered on Meg Pryor, a teenager chosen to be a featured dancer in American Bandstand. It aired on NBC starting in 2002. I was prepared to not like it, but after a few episodes I wanted to see each and every one of the Pryors achieve their dreams . . . which never seemed to happen, at least in the first season. The show is rather ingenious, incorporating vintage footage from American Bandstand with current pop singers like Usher and Vanessa Carlton doing their best 60s impersonations of famous performers from that era. Side note: The show also proves that Joey from Blossom can say more than just “Whoa!”

9. The Office

In its first three seasons, The Office would have definitely been in my top three shows. Sadly, as we all knew was going to happen but really hoped it wouldn’t, The Office has lost is unique comedic touch by having to let go of the most awkward boss this side of the Great Pond, Michael Scott. I still watch the show out of loyalty (much like I did with Smallville for far too long), but the laughs are few and far between. I love the Nard-Dog, but they really should have hired from outside the office. Maybe Ken Jeong? Or do a cross-over and have Ron Swanson from Parks and Rec (Nick Offerman) move into the boss’s seat.

8. Saturday Night Live

The hey-day of Saturday Night Live is always those first five years after you learn about the existence of Saturday Night Live. For me, that was the early to mid-90s. I still watch SNL, hoping that it gets better, waiting for them to feature Jay Pharoah more, and laughing uncontrollably every time Bill Hader breaks character as Stefon.

7. Parks & Recreation

I watched the first season and it didn’t take with me. I didn’t watch the second, but I’m falling for the third. They’ve distanced themselves from The Office and have created a place with a heart as big as Lil’ Sebastian’s, which may sound negative, but it’s not. Pawnee has become so real, in fact, that I wasn’t surprised when I ran across the book Pawnee: The Greatest Town in America in a local bookstore. Genius.

6. New Girl

I’ve only watched four episodes, but I’ve laughed out loud at least twice during each. This is a good measure of a great comedy, especially considering its nascent form. Zooey Deschanel is funny, even when it’s not Christmas and Will Ferrell in tights is trying to court her.

5. Mad Men

Thank you Netflix for introducing me to the seedy world of 60s advertising agencies. Dick Don Whitman Draper has me just as confused as his wife Bets. Why do they do what, or who, they do? And the quibbling overs words and ideas in their marketing meetings can be fascinating. I watch this show and fear that I’ll succumb to lung issues caused by secondhand smoking. This is a show, much like the advertising they discuss, where what isn’t said appears as important as what is.

4. Community

I thought the first season was stellar, but the second season disappointing. Halfway through their current third season, I noticed an uptick in hilariousness. This is a strange comedy show, an avant-garde take on classic TV comedies of the past. Though each episode tells a complete story, you’re never quite sure exactly how that story will be told, whether via a documentary, stop-motion claymation, or anime. Side note: Starburns is Dino Stamatapoulus, creator of Moral Orel, an intriguing stop-motion 15-minute show that used to air on the Cartoon Network. The show has been described as “South Park meets Davey and Goliath.”

3. Modern Family

Two words: Phil Dunphy. It’s the funniest show on TV right now, and there isn’t a weak link in the cast, even down to the dog. A guaranteed guffaw escapes from me every time I watch it. While some of the plot lines become a little outrageous and unbelievable, they allow for each of the characters to shine at one moment or another. It’s little wonder that this little show has won many big awards.

2. Friday Night Lights

It was the show that technically never should have made it to three seasons, let alone five. After every season, rumors would fly that it would be cancelled because it was a critical darling but unpopular, the bane of any high-quality art (yes, art) that isn’t appreciated by the masses. Even if I hadn’t been an extra on the show a few times (my only actual on-camera scene took place during the Taylor’s baby’s christening, and that scene only showed the back of my head . . . in a wide shot), I would have still fallen in love with the show and the town of Dillon, all too reminiscent of my own Texas hometown. If you still think the show is all about football, avail yourself from that lie and start watching FNL on Netflix now.

1. Breaking Bad

For the last four years, Friday Night Lights and Breaking Bad have warred for the #1 and #2 spots on my highly subjective top TV show list. This was the year that Breaking Bad finally achieved the top ranking, mostly because I’m afraid of what Walter White would do to me if he found out that I had ever even considered a ranking below #1. Breaking Bad is dark, hilarious at times, and incredibly well-written. It’s a show where you wonder how they can keep ratcheting the tension up, and yet they do every season. At the end of every season thus far, I’ve had to pick my jaw up off the floor.

Here’s an article I wrote prior to the third season. The irony is that my main argument in the piece—whether or not redemption is possible for Walter—has been wholly crushed by the following seasons as well as what the writer of the series has already said, namely, that Breaking Bad is about the transformation of a suburban dad into Scarface.

To me, Bryan Cranston is Walter White, so whenever I see him in old episodes of Malcolm in the Middle, or on Seinfeld, or in movies like Larry Crowne or Drive, all I see is a conniving, convincing, lying, terrifying man. This perception makes his other roles take on darker qualities that were never there in the first place.

What was your favorite show to watch in 2011?

How many books did you read this year?

While I feel that a Top 10 books list is somewhat wanting when taken from a field of only 22, there are reads here that should definitely be included on your to-read list.

10. Never Let Me Go, Kazuo Ishiguro

I read Never Let Me Go as a result of 101books.net. It’s an interesting story from the perspective of a clone built solely for organ donations, but I didn’t see how or why it was included on Time‘s Top 100 list. Did I miss the deeper meaning? Or was I just put off by the writing style? I’m still not sure.

9. Quitter, Jon Acuff

Quitter arrived at an interesting point in my life. I had already done what Acuff says not to do—namely, quit your day job to pursue your dream job without having another job lined up, though I’d argue that circumstances dictated my particular route, and I didn’t quit to pursue my dream job, although that’s what eventually happened.

Fortunately, just as my savings were depleted, I was given the opportunity to write for a law firm. A good friend met Jon at a book signing and picked up the book for me (and had it signed). A few months later I actually landed my dream job and in some strange way, I’d been doing what Acuff recommends for years, i.e. working toward that goal by pursuing writing (or art or music or whatever it is that makes you think, “If only someone would pay me to do this, then I’d never work again.”) during my non-work time. If you’re in that spot where you’ve spent too much time doing things you only tolerate, Quitter may be the book to help you realistically dream about a better tomorrow.

8. Decision Points, George W. Bush

I wouldn’t call myself a particularly political person, but I had to read about some of the transformative world events that occurred over the last decade, especially from the vantage point of one who was in the absolute middle of it all. Decision Points was fascinating and caused my respect for any sitting President to increase all the more.

7. The Hunger Games / Catching Fire, Suzanne Collins

From time to time, I’m a latecomer to the newest craze, a slow runner trying to catch up to an overflowing bandwagon. I didn’t read the Harry Potter series until right before the last book was released. Both then and now, I’m glad to have hopped aboard, especially with the imminent release of the movies. The books are easy to read, engrossing enough, and have just the right amount of Ender’s Game kids-as-killers to be subversively enticing.

6. Sanctuary of the Soul: Journey into Meditative Prayer, Richard Foster

Ever since Celebration of Discipline, I’ve been a fan of Richard Foster’s engaging style and practical thoughts on spirituality. Sanctuary delves into the practice of meditative prayer, something I need to learn to incorporate into my own life instead of just replying @God with 140-character prayers. I reviewed Sanctuary of the Soul for FaithVillage.

5. Jesus Land: A Memoir, Julia Scheeres

I read Jesus Land much earlier this year, but I recall it being a sad story of a sister who’s white and her adopted brother who’s black who both endured incredible hardship at a “Christian” camp in the Dominican Republic. It’s a shocking reminder of what happens when the words of Christ are terribly transformed into strict legalism.

4. King’s Cross: The Story of the World in the Life of Jesus, Tim Keller

Until King’s Cross, I had only heard of Dr. Keller through quotes and other writers. Now I know why people respect him and his works. King’s Cross looks at the gospel of Mark and uses clear, everyday language to elucidate much of what happened in this action-packed gospel. Dr. Keller is often touted as a present-day C.S. Lewis, and from reading King’s Cross I can see why. I’m anxious to consume more.

3. Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy, Eric Metaxes

Though I had attempted to read The Cost of Discipleship as a teenager, I knew little of Bonhoeffer the man. Now I feel as if I know too much. As a book of 624 pages, it’s not a quick read. Delving into his life in Germany, America, and throughout Europe leading up to and including World War II, Bonhoeffer is a close study of the man whose beliefs would eventually lead him to become part of the plot to kill Hitler.

Knowing that he would die as a result of his efforts makes the last few chapters of the book a rather breathtaking read as you wait to see how it all ends. But what stands out about Bonhoeffer the man is his unswerving allegiance to Christ and his ability to live out the Christian life under incredibly difficult circumstances. (Our Christian Living Editor at FaithVillage talked to Eric Metexas about his book)

2. Jesus, My Father, The CIA, and Me: A Memoir. . . of Sorts, Ian Morgan Cron

What’s not to love about an author who, when meeting him for the first time and saying “I plan to get your book soon,” pulls out a copy from his bag, signs it, then hands it to you free of charge? I was predisposed to like Jesus, My Father simply due to that generous exchange, but even had I not met Ian, I would have liked the book. Equally funny as it is touching, Cron honestly recounts growing up with an alcoholic father who just so happened to also work for the CIA at times. The book is well worth your time and your dollars. Here’s my review of Jesus, My Father, the CIA, and Me on Amazon. Here’s our three-part FaithVillage interview with Ian too.

1. Steve Jobs, Walter Isaacson

Currently, Steve Jobs’ biography is the #1 selling book on Amazon. This is not surprising. Steve Jobs was a much lauded technological luminary who passed from this world far too soon. I found this biography enthralling, especially as it recounted the early, near mythological days when Steve and Woz founded Apple in their garage.

While Isaacson rarely delves into the reasons Jobs was who he became (controlling, easily angered, brilliant), Jobs’ early childhood abandonment by his parents may have cast an inescapable shadow over his whole life. It’s fascinating to think that, had his parents never put him up for adoption, we may never have had iPods, iPhones, iPads, iTunes, MacBooks, or Pixar. (Lastly, I wrote an article about Steve Jobs’ resignation that was sadly prescient in some ways).

What are your top books for the year?