Writing religious stories or articles can be intimidating for some writers out of fear that they might offend and be labeled as a blasphemer. Remember the time when Salman Rushdie wrote the novel The Satanic Verses? The Shah of Iran at that time found the novel to have such anti-Islamic undertones that he declared a death sentence against the author, who went into hiding for a brief period. Fast-forward today and Salman Rushdie is very much alive and has written other books since then.

Should this stop you from writing religious pieces or even fiction with religious leanings? Rushdie’s case is rare and he wrote the book in good faith. The fact that you cannot please everyone is a cliché worth noting in whatever you choose to write. You are more likely to miss a great opportunity to create an interesting piece if you don’t work on it and see what happens.

Despite the growing influence of free thought in contemporary society, religion remains popular and influential in the facets of our lives. Religion is hardwired in our system, given that it is a part of our early formation that has been given to us and something that we didn’t choose rationally according to Ayn Rand. Books about life-changing events with faith as its catalyst remain popular and part of reading fare for most of us. In a recent report from Fox News, the coronavirus outbreak has increased Bible purchases as people turn to hope.

This illustrates the important position that faith and religion occupy in our daily lives. For those who subscribe to the power of religious abstractions, it weaves into the very fabric of their existence. Whenever people turn to hope, we can expect faith to play a major role in the way we face adversity. But this is not the only good reason why we should consider writing about religious topics. The latest report from the Pew Research Center shows that while most Americans are familiar with the fundamentals of Christianity and the Bible, far fewer adults have a grasp of the basic facts pertaining to other world religions. Even worse, most of them don’t know what the U.S. Constitution says about religion as it relates to elected officials.

So more than ever, religion is an informative piece that can draw potential readers and it remains relevant for those who believe that not everything can be answered by science alone. So how do you go about writing religious pieces that are informative and leave your reader nodding with hope after reading it? Here are some rules of thumb to consider.

1) Assume that your reader doesn’t know much about their own religion, but never assume that they’re stupid.

I often hear people saying, “I’m a Born-again Christian,” “I’m a Jehovah’s Witness,” “I’m a Baptist,” or “I’m a Muslim.” What I would often do is nod and ask them what being a Baptist or a Muslim means to them. Religious denominations have their own stance when it comes to interpreting tenets from their respective scriptures. Often, people who belong to a particular sect are more than happy to explain what their faith or religious affinity signifies for them, and you can use this in your piece as a source for writing about another’s personal account that others who belong to the same denomination can relate to.