Ryan J. Pemberton
Writer and Editor in Seattle, WA
I tell stories.
I'm a passionate storyteller from the Pacific Northwest with a background in marketing, communications, and public relations. I spent four years at a PNW agency, helping clients tell their story in an array of industries, before leaving to study theology in England.
After earning a graduate degree in theology Oxford University, I moved to North Carolina to study at Duke University. Returning to the West Coast, I served as University Minister for nearly five years, bridging the gap between church and university communities in Berkeley, California. Back in the Pacific Northwest, I have led communications efforts for several organizations, including institutions of higher education and nonprofits, including Image, a quarterly journal curating, cultivating, and celebrating contemporary creative work at the intersection of art, faith, and mystery. As a Global Faculty member with SNP Communications, I have provided 1:1 and group leadership communications support for clients that include Google, Nike, Morgan Stanley, and others. As an independent communications consultant, I have helped for-profit and nonprofit clients across the country tell their stories in compelling ways.
On my own time, I've written for Christianity Today, Sojourners, Image Journal, Duke University Chapel, Bible Study Magazine, and Relevant magazine. My latest is a reflection on the role of art in cultivating a receptivity to awe, wonder, and surprise. A favorite piece is this reflection on the quiet, radical liturgy of Fred Rogers for Christianity Today. I described the long-term impact of growing up in poverty for Sojourners Magazine. My article, “What My Berkeley Congregation Taught Me About Loving My Political Neighbor,” was named a not-to-miss read of 2018.
My memoir on calling, Called: My Journey to C. S. Lewis’s House and Back Again, was published in 2015 (Leafwood Publishers) and has already hung out with cooler people than me.
My second project, Walking With C. S. Lewis: A Spiritual Guide Through His Life and Writings, was released in 2018 (Lexham Press), in collaboration with video lectures filmed in and around Oxford.
I am represented by Amanda Luedeke of MacGregor and Luedeke Literary Agency.
Thanks for stopping by. Let's connect at the links below.