Q: Give us a little background about this project.

Well, a few years back, when Zondervan was courting me away from my first publisher, I submitted a number of ideas in the form of book proposals, for their consideration. Among them was a book called The Dude Abides: The Gospel According to the Coen Brothers. They passed. … Then, a sea change happened at Zondervan and about 18 months ago, after another house approached me about doing a book on the Coens, Z bought the rights to The Dude Abides.

I wrote the bulk of it last summer in a few months and then added a chapter on the Coens’ newest film, A Serious Man, earlier this year.

I’ve been a Coen fan since college when I saw Raising Arizona and Barton Fink for the first time. I suppose some of the ideas in this book have been banging around since then – the better part of 20 years.

Q: If you were to write a brief summary of the book on the back of a napkin, what would it be?

The Coeniverse isn’t random, man. There are rules. This isn’t ‘Nam.
All truth is God’s truth. So pay attention to the things that bring a lump to your throat or raise the hair on the back of your neck. It could be the holy drawing nigh. (That last part was totally cribbed from Buechner, or, as I like to think of him, St. Freddie of Rupert.)

Q: Why the Coen Brothers? Have you always been a fan of their work?

As I said above, I’ve been a Coen fan since college. It started with Raising Arizona – they were so dang quotable. And then Barton Fink blew the top off of my head. So weird. I don’t think I understood it for about a decade. It's now one of my favorites.

Over the years, I became more of a studied fan of film and continued to love their work – as disparate as it was in terms of style, theme and setting. They fascinated me. I was an early fan of The Big Lebowski but it wasn’t until a number of years after it was released that the depth of the spirituality in that film clicked with me. It’s deeply true and I like to think of the Dude in the eponymous quote “the dude abides… I don’t’ know about you but  I take comfort in that. It's good knowin' he's out there ... takin' 'er easy for all us sinners."” as Jesus himself. Not that Jeff Bridges character in the film was Jesus. No. But the idea that the Dude abides — that’s a kingdom truth in my book.

Coen fans tend to rabidly so and there’s a ton of us. As a culture watcher, when I see something come together around a, to use Andy Crouch’s term, “cultural artifact,” I want to know why and think that it often has something to do with Spirit. So I went looking for Spirit in the Coen films and found it. It’s not a Christian message most of the time, but it’s an accurate reflection of how a lot of the world sees itself, God and our place in humanity and the way the world actually works.

Q: Is the 'Big Lebowski' your favorite, or do you have another Coen Brother's movie of choice?

Lebowski is my favorite but I have to say, quite seriously, that their new one, A Serious Man, which drops on Oct. 2 (I saw it at the premiere during the Toronto Film Festival last month) may give Lebowski a run for its money. A Serious Man is already in my top three Coen films, along with Lebowski and O Brother Where Art Thou?

Q: How is your personal learning reflected in the pages of this book?

I hadn’t really thought about my learnin’ and it’s affect on the book, but its there. I mean, man, I dug way back into my freshman year theology classes at Wheaton College, art classes, film studies, training in seminary, my film theory classes there (which in and of themselves were an anomaly at the time) for help in explicating the Coens’ 25 years of filmmaking.

And of course, my own experience as a film lover and regular audience member was probably the most influential. After all, this is just, like, my opinion man. I’m looking at these films through the eyes of a member of the audience and bring to it my own experiences, opinions and lens – like any of us could do. And that’s the point.

Q: Have you experienced any controversy or criticism about this project? Or blank stares?

Not yet, although a lot of people thought we were kidding when we announced the book. Blank stares from my parents. They didn’t know from the Coen brothers … but they do now!

Q: As you wrote this book, what felt like your greatest moment of achievement?

Personal triumph? Finding something of substance to say about Burn After Reading and Intolerable Cruelty. My proudest moment, though, was figuring out – after about a week of poking around and asking experts – what Marva Munson is saying (and what it really means) in The Ladykillers when she tells the sheriff, “Mene mene tenkel parsin.”

If you can tell me what that means, I’ll give you a free book. And maybe a pony.

Q: What's next for you?

I’m working on the manuscript for a book called The Thread. It’s about rediscovering faith and sacred friendship on Facebook.

It's the true story of how, after the death of a college buddy of mine in Iraq,  I reconnected with a group of friends from college in a deep, life-changing way, came back to church, became a mom and a Californian. Because of Facebook. No, really.

But mostly what’s on my plate is being a new mom. My husband and I are in the process of adopting a 10-year-old boy from Malawi. He’s living with us here in California already. His name is Vasco. If you read Sin Boldly, he’s the wee man from the chapter “Chisomo.” Such a miracle. Such a blessing.

Oh, and I’ve promised to learn how to surf, now that I live in Laguna Beach. I plan to be up on a board before Halloween.

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