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Archive for the ‘Publishing journey’ Category

Getting Published

Posted in Colorado Christian Writers Conference, Greater Philly Christian Writers Conference, Publishing journey, Uncategorized on April 24, 2012| Leave a Comment »

Hungry to publish your writing?
Go about it in the right way and you won’t get stuck!

 

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I couldn’t resist sharing these two pictures. As they say, a picture is worth a thousand words.

But Donna Brennan’s words below on how to prepare for appointments at a writers conference are worth a great deal and will help you not get stuck in an awkward situation because you’re unprepared.

Father, thank You for the editors and agents who are taking time from busy schedules to meet with conferees. May the appointments be fruitful for them and for our conferees.

How to Prepare for That Editor or Agent Appointment

by Donna Brennan

When you go to a conference you often have the opportunity to meet with an agent or editor and pitch your work. Depending on the conference, you may get one appointment or may get several. And the duration of the appointment varies too, typically ranging from five to fifteen minutes.

(Note: The Colorado Christian Writers Conference and the Greater Philadelphia Christian Writers Conference both give you four 15-minute long appointment opportunities if you attend for all three days!)

But how do you select which agent or editor would be the best one(s) for you to meet with? And how do you prepare for that meeting? And what if you don’t get an appointment with your first choice? Here’s some advice addressing those questions.

How to Select Which Agent or Editor to Meet With

The longer the list of available agents and editors, the more daunting the task may appear. But look at it as an opportunity to find the best fit for you and your work.

First, read the bios listed on the conference website, paying special attention to what their current needs are. Don’t pitch a fantasy to someone who is only interested in contemporary romance. Then, go to their websites (usually listed in the bio) for more information about them and their agency or publishing house, including titles of books they represent or publish. Read reviews and summaries of those books online. If you can, read the first few pages online, too.

Do they have a blog? Read that, too. That often helps you to get a feel for what kind of person they are.

Next, pray. Always pray. In fact, it wouldn’t hurt to pray while reading their bios or visiting their websites or blogs.

Pick your top choices, but also have some back-up choices. Appointment slots usually fill up quickly, with folks who register for the conference early getting first dibs on who they meet with. So register as soon as you’re sure you’ll be attending.

How to Prepare for Your Appointment

If pitching an article or short story, you should bring that with you. If you’re pitching a longer length article that isn’t written yet, bring a summary and outline of the article along with any other articles you have already written (to provide a sample of how you write).

For pitching a fiction book you typically want to have a one-sheet (described below) and the first chapter (in case the person you’re meeting with wants to look that over while you talk). It’s a good idea to bring along a one-page synopsis and a bullet list of critical points in your story. For pitching a nonfiction book you should bring a one-sheet, a synopsis, and an outline. A chapter by chapter summary is a good thing to have with you, as well as a bullet-list of important topics covered in your book. Your book does not have to be finished, but it does have to have a solid outline and be well thought out.

A one-sheet can be thought of as an at-a-glance overview of your story and you. Different people like to put different things into their one-sheets. (Be sure to check the agent or editor’s website to see if they have certain expectations as to what belongs in a one-sheet.) Basically it contains both an elevator pitch and a one-paragraph summary, along with your story’s genre, target audience, and word count. It also contains your bio, told in the third person. There are lots of examples of one-sheets online you can look at before creating your own including Marlene Bagnull’s sample one sheet (click here).

An elevator pitch is one or two sentences that sum up your story. It needs to be short enough that you can share it quickly if you happen to find yourself riding on an elevator with an agent or editor who represents your type of writing.

Sometimes it’s hard to condense your book into a one-page synopsis, let alone a one-paragraph summary or two-sentence elevator pitch. Here’s one way to get that done.

First, write the synopsis in however many words you need to tell what you feel is important about your book. And then you start cutting out all the non-crucial elements and all those extra words we writers like to sneak into our prose. Keep cutting until you get it down to one single-spaced page.

Once you have your synopsis done, start cutting some more until you can get down to a single paragraph. Then cut some more until you get it down to two sentences.

To put together a bullet list, go back to your synopsis and pull out any items crucial to what happens in your story or any main items you want to mention about your nonfiction book. Put them in the order you want to talk about them.

This list is for you while you’re talking so you don’t forget important points. Therefore, keep the descriptions of each item brief so you can glance down at your paper and remember the topic, but let it make enough sense so the agent or editor can understand if they ask to look at the paper.

If you’re having multiple appointments, bring several copies of the one-sheet, outline, and first chapter. Agents and editors don’t usually ask for hard copies of things at conferences (because they’re seeing lots of folks and that’s a lot of stuff to carry back home). But sometimes they do. And if you give away your only copy at your first appointment, you’ll have nothing to show at your other appointments.

When it’s time for your appointment, review your synopsis and bullet list before you walk in. Relax and know that the agent you’re meeting with wants to find clients to represent and the editors want to find work to publish.

What to Do if You Don’t Get an Appointment with Your First Choice(s)

If you don’t get the appointment you wanted, don’t despair. Sometimes God gives us what we need instead of what we ask for. You may learn something at the conference to let you know your manuscript is not ready yet. Or you may wind up in a chance meeting with this person at the conference that works out better than an appointment would have. Or you might have a surprise elevator ride with an agent or editor who wasn’t even on your radar.

So first pray, then prepare. Have your elevator pitch memorized and have your one-page with you all during the conference. If you’re already carrying a bag or notebook, stick your synopsis and first chapter in there-just in case. If you run into an agent or editor you were interested in but didn’t get an appointment with, ask if you can give them your elevator pitch (but please, don’t be pushy). If they say yes and they like it, ask if you can show them your one-page or send them a query letter. If you send a query, be sure to mention that you met them at the conference.

After the conference, if you didn’t get an opportunity to talk with a particular agent or editor, you can still send them a query letter. Say in your letter that you were at the conference but didn’t get a chance to meet with them. But . . . if you learned at the conference that your manuscript wasn’t quite ready, be sure to make those changes before sending out that query letter.

And did I mention pray? Always pray. If God put the desire to write in your heart, He will provide a way for your writing to be read by His intended audience.

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Making the impossible – possible!

Posted in Called to write, Colorado Christian Writers Conference, Greater Philly Christian Writers Conference, Overcoming self-doubts, Publishing journey, Writing Nonfiction Books on April 17, 2012| Leave a Comment »

I knew God had called me to write a book. What I didn’t know was if I could do it. As my friend, Gayle Roper, once said, “There’s a big difference between a book and a magazine article – like 250 pages difference.”

To be honest, there were days the last thing I wanted to do was work on the book. The evil one’s lies grew louder and more insistent. “What makes you think anyone would want to read what you’ve written?” My self-doubts intensified. I wanted to run from what I still knew God was calling me to do.

“He who believes need never run away again,” I read in Isaiah 28:16 (TLB).

Exactly 365 days after I had committed to finish the book in a year, I completed the manuscript. And then the waiting began. Some of you know that the manuscript was rejected by 42 publishers over a five year period. Finally, the 43rd editor to see the manuscript accepted it for publication.

Looking back I’m amazed that I didn’t give up. I certainly wanted to give up. But God wouldn’t let me, and I’m so glad I didn’t. Had I given up, eight other books would never have been published. I wouldn’t have known the joy of serving on the faculty of over 70 Christian writers’ conferences and giving my one and two day writing seminars over 50 times around the nation. The Greater Philly Christian Writers Conference would not have been birthed 30 years ago, and the awesome privilege of directing the Colorado Christian Writers Conference for 17 years would never have happened.

What about you? Is God calling you to write an article or story, a book or even a screenplay? Does it seem impossible? Do you feel you lack the writing skills to make it happen? Are you stuck and the words aren’t flowing? Do you have a completed manuscript that you’ve not been able to sell? Are you discouraged and ready to run from God’s call?

I know the Colorado or Greater Philly Christian Writers Conference can be a turning point for you and your writing ministry. It’s not too late to register for the May 15-18 Colorado conference and to schedule one-on-one appointments with FOUR editors, agents, or authors if you attend Thursday through Saturday. Secure online registration for the July 31 – August 3 Greater Philly conference will open April 15.

Trust Father to make a way –

  •  Logistically – Friends babysat my three children so I could attend the St. Davids Christian Writers Conference for a number of years.
  • Financially – We often “have not because we ask not.” I want to encourage you to approach your church family and your friends if you need help. They may welcome the opportunity to invest in your writing ministry. My pastor paid for my first writers conference and provided the accountability I needed afterwards to not waste what he invested in me. The conferences do not have any full scholarships to offer this year, but partial scholarships up to 50% of the cost of registration are possible. The scholarship application is not yet posted for the Philly conference. For Colorado’s application click here. Time payments can be arranged if necessary.

 Lord, I believe. Please help my unbelief. Help me to have faith in You knowing that You can make all things possible.

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The Doctor Is In: Help For Your Nonfiction Book Proposal

Posted in Colorado Christian Writers Conference, Marketing, Publishing journey, Writing Nonfiction Book Proposals, Writing Nonfiction Books on April 9, 2012| 1 Comment »

 

How can you make your book proposal stand out—in a positive way—from the many that agents and editors receive on a daily basis? What makes your book unique? Who’s your target audience, and how do you plan to reach it?

Marti Pieper, a professional writer, editor, and book doctor, can help you increase your nonfiction book proposal’s appeal to agents and editors along with its chances of finding a publishing home. Marti uses her years of writing and editing experience to help you discover common errors and suggests practical ways to improve them. She’ll also help you identify your book’s unique selling point and target audience, enabling you to enhance your book proposal by positioning your book in the marketplace.

May 17-19 Marti will share this information at the Colorado Christian Writer’s Conference, where she’ll present one of the three clinics offered. I caught up with Marti and asked her a few questions about herself and her nonfiction book proposal clinic, “Book Doctor: Take Your Nonfiction From Good to Great.”

Question: You call yourself a book doctor. What exactly does a book doctor do?

The book doctor title came my way after more than one experience where an author or agent asked me to apply my writing and editing skills to a manuscript or proposal and move it toward publication. A book doctor, like a medical doctor, assesses the patient (manuscript and/or proposal), formulates appropriate treatment based on the diagnosis, and carries out that treatment until the patient no longer requires care. In my case, this has included everything from complete or partial reorganization to ghostwriting to content editing. I like to say I take proposals and manuscripts from good to great. That’s what I hope our Book Doctor Clinic achieves as well.

Question:  At what point in writing a nonfiction book should we start writing the proposal?

Writing a great proposal helps you write a fantastic book. That explains why I think authors should write the proposal early in their writing process, perhaps before they have written a word of the manuscript. The effort and organization required to complete the proposal-writing process gives authors the deep knowledge of their material required to produce a great book.

Question: When should we contact an agent or editor?

First-time authors will want to have their proposals finished before they contact these professionals. However, a writer’s conference affords the unique opportunity to meet with agents or editors at an earlier point. If you can bring a finished proposal to the conference, do so. Whether or not the agent or editor has time to read it, you’ll know your material better and speak more confidently about it if you’ve submitted to the discipline of completing your proposal. If you can’t complete your proposal before the conference, bring a pitch sheet (summary sheet that contains basic information about the proposed manuscript and its author) to refer to during conference appointments. And of course, sign up for the Book Doctor clinic where we’ll work together to help your proposal shine.

Question:  How important is it that we know our target audience before we write the proposal? What about before we write the book?

Knowing our target audience is key to developing both the proposal and the book. We write to meet the felt needs of our readers, and if we don’t know who our readers are, we’ll have a tough time meeting those needs.

Question:  The clinic description says we’ll learn ways to identify our unique selling point. Will the clinic also show us how to present that selling point in our proposal?

Yes, we’ll cover that as we go through the various elements of a nonfiction proposal. The clinic outline will flex somewhat depending on the needs of the individuals and manuscripts submitted, but the basic elements should remain the same.

Question:  Will the clinic help us come up with a marketing plan to include in our book proposal?

We’ll discuss marketing but I doubt we’ll have time to develop specific plans. I’m glad the conference offers great teaching by Rob Eagar and others who can help us improve our marketing efforts. Again, the clinic will flex depending on the number, needs, and interests of those who attend.  (NOTE: Those chosen to participate in the clinic will still attend the six hour continuing session of their choice including Rob Eagar’s “Marketing for the Promotionally Challenged Author,” “Narrative Nonfiction” with Craig von Buseck who is Ministries Director at CBN.com, “Gift Books and Devotional Writing” with Karen Moore, “Please NO Pat Answers” with a team of three authors, or “Changing Paradigms of Publishing” with Dave Lambert. Those who do not choose to apply for the clinic or who are not accepted can choose six workshops from the 42 offered including six workshops in each of the following tracks: Nonfiction, Writer’s Life, Craft, Get Publishing, Marketing, and Specialty.)

Question:  Can you give a few examples of common errors you’ve seen in nonfiction book manuscripts and proposals?

I have to save some of my secrets for the conference, Donna, but here are a few: limited or lofty appeal, lack of focus, and trying to develop a book when you only have enough material for an article. The clinic environment is a unique setting that allows us to learn from each other and allow God to use us together to produce better proposals and, in the end, better products. I’m excited about the opportunity to mentor writers in this interactive, instructive environment. Thanks for your questions, Donna, and I’ll see you at the CCWC!

Thanks, Donna and Marti, for a great interview. Clinic applications must be received via email no later than April 16. Click here for more info and the application.               

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Help for “Promotionally Challenged Authors”

Posted in Colorado Christian Writers Conference, Greater Philly Christian Writers Conference, Platform building, Promotion, Publishing journey on March 29, 2012| Leave a Comment »

Help for “Promotionally Challenged Authors”
plus $100 of essential resources when you pre-order
faculty member, Rob Eagar’s new book Sell Your Book Like Wildfire

The days when all you had to do was write a great book and wait for the royalty checks to arrive are long past. Now, an author needs to be not just a great writer (a major challenge in itself) but also a great marketer. Whether we write fiction or nonfiction, we need that allusive “platform” and the ability to sell books – lots of books – if we want a publisher to seriously consider our manuscript. If we choose to self-publish, a viable alternative for many, we still need to be able to sell our book.

It’s a real challenge for most authors. We’re writers not necessarily marketers. That’s certainly true for me. Although I know how to “Spread the Word through Effective Promotion” (a workshop I’ve taught many times that is available on CD), I confess that I quit Girl Scouts because of the stress of having to sell cookies. The bottom line is I HATE sales!

So what can I do – can you do – if your lack of marketing skills is what’s standing in the way of landing a contract or selling the book(s) you’ve chosen to self-publish?

Thanks to my good friend, Cec Murphey, and his recommendation and introduction, both the Colorado and Greater Philly Christian Writers Conference is blessed to have Rob Eagar from Wildfire Marketing teaching a continuing session on “Marketing for the Promotionally Challenged Author.” Rob will challenge us to “get over our insecurities and transform our apprehension about marketing into positive action.” He will cover:

  • How to build a memorable brand
  • Grow your author platform
  • Increase your book sales
  • Effectively use social networking
  • Make your message standout from the crowd
  • Create effective newsletters that produce speaking inquiries
  • Generate more books
  • Turn media interviews into book sales
  • Amplify your author platform, and more!

Through Wildfire Marketing Rob has trained and worked with over 400 authors including New York Times bestsellers Dr. Gary Chapman, Lysa TerKeurst, and Wanda Brunstetter. And you can get a head start on preparing to present your marketing plan to editors at the conference through Rob’s new book, Sell your Book Like Wildfire, releasing June 7 from Writers Digest Books.

More great news! If you pre-order Rob’s new book between now and April 1st, he will include these special bonuses:

  1. You get my book at 33% off the book’s list price of $16.99. Pay only $11.25 and save $5.74!
  2. You get free shipping. I’ll ship the book to you in June at no charge. You save $2.50!
  3. You get my “Marketing Plan Template for Authors” download for free – a $20 value!
  4. You get my “Bestseller Website Tutorial” download for free – a $25 value!
  5. You get my mp3 audio download “O Reader, Where Art Thou?” a 1-hour teaching session, which explains how to find your book’s target audience – for free – a $59 value!

To recap, you pay only $11.25, and you’ll receive Rob’s new 288-page book in June at a 33% discount with free shipping. Plus, you get over $100 of essential teaching resources for authors. All you have to do is pre-order by April 1st at: www.startawildfire.com/books

I intend to take advantage of Rob’s generous offer and hope you will, too.

Father, You know how difficult marketing is for many of us. We believe in You and the message You have entrusted to us but, as Rob says, we “lack confidence to share our book’s message with dignity and excitement.” Thank You for providing the help we need through Rob’s new book and what He will be teaching at CCWC and GPCWC. And thank You for Your mighty power that is at work within us enabling us to do what we could never do in our own strength.

 

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Dianne E. Butts – A Testimony of 23 years coming to CCWC

Posted in Colorado Christian Writers Conference, Publishing journey on March 27, 2012| 10 Comments »

This will be Dianne Butts’ 24th year at CCWC.
I asked her to share why she keeps coming back.

My first year coming to the Colorado Christian Writers Conference was 1989, and I’ve come every year since.

In 1989 my husband and I lived in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. I worked at a beer distributor, a job I really enjoyed. But my knowledge and understanding of Jesus was growing and I longed to share what I was learning of Him. It hadn’t been that long since I came to know Him and I knew there were many people who were like me, who would want to know Him if someone would just make the introduction. I wanted to be that someone for them. But how could I reach them? I tried to be a good witness to the two other ladies I worked with, but I wanted to reach more.

I often thought about one high school teacher who encouraged me to write. I’d never wanted to be a writer, never had that dream like so many other writers I know now. But this teacher had seen some silly teen-angst poem I had written and she took an interest. She took me to the library and introduced me to the Writer’s Market. She taught me how to format my manuscript and what a SASE was, and together we sent that poem off to three markets. We got rejections from two. I remember one rejection letter had scrawled across it in handwriting, “This sounds like a Hallmark card.” That wasn’t a compliment. We never heard from the third market.

And that’s all I knew about writing. But I kept thinking if I could write something—maybe an article, though I really wanted to write a novel—and get it published, I could reach many more people for Jesus than I could just trying to be a good witness in my daily life around town. I visited Steamboat’s library. I found the Writer’s Market. It didn’t have many Christian markets in it. I wondered if Christian markets would publish anything I wrote anyway, since I had no training or education in Biblical studies.

One day on the Christian radio station that was rebroadcast into Steamboat Springs, I heard a lady interviewed. Debbie Barker talked about a Christian writer’s conference that spring in Thornton, a suburb of Denver. I couldn’t believe it! A conference for Christian writers?! I asked my husband who said yes. I took a day off work to go. I signed up for the “beginning writers” workshop. I couldn’t believe how many people were in that room! I found an empty seat and sat among them feeling totally inadequate, and yet I took notes as fast as I could, absorbed as much as I could, and laughed at the cartoons about writing the instructor, Marlene Bagnull, kept putting up on the overhead projector.

During an afternoon session, a fire alarm sounded. Nobody moved. Mrs. Bagnull said she didn’t really think there was a fire, said something about the devil didn’t want us learning what we were learning, stopped in mid-sentence and prayed, and then continued on with the workshop shouting over the alarm. The alarm eventually quit. I went home with so much information ringing in my ears I hardly knew where to start, but at least now I knew what to do.

It took a few years before I got my first publication in 1991 in The Lookout, and I’ve been writing ever since—first part time while I worked part time after we moved from Steamboat, then full time after we moved again and jobs were scarce. I now have more than 325 published articles including articles published in Great Britain, Bulgaria, Poland, Canada, and Korea. I’ve contributed to 19 books and have written two of my own—the first, Dear America, published by Marlene’s Ampelos Press, and the other, Deliver Me, out just last year.

We’ve moved many times around Colorado following my husband’s job, so it has been the Colorado Christian Writer’s Conference and the friends I’ve made there that have been the constant in my life.

It was my hope and prayer that my writing would go where I could not, to reach people I otherwise would not. But my writing has taken me places I never dreamed of. Talk about Ephesians 3:20!

I think it was in 2000 when a woman named Barbara Nicolosi came to the conference to talk to us Christian writers about writing for Hollywood. You mean screenplays and stuff? I didn’t know the first thing about that kind of writing. But I found myself sitting in all Barbara’s workshops. And I’ve sat in on every screenwriting workshop since, including Ted Baehr’s in 2010. (I plan to sit in his class again this year.) In 2010 I applied to Barbara’s school, Act One, and attended the writer’s seminar that summer in Hollywood.

In February 2011 some of my Act One classmates came to my house in Colorado and we made a film for the 168 Film Project. I learned a ton. I learned so much, in fact, that I decided to form my own team for this year, and in February 2012 I headed up my own film team. (That makes me the Producer, along with my supportive husband, Hal.) I also wrote the script and directed the actors and the entire project. Our 10-minute film, The Choice, isn’t in the running for any awards at the 168 Film Festival coming up March 30-31 but our film is still going to screen the evening of Saturday, March 30, at the Hope Theatre in San Fernando. The Choice is based on a true story in my book Deliver Me: Hope, Help, & Healing through True Stories of Unplanned Pregnancy.

While our film may not be a “winner” in the eyes of the 168 judges, I am very proud of the film we made. I know our short 10-minute film is going to have a ministry of its own beyond the 168 Film Project because this film is going to reach people I otherwise couldn’t or wouldn’t reach with the message of forgiveness and salvation in Christ Jesus.

Last week we made a movie trailer which you can see here: The Choice – Trailer

I am so very grateful for all the training and opportunities the conference has brought me. I haven’t yet seen the fulfillment of my dream to publish a novel. And I have a dozen other nonfiction books I want to write and hope to publish with a traditional publisher. But the Lord is opening doors in film I never dreamed of and I will follow Him and “ride that wave” as far as I can just to see where it goes. Because for me, it’s not about “winning.” It’s all about taking the message of Jesus, His forgiveness, and salvation in Him to as many people as I possibly can.

_____________________________________

In 1997 Debbie Barker turned the Colorado Christian Writers Conference over to me, Marlene Bagnull. I’ve known Dianne since she first came to CCWC in 1989, and I’m very proud of her. She has earned a spot on CCWC’s faculty every other year. I highly recommend her monthly e-zine for writers. It’s packed with helpful information for beginning and intermediate writers. To sign up for a free subscription go to http://www.dianneebutts.com

 

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Bear Fruit

Posted in Called to write, Colorado Christian Writers Conference, God's promises, Greater Philly Christian Writers Conference, Publishing journey on March 17, 2012| Leave a Comment »

It’s a beautiful spring day here on the east coast. Okay, I know it’s not yet officially spring, but it sure looks and feels like spring!  My daffodils are in bloom, and the buds on my fruit trees are almost ready to burst.

They’re calling this the winter that wasn’t. I confess I missed the snowstorms we had the past two years. The out-of-doors has looked brown and barren with no snow glistening on the ground and coating my bushes and trees. But even in the dead of winter, faith assured me that spring was coming.

Faith is certainly essential for writers as we wonder if anyone will want to read what we write or if we can even finish what we started. Maybe we have a completed manuscript but so far no agent or editor has shown any interest. Or maybe we already have a book in print but sales have been dismal. We wonder if our work will ever bear fruit.

About fifteen years ago I met Tim Shoemaker at the Write to Publish Conference in Illinois. He had a passion to write fiction for boys but still had a lot to learn. Still, I saw something in him and in his writing. As I talked and prayed with this young man, I knew his dream was going to come true. Since then we’ve kept in touch and I’ve watched his gift with words grow. I rejoiced when he found publishers for his nonfiction devotional books for boys. And then, just this week, I held in my hands Code of Silence, a hardback novel for boys published by Zonderkidz and the first of a trilogy.

Tim’s writing is bearing fruit because he didn’t give up. He’s worked at his craft and then began teaching it to others at the Colorado and Greater Philly Christian Writers conference where he’s served on faculty since 2005. This year Tim is teaching a continuing session at both conferences on “Take Your Fiction to the Gym.” “Consider yourself a beginner or an advanced beginner when it comes to fiction?” Tim asks. “Here’s your chance to take your writing to the gym. You’ll get the tools, tips, and techniques to strengthen your writing to compete in the real world of publishing. We’ll look at Plot, Characterization, Point-of-View, Show-Don’t-Tell, Scenes, Beginnings, Middles, Ends, Conflict, Dialogue, and other areas to help take your fiction writing to the next level. Lace up your gym shoes . . . this is one workout you’ll enjoy!”

I’ve also asked Tim to give the closing keynote, “Finding His Answer,” at both conferences. “Finding His answer in the ups and downs of life is all about realizing He has a plan, that it is good, that we can trust Him, and that there are things we must do,” Tim says. “We must learn our craft and be the real deal as Christians.”

If you’re discouraged, I hope you’ll take heart from Tim’s story and that you’ll make it a priority to attend one or more writers’ conferences this year. The fellowship with other writers, opportunity to show your work to agents and editors, and classes taught by those who know the craft of writing and marketing can make a huge difference in helping you to get your work in print.

Because of the glitches with online registration that, PTL, are now fixed, I’ve extended early registration for the May 16-19 Colorado Christian Writer Conference through March 19.  Online registration for the August  1-4 Greater Philly Christian Writers Conference will hopefully open April 15 with the brochure off press by May 1. For info on other conferences I encourage you to check the 2012 Christian Writers Market Guide. It is available through my Write His Answer bookstore at 20% off the $24.99 retail price plus $3.50 shipping. The bookstore has numerous other writing how-to books. Shipping is free for orders $35 and over.

Thank You, Father, for the promise of springtime. Help us to bear fruit for You through the lives we live and the words we write.

P.S. Click here for a free Bible study on “Bearing Fruit.”

 

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Seeking His Wisdom

Posted in Colorado Christian Writers Conference, God's promises, Publishing journey on January 25, 2012| 1 Comment »

If you don’t know what you’re doing, pray to the Father.
He loves to help. You’ll get this help,
and won’t be condescended to when you ask for it.
Ask boldly, believingly, without a second thought.
People who “worry their prayers” are like wind-whipped waves.
Don’t think you’re going to get anything from the Master that way,
adrift at sea, keeping all your options open.

James 1:5-8 MSG

 Good morning everyone –

This week I’m in the process of finalizing the faculty and workshops for the May 16-19 Colorado Christian Writers Conference.  (Secure online registration opens February 1.) Each year it seems more challenging. I know more gifted authors I’d love to invite, and Father keeps expanding my connections with agents and editors. It would be easy to “worry my prayers,” especially when I consider the cost of flying in a large faculty. I always intend to shrink the faculty but, as usual, that hasn’t happened. Check out the website. We now have 62 on faculty and our eight continuing sessions are in place. (Yes I know the file name for the continuing session’s page says 2011. I’m still trying to learn Expression Web 4.)

If we’re honest, we often feel overwhelmed and even clueless about what to do next. What should we write? Where should we send it? How can we effectively market not ourselves but the message Father has given us? How can we build that “platform” we’re told is so important?  And how do we fit in everything we feel we need to do in days that are already packed full?

I’m so grateful that I don’t have to figure this out on my own – that my Father and yours “loves to help.”  It’s up to us to seek Him and to listen.  He will give us the guidance we need through His Word, through what are clearly “God-incidents” and not mere coincidences, and through the counsel of others.

I appreciated the counsel one of our faculty members gave last Thursday in her blog. Amanda Luedeke is a literary agent with MacGregor Literary. In her third post on tackling the “Platform Monster,” Amanda gave eight easy steps for success in article-writing and why it’s a great way to build your platform. I encourage you to read it and to look at the opportunities CCWC offers to connect with 13 editors who represent 18+ periodicals. Exciting! (My writing ministry began with writing for Christian periodicals. The 1,000+ sales Father enabled me to make I’m sure have reached more readers than my eight published books.)

One final word – warning! Be sure to seek the Lord first. Look at the precarious position this fisherman got himself in when he hooked a bull elk!

Father, please help us not to run ahead of You or to lag behind. Remind us to look to you for the guidance and wisdom we need.

Photo from a conferee who wrote: This guy from Texas was fishing this week on the Big Thompson outside of Estes Park. It was his first ever fly-fishing venture. A crowd gathered on the highway to take pictures, including a Denver Post guy. One of the pics is on the front page of the Denver Post.

 

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Best Opportunities in Christian Periodicals

Posted in Overcoming self-doubts, Publishing journey on October 25, 2011| Leave a Comment »

I’ve been teaching workshops at Christian writers’ conferences and giving my one- and   two-day Christian writers’ seminars for more than 25 years. I’ve met many gifted writers who were discouraged and ready to give up because their work   wasn’t selling. Why? Invariably I found they were aiming for the most   difficult places to break into print. As a result, I began teaching the “Best Opportunities in Christian Periodicals” – a workshop I just updated for the Vine & Vessels Christian Writers Conference in Delaware.

I’m   excited about the ministry opportunity Christian periodicals provide. Whether in print or online, you can reach far more people than you can with books unless you’re a best-selling author. You can also keep your work in print by selling reprints to non-overlapping markets as long as you have not sold all rights. (If you’ve sold first rights, you need to be certain not to submit the piece elsewhere until it is in print and the date of publication has   passed.)

But what if you’re working on a book? Although obviously there is a BIG difference between a book and an article or short story, I want to encourage you not to overlook the Christian periodical market. Why?

  • The time it takes to complete a book manuscript, find an agent or publisher, and wait for your book to come off press can be very discouraging. Sales to periodicals will encourage you to keep on keeping on.
  • Writing for periodicals will strengthen your writing skills and grow your confidence.
  • Print and online magazines will help you build your platform and your writing credits.
  • You can “test the waters” by submitting portions of your book manuscript to periodicals. Yes, I know that won’t work with a novel, but it’s a great
    way to determine if your nonfiction is publishable.

But that brings us back to where we started. You’ve got to know the best opportunities!

A CD of the “Best Opportunities in Christian Periodicals” workshop that I just taught can be ordered for $6 at http:writehisanswer.com/CDs_&_Tapes.htm.
Included with the CD at no additional charge are four helpful handouts:

Scope of Christian Periodicals
Needs of Christian Periodicals
Best Opportunities (Scope & Needs)
Best Opportunity Markets

NOTE: “Best Opportunity Markets” can be downloaded free of charge
at www.writehisanswer.com/Marketing_tips.htm

While ou’re there, check out my expanded bookstore for writers. With over 240 titles, you’re sure to find something that will help you grow your writing
skills. Place your order by December 10 and take an additional 10% off the already discounted price.

God bless you as you “write His answer.”

In Him –  Marlene

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Don’t Give Up!

Posted in Called to write, Overcoming self-doubts, Publishing journey on June 10, 2011| Leave a Comment »

I hope you’ll visit http://www.rosemccauley.blogspot.com/ where I’m today’s (June 10) guest blogger.

Be encouraged! The One who has called you to “write His answer” is faithful. He will open the right door at the right time!

 

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Spring Is Coming!

Posted in Called to write, Colorado Christian Writers Conference, God's promises, Greater Philly Christian Writers Conference, Overcoming self-doubts, Publishing journey on February 7, 2011| 3 Comments »

Spring is coming, or so the groundhog says.  Whether he’s right that we’ll have an early spring remains to be seen, but one thing is certain – spring will come!

Even more certain is God’s promise in Hosea 6:3: “Oh, that we might know the Lord! Let us press on to know him, and he will respond to us as surely as the coming of dawn or the rain of early spring” (TLB). But did you read the condition? Are you pressing in to know Him and, as one who has been given the gift of words, are you pressing on to make Him known?

If you’re feeling stuck in a long, cold winter of your soul when God seems distant and a season when your writing appears to be going nowhere, take heart. “Even when we are too weak to have any faith left, he remains faithful to us and will help us, for he cannot disown us who are part of himself, and he will always carry out his promises to us” (2 Tim. 2:13 TLB). And what does He promise? Romans 11:29 says “God’s gifts and his call can never be withdrawn” (TLB). He also promises that “Now you have every grace and blessing; every spiritual gift and power for doing his will are yours during this time of waiting for the return of our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Cor. 1:7 TLB).

A promise that kept me writing and submitting when my first book kept getting rejected is Galatians 6:9. “Let us not get tired of doing what is right, for after a while we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t get discouraged and give up” (TLB). That book was finally accepted after being returned 42 times over a five year period. (I learned not to use the word “rejected.”) Had I given up, I would have missed the joy of encouraging others through my book, Write His Answer – A Bible Study for Christian Writer; the joy of the six other books that followed; and the joy of directing the Greater Philly and Colorado Christian Writers Conference.

We’re picking up 8,000 brochures today for the May 11-14 Colorado Christian Writers Conference. If you’re not on our mailing list, please email me to receive the 16-page brochure. The August 10-13 Greater Philly conference is well along in the planning stages. And I’ve expanded my online bookstore for writers – finally. Through February 28 I’m offering an additional 10% off the already discounted prices including Sally Stuart’s 2011 Christian Writers Market Guide making the price for the new edition only $18. I hope you’ll visit www.writehisanswer.com/bookstore.htm.

But Father, most of all I pray that Your people will be encouraged to “write Your answer” during these critical days. Help us all to be faithful to our calling.

Because of Christ – Marlene

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