ACFW Conference

I'm so excited that this fall I will be attending my first really BIG Writer's Conference. The American Christian Fiction Writers are holding their annual conference in St. Louis, Missouri this year, and I have made the bold step of registering for it!

It's amazing how the universe works to make things happen sometimes. At first I thought I'd be going alone - a newbie out in a sea of pros. But as luck would have it, a former critique partner is going also and asked me to be her roommate! Though we'll probably attend different lectures and workshops, it will be nice to know there's a friendly face in the crowd!

And I get to meet some special authors that I've been reading, as well as many on-line friends I've talked to in cyber-land.

Super exciting! Now to save my pennies...

Genesis Countdown

Do you hear the clock ticking? Really loud?? It's countdown to the Genesis finals!!

This is the first time I've ever entered the Genesis, the premier contest for unpublished writers hosted by the American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW). I must say as the date approaches, my nerves are getting the best of me. I've been revising my entry and, horror of horror, found typos! How could I have missed them? I'm praying the quality of the writing will let the judges overlook little mistakes like that.

I'm also bracing myself for disappointment. But even if I don't final, I will still get incredibly useful advice from the judges. So really, it's a win-win situation.

I am planning on going to their annual Writers' Conference in the fall and wouldn't it be lovely to go as a Finalist?!

Good luck to all who entered!!

Follow up & Good News!

Well better late than never, I always say. My conference was already a month ago. Where does the time go?

I guess we had Thanksgiving in there and another full day seminar in Toronto, plus tickets to THE SOUND OF MUSIC (excellent production), so I've been a bit busy.

First the follow up:

Other than a few minor glitches, the Ottawa Writers' Conference went well. I learned something from every speaker. Some were more interesting than others but all in all, well worth the trip. I even made it through my pitch with Brenda Chin from Harlequin. She is so nice and gave me some advice which I may or may not take. Anyways, always interesting to hear what editors are looking for.

Now my news:

I am a finalist in the GOLDEN PEN contest!! All day on Monday, I waited for an email or the phone to ring. Finally in the evening I decided I didn't final. However, they are several hours behind us, so it was still afternoon there! And I finally got the email! So I spent the next 2 days madly reading the judges suggestions and revising my entry to send in again. This time my dream editor from Steeple Hill, Melissa Endlich, will be judging it. The worst I can come in is third which is still wonderful. I'll find out mid-December. So we wait again!

Conference fever

Okay, so it's not the Nationals. But this weekend I'm going to the Ottawa chapter's Sweet and Spicy 2 conference. (I think I may be the only non-spicy writer there!)

I still haven't decided if I'll pitch my latest book or not. I have an appointment with one of the Harlequin Blaze editors (again - spicy), but I know she can recommend me to the Steeple Hill editor. I am not good at verbal things, however. Just having to record my answering machine announcement makes my tongue tangle (and that's reading off a paper!) And if anyone's within hearing distance, I can't do it. So the only way I'll get through a pitch is probably to read off cue cards. And if madam editor asks me a question, my mind will be a blank. *Sigh*

The other option is to just go in and chat for 10 minutes about the business in general. I can do that! Guess I'll play it by ear.

Other than the pitch, I'm really looking forward to getting away. We (my CP & I) are going by train, so we can relax and read along the way. Maybe see some nice fall colours too!

Will let you know how it turned out next week!

Happy writing.

Sue