Conference - A Word of Encouragement

I'm not scheduled to blog today, but I thought I'd slip in here since CCWC is...like...this week! I sent the following to our local loop yesterday.

Hello Rocky Mountain Zone!

As I'm sitting here in my office, listening to soaking praise music and loving my Lord Jesus, I feel compelled to write to you. The Colorado Christian Writers Conference is a mere two days away, and I know the emotions that swirl on this particular week every year.

First of all, for those who really wanted to go, but it just didn't work out this year, take heart. Put your faith in God and His perfect timing. Every year I hear about people who said they had really wanted to go but it didn't work out for one reason or another. Then afterward they knew why they weren't supposed to be there. Sometimes it was other things happening at home that they needed to attend to. Sometimes God blessed them in other ways regarding their writing careers or other aspects of their lives. At all times, they knew that God had intervened in their best interest. "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." ~Romans 8:28 NIV

I also know how the enemy likes to steal our joy. For those of you planning to come, but are finding one obstacle after another in your preparation, I'm going to introduce a radical thought. Praise God that this is happening! The enemy doesn't want you there because he knows God will receive the glory. "Friends, when life gets really difficult, don't jump to the conclusion that God isn't on the job. Instead, be glad that you are in the very thick of what Christ experienced. This is a spiritual refining process, with glory just around the corner." ~1 Peter 4:12-13 The Message

Consider in these next few days to soak in your Lord Jesus. Let no other voice but His speak to you. Play praise music, read your Bible, sit in His presence and listen to  His voice. Conferences come and go, but God is constant. He is the reason we want to write, so why not yield to His will regarding that calling. In other words: "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God." ~Phil 4:6 NIV

Remember that God loves you all, and whether you come to the mountain or not, be assured that He is with you wherever you are.


Blessings!
Kathy


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Kathleen E. Kovach is the ACFW Rocky Mountain Zone Director. CCWC was her first conference ever, and she praises God that He jump started her dream in May of 2002. To Him belongs all glory, and honor, and praise! www.KathleenEKovach.com

Red-faced, It's Conference Time!

Yep. I totally spaced posting last Friday which I was scheduled to do . . . by me. So blushing here. Didn't remember until last night. Wow! My only excuse? The Colorado Christian Writers Conference is this week. Starts tomorrow in fact. I'm headed up via DIA in just a few minutes. And I'll be there until next Tuesday.

So I've been AWOL on most of my lists.

I really believe in attending conferences, and I've tried to make at least one conference every year since the early nineties. Then i lived in Illinois and my very first conference was held in St. Louis by the American Christian Writers. It was through them that I learned of Marlene Bagnull and got a copy of her Write His Answer Bible study book. Then in 1996, we moved to Colorado, and I contacted Debbie Barker about the Colorado Christian Writers Conference the next spring. Only to be told that Marlene would be directing it from then on. So I got to meet Marlene in person at the first Colorado conference she directed and I attended.

A few years later, my husband was working in New Jersey. That summer I learned to use the trains and made my first trips to Marlene's house to help her prepare for the Philadelphia conference. And from there, over several more years and another job for Roger in New Brunswick, New Jersey, I worked myself into where I am now, Marlene's assistant for both conferences.

So, as i said, I believe in the effectiveness and necessity of conferences for writers.

This year, as for the retreat last month, we're looking at a major winter storm to hinder those traveling to Estes Park for the conference this evening and tomorrow. This year, the opposition to us preparing for the conference has been more than usual. Marlene and I and several others who are on the staff have experienced some pretty bizarre things.

Two nights ago, Liz Babbs, a faculty member from England, wrote Marlene, telling her of a vision she had while praying for the conference. She saw the auditorium at the Y completely surrounded be the Lord's mighty warrior angels. Angels taller than the Reusch, fully armed and ready for battle. The next morning I read in my quiet time 2 Kings 6, where Elisha asks the Lord to open his servant's eyes to see God's army surrounding the Syrian army that surrounded Elisha's town. The Syrians had come to kill Elisha, but the Lord's army prevailed. And so, this is what we are claiming for this conference this week. God will prevail over everything the enemy attempts to put in our way. And I believe God is going to do some awesome things. He already has in my own life.

It's not too late to register and come up, even for a day. You can walk in as well. We are meeting on the campus of the YMCA of the Rockies in Estes Park. Check out what we have to offer this  year at www.writehisanswer.com/Colorado.

Pray and see if this is what the Lord has for you right now. If not, then please pray for us as we meet. God doesn't always open the doors, and if this one is closed for you this year, that's okay, too. He will make a way for you another time, maybe another place.

To Conference We Will Go

I recently celebrated my first anniversary as a member of ACFW. During my first year I was privileged to go to my first conference, the ACFW National Conference in Denver last September.

As a new writer, I went with the desire to learn and experience as much as I could. To accomplish this, I volunteered to be a part of the choir, picked up people at the airport and helped at the registration desk, where my first “experience” took place. Does anyone else think they would fail to recognize Chip MacGregor because he didn’t look like the picture on his blog? Not to mention by trying to follow the rules, I almost refused a request from our president (again because I didn’t recognize her) when she told me it was okay to break the rules for something. They were probably glad when my stint at the registration desk was over. I had better luck picking up people at the airport since I had prepared signs with their name and ACFW on them. I even did okay in the choir although I could have used a little more practice time before the conference.

I must say that one of the things I loved most was meeting fellow writers. It was fun to sit down next to someone and start asking them where they were from and what they were writing, etc. Everyone had a unique story to tell. I think I met more people from Colorado than anywhere else and they were all writers that I hadn’t met at any of the local chapter meetings.

If you struggle with the cost vs. benefit of going to a conference, I encourage you to try it at least once. Yes, there are ways to get the workshops on tape and save on the other expenses of going, but there is something about meeting others who share your calling. It’s an opportunity for you to share in the successes of others as well as their disappointments. It’s a way to connect with the outside world and see that you aren’t alone in your dreams and fears. Those are some of the benefits. So how do you manage the cost? There are ways to cut the costs. Find someone to room with. Find a conference closer to where you live. Forgo your Starbucks (insert weekly/daily) habit and put that money towards a future conference. Hold a garage sale. Look for a one-day conference if a multi-day is out of reach at this season of your life. Look for conferences that a local chapter is hosting.

This week is CCWC in Estes Park. You can go for a day or more. Next month there are a couple of opportunities; one at Glen Eyrie and one with The Masters Seminars with Susan May Warren and Chip MacGregor. Those are just the ones in Colorado coming up. If these are out of reach, start planning for next year. You too can have a conference “experience”. And it doesn’t have to come from volunteering although that is a good way to force yourself to participate and not sit in a corner soaking it in.

I’d love to hear one of your memorable conference experiences. To conference we will go!

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Elaine Clampitt is serving as Secretary/Treasurer of Mile High Scribes, the ACFW South Denver chapter which meets at the Barnes & Noble in Lone Tree on the first Monday of each month. Come hear Jeff Gerke speak on Trends in Publishing on June 7th. Visit www.MileHighScribes.blogspot.com for more information.

Ten Survival Techinques for the First Time Conferee

Your palms are a little sweaty. Safely cocooned in your bag are the one-sheets you've bled over. You walk up to the registration desk, and a sudden fear strikes your heart. They've lost your name. Or you won't be registered. If you are, they'll have forgotten to assign you editor appointments.

You give your name and receive your name tag, finding that your very worse fear has come true. Everything is in order. You've been assigned a roommate, classes, and editor appointments. You really have to do this.

You look over the sea of faces wishing fervently for a familiar one--or even a friendly one. You swallow hard and put on a smile and decide to be that face for someone else who has the panic in her eyes that you feel. You made here. You will believe in yourself. You will believe in the One who sent you. It's time to do this thing!

Truth is though I've felt the above, I'm no longer a new-comer to conferences. So here I stand, cheering you on, excited for the journey you're beginning . . . and thinking that all my sweaty palm experiences give me room to offer a little advice for surviving your first conference:

1) Plan ahead and treat yourself to something that will help you through the experience. Before my first conference I bought colored note cards and wrote my favorite Bible verse and quotes on them. Once I checked in I put them all over my room to remind myself to be courageous! (I've also been know to take a pretty tea cup.)

2) Once at the conference, don't do everything. Really. There's too much offered to attend every single option. If you're a morning person choose the morning devos and skip the late night chats. If you're a night person, take a snack and have breakfast in your room. When the amount of material stuffed in your brain becomes overwhelming, find a quiet place and be alone--or a friend and down-load--or take a nap. But do NOT for any reason attempt to conquer every single thing on that bulging schedule.

3) Pray each day that you can encourage someone. The Lord will lead you to that person, he will be buoyed for his journey, and you'll be refreshed to see God at work. It'll take the stress out of the serious pursuit of all those writing dreams and remind you that God is in control.

4) If a speaker or workshop isn't meeting your needs, discreetly slip out and find one that suits you. It's okay.

5) Be brave. Make friends. Believe that the person next to you in line or in your class is a divine appointment. My first conference I met a delightful woman who ended up being from my area. She invited me to her critique group where I've been happily learning for the last 8 years. I didn't seek her out for any reason except to be friendly, but God put us together.

6) And #5 reminds me to mention #6. Pray for the networking aspect of the conference--not just for yourself, but for each attendee. Ask God to weave it all together exactly the right way, networking those who need to meet to take the next step on their writing journeys and further His purposes. I like to imagine God putting exactly the editor and writer who need to meet together, or helping someone find a new best friend, or putting a writer with exactly the speaker who will help him learn that missing piece. I have lots of God stories about how He did this. LOVE to see Him so tangibly at work.

7) Don't compare your writing with others. Usually first time conferees discover they are starting on a new learning curve. Don't be discouraged by that. God has called you to write. He has given you the talent. Now you get to develop the skill. Don't let the prowess of advanced writers make you insecure.

8) Be teachable. Chances are something about this business is new to you. Listen. Don't barrel ahead with your opinions. Ask good questions, not to be noticed, but so you can learn. If a teacher presents a new concept, play with it, think about it, even if you don't like it at first.

9) Celebrate every positive experience, and grieve and move on from the disappointments. Conferences can be highly emotional, especially the first few times, or if you're doing a lot of pitching of a writing project. Hide and have a good cry if you need to. Give appropriate room for your emotions, but don't dwell on the disappointments. The crazy thing about conferences is you can feel deep discouragement one minute and have a fantastic experience the next. Keep your head high, and don't let the disappointments get you down. You don't know what might be waiting around the corner.

10) Trust God. Believe that HE is the one who opens doors no man can shut and shuts doors no man can open. Believe that HE has a plan for your writing and will guide you on the best pathway for your life. Relax. Enter into His plans for this conference and know deep inside that the One who brought you this far will see all this to completion in His time.

And . . .

while you're doing all of that, don't forget to HAVE FUN!!!!

Supporting My Conference Habit

I love conferences. They're better than Starbucks. But slightly more expensive. I'm blessed to be able to use the money I've made from writing to, as my husband says, support my conference habit.

Why do I love conferences? Let me count the ways.

1. I don't have to make my bed. Yes. That is number one.
2. I don't have to cook my meals. That would tie for number one, but I'm automatically outlining here.
3. I get to see friends that are normally only one inch tall on my Facebook page.
4. I get to cram my head full of craft ideas from the workshops.
5. I get to meet editors that can further my career.

Number five is actually where I started with my first conference, CCWC. It was at the Colorado Christian Writers Conference in 2002 that I met then editors Jim and Tracie Peterson in the early bird clinic for romance fiction. I guess I was one of the those in the right place at the right time that year. They went around the room asking us what careers our characters had. When I mentioned dolphin trainer, they both perked up, and Jim said he wanted to speak with me. I had an appointment with him anyway for later in the day. Jim was the acquisitions editor for new authors at the time. Without even knowing if I could write, he said he wanted to see the full manuscript. How often does that happen? I found out in the years following that this is very rare. But my character's career had never been done in a Barbour Heartsong Presents. I made them wait two years before turning it in. If you ask Jim today why I did that, he can mimic me to a T, she "wanted it to be perfect!"

Well, that story is far from perfect as I've learned a little more about the craft through subsequent conferences, but it was the best I had to offer at the time.

Something else wonderful happened at that conference. As if hearing an editor saying they want to see a full manuscript wasn't enough, God, in His all loving grace gifted me with a competition win. I took first place in the unpublished prose contest. No, that wasn't the wonderful thing, although it was terrific. When I walked back to my seat with my certificate clutched in my fingers, I heard God say, "What are we going to write next?" At that moment, He became my writing partner. I knew the years of dreaming, of sweating over a typewriter, of wondering when I would become a real writer had finally eclipsed.

Tracie Peterson had started a tradition at the annual ACFW conference that continues today, handing out contracts to new authors in the general assembly. So, in 2004, with the deafening applause of my peers, and huge smiles from my Writing Partner, I received the contract for Merely Players. That story is now available in the anthology Florida Weddings.

See why I like conferences?

I share this not to discourage those who haven't had this life changing experience, but to let you know it can happen to you. Go to conferences, read books on the craft, take advantage of the free resources available on the Web, like my blog, Craft Cinema. I was in my mid-forties when I attended that first conference. Not young, not old, but exactly where God wanted me.

I pray you have a conference experience soon where you know beyond any doubt that God is ready to partner with you. There is no greater feeling.

Except maybe the part about not making your bed.

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Kathleen E. Kovach is the Rocky Mountain Zone Director for ACFW, leads a local critique group called JOY Writers, and is an award winning author with five books out and one on the way. www.KathleenEKovach.com