Let’s Get Together, Yeah, Yeah, Yeah!

I’m talking about ACFW! Last year I reserved a table for breakfast on Friday morning. It really helped eliminate the first day jitters or “where am I going to sit and will I know anybody.” So I’ll be doing it again and will try to get a table in the center by the door. Just [...]

Conference Confidence Series!

  I’m starting a new series called Conference Confidence at Portrait of a Writer…Interrupted on Mondays and Saturdays in an attempt to get myself ready and others motivated for ACFW in September. I will address subjects like: Why are you a going to conference? Perfecting Your Pitch What’s a One Sheet? Know Your Editor Getting [...]

Surviving ICRS

I went. I saw. I came home with blistered feet. I’m talking about my first ICRS, the International Christian Retail Show, formerly known as CBA. I went this year because it was in Atlanta, about an hour’s drive from my house. How could I NOT go? I commuted, saving the cost of transportation and hotel. [...]

Is Print Going to Die?

Several years ago, the National Endowment for the Arts warned America: Reading is at risk. They proclaimed that literary reading is declining rapidly among all groups, especially the very young. Two weeks ago, in one of the breakout sessions at Book Expo America, Jeff Gomez wondered about that study. Is print really going to die? [...]

Guest Blogger: Meredith Efken on Advice for Newbie Fiction Writers

1) Don’t be in a hurry to submit work or query editors/agents. Learn the craft. Love the craft. Obsess about the craft. Aim to make your work art, not just “sellable.” 2) Educate yourself about the publishing industry, especially the fiction industry. Pay attention to what’s going on and how things work, and who’s who. [...]

Serenity Weekend

 HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY! And what mom doesn’t need a serentiy weekend, time away to regroup and refresh for this wonderful rollercoaster we call motherhood! So to get you thinking about nourishing yourself (or the moms in your life) here’s so refreshing news from best selling author, Lisa Samson. Lisa Samson loves to nourish writers, face-to-face, [...]

How to Have a Great Conference

Are you going to a writing conference this year? I hope you’ll be able to. Writing conferences can be expensive, humiliating, and discouraging, but they can also change your life. My career began to blossom when I committed to going to at least one major writing conference every year. I know many writers who can [...]

No Fast Road to Publication

Many published authors have a story of how ultimately it took fate or divine intervention to get published. Everyone needs a foot in the door, so it seems, and all the powers that be must come together at just the right moment to create the much coveted Writing Contract. As writers who are also Christians, [...]

Writing Conferences: Worth the Effort

(c)Heather Ivester   As you look at your calendar, do you wonder if this will be the year you spend some time growing as a writer? If so, the best thing you can do to fuel your writing passion is to make plans to attend a writing conference. It’s worth the effort. A conference will [...]

ACFW: Mission Accomplished

What a wonderful ride! It’s so hard to put into words this year’s ACFW experience, but if I had to choose one word, for me it would be emotional! My second word would be peace! From laughter to tears, from education to building relationships, ACFW Dallas had it all. Worship was incredible. The spirit of [...]

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