How (NOT) to pick an editor

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“Nutty with a Dash of Meat” Jeanette Levellie here with a crazy story of how God saved me from my ditzy method of picking an editor to pitch my book idea to… At my first writers conference since deciding to author a book, I was thrilled for the opportunity to meet with real live editors. I had already worn out the brochure detailing each one’s credentials and what they needed. Not a researcher by nature, I patted myself on the back for all the time I’d taken to pick the editors I knew would fall in love with my book…

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Attending Writers’ Conferences in 2016

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Marketing Ideas From Cheri Cowell Writers go where writers gather. Let me be bold and say, if you are calling yourself a writer, you will be at a writers’ conference this year. I know, you don’t have the money; I don’t know your family situation. You are right. I had those same obstacles my first years in this business, but I wrote articles that paid $10 and $20 to pay for my first conference–a lot of articles. I found solutions to my family issues because I was determined to be where writers are.

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Waiting in the Gap

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                            This week I signed two contracts with Harvest House. The first is for a women’s devotional, and the second is for a little book for parents with kids ages 3-8. Did you hear my wahoooo from Canada? Six years have passed since I signed my last contract with a traditional publisher, and it’s not for lack of trying. I’ve wrestled with disappointment and discouragement in the gap. I’ve questioned my call to write there. And I’ve seen God meet me in this place, using unmistakable ways…

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Connecting at Conferences

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Aloha from Karen , treasurer of CAN, There’s synergy when people come together and connect, especially when they share ideas or brainstorm. CAN is all about sharing ideas and connecting authors to authors and readers. I love networking and making lots of connections as well as building on connections I’ve already made. For me, writing conferences are the perfect place for connecting with writers. And things happen at conferences–that’s where many of my books originated.

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Tips from the Pros: Susan Titus Osborn

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Hello from Sarah Sundin on a blustery day in northern California. Today I have the honor of interviewing a veteran writing professional, Susan Titus Osborn, author of over thirty books, including several on the craft and business of writing. Susan is also director of the Christian Communicator Manuscript Critique Service, and offers many on-line writing courses on her website. Susan, how did you get into writing? In 1978 while I was teaching Sunday school, I decided to write some stories for the kids. They loved my stories, so I thought I would sell them to church school take-home paper markets. A…

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10 Things I Love about Writers Conferences

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Hello from Jeanette! I’m in the process of last-minute preparations for the Mount Hermon Christian Writers Conference (March 26-30). This conference is always a highlight of my year. I attended for the first time in 1995 and now have the honor of serving on the Support Staff as the coordinator of the first-timers’ Buddy System. If you have never attended a conference like Mount Hermon, I highly recommend it. Here are just a few of the things I love about writers’ conferences:

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Blowing it

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He was back . . . again—the annoying guy with the bad comb-over and pastel 3-piece suit. Who wore a suit like that to a writer’s conference? And what was he doing here anyway? Was he even a writer? According to our last conversation he was in town for a convention but stopped by the writer’s conference with some of his buddies to kill time. When did the conference coordinators start allowing that?

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