How to Act Like a Professional Writer at Your Next Conference

By Jennifer Hallmark

Is anything more beautiful than the Blue Ridge Mountains in the springtime? Warm days and cool, crisp nights nestled among towering mountains—my idea of vacation. But wait. This trip to the Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writers Conference will provide opportunities to meet other writers, learn about the craft of writing, and pitch my novel.

A writers conference can be all that, plus you’ll meet agents, publishers, and editors. The impression you make can further your career and open new doors. Or cause it to die a slow, lingering death. As I prepare to leave, I’d like to share seven tips to help you come across as a professional writer to all the people you meet at a conference.

Be early. I know everything starts super early, and the days are long. You can rest when you get home. I’m studying the layout and intend to arrive early so I can become familiar with the buildings and classrooms. I don’t want to be the person interrupting the class.

Come prepared. Decide which classes you want to take. The website or the brochure gives information on what to bring. I always carry a notebook, several pens, and any handouts a teacher requires.

Show yourself to be a neat person. You don’t have to wear designer clothes and bring your hairstylist with you. Most conferences share ahead of time what manner of clothing is expected and what isn’t acceptable. Be prepared to leave the perfume or cologne at home. More and more large venues are fragrance-free. Mainly, don’t look like you just crawled out of bed. 😊

Be polite and kind to everyone—the people handing out name badges, the teachers, the cafeteria workers. You never know who is watching. I try to treat all people as I like to be treated. Remember the Golden Rule. (See Matthew 7:12)

Speak loud and clear. I struggle with this, being a soft-spoken Southerner. I need to make an effort to be clear and concise in my speech and loud enough so people won’t keep saying, “What?” Offer a strong handshake. You don’t want to come across as terrified and wimpy, even if you are.

Spend equal time listening and talking. Writing is a lonely occupation. You might be tempted to share all your dreams and aspirations with everyone you meet. You’ve finally found some like-minded people who understand you. Curb that impulse. Ask others about themselves, what their dreams and aspirations are. You might learn something and gain new friends.

Have a positive attitude. If you enter the conference with a feeling of thankfulness and gratefulness over the work and time it takes to plan the event, you won’t be looking for what isn’t working. No one wants to be around a person who is negative, always grumbling, whining, and complaining. Such an attitude is likely to repel agents, editors, and publishers. So decide on day one that you are glad to be there.

To the best of your ability, try to be early and prepared, presenting yourself as a neat person who is polite and kind to everyone. Speak up, share and then listen. Wrap yourself in a positive attitude and I promise, you’ll not only enjoy the conference more, but come across as a professional. You never know what doors might open for you.

I need to go now and start packing. See you there!

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Jennifer Hallmark has published articles, short stories and been part of four book compilations, A Dozen Apologies, Sweet Freedom A La Mode, Unlikely Merger, and Not Alone: A Literary and Spiritual Companion for Those Confronted with Infertility and Miscarriage. Jennifer’s website and the group blog she co-founded focus on her books, love of the South, and helping writers. Social media links are:https://www.facebook.com/jenniferhallmark https://www.facebook.com/authorjenniferhallmark  https://twitter.com/JenHwrites https://www.pinterest.com/jenlhallmark989/

A Fine Line

By Fay Lamb

I didn’t plan it this way. The thought never occurred to me, but somehow the stories in my Amazing Grace series happened to be written by season. With the release of the third book, Everybody’s Broken, what better setting for what I call a modern-day Christian Gothic than the Western North Carolina Mountains in the fictional town of Amazing Grace in autumn? Add a character named Abracadabra (Abra for short) and give her a birthday of October 31, and everything is set for the book to cause an ember to spark divisiveness for a reader.

With all that in play, how could I, as a Christian writer, walk the thin line around, you know, Halloween, and avoid debate with my readers?

Fiction writers who stand so strongly on one side of the line or another on issues such as baptism versus immersion, grape juice versus wine, Santa Claus or the Easter Bunny, and Halloween are going to diminish the true message behind the story. When I wear my editor’s hat, I step in and ask an author how important those issues are. In most cases, we delete the matters that can cause dispute and nothing in the novel changes. All that is lost is the author’s intrusion into the story, which should be shown by the characters.

Sometimes, though, the issues or the events are important to the story. What does a writer do when that is the case?

With Everybody’s Broken, the message being conveyed is the ability of lies and deceit to shatter lives even when those lies are told with good intentions. Most of the novel takes place during the month of October. Writing the book without a mention of All Hallows Eve would feel stilted whether the reader is a Christian or a non-Christian. In this story, the avoidance of the issue would be counter-productive and distracting to the reader.

In such cases, a writer should draw a fine line and tread as carefully upon it as if it were a rope stretched over Niagara Falls. Tip a little too far to the right or to the left and debate will be sparked and the message lost. Balance is all-important. When the issues are unavoidable or truly necessary, the characters should be used to keep that balance. When two or more characters stand on different sides of the issue, the reader will connect with the one who supports their side of the debate. The reader will fill justified and not agitated.

In Everybody’s Broken I balance carefully. Although the life of each character has shaped his or her viewpoint about the event, the characters are not allowed to stand upon a soapbox. Instead, the actions, the thoughts, and the mentions of the event are subtle. In the end, October 31, the day, becomes more important than Halloween and brings a twist to the hero and heroine’s tale and what I hope the reader will think is a “perfect” last line.

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Fay Lamb is an editor, writing coach, and author, whose emotionally charged stories remind the reader that God is always in the details. Fay has contracted three series. With the release of Everybody’s Broken, three of the four books in the Amazing Grace romantic suspense series, which also includes Stalking Willow and Better than Revenge, are currently available for purchase. Charisse and Libby the first two novels in her The Ties That Bind contemporary romance series have been released. Fay has also collaborated on two Christmas novella projects: The Christmas Three Treasure Hunt, and A Ruby Christmas, and the Write Integrity Press romance novella series, which includes A Dozen Apologies, The Love Boat Bachelor, and Unlikely Merger. Her adventurous spirit has taken her into the realm of non-fiction with The Art of Characterization: How to Use the Elements of Storytelling to Connect Readers to an Unforgettable Cast. Future releases from Fay are: Frozen Notes, Book 4 of the Amazing Grace series and Hope and Delilah, Books 3 and 4 from The Ties that Bind series. Fay loves to meet readers, and you can find her on her personal Facebook page, her Facebook Author page, and at The Tactical Editor on Facebook. She’s also active on Twitter. Then there are her blogs: On the Ledge, Inner Source, and the Tactical Editor. And, yes, there’s one more: Goodreads.Anyone interested in learning more about Fay’s freelance editing and her coaching should contact her at fay@faylamb.com.

Visually Crafting a Story

By Betty Thomason Owens

For years, I worked as an office manager for an engineering firm. We helped land developers bring their dreams to reality. The first step toward creation involved physically visiting the proposed site where the engineers made notes, took photographs, and drew sketches. They sent a survey crew to the site. A draftsman took their measurements and drew up an exact replica of the site. Plans for the proposed structure were drawn up and set on top of the surveyors’ representation. At this point in a large project, the engineers may create a model of the proposed structure.

What does this have to do with writing?

I don’t usually outline a story before I begin. I may jot down an idea then fill in things as I go. This lack of structure sometimes creates more work in the end, especially if a synopsis is required. But in thinking about my latest work-in-progress (WIP) which required more research, I realized a firm foundation was vital. I layered facts and dates, gleaned from research with storylines from my original idea.

Gradually, because I’m a little slow on the uptake at times, it began to make sense to me. After working so many years in the engineering industry, perhaps this was my best way to “design” a story--not with a traditional outline--but by layering with ideas and pictures until I had created a world of landscape, structures, and characters. Often utilizing Pinterest, I keep a board for my story ideas and fill it with photographs. I spend time looking at these photographs, then go back in and layer my story with details. These include color, texture, architectural features, landscaping, plants, etc.

Get the picture? Exactly. I’ve built a very real world for my characters to live in. And speaking of characters, I’ve found pictures of real people from the era and pinned those to my boards also. I even found the perfect wedding dress for my heroine.

Here’s how it works: I’m a Scrivener user, by the way. From my idea, I rough out a very short summary. I decide on my main characters and set them up in Scrivener, along with my idea for a location/setting (this may change). I create a new board in Pinterest. Then I’m off to the web to look for locations and ideas.

When I have a good foundation, I begin my story, referring back to the pictures whenever necessary to refresh my ideas. Have you guessed yet, that I’m a visual learner? Yes, it all connects back to your early education styles. You can easily adapt this to any style of learning, even add it to your outlines.

This is also an excellent way to push yourself through writer’s block. I’m not usually blocked, I’m just stalled. I need something to refuel my excitement over the project. Pictures can do that.

I hope I’ve sparked some new ideas in your writer’s mind. If you’re struggling with technique, perhaps you need to consider your learning style and adapt it to your writing.

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Betty Thomason Owens writes romantic comedy, historical fiction, and fantasy-adventure. She has contributed hundreds of articles and interviews to various blogs around the Internet and is an active member of American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW), where she leads a critique group. She’s also a mentor, assisting other writers. She is a co-founder of a blog dedicated to inspiring writers, and a contributing editor for the soon-to-be launched online magazine, Imaginate. Her 20’s era romance, Amelia's Legacy, Book 1, Legacy Series, released October, 2014 (Write Integrity Press). She also writes contemporary stories as a co-author of A Dozen Apologies and its sequel, The Love Boat Bachelor, released January 26, 2015. She has two fantasy-adventure novels, The Lady of the Haven and A Gathering of Eagles, in a second edition published by Sign of the Whale Books^TM, an imprint of Olivia Kimbrell Press^TM. Coming up next, a 1950’s historical novel based on the Book of Ruth, Annabelle’s Ruth, Book 1, Ruth Series (Write Integrity Press). You can connect with Betty on her personal webpage, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, and at Writing Prompts & Thoughts & Ideas…Oh My!