...about conferences.

Last Thursday, another member of the Panhandle Writers Group and I traveled to Tuscaloosa, Alabama to attend the 2009 Southeastern Christian Writers Conference. I wasn't quite sure what to expect. I looked forward to attending the conference sessions, plus, I would have an opportunity to display and sell copies of my three published novels. Exciting!

I'll have to tell you...I was blown away.

The SCWC is the oldest writers conference in the country, and I found that fact alone impressive. But after being there just a few hours, I saw why it has been around so long. The workshops were well-planned and designed to inspire Christian writers and equip them with practical information they need to succeed. And every effort had been made to make the conference a positive and valuable experience for attendees.

Even more impressive, though, is the fact that the conference owes its existence to the loving ministry of one family: the Sloans. David and Joanne Sloan, their children and grandchildren worked tirelessly to ensure a smooth-running event.

I'll have more to say about this wonderful experience in future posts. For now, I just want to say, "thanks."

...about self-publishing.

The publishing industry is changing. Most of us who write (and want to share our words with readers) are aware of this fact. And we are aware the probability of breaking through the "newbie barrier" and entering the Golden Land of acceptance and contracts is highly unlikely except for a very few.

So, what does a writer do if, like me, she is older than dirt and time is running out? I want to share my stories, want to see others read and enjoy them. Of course, that may or may not happen after I'm gone. But, selfish as I am, I'd like to be around to see it.

And so, while I will continue querying for some of my novels, I will usher the others into print myself, after I've washed behind their ears and combed their hair, of course.

...And Night Falls is the first to go out the door into the world. I published it on CreateSpace in February, and now, I'll begin a new phase in my life experience...marketing. Maybe I'll have something to say about marketing soon....

Available now at Amazon.com

...about expansions.

Have you ever tried to stretch something to proportions it wasn't supposed to attain?
Like, stretching one biscuit to feed four people? Or, stretching a pair of size 12 jeans to fit a size 16 body?

That's the situation I've dealt with over the past few weeks. I finished my 20,000 word paranormal novella, Tugger's Down. Great. But then, two test readers told me I must expand it to full novel size.

Hmmm.

Have you ever tried that? It's excruciating.

After much mumbling, hair-pulling and tears, my poor novella has attained a size of almost 40,000 words. Not nearly enough. But I had to take a break from the torture, so I'm currently editing two other novels I finished (finished? ha!) last year.

Writing is fun. Rewriting, editing, stre-e-e-e-tching, is for the birds...