Got Inspiration?

by Kristi Butler

What inspires you to write?  When do you find the inescapable invigoration to put pen to paper?  Where are you when your greatest ideas are birthed?  How is your writer’s sense quickened and stimulated?  Who stirs the cogs of your brain illuminating the path that you simply must follow?  Why do you do this writing thing that you do?   

It’s a little crazy.  It seems that a great majority of my inspirations come at inopportune moments…like while in the shower…or putting on my makeup…or driving in the car…or just as I drift off to sleep at night.  I have learned to keep a pen and some sort of paper close at hand for these fine moments…well, except in the shower.  In that case I just have to keep repeating the thought over and over until I can make my way to paper and jot it down.  I try to keep “jotting journals” around for just such times, including one in my car.  However, I also have lots of random pieces of paper, napkins, and sticky notes all over the place.

I really try to grasp those bursts of inspiration, and act on the impulse to release all that is bubbling up within.  Sometimes with success.  Sometimes not so much.  Life doesn't always offer total flexibility to whim and inspiration.  There are days when I look over my jottings…then to the cursor flashing before me…and pray…and look at the cursor…back to the scribbling…and pray some more.  Some days the words gush like a fountain.  Some days they trickle like the tiniest stream.

The important thing is to persist.  Keep at it.  Hear the voice and act.

So, are you feeling inspired?  Are you seizing the opportunities before you?  Are you seeking ways to enhance and increase those great moments that propel you to head to the computer and start pecking away?

One of the greatest ways to be successful in your writing is to surround yourself with people and information that challenges and encourages you to write.  Do you have those people in your life?  Are you in a writer’s group?  Do you attend writer’s conferences?  Do you read books that inspire you to write and to hone your craft?

We would love to get your fingers tap tap tapping right now!  Let us know what inspires you!  Please share any tidbits that might just encourage our readers to brave the cursor and create something magnificent!

We would also love to have you join us at our Write2Ignite! Conference 2012 – March 16-17, 2012, at North Greenville University near Greenville, SC. Details coming soon.

A Day Apart -- WOW!

Last Saturday, July 30, 2011, Donna and Jean met with seven eager Write2Igniters. We spent a day apart from our everyday lives, a day revising one of our manuscripts, a day apart to see those manuscripts in fresh, new ways.

Each participant came armed with her best manuscript, her laptop and flash drive, and a willingness to learn from each other.

By the time we parted ways we were all inspired, informed, a few steps farther down the road than when we came, and totally exhausted!

Brain work is hard work, folks! But everyone agreed that the day was a smashing success.

We listened and questioned, reasoned and critiqued.

We polished and thought, and critiqued again.

We brain-stormed and revised, and critiqued some more.

We punched our little keyboards and flashed our little flash drives.

We printed, then critiqued again!

It was tiring but fun and profitable. And to top it off, we made some wonderful new friends.

Thanks, Camilla and Carol, Rosemary and Joan, Caroline, Angela and Kavitha. You made the day worthwhile.

Maybe we’ll have another A Day Apart in a locale near you.

And maybe, just maybe, YOU will join us.

We sure hope so.

Remember our Write2Ignite! Conference 2012 – March 16-17, 2012 at North Greenville University

International Christian Retail Show

by Miriam Jones Bradley

My mouth dropped open, my jaw nearly hitting my sternum. I didn’t know what to expect at the International Christian Retail Show (ICRS) in Atlanta, but it wasn’t this. When the doors opened onto the exhibit hall it was overwhelming. The room was huge. It wasn’t a room. It was an indoor football field. A football field completely covered with booths.

I first heard about ICRS over a year ago when my previous publisher suggested I attend ICRS in St. Louis. I was interested and looked it up online, but the timing and cost were prohibitive.

When my second book was accepted by another publisher we looked at how soon we should get the book out. I was determined not to push like I had for the first book. I wasn’t going to become a nervous wreck. It would come out when it came out, and that was that. However, the publisher pointed out that if we hurried the process along, it might be available for ICRS and he could market it to all of the buyers. This is only a once a year opportunity!

That sounded good to me. However, I still had no idea what happened at ICRS. Maybe you have wondered, too.

Here is my best explanation. The publishers come and set up booths. All of the producers of the art, gifts, and what my husband likes to call “foo-foo” that is sold in Christian bookstores come and put out their displays. Then the buyers come and look. They are from small Christian bookstores and large chains. They come and see what they can see. They buy.

The publishers pull out all the stops. They have authors there signing and giving away copies of their new releases. People walk around with suitcases on rollers to haul away all of the books they accumulate.

We bought a rolling duffle to take with us, but we had no idea we would be offered free books everywhere we went. Ooh-la-lah! It was amazing. For a couple of book junkies it was. . . remarkable.

But, we weren’t there to buy books. We were there to talk to any book-buyer we could find. My goal was to tell everyone about my second book, The Double Cousins and the Mystery of the Torn Map. I had copies to give to interested parties. I had over a thousand business cards I was anxious to get into the hands of people who would stock my book in their store.

I have learned that it is not easy to get a book into stores. Sometimes it requires going in person and convincing them they need to carry it. I’m just one person with a limited amount of time to devote to that process. Here, right within reach were hundreds of book buyers all WANTING to hear about books. Amazing.

The second day we discovered the media floor. We were advised to go speak with a man from a local radio station. It was an opportunity to get my book into the hands of someone who could really spread the word.

On the media floor we also met with Mary Nichelson, one of the people who reviewed my first book. She had agreed to review the second one and when we realized she was there, we jumped at the chance to spend some time with her.

We also noticed a couple of other media outlets who focus on the markets I’m targeting for my series so we stopped by, leaving books and business cards.

Another unexpected highlight was the educational opportunities tucked into the day. While these marketing presentations were geared to bookstore owners, there were many helpful ideas for the market savvy author. We especially appreciated a talk about marketing through Facebook.

After two days of walking the floor of the exhibit hall we were exhausted but exhilarated. Not only had we seen a LOT of wonderful books and met some wonderful authors and buyers, but we had made some potentially profitable contacts. I will certainly want to go next year.

My husband just reminded me that in order to go next year I should have another new book. I guess I should be careful what I wish for. . .  

 

Miriam Jones Bradley has lived from sea to shining sea but spent most of her life in the Great Plains. She and her husband, Dr. Bruce Bradley, now make their home in Newberry, South Carolina. She is the author of The Double Cousins mystery series. Miriam attended Write2Ignite! 2011.

Remember: Write2Ignite! Conference 2012 – March 16-17, 2012 at North Greenville University

REMINDER! A DAY APART REGISTRATION DEADLINE IS SATURDAY!

If you are planning on attending the July 30th workshop, "A Day APART", then consider this a reminder to get your registration in by Saturday (July 23). If you haven't made plans, check out this link: http://write2igniteblog.blogspot.com/p/summer-workshop-day-apart-july-30-2011.html

Hope to see you there!

REMEMBER: A Day Apart – Preparations

Complete the Registration Form. Mail it with the $45 Registration Fee to Write2Ignite! at 5707 Fairvista Dr., Charlotte, NC 28269.

We must receive your forms and fees no later than July 23, 2011.

E-mail your manuscript to Write2Ignite@jeanmatthewhall.com BEFORE July 23, 2011.

Bring three (3) hard copies of your manuscript (double spaced), your laptop (preferably with the battery charged) and a flash drive with your manuscript(s) saved to it. Each manuscript should be a completed draft of a picture book, an easy reader, an early chapter book or part of a mid-grade work (no more than 2000 words).

Your manuscript should be one that you think is complete, and that you have put aside and not read at all for at least one full week before the event.

Bring a teachable spirit and a heart ready to help other writers learn and practice re-visioning techniques.
Please pray for Donna, Jill and Jean, and for the Lord to use this time to help all of us to sharpen our re-writing skills so that we can move forward on the Lord’s path for our writing.

We hope to see you on July 30, 2011.



Write2Ignite! Conference 2012 – March 16-17, 2012 at North Greenville University

ANNOUNCEMENT: SUMMER WORKSHOP with WRITE2IGNITE!

Write2Ignite! Conference for Christian Writers of Children’s (and Youth’s) Literature Presents:

A Day Apart on July 30, 2011

We love to write, right? We love children; we love Jesus; we love the Bible; and we absolutely love to write to, and for, and about them all.

But how many of us dread re-writing? How many of us procrastinate with every possible excuse for not revisiting our manuscripts and making changes – BIG changes – that can make our stories stronger, better? Maybe we realize that we need to make some drastic changes, but we don’t know where to start? Or, perhaps our manuscripts are complete. Maybe we have received critical feedback from other writers, an agent or editor. But something still isn’t quite right.

Could it be that our stories need more than revising? Could they need a total re-visioning?


A Day Apart is designed with those manuscripts in mind. It’s not another conference. It’s not a writer’s retreat. And it’s not just a workshop. It’s more than a critique group or a writer’s group. A Day Apart is bits of all these things rolled into one day. It is A Day Apart for us to focus on revision, and on helping each other perform radical surgery on ailing manuscripts.


Great writers soon learn that as we help each other we help ourselves. So we’ve designed A Day Apart to be an opportunity for all of us to do just that. We’ll work together in small groups, critique partnerships, and a large group to brainstorm new ways to look at old manuscripts. Then we’ll work individually to make radical changes and give new life to those stories.


On Saturday, July 30, 2011, Write2Ignite! Team members Donna Earnhardt, Jill Lord and Jean Hall will lead a limited number of participants in A Day Apart. It will be a day to rethink the way we look at revision.

Donna, Jill and Jean will lay out some effective principles of revision by looking at critical elements (not grammar and mechanics, folks) in our stories. They will share their experiences revising their own manuscripts. We’ll all look at suggestions and checklists from experts and apply those to our stories that very day.


For A Day Apart we will meet at First Baptist Church of Indian Trail (off Hwy 74 near Charlotte, North Carolina) where we’ll have plenty of room to spread out and work. We’ll share a tasty lunch and the good company of other children’s writers.

Participants should come prepared to learn from each other, to re-work one of their own manuscripts, and to give and receive honest feedback.

The cost for A Day Apart is $45 – Lunch, supplies (printer and paper, hand-outs, pens and highlighters) included. We’ll even have a few door prizes! Does A Day Apart sound like something you need for one of your manuscripts? Think about it. Pray about it. But don’t wait too long because A Day Apart is limited to 25 participants.



A Day Apart – Preparations

Complete the Registration Form. Mail it with the $45 Registration Fee to Write2Ignite! at 5707 Fairvista Dr., Charlotte, NC 28269.

We must receive your forms and fees no later than July 23, 2011.

E-mail your manuscript to Write2Ignite@jeanmatthewhall.com BEFORE July 23, 2011.

Bring three (3) hard copies of your manuscript (double spaced), your laptop (preferably with the battery charged) and a flash drive with your manuscript(s) saved to it. Each manuscript should be a completed draft of a picture book, an easy reader, an early chapter book or part of a mid-grade work (no more than 2000 words).

Your manuscript should be one that you think is complete, and that you have put aside and not read at all for at least one full week before the event.

Bring a teachable spirit and a heart ready to help other writers learn and practice re-visioning techniques.
Please pray for Donna, Jill and Jean, and for the Lord to use this time to help all of us to sharpen our re-writing skills so that we can move forward on the Lord’s path for our writing.

We hope to see you on July 30, 2011.

For immediate download:

http://www.keepandshare.com/doc/2892597/registration-form-rev-pdf-june-20-2011-10-38-am-53k?da=y

“Plans fail when there is no counsel, but with many advisers they succeed.” Proverbs 15:22 HCSB














Don't forget: Write2Ignite! Conference 2012 – March 16-17, 2012 at North Greenville University

DO YOU REMEMBER MARYBETH?

Marybeth Whalen, that is. She did a terrific job last February as our key note speaker at Write2Ignite! 2011. Here’s sending a super big CONGRATULATIONS to her.

No, there’s not a new baby at her house, but it’s something almost as good.

Marybeth’s new novel She Makes It Look Easy was released this week by David C. Cook.

You can order it from online stores or purchase it at your local Christian store. If they don’t have it on the shelf ASK FOR IT, please.

You can read about She Makes It Look Easy (or order it for yourself) at Amazon or Christian Books.

If you read it and love it (and I’m betting you will!) and want to find ways you can help Marybeth promote her new “baby,” click here for a bunch of great ideas.

Also, please visit Marybeth’s blog, “Cheaper by the Half Dozen” and leave a comment. Be sure to let her know you found her on our Write2Ignite! Blog.

Blessings, ya’ll,

Jean

Write2Ignite! Conference 2012 – March 16-17, 2012 at North Greenville University

DID YOU EVER?

by Dr. Debbie DeCiantis

[Did you] Ever...

[Ever] say “Help,”

    but get excuses?

Say,

“I don't see why”?

Hear

“We need...”

Think,

“Not me.”

Smile and hide a

     judgment;

Agree

     with mental reservation?

Not come through

although

you'd said,

“I will”?

My time is precious,

priorities inviolable,

schedule slammed

… (“Coffee Friday?  Great!”

… “lunch Saturday?  Can't wait.”)

Sorry, but

I just can't make that

meeting – someone else

can handle it -

[but I really don't like that

project you picked last week

when I was away...].

“I really love working

on...” … oh, come on -

copies again?  Just

let me do what

I do    like   best.

Extra job?

Take a number.

Yes, Dad, I...

won't.

(Matthew 21:28 -32)

Yes – we are busy people; we must prioritize. I have observed, however, certain patterns emerging in myself and others that allow us to substitute avoidance for principled judgments.  Do I want to do something?  Of course, I am much more likely to say yes and get involved immediately, without reflection or prayer – whether or not I should.

Do I dislike certain aspects of a project?  If I have already said yes, I will most likely procrastinate, with a plethora of reasons why I just cannot begin that task yet – I don’t have what I need -- the environment, the circumstances, the timing are just not right...Do I fear failure?  Ditto.

Do I feel overwhelmed because of other activities that I am unwilling to reexamine?  Do I want to please others more than I want to determine whether God really wants me involved in all of these endeavors, worthy as they may be? Do I stay involved in a project I am convinced I should not have accepted because I do not know how to say, “This isn’t working.”?

Don’t get me wrong – I am a firm believer in fulfilling commitments; I have quoted to others the portion of Psalm 15:4 referring to the one who “walks blamelessly and does what is right” (vs. 2) … ”…who swears to his own hurt and does not change.” I am not one to encourage others to bail on a commitment they have made.  I know what it is like to experience God’s prompting to finish a project I had committed to years earlier – even if those who originally asked me had probably given up any expectation of ever seeing the results – in order to fulfill this principle. Followthrough is an essential skill in many sports, yet in sports the athlete almost always knows when to swing or pitch or shoot or throw.  Sometimes we lack that focused context in making decisions to begin, complete, defer, or abandon a project.  Are there principled ways to withdraw from a commitment – other than an unavoidable move, a serious emergency, illness, or disability?  I am convinced that absent these obvious situations in which we would no longer be able to contribute, leaving a project can be done responsibly only within specific constraints:  I must have prayed and received release from God; I must make every effort to help find a suitable replacement while completing the most immediately pressing tasks I can in order to leave my vacant place in order for the next person to take up the project; I must apologize (without excuses) to those whom I leave to complete this project, admitting that my involvement was inadvisable from the start and remaining faithful to pray for those still involved.

What if I become convinced after the fact that an endeavor is in fact ill-advised, unbiblical, or otherwise inappropriate based on information I did not have when I first got involved?  Even then, I would have to apologize to those I leave behind, for at the very least, I should have investigated more, sought God for confirmation of the endeavor, before committing.

Anyone who knows me knows how easily I have overcommitted, neglecting important relationships for good but less necessary projects.  My point is not that people should either do more or do less, but rather, that each of us must listen for the voice of the Father, being certain that when His prompting says, “Do this,” we not only give the correct response, but put our shoulders to the wheel and do the work.

Don't Forget! Write2Ignite! Conference 2012 – March 16-17, 2012 at North Greenville University