>ACFW Winners – Congrats!!!

>I’ve just returned from the ACFW conference in Denver. Two of my friends from Tulsa won their Genesis categories!! I am so thrilled for LACY WILLIAMS and JAN WARREN. Major kudos! The complete list of winners is below the pics of Lacy and Jan. Lacy Williams, Genesis Winner, Historical Romance Jan Warren (left) with me and Cindy HaysJan was Genesis …

>A Winner and an Opportunity

>Congratulations to Cherie J for being the lucky girl to receive the giveaway of Jenny B. Jones book Just Between You and Me! Thanks to all who enetered. If you read the heading of this post, you probably noticed I used the word opportunity. It’s not too late to join 500 other fiction writers in the annual ACFW Conference (American …

>TEN WAYS TO CONNECT AT THE 2009 ACFW CONFERENCE

>Whether this is your first conference or your twentieth, you have before you an opportunity to connect with people you’ve never known before or renew acquaintances with familiar faces and old friends. It’s all good. None of my ACFW conferences have been the same, but the one thing they’ve all had in common is meeting fascinating, dear people you’ll want …

>GENESIS 2009 FINALISTS

>Today the American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW) announced the 2009 Genesis Finalists. This annual contest for unpublished authors is gaining more recognition each year and is a contest that’s very close to my heart. The past two years I’ve been fortunate enough (thrilled and humbled) to final and then win my category. It’s a nerve-wracking, exhilarating learning experience, but when …

>READER HOOK PRODUCTIONS – Introducing Matt Koumalats

> One thing I enjoy about the OWFI conference is the opportunity to explore topics I’ve been curious about or learn something new to add to my arsenal of technology (which sadly I need a LOT of help with). Such was my hope when I attended Matt Koumalat’s session on “New Media to Promote Your Work.” Matt is Jodi Thomas’s …

>NYT Best Seller JODI THOMAS on WOMEN’S FICTION

> The first writers’ group that I belonged to back in my writing infancy days was the Panhandle Professional Writers in Amarillo, Texas. It was there I tried my fledgling wings and first heard of romance writer Jodi Thomas. In the ensuing years, Jodi has been on numerous bestseller lists, won three Rita awards, been inducted in the RWA Hall …

>BREAKFAST WITH TESS GERRITSEN

> I’m just back from the annual OWFI (Oklahoma Writers Federation, Inc.) conference. As always I ate too much, stayed up too late, and basked in the company of four hundred other people who understand the concept of creating characters on paper who somehow are braver, more handsome, kinder or even more vindictive that the real people in our lives. …

>PREMIERE EVENT

> The first Christian Book Expo takes place in Dallas on March 19 – 22. This is an important event for several reasons. It’s a great resource for what is happening in Christian communities across the nation with some of the country’s leading speakers: Henry Blackaby, Don Piper, Max Lucado, Donald Miller, Liz Curtis Higgs, Randy Alcorn, Mary DeMuth, and …

>Have You Seen The Afictionado E-Zine?

>I’ve told you about the ACFW (American Christian Fiction Writers) Conference I went to last month. Not all of you could swing it this year, either due to cost, distance, or other obligations. Now, though, you can have the conference in a nutshell – and for free! Check out this month’s AFICTIONADO E – ZINE. This monthly online magazine is …

>HUMBLE PIE

> For the past few months, I’ve spent nearly every writing moment finishing my Genesis entry which was fortunate enough to final in the 2008 ACFW contest. My preliminary scores were good—two very good and one so-so, but it propelled me into action. Top priority—finish the thing in time for the conference. I made it, pinging out at 72,000 words. …