Having returned from the literal mountains of Colorado and the figurative same of the annual ACFW conference, I’m pleased to report that after one week of reflection, I do believe I’ve finally unpacked my mind. Whether this is a good thing or not remains to be seen, but what IS good is what follows:

1.  I met some truly wonderful people on this trip. Where else can one go (an introverted one no less) and be assimilated into a crowd of 500+ and feel at home? I think what makes ACFW so intoxicating (if I can use that term to describe a CBA fellowship) is the fact that as an organization, ACFW has one head … Jesus Christ. It follows then that ACFW is one body under that headship. A microcosm of the Full Body of Christ.

2.  Grace … it was everywhere. Contestants dined with one another and shared experiences, wisdom, and camaraderie. Industry professionals made themselves readily accessible. Faculty freely gave of their time and talents to the betterment of all. Again, the model of the Body of Christ was on display … Even as God tells us that he’s no respecter of persons – so too, I saw that truth modeled throughout the conference in the body of attendants.

3.  Humility and service. Modeled again as above.

4.  Harp and bowl … worship in the genuine.

5.  Facilities and staff. In a word plus one. Well done!

There are many that could be mentioned by name but so many too whose names I don’t know or recall that deserve mention so I’ll just say that every last one I encountered was terrific. Thank You all for making this a splendid stop on the scenic route of so many, on this shared writer’s journey.

As to what I packed back with me from the mountainous experience … I’ll share a few words on my takeaway.

First of all, I made this journey with express hope of getting clear direction from God regarding the dream  and desire he’s placed on my heart. My expectations were exceeded.

I now have clear direction and confirmation with respect to my writing. I was humbled by being a triple-finalist this year and if there’s a 7th level of humbleness (like a 7th heaven) … I think I reached that level with a category win and a category runner-up finish. This is why it took several days to unpack the mind.

The feedback I’ve received from several quarters adds up to at least $10.00 (a roll) worth … that’s 2 cents of input times – well, many times.    I’ve learned you must be approachable, teachable, & “encourageable” (as opposed to incorrigible) … and yes, I’ve just coined a new word there; sometimes I just cannot help myself.

Bottom-line. I have some writing and rewriting and rewriting and rewriting to do, and all I can say is … Bring it on!!

And I did say rewriting as opposed to ‘rewiring’ which reminds me of the enlightened words of Michael Keaton from the movie Mr. Mom:  “Yeah. 220… 221, whatever it takes.” <– That quote hits a bit too close to home for me. But I digress …

Going forward, my focus is on the stories. Period. This may require a pullback from online presence but I have a commitment, an obligation to those future readers and I don’t want to let them down. I already let my hair down and we see where that got me. 

So thank you ACFW, thank you to all you wonderful ‘encounterers’ out there and thank you God for putting me on this particular path. You’ve blessed me in wonderful ways and I will remember.

And so, the stories go …

I mentioned previously that I engaged in a voice experiment by participating in the ACFW 2009 Genesis Contest. I saw this as a great opportunity to get feedback on my writing voice. This post contains the first chapter of an entry entitled “Drop Bled” aka “Andall’s Messiah” that I submitted to the Mystery/Suspense/Thriller category. It’s also the entry that I finaled with in that category.

It’s a story that has hounded me at every turn and I’m quite enamored with it. Imagine for a moment if you will, the following:

What happens when a miraculously gifted soul wants to trade that gifting in for a simpler life and an equally depraved soul would kill to get it?

Enter God, who’s not done yet. Epic struggle … and there’s a girl involved too.

Pursuit – Boy goes after girl, God goes after boy, Thug wants it all. Somebody’s going to drop … bled or dead … before the night is through.

I invite you to click the link below to download and read the PDF version of this Suspense entry. Once you click the link you’ll be taken to another page … click the link there to get the actual PDF file for viewing. Enjoy!

DropBledGENESIS09fryd

This blog journey I begin today is an experiment. My late grandmother, Florence O. Hestand (I still believe the ‘O’ stood for oleo) – lived in her kitchen. That is, except when she was showing me how to dig new potatoes out of the ground or chasing supper ( a robust mother hen) around the farm. She experimented too. And her experiments involved a subject near and dear to most folk I know … food.

To this day, I would give one or more of my toes, my appendix, my tonsils, [I already gave my hair at the office] my  left arm (let’s not be ridiculous – I am right-handed after all & do plan to author a book at some point, Lord willing) … all that sacrifice, to somehow, some way, recover the recipe for grandma’s banana cake. No one. Absolutely no one in this space time continuum has been able to duplicate it. That’s because grandma did her best cooking … from scratch.

There was something endearing and utterly genuine about her tossing various ingredients together to create mouth-watering and immensely satisfying works of culinary delight. And she was a “scratchter” – I figured since this is my blog I can invoke creative license and coin a new word on a whim. But when I say “scratchter” I refer to her practice of leaving recipes in the recipe box when she cooked and baked.

I’m a cook too. I cook up stories. My ingredients are words. And, like grandma, I’m a literary “scratchter” – but in writing circles we like to refer to this as being a “pantster”. Translation? A seat of the pants writer. It seems to be the way I’m wired. I absolutely love having the story unfold along the way and go directions I never anticipated. I want my characters to pull me down the rabbit hole kicking and screaming. The joy is in the journey – discovery and surprise!

AND, I don’t mind cleaning up afterwards. I have fond memories of being in the kitchen with grandma after meals helping her with the dishes. We had some wonderful conversations then. The cleanup in the writer’s realm is the rewriting and the editing. Bring it on! That’s like putting the icing on the cake. What a pleasure and a blessing it would be to serve up a satisfying dessert of the mind to an audience of readers.

So here I am, taking my blog plunge. (that almost sounds like the name of an amusement park ride) This is an opportunity for me to taste test my writing voice. I took the first step in my voice experiment earlier this year when I entered the ACFW (American Christian Fiction Writer’s) Genesis Contest. I’ll be blogging on that experience shortly and sharing snippets of my writing in that regard so you can get a taste of where I’m coming from and going.

And so I begin this journey of discovery … from scratch. And while my five delightful offspring tell me I make some mean fried bologna, I think I’ll stick to writing for now.

I want to thank God for blessing me with grandma ‘oleo’ – she not only fed me physically, she fed me spiritually, and for that alone I’m profoundly grateful.

I also want to thank some encouraging ACFW’ers who said it was okay if I didn’t follow the recipe book verbatim in my writing. They challenged me to find and follow my voice, to write my passion – which will stoke the fires of my dream again and get me back in the skillet. Now my protagonists?  Sorry, it’s out of the pan and into the dire for them.

I’ll be back from scratch momentarily …

“The Premier Christian Fiction Conference”

STANDING FIRM…MOVING FORWARD

“Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord,
forasmuch as ye know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.“ 1 Corinthians 15:58 (KJV)

DENVER, COLORADO
SEPTEMBER 17 – 20, 2009

Bestselling authors, publishing industry representatives, and newcomers to Christian fiction writing will gather in Denver at the American Christian Fiction Writer’s annual conference September 17-20 to compare notes, learn from each other, and encourage one another in the pursuit of publishing goals.

This year’s conference theme , Standing Firm…Moving Forward, will especially inspire the full range of talent and dreams in the ever-changing publishing world today.

This amazing conference will feature representatives from major publishing houses like B & H, Guideposts, Zondervan, Harvest House, Barbour, Steeple Hill, Summerside Press, Bethany House, Waterbrook Multnomah, Marcher Lord Press, Tyndale House, and Thomas Nelson, and top literary agents who will meet with writers and identify promising proposals from both new and veteran novelists. Conferees will have access to publishing panels, professional critiques, and customized workshops based on skills and interests.

The keynote speaker is New York Times bestselling author, Debbie Macomber, who has more than 100 million copies of her books in print worldwide.

Learn more about the American Christian Fiction Writer’s Conference by visiting www.acfw.com. Click on the left sidebar on Annual Conference.