Workshops

Note: If you're a visual person who prefers to see everything on one page, you can see or print a PDF of our planning chart with all classes and workshops listed on it.

Friday June, 18th from 1:45 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.

A1 Writing From Adversity - Wally Stephenson

Have you and/or someone close to you experienced intense emotional pain and suffering caused by a significant loss? It may have been the death of a loved one, an accident, health issues, Alzheimer's Disease, divorce, rejection, financial woes, interpersonal problems, or many more. You have a story! Readers love accounts of personal experiences showing how God walked with you in the trial. You can have a ministry to help others going through similar experiences (2 Corinthians 1:3,4). My story began when my wife and daughter were killed in a car accident near Guelph. Let’s talk about writing your story.

A2 Perils of Publishing: Ten Reasons Why You Need a Literary Agent – Kelly Mortimer

Why does a writer need a literary agent? Kelly Mortimer gives you her top-ten reasons. This workshop will show the writer what exactly literary agents do to earn the 15% commission they receive. She warns that every agent is different, so it’s important each writer chooses the correct agent for him or her. Kelly goes over what she does for her clients, from helping them define what they want to write and how to map out their careers, to how the client’s advance is handled and what happens after she closes the deal. Kelly loves audience interaction, and will take questions during her presentation.

A3 Writing an Unconventional Christian Novel—the how, the why, and the what now? – Andy Meisenheimer

In this workshop, open to all writers, we’ll do the abstract thing for a moment and talk about what to do if the book you’re writing is, because of genre, clearly on the fringes of Christian fiction—and why it’s worth doing. Are you writing comedy, satire, sci-fi, fantasy, zombies, New Weird, postmodern metafiction—things some Christians don’t even think you should be writing, or things that often are countered with the phrase “what the heck is that?!”

Then we’ll spend the rest of the time talking about exactly how to write this kind of stuff. Most everything out there in the Christian publishing world is tailored to the typical inspirational novel, this is where you'll find camaraderie, help and guidance. Since there are so few people attempting what you’re attempting, you won’t want to miss this opportunity to meet all the other quixotic characters daring to dream.

A4 Crafting Content That Connects – Aimee Reid

A spirited debate or a contemplative service: which would you choose? Your answer reveals much about your learning preferences – likely, in this case, logical-mathematical and extrapersonal versus intrapersonal and musical-rhythmic. Howard Gardner identifies such learning strengths as "intelligences."

Too often, we assume that everyone learns the same way we do, or we allow our own preferences to dominate our communication, consequently reducing our appeal. When writers and speakers consider the variety of ways in which people learn, and know how to truly engage people's preferences, they increase the impact of their words – whether they're producing devotionals, inspirational stories, curriculum, training materials, speeches or sermons.

In this workshop, tailored to speakers, editors and writers of non-fiction, you will determine your learning strengths and discover how to appeal to those of others. Learn how to speak the "languages" that help other people "get" what you're talking about. Expand your audience. Deepen your impact. Come with a curious mind. Leave with information-packed handouts and fresh inspiration!

A5 eBook 101 – Don Loney, Jenna Magnus

eBook technology has grown in leaps and bounds with eReaders coming on-stream from Amazon, Sony and Apple. As more and more consumers purchase this technology as their de facto way to read books, periodicals and newspapers, what are the implications for writers, and in particular Christian writers? eBooks 101 is an overview of what the technology is, how books are digitized to meet the specifications of different platforms. We will cover the pros and cons of the three prominent eBook formats (ePUB, ePDF and MobiPocket) and which eReaders they are compatible with. We'll include an overview of a few up and coming eReaders (hopefully with a small demo of a couple of eReaders as well). Plus we'll talk about the importance of Digital Rights Management and why eBooks could possibly reach a broader span of consumers, including younger audiences.

A6 The Sound Approach: Breaking the Sound Barrier – Adele Simmons

Interviews? Speeches? Workshops? Presentations? You have something to say – say it with flair, confidence and authority. Whether doing an author reading, teaching a workshop, giving a speech or accepting the Giller or Griffin Prize, you want to present yourself at your best behind the microphone. Yet for many people speaking in public is their worst fear. This workshop provides low stress, hands-on practice with sound equipment as well as practical advice on: Equipment – Attitude – Deportment – Looking Good – Being Confident – Having Fun up there! Improve your speaking impact and skill in presentation!

Friday June, 18th from 3:30 p.m. to 4:45 p.m.

B1 The Sticklers: Leads, Transitions and Endings – Jeannie Lockerbie Stephenson

Have you ever said, “I have such a great idea for an article if only I could think of an opener for it”? Maybe you added, “I don’t do all that well at ending an article, either.” In “The Sticklers” workshop, we’ll look at ways to catch readers’ attention in your first few words. We’ll talk about techniques to keep your readers from bouncing like kangaroos from thought to thought. And we’ll discover ways to tie it up at the end like a bow on a present.

B2 Coping With the Struggles of the Writing Life – Mags Storey

Need encouragement? When you feel called to communicate, and writing is your dream, getting hit with negativity can sometimes suck the spirit from your wings. Whether you’ve received your first rejection letter, or gotten stuck in the mire of writer’s block, this session is aimed to help rekindle your creative passion and get you back on your feet again. Don’t quit following the calling on your heart. Novelist and journalist Mags Storey looks at how to tackle some of the struggles of the writing life, and find the encouragement and motivation you need to keep going.

B3 Writing Romance Novels – Melissa Endlich

Are you a secular romance writer looking to break into the world of Christian romance? Or are you already writing Christian fiction, and want to be a romance writer? In this workshop we’ll explore the different genres of inspirational romance, including contemporary romance, romantic suspense and historical romance. We’ll also cover what editors are looking for, and how you can make your books stand out and get noticed. This workshop will focus on the Steeple Hill Books perspective, and what those editors are seeking to acquire.

B4 The Secret to Getting Published – Michelle Buckman

Trying to break into print can take years of futile struggling if you don't have an insider's understanding of the pitfalls that could land your manuscript in the round file. Learn how to make your manuscript stand out from the crowd to capture an editor's attention, how to effectively research the market to target the best agent/editor possible, and how to prepare a query letter and proposal. With years of experience, Michelle shares her knowledge of critical steps necessary to move a manuscript from the slush pile to contract.

B5 Writing for Christianity Today International—and the New World of Online Magazines - Ginger Kolbaba

A lot of changes have taken place at Christianity Today International (CTI)—and in the publishing industry as a whole. This class will help you sort through what publications are still at CTI (such as Christianity Today and Leadership Journal), which ones are gone (such as Today’s Christian Woman), what new publications (and opportunities) are now there (such as Kyria.com), and what you need to know to break in and get published there. You’ll also learn about the publishing industry’s challenges and changes, why so many are going online, differences between print and online that affect you, and what all this means for you as a writer.

B6 Taking Control of Your Career: Being Entrepreneurial in Canada – Sheila Wray Gregoire, N. J. Lindquist, Dorene Meyer, Audrey Dorsch

While there might have been a time writers could just write and let other people worry about the publishing, marketing, and promotion of their work, those days appear to be long gone for most writers. Our panelists will talk about their own struggles to write or edit, and what they did to take control of their own careers rather than wait for someone "out there" to help them. They'll discuss the pros and cons of focusing on one area or having a hand in lots of different things, discuss how they juggle the actual writing and editing amidst the need for keeping current on the Internet and for developing other products to market, and talk about what keeps them going in an industry that is undergoing a lot of change.

Saturday, June 19th from 9:30 a.m. to 10:45 a.m.

C1 Little-Known Ways to Create a Blog Guaranteed to Succeed (that might just land you a book deal) – Ann Voskamp

Do you know the four reasons why creating a blog may be the most important decision you ever make as a writer? Do you inadvertently make these three mistakes when blogging? Have you implemented all seven steps to create a blog that’s guaranteed to succeed? Who else wants their writing to really make a difference for eternity, change people’s lives and glorify God?

As the author of www.aholyexperience.com, a blog read by thousands daily, Ann Voskamp shares both her failures and what she's learned in five years of blogging with creativity and Jesus-passion. While explaining the secrets of the atypical ways she created a blog that led to opportunities to write for DaySpring (a division of Hallmark), the representation of an agent, and a book deal with Zondervan, Ann shares why the medium of blogging itself is the most startlingly powerful way to answer God’s call on your life to write.

C2 The Power of Positive Talking: Learn the "Secret of Seven" and Achieve Your Dream – Kelly Mortimer

This is a two-part speech. Part one is my story. How I overcame obstacles and turned a failed life into a successful one. When you’ve so low and have nothing left to lose, you need to dream, and dream HUGE. I hit the point where absolutely everything was gone except the power of my words and the love of Jesus. That’s when I realized the power of my words and the love of Jesus was all I needed.

Part two consists of the steps you can take to make positive changes in your life through what you say. Words contain power. The more you speak them, the more you believe them—whether they’re good or bad. Learn what words to avoid, and how to change negative phrases into positive ones. Allow yourself to dream, and help yourself to achieve that dream. Follow my routine, and discover the “Secret of Seven.”

C3  "I Couldn't Put it Down!" Writing Fiction That Keeps Readers Up All Night – N. J. Lindquist

You can have endearing characters, a setting that makes the reader long to move there tomorrow, and the best intentions in the world of encouraging, entertaining, or educating your reader… but unless you have a plot that takes your characters into conflict, continually ramps up the tension, and keeps your reader wondering, you’re going to lose a lot of people.

Yes, there is a kind of “literary” fiction that manages to succeed with a minimum of action, where the main character seems to get away with navel-gazing for pages and pages. But if you’re writing inspirational fiction, historical fiction, mystery, suspense, thriller, romance, coming-of-age, young adult, science fiction, fantasy, or any of the other kinds of stories average readers tend to go for, you need a scintillating plot that keeps the reader so anxious to know what happens next that she can barely stop reading to eat or sleep.

In this workshop, we’ll look at several ways to create a plot that keeps the reader guessing, learn about tools to make sure every loose end is tied up without having everything too pat, learn the differences between plotting short stories and novels, and discuss how to walk the thin line between copying real life and writing fiction.

C4 What Canadian Christian Authors Need to Know About Trends in Publishing – Les Lindquist

How do eBooks work? What about POD (Print on Demand)? Is it a better option than having to invest in printing thousands of books? How much money would I make from these options, versus traditional royalty publishing or traditional self-publishing? How important is having a distributor to get my books into bookstores? Who is going to sell my book for me in this new age? What is affiliate marketing and should I do it?

You may have asked these questions. We surely have! The publishing industry is in flux and there are no definitive answers, but I will share what we've learned from our experiences publishing eight books, researching the issues, and talking to people about trends. From my experience as a change specialist for a leading multinational corporation, I'll also be sharing some of my ideas on how we can take advantage of current changes and leap forward.

C5 Expand Your Writing Horizons – Wendy E. Nelles

What’s the best way for writers to thrive in today’s rapidly changing publishing world? Consider trying out new types of writing and looking for new audiences.

Some writers are frustrated because they seem to be hitting a wall trying to get published in their chosen area. Or they’re confused about how to navigate through a shifting landscape, where the lines are blurring between traditional and new media, and between types of writing and publishing. The best-equipped writers will work on developing additional skills and diversifying their portfolios.

In this workshop, we’ll discuss the advantages of working in different writing formats, and serving multiple markets and audiences. We’ll look at how to add publishing credits, prove your versatility, enhance your credibility, and build up your own “brand.” Come ready to share ideas, and to plan how you will branch out in the coming year.

C6 From Pen To Live Event – Eric Spath

Discover the steps required for a writer to create a dynamic speaking event so that he or she can actively develop bookings rather than wait for invitations. Topics discussed will be finding your brand, developing materials, and making contacts. Several book authors who register early, with their permission, will be selected to use as case studies during the workshop. (Note: This is a repeat of a workshop Eric did in 2008 that got rave reviews.)