Minding OCW’s Business

by Sue Miholer, OCW Business Manager

Note that we are now in the second half of our fiscal and membership year, so purchasing a new membership between now and September 30 is one-half the annual price. See the reduced amounts on the registration page. These rates are for those who are joining for the first time, not those who have allowed their memberships to lapse.

Some of you do just the opposite and include a dues payment almost every time you register for a conference and are now paid up through September 2011, and a few through 2012. Please do not send your dues unless the date by your name in the address section of this newsletter is 10/1/09 or earlier—or if there is nothing there at all.

Contributions may be made to the Summer Conference Memorial Scholarship Fund to honor OCW members who have passed away. Shortly before her death in February, Elsie Larson suggested this fund be established to give some OCW members the financial help they might need to attend a summer conference. (You can send checks to the OCW mailing address.)

The OCW board agreed to seed this memorial fund with a $50 donation. As of March 22, OCW had received more than $200 in honor of Elsie, who also requested that her remaining books be used to help other writers. Money from the sale of these books at the summer conference will go into the memorial scholarship fund.

Verses to Live By

By Mary A. Hake, OCW President

Early in my Christian life, I read the longest psalm in the Bible. It happened to be in the Living Bible, the first Bible I ever owned. I’d received this paperback version from Billy Graham’s ministry after watching his crusade on television and praying to accept Jesus Christ as my Savior. I don’t think I had ever heard or read Psalm 119 in its entirety before that day.

The words spoke directly to my heart. Their life-changing impact prompted me to share it with a friend. She listened as I read and read.

I love to read the Psalms—truly a book for all seasons, filled with great riches for the soul. And every year, at least once, I pore over Psalm 119. Its wise counsel continues to draw me. It’s like reading King David’s journal as he considers God’s precepts and His guidance and how to live appropriately in light of His Word.

Tools to Bring to a Writers’ Conference

by Angella Foret Diehl, OCW Webmaster

As the OCW Web master and one of the organization’s “resident geeks,” you’ll typically see me tooling around conferences with a wheeled suitcase. No, I didn’t spend the night in my car, anticipating the terrific workshops and keynote speaker!

The suitcase is packed with things that help make a conference run more smoothly: a laptop computer, extra cords and mice, flash drives, a projector, a surge protector, etc. I also keep a small printer in my car “just in case.”

As a conferee, you won’t need many of those gadgets to learn about the craft and business of writing from OCW’s finest. But here are a few that can help!