If you still haven’t decided to come to the Oregon Christian Writers conference August 2–5, maybe knowing that we still have room for you will help you decide. These excellent morning coaching classes still have room for more. Register now to get a spot in one of them. See www.oregonchristianwriters.org for more information.

Pitch and Promote Like a Pro—Terry Burns

Terry takes participants through the entire process of pitching, writing queries and proposals, discussing what’s involved and why. He talks about how to find the confidence to sit down with agents and editors and make the pitch. Instead of a handout, he gives attendees a copy of his e-book of the course.

Memoirs and Writing from the Heart—Marion Duckworth

Memoirs are a way to tell parts of the story of your life, highlighting the things you’ve observed and absorbed along the way. This class will help participants identify their passions and use their experiences to produce writing that provides hope, comfort, support, and wholeness for a damaged world.

Beginning Fiction Critique—Leslie Gould
Join Leslie for a “road trip” through beginning fiction. Bring a piece that has not been critiqued already, no more than ten pages. (Leslie will e-mail you before the conference and let you know how many copies to bring.) As we travel through each other’s stories, we’ll explore the signs of strong fiction: character, setting, voice, scenes, conflict, and so much more. Structuring your writing life and organizing your story will also be explored.

Writing for Christian Ministry (Bible Curriculum, Bible Study Guides, Devotionals)—Lin Johnson

If you like to study the Bible and have a desire to help people grow in the Lord, you have two basics for writing for ministry. Whether you want to write lesson plans, small-group study guides, or devotionals for your church, for a Christian organization, or for publication, you will learn how to do so in this class. Participants will explore types of curricula and devotionals; how to meet teachers’ and learners’ needs, including an understanding of the teaching/learning process; details of writing lesson plans, study guides, and devotionals; available markets; and how to get assignments for publication.

Shaping Your Prose for Print—Sherri Langton

This class is for writers serious about marketing and tailoring their articles for the right magazine market. By the end of the last day, writers will have analyzed how to shape their writing for a particular market (with two alternatives). Dust off that manuscript that keeps coming back to you from various editors; bring your new manuscript/ideas. Or bring a reprint that could be reshaped for a new market. Writers must bring laptops to find magazine markets online. They also must bring ideas ready to shape into an article or a piece of writing that could be worked into final form and submitted to an editor.

Polishing Your Manuscript for Submission (Intermediate to Advanced)—Andy Scheer

Learn and practice principles of self-editing—from shaping the big picture to fine-tuning the details. The class will include critiques of members’ manuscripts submitted prior to the conference. (This is not required in order to attend.) The class is designed for both article and book writers and for fiction as well as nonfiction. You will have homework, so bring your computers. During the course, the class will:

1. Overview the self-editing process.
2. Examine elements of an article’s structure and then delve into how each aspect can work to accomplish your purpose.
3. Learn to sharpen your editing knife with a presentation of principles for eliminating needless words.
4. Discuss the realities about how publishers evaluate manuscripts.

Beginning/Intermediate Nonfiction Critique—Cornelia B. Seigneur

This inspirational nonfiction coaching session will focus on group interaction time, offering specific feedback on current writing and/or past work. Participants will dissect one another’s work, share ideas for bettering their writing, analyze how to fuse faith and art to shape culture, examine ways to use writing as a ministry, talk about the current publishing world, consider the art of story, and read from the best-seller of all time as well as some master writers. Bring up to five pages of your own previously un-critiqued work and enough copies for class participants.

A Fresh Look at the Power of Words—Colette Tennant

The art of poetry is the beginning of all writing. Learn how to be precise. Use fresh words, full of meaning. This class will open worlds of images. Participants will write in class, perhaps compile a chapbook of their work. Definitely they’ll have fun. You’ll discover a new way of looking at all life. Your writing will experience an upturn. The class will discover how vital it is to read poetic voices from all walks of life and why poetry is not Christian versus contemporary but an art form that moves across all lines. In a word—writers will grow to appreciate their craft.

The Constant Drumbeat for Every Writer (Marketing)—Terry Whalin

Successful writers have discovered the necessity of including marketing with their writing. The majority of writers avoid it like the plague because they prefer to write and not market.
Here are some of the topics that will be tackled in this class:

• Who takes the primary responsibility for marketing and why?
• Which do you market? Do you market the topic or the person or both?
• What are the characteristics and qualities of successful marketers?
• What are some skills every marketer has, and how do you develop a plan to acquire these skills?
• Which tools do you use to market on a shoestring? Is e-mail marketing dead? Is social marketing a timewaster or worth doing? Are direct marketing techniques still effective? Does anyone make money giving away free content? What is viral marketing and which techniques are the best to use?

You will discover inexpensive tools that will allow the greatest effectiveness and take the least amount of time.

Convinced? REGISTER NOW !