The Power of Two, Three -- and Twenty-three

I'm so excited! I'm registered to attend Tracie J. Peterson's winter writers retreat in Texas next month. I purchased my airline tickets last week. Plans have been made. I'll meet a friend at the Houston airport, we'll rent a car, and, before driving north to the retreat center, we'll head south to the ocean.

I'm looking forward to spending time with my friend. She has a lot of great story ideas. We'll talk about our joint projects and do some research on them, and then we'll drive on up to the retreat center. There we'll meet more friends.

Twenty authors, some published, some unpublished, will come together to spend days of praise to the Lord Jesus and quiet time in prayer and writing. The retreat's focus is primarily a spiritual one because, in removing obstacles from our hearts, through prayer, God can inspire and direct -- and redirect.

Jesus said, "For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them."

As Christians we know the power of more than one -- more than just ourselves. One really is "the loneliest number there could ever be!" Remember that old song? The truth is, se can't tackle issues regarding our writing careers alone. We need God's power, just as the lamps in our living rooms or offices need to be plugged into an electric outlet, in order to shine.

Sure, you many already know and understand this principle. But when is the last time God has blessed your writing career in a way you never thought possible? If it's been a while, your dream of getting published may have dwindled. You might have settled for mediocrity instead of aspiring to greatness. If that's the case, meeting with like-minded authors is beneficial, even necessary.

In March I'm heading up a 1-day seminar. Three workshops led by published authors will be offered. They will be like "fireside chats" as the seminar will be held at Fireside Books in West Bend, Wisconsin.  If you're in the area, I invite you to attend. It's open to everyone, not just Christian authors. But, I guarantee, you'll leave inspired.

And inspired because you're not alone. There's not only safety in numbers, there's power in numbers too!

Email me to register at: andrea@andreaboeshaar.com

Writers Conferences...Why Bother?

If you’re one of those people who thinks that attending writers’ conferences isn’t important, I hope to change your mind.

Writers conferences empower, inspire, and help to crack that proverbial writers block. At conferences you fellowship with like-minded people who hear "the voices" of their characters too. Whether you're writing romance, mystery, or a great literary piece, there's a creative flare that writers share. Conferences also update you on the market in which you write. Many of them are expensive, but their prices are usually great tax deductions. Some of the major conferences I’m interested in are:

Write-To-Publish Conference
Chicago
June 8th- June 11th
http://writetopublish.com/

Romance Writers of America Nat’l Conference
New York City
June 28th – July 1st
http://www.rwa.org/cs/conferences_and_events

American Christian Fiction Writers Conference
St. Louis
September 22nd- September 25th
http://acfw.com/conference

With airfare, conference fee, and hotel fees, one of these conferences can easily cost you $1,000. That dollar amount can be a problem for writers just beginning their journey – or even for established authors, like myself. The answer, therefore, is attending smaller, local conferences. Many times the workshops offered are led by published authors. Do you know the published authors in your area? If you don’t…perhaps you need to get to know them.

My state of Wisconsin can tout a good many published authors. Jacqueline Mitchard, Mary Pierce, Deb Baker, Marshall Cook, Kathryn Springer, Lyn Cote, Lisa Lickel, and Shellie Neumeier – these are only a handful of successful, Wisconsin authors who come to my mind.

 And speaking of Lisa and Shellie and local writers’ conferences…we’re putting together a FREE 1-day seminar for writers. It’ll be held at Fireside Books in West Bend. Lisa, Shellie and I will be leading workshops in the form of “fireside chats” on the topics of beginning your novel, taxes – and my workshop called “Daytime Dramatizing Your Fiction.”

So for fellowship, empowerment, and inspiration, you just can’t get a better FREE seminar than ours. Why would you want to?

But if you’re not in Wisconsin or nearby, search the web for conferences in your area. You won’t be disappointed. In fact, you may be a better writer because of them.