ACFW 2011 Conference...Relax Baby!

This week I've been busy making plans to attend the 2011 ACFW conference in St. Louis this September. This will be my third ACFW conference and I'm super excited. I was thinking how different this year will be for me. To understand how vastly different let me tell you about my first conference.

It was 2005. The conference was in Nashville. Money was tight so I eagerly accepted a ride with fellow hoosier, Cara Putman. In fact we roomed together that year. We didn't know each other much other than having a mutual friendship with Colleen Coble. I was very nervous to ride 5 hours in a car with someone I barely knew, let alone sleep in the same room with her. LOL. My husband was a little nervous for me too. I mean, what if she was a nut case or something. She wasn't. Now I consider her one of my dearest friends.

The weeks prior to the conference the loop was busy with all kinds of talk about the clothing I'd need and I panicked. I didn't have anything special. Just everyday work/church clothes. I went out and bought several outfits just so I wouldn't be out of place.

There was also all kinds of talk on the loop about what I'd need to bring and have ready. I worked like a feign to get my one page and my business cards spiffied up.

Oh and all the talk bout how important the editor and agent meetings were about made me hyperventilate.

On the ride down Cara and I talked and talked all the way to Nashville. It would seem I'd made my first writer friend. Then the rooming together went fine. In fact we roomed together again in 2007 so it must not have been too bad. :)

Once we got there I realized I'd forgotten my make up bag and we arrived in a torrential downpour. We had to walk into the hotel looking like drowned rats. But we made it. I was stewing about the make up when one of my favorite writers, Kristin Billerbeck, offered to loan me some of hers. Are you kidding me? I was overwhelmed with her kindness. We ended up driving to a drugstore and buying a few things but I was still in awe of the fact she'd do that for me. A total stranger. Then I was standing in the foyer and realized I was standing next to Deb Raney. DEB RANEY. I nearly squealed in excitement. Diann Hunt took pity on me and introduced me to Deb. Who turned out to be a very gracious lady.

Once the conference was underway I looked around and realized I was surrounded by people just like me. Average people following the elusive dream of writing for publication. It wasn't until Saturday that I started to relax and enjoy the experience.

On the ride home I realized most of the panic and stress I'd been under was pointless. I didn't need to buy a bunch of new stuff or get myself in a tizzy about what I was going to say to the agents and editors. I just needed to be myself and make sure I was prepared for my meetings.

I'm not saying you don't need to work hard and get your stuff polished. I'm just saying don't get too worked up over all the little stuff. Khakis or Capri's and a nice shirt will suffice for most everything other than the banquet. And for that, yes, some dress to the nines, but don't get stressed out if you can't afford a new cocktail dress. Sunday dress is okay if that's all you have. Don't let the little stuff take away from the real reason we're there. To learn and make industry connections. And if you're lucky, you'll come away with a head full of knowledge and a whole lot of new friends.

ACFW Conference Recap...friends and connections made!

Okay, so Georgiana mentioned she's waiting for my conference memories post. LOL. Well, here it is. I'll start by saying, I'm not a photo taker, I'm not a scrapbooker, and I'm not one to take note of things. Hmmm, not great for a newspaper correspondent. LOL. Anyway, I don't have photos to share, but I have lots of memories.

The conference started off with a sweet card from my roommate, Cara Putman. She's the most considerate friend. She had a little card on my pillow welcoming me to the conference and just started my day off with a smile. Cara has moved from "writing" friend to just friend over the course of the last year or two and I felt blessed to have her as a roommate.

Thursday evening I met Kaye Dacus. I'd been to the 2005 ACFW conference but never had a chance to meet her so I was pleased to check that off my to do list. :) Waving at Kaye.

The food at the conference was fab! We had so many great entrees and let's not even talk about the dessert. Sheesh, that was good carrot cake.

Friday I had an editor meeting with Krista and an agent meeting with Kelly Mortimer. Both meetings went well. Krista requested I change Rock Bottom to third person--pray for me--but overall she acted like she really liked the concept of Rock Bottom and my romance, Inn For A Penny. Kelly Mortimer started off the meeting grabbing me and hugging me. (which for a non-touchy person, I was a little caught off guard) Her gregarious personality put me right at ease. She's friendly and kind and seemingly really in it to helping the unpublished writer.

I also got to meet one of my favorite authors, Rachel Hauck. I adore her writing and now I even adore her. She's such a doll and she has this really cool vibe. Especially when she's worshipping. When she led worship she was clearly in His presence and therefore took us with her on the journey as you lose yourself in the music. The prayer and worship alone were enough to go to the conference for.

Oh, and I got to meet up with Lynette Sowell. Lynette and I have been email friends for a little while since we both wrote for Carla Raddling on the Scenes and Beans Blog for Brandilyn Collins. It was so fun getting to know her and I feel like I came away with a new friend.

The conference ended with the awards banquet and while I didn't place in my category, I did get some great feedback from one of the judges so all was not lost. I feel like the direction I got will help make the story better so it's all good.

Oh and big congrats to Georgiana for placing second in the Lit category. I think Georgiana is the sweetest thing and I'm so happy for her.

Finally, I came away from the conference feeling a little refreshed and ready to tackle these works in progress. I was starting to feel slightly defeated and ready to take some time off. Now I'm actually looking forward to making the changes to my work and seeing the improvement that comes with learning and growth.

DALLAS BOUND...WOOHOO!!!

This time tomorrow I'll be in Dallas. Yeehaw! I'm so excited. I've been looking forward to the ACFW conference for such a long time. I'm eager to sharpen my skills as a writer and learn all kinds of great stuff from writers I admire so much. I'm especially looking forward to Rachel Hauck's continuing session on writing Lits. That should be packed full of valuable information. And I can't wait for Gayle Roper's workshop. She's been one of my favorite authors for years.

The one bummer is that I'm going to miss my husband and son. This is only the second time I've been away from home since I've been married. Sniff Sniff...okay, maybe it's time I cut the strings. LOL.

Anyway, I'll post when I can. (and for my three friends not making it this year, you know who you are, it won't be the same without you)

AHHH...ACFW CONFERENCE IS LESS THAN 6 DAYS AWAY!!!

Let me start by apologizing for not being a responsible Blog hostess. Sigh. I've slipped in my blog responsibilities of late, but I'm not entirely to blame...see I'm trying to finish up my rough draft of Rock Bottom so I can at least say I'm finished with the rough draft when I pitch it at ACFW conference next week.

Something occurred to me yesterday about said book. Since RB is a finalist in the Genesis contest, the editor I had planned to pitch to is also the second round judge for my category. So here's the predicament. I haven't received my comments for the second round yet (we get them a couple weeks after conference, per Camy Tang) so what if I pitch this book to this woman who's read the first three chapters and she's sitting there, familiar with the book, and little do I know... she hated it...what a waste of both of our time not to mention how stupid I'll feel when I get her comments back.

So I think I'm going to pitch something else I'm working on. So if any of you have an opinion...I'd be glad to hear it. Like Georgiana, if you read this, what are you going to do? Are you pitching your finalist entry to Krista or someone else? Or are you pitching it at all? Just curious. ;)