Each class is 75-minutes, followed by a 15-minute break.

Workshop sessions are divided into five tracks: Beginner, Advanced, Fiction, Non-Fiction, and Special. On Friday we have a High School track for high school students only.

Friday Schedule – June 22, 2012
8:30 a.m.
Registration – Continental Breakfast – Networking

9:00 a.m.
Welcome & Announcements
Frank Ball

9:15 a.m.
Keynote
Dennis Hensley

10:15 a.m.
Fiction Dodging New Writer Pitfalls: Avoid Common Snares, Snags, and Stumbling Blocks
Lori Freeland
Are you a beginning writer? Need a little encouragement as you begin your journey? Learn to work smart and hard whether you are writing fiction or nonfiction. Head off all those novice mistakes before you begin. This workshop will discuss the most common mistakes new writers make and show you how to avoid them. We will also cover some self-editing tips. Come and arm yourself against the new writer’s number one enemy—ignorance.

Nonfiction The Art of Persuasion
Thomas Umstattd
In this class you will learn how to make your speeches and nonfiction writing more persuasive. You will learn how to craft ideas that stick in people’s heads for years and how to change people’s minds without changing their worldview. Hint: If they don’t like you as a person, they won’t like what you have to say. Thomas has been a speech a debate coach for over 5 years and this class is full of “from the trenches” wisdom he has learned over the years taking teams to the national championships in debate.

Beginner So You Want to be a Writer – Take the Bull By the Horns and Go for It!
Marty Norman
A writer is like a bull fighter. Requirements for success include a heart for the sport, hours of training, practice, courage, stamina, and a willingness to perfect the art. What and how writers write is as different as the style and technique of a matador. In this workshop learn how to develop your writing style, technique, timing, and voice in order to jump in the arena and join the fight.

Advanced Writing for Skeptics: Finding Common Ground
Rusty Wright
In communicating with skeptics, start by agreeing where you can. You’ll get many more to listen. Inspiring stories and practical principles for building bridges to connect with those who disagree with you.

Special Laughing All the Way
Renae Brumbaugh
“Against the assault of laughter, nothing can stand.” ~Mark Twain With trademark wit, humor columnist and funny coffee girl Renae Brumbaugh instructs, inspires, and offers hands-on help to fellow writers. Examples from humor giants Erma Bombeck, Dave Barry, and James Watkins will help students find and strengthen the humor in their own writing voice. Students in this workshop will learn to use humor effectively and with purpose to communicate their unique message.

High School Real Life and the Novel: Bigger, Badder, Meaner, Sadder
Vonda Skelton
Learn how to make your novel real by taking real life and putting it in your novel. It’s a turnabout that’s fun and easy to do! Students will review their own lives to discover scenes that are ready and waiting to be taken from their memories to the written page.

11:30 p.m.
Lunch ***Offsite***

1:30 p.m.
Fiction The Top Ten Mistakes Writing Professionals Make
Frank Ball
You can’t pick up a novel from the bookstore shelf and assume its content and style is suitable for your audience. Look at weaknesses in bestselling books, learn why average Americans won’t finish reading one book in a year, and find out what you can do better to reach them.

Nonfiction Developing a Series of Articles: The Easiest Way to Write a Nonfiction Book
Dennis Hensley
Doc Hensley will explain how to create a concept that can be divided in a series of magazine feature articles that later can be combined as chapters in a book. He will explain how to write the columns and then add filler items to the book, such as quizzes, sidebars, illustrations, examples, anecdotes, and reading lists.

Beginner Writer Lingo 101
Steve Miller
Has it been a long time since you’ve been to school? Are you unsure what people mean by “point of view” or “progressive tense”? Well, this session is for you. Steve will cover these terms and more, and you’ll have plenty of chances to ask questions that you’re afraid to ask anywhere else.

Advanced Bring Her On and Let Her Scream (Show, Don’t Tell)
LaWanda Bailey
Based on Mark Twain’s words,  “Don’t say the old lady screamed. Bring her on and let her scream,” this session will introduce fresh ways to show in writing. Not only will you hear the old lady scream on paper, you will describe a thunderstorm that will cause readers to pull the covers up tighter. Learn to bring life to any place, character, or situation. Eliminate the confusion between a chain of telling sentences and authentic showing. Understand when to show, when to tell, and how to know the difference.

Special How to Manage Your Time
Rusty Wright
Ever feel like you’ve got more to do than time allows? Do you find yourself late for appointments or unprepared for assignments? Sometimes? Often? This seminar offers practical advice to help you relieve the pressure of the time trap and make the most of your time.

High School From Weird Uncle Al to Zia, Queen of Cantania: Creating Characters Who Are So Real, Your Readers Think They See Them on the Street
Lissa Halls Johnson
Building a character involves far more than just putting a human in your story that will do what you want them to do. The best characters are ones even we (the writer) believes is real.

3:00 p.m.
Fiction What’Chyou Talking About, Willis?
Henry McLaughlin
Struggling with getting your characters to talk to each other and the reader? Want your dialogue to speak volumes in a few words? This session examines tools and techniques of dialogue to develop and reveal characters, deepen relationships, keep your reader hooked, share information, and move the story forward.

Nonfiction Writing Devotions as Single Sales and as a Future Book
Dennis Hensley
Doc Hensley will reveal the wide variety of markets now seeking devotions, ranging from online sources to  book publishers. He will show how to categorize published devotions into a set topic so that they can be unified as a book topic. He will show 20 ways to come up with ideas for devotions and 5 standard easy-to-follow formats for writing devotions.

Beginner The Observant Writer
Curt Iles
Stories swirl all around us. The question is: Will we capture them? Notes from a lifetime journalist.

Advanced How to Become a Freelance Editor/Proofreader
Kathy Ide
Have you ever considered the possibility of becoming a freelance editor and/or proofreader, but didn’t have the foggiest idea how to begin or whether you’d be successful? In this workshop, Kathy Ide reveals how she started her freelance editing business and made it successful. Topics include the advantages and disadvantages of freelancing, how to determine if this is a good direction for you, and concrete steps to success.

Special Ranking Number 1 on Google
Thomas Umstattd
Learn the basics of Search Engine Optimization and how to get your author website to rank on top of Google’s results page. The tips you learn in this class are proven to boost traffic.

High School Plot is Not a Four-Letter Word
Lissa Halls Johnson
Creating the best story you can comes from understanding plot and having fun with it.

4:30 p.m.
Fiction The Reader’s Point of View
Frank Ball
The “crockpot” writing style that worked well in the 1900s has lost its appeal among most of today’s readers, who come with “microwave” expectations for compelling characters and captivating plots, with tight focus   on the action. Learn the power of different writing perspectives and how to make points of view so engaging that readers feel like they have become the character in your story.

Nonfiction Nonfiction is Storytelling, Too
Carolyn Curtis
Do you share the misconception that non-fiction books and articles are dull and impersonal – reminiscent of your plodding term papers from school days? Not so in today’s anecdotal environment where stories teach your principles and shape your copy. Yet many writers miss the essential preparation techniques, such as mastering voice. In this session, you’ll discover the surprising (and successful) secrets to getting started.

Beginner How to Build Your Writing Resume While You Wait on Your Breakthrough
Ryan Barnhart
Have you written a book or novel and hope to have it published? Are you still waiting for the right agent or publisher to be overwhelmed by your writing? Or are you a novice writer hoping to write a book someday? If you answered yes to any of these questions, you may need to build your writing resume to progress your writing career. In this workshop, Ryan will teach you how he has built his writing resume and made money in the process while he waits for one of his fiction books to be published. Let Ryan help you build your writing resume while you wait for your novel to garner attention and breakthrough.

Advanced Things Editors Hate, Things Editors Love
Lissa Halls Johnson
Know how to create your work so editors will be eager to work with you, avoiding the mistakes that could be deadly for you and your manuscript.

Special How to Make $ with Your Writing
Thomas Umstattd
Book royalties alone do not pay enough for most writers to live on. However, by treating your writing like a business you can dramatically increase your income. In this class you will learn the basics of business for writers including tax tips.

High School Five Fatal Flaws of Fiction
Vonda Skelton
The competition is tough. Don’t let these five weaknesses mark you as a newbie and set you up for a knee-jerk rejection from the editor! In addition to learning the five weaknesses, students will also review examples from current contemporary books, adding practical application of their knowledge base.

5:45 p.m.
Dinner served onsite

6:45 p.m.
Presentation of Awards
Frank Ball

7:00 p.m.
Keynote
Rusty Wright

7:45 p.m.
Dismiss

Saturday Schedule – June 23, 2012
8:30 a.m.
Registration – Continental Breakfast – Networking

9:00 a.m.
Welcome & Announcements
Frank Ball

9:15 a.m.
Keynote
Dennis Hensley

10:15 a.m.
Fiction Details and Descriptions: A Movie of Words
Vonda Skelton
Every book…every chapter…every scene…every page…every paragraph…every sentence…every word we write should transition into a movie onscreen. If we want to write compelling stories, we must help the reader see the movements, hear the words, and feel the emotion, whether we’re writing mystery, romance, or historical fiction.

Nonfiction Becoming Published
Carolyn Curtis
Let’s assume you want to become a published article writer and/or book author. Or maybe you want your personal writing to be up to the standards of the paid and royalty-based publishing industry, where qualified editors select worthy writers and their writing. Learn about available markets, today’s publishing opportunities and trends – plus what you need to know about editors and how to be successful in working with them.

Beginner Common Mistakes of Beginning Writers
Lissa Halls Johnson
Every beginning writer makes mistakes that can hinder their potential to be published. Come find out which ones you can fix.

Advanced Seekers and Skeptics at Your Door: Internet Evangelism and You
Rusty Wright
Could God use you to reach people for Christ via the Internet? You don’t have to be a techie. Practical ideas illustrated with motivating stories show how you can spread God’s truth effectively via the Internet without a degree in computer science.

Special How Everything Has Changed and Nothing is New
Thomas Umstattd
Social media can turn your book idea into a best seller. It can also be a colossal waste of time. In this class you will learn how to use social media effectively without wasting a lot of time. You will also learn the advantages and disadvantages of the major social networks.

11:30 p.m.
Lunch served onsite

12:30 p.m.
Fiction Creating True-to-Life Characters
Lissa Halls Johnson
Building a character involves far more than just putting a human in your story that will do what you want them to do. The best characters are ones even the writer believes is real.

Nonfiction Mastering Dialogue for Fiction and Nonfiction Writing
Dennis Hensley
Doc Hensley will explain the difference between authentic dialogue and stylized dialogue. He will show ten ways to make dialogue advance plots, provide back story information, define characters, and establish setting.  He will also explain how to make characters distinctive through dialect, accents, shop talk, jargon, and regional phrases.

Beginner Learn Before You Leap
Curt Iles
Curt has independently published ten books.  From this experience, he’ll share about the pros and cons in the evolving world of self-publishing.

Advanced The End of a Love Affair: Breaking Up with Your First Draft
LaWanda Bailey
Tissues provided. Whether you’re rewriting your first draft or your tenth, you’ll learn solid revision strategies that really work. In this interactive session, we’ll cut clutter and use color coding, explode a moment and shrink a century, put power into word choices and turn sentences inside-out. Never again will you wonder what to do when someone tells you to revise. Dump your draft and move on.

Special Carving Out the Value of Critique Groups
Lori Freeland
Whether you write fiction or nonfiction, success can be hard to find in a vacuum. Good critique groups are an essential part of the growing process for a writer. Not all groups produce results. This workshop teaches you how to facilitate a group that works, whether you meet in person or in an online community. Learn how to edit/critique others work in a positive, constructive manner that pushes the members in the group to grow and stretch as both writers and learners. Lori Freeland leads a successful NTCW group called the Literati. Come find out what works for this group and why.

1:45 p.m.
Dessert Break

2:15 p.m.
Fiction Plotting the Plot
Lissa Halls Johnson
Understanding the basic plot mechanisms vital for a compelling story—even if you are a seat-of-the-pants writer.

Nonfiction Outline the Book, Break It into Articles and Sell to Both Markets
Dennis Hensley
Doc Hensley will show how to create a full outline for a nonfiction book and then how to write its preface, chapters, appendix, and epilogue. He will then show how to segment parts of the book to sell as fillers, excerpts, interviews, and features to national magazines.

Beginner Vive la Différence!
Steve Miller
Men and women have different perspectives. Steve shows how these affect three areas of writing: how male and female characters should be portrayed, how your style will reflect your gender, and who will most likely read your work.

Advanced The Christian Writer’s Response to the Great Commission
Rusty Wright
Jesus told his followers to go, proclaim the gospel, teach, disciple. You’re a Christian writer. Could you use a dose of inspiration, challenge, motivation, focus, and fun as you seek to follow his last command?

Special How to Develop a Speaking Ministry to Women
Vonda Skleton
God has given each of us unique experiences from which to share His goodness and grace. Could He be calling you to share yours from the stage?

3:45 p.m.
Q & A

4:45 p.m.
Dismiss