Monday, September 30, 2019

Write2Ignite 2019 Wrap-Up

Congratulations to Susan Rice who won Invisible Lizard in Love and Connie Saunders who won Back Roads, Country Toads from last week's blog.

The 2019 Write2Ignite conference is now history. Here are my highlights as well as photos and quotes from my friends who were first time attendees.  


MY HIGHLIGHTS

Besides being the Write2Ignite blogmeister, I am also the teen track co-ordinator. In other words, I get to spend time talking with teens about their stories and hearing their imaginative ideas for stories. I led three sessions and the most interactive one was "Out of this World Science Fiction and Fantasy." I put up this slide and led a discussion about the physical world, it's history, and some potential characters.

I loved hearing the teens' responses which included that this was a world where anarchists had taken over and didn't allow the citizens  to know the history of their queen. 


Time travel was thrown in as well as a prince who thought the anarchists were the bad guys, but as it turned out, they were preventing the citizens from an even worse catastrophe. And by the way...the arms were escaping from the gritty ground. I loved their use of Muscle Words!

I was also inspired by Nancy Lohr's keynote on "Truth-FULL Writing." Her encouragement that if we are Christians our world view will be communicated in our writing will stick with me. 

  • "Draw from your own faith well." 
  • "Don't try to write like someone else." 
  • "What is your readers's felt need? Write to meet that need."
  • As in life, "You can't enjoy a good ending if you skip through all the hard parts."
  • "Write as salt and light."


MY FRIENDS' HIGHLIGHTS



I had the privilege of critiquing Jarm Del Boccio's WIP, SOLI'S SAVING GRACE. Having received many critiques myself, I enjoyed coming alongside her and pointing out some aspects of her manuscript that were terrific and some areas that needed strengthening. Like many writers, she was too easy on her characters; I encouraged her to make her antagonist more of a bad guy which would bring more conflict into the story.

Here she is with her debut middle grade novel, The Heart Changer.


”Write2Ignite was a boost to my writing journey in many ways. The sessions were informative, and appointments enlightening and productive. What an encouragement to chat with those walking alongside me on the road to publication! Even though our journeys are unique, they lead to the same destination: a manuscript that brings glory to God.” Jarm Del Boccio 

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Several young adults who I haven't seen in a year, attended Write2Ignite for the first time.

Charissa Garcia (our NGU intern)
and
Olivia Rollins (a fantastic teen writer!)


Charissa said,  "All of the sessions were excellent, especially the key-note sessions, and I appreciated the emphasis on the fact that because we are Christians and because we are writers, therefore we are Christian writers. There isn’t something you need to add to have the magic formula in order to make your book a “Christian” book. If you have faith in Christ, that will come out in your writing." 

Olivia said,  "I loved Write2Ignite!! I learned so much in just two days. Each of the speakers was engaging and God-centered, and I loved the variety and being able to choose which one sounded the best. A few lectures in particular made me reevaluate aspects of my own writing in a way I hadn't before. Whether you're a young aspiring author, or experienced and published, the dynamic of being immersed in other writers and getting to meet them is so enriching. Overall, I think what made the longest-lasting impression on me was how encouraged I felt, to keep writing, and to glorify the Lord in my writing. And definitely to come back next year. " 😀

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Recently Karen Wallace and I have become friends bonding over shared life experiences, writing, and our commitment to the Lord. She showed me her guided journal, ABC's of What Children Need From Their Parents and asked me to help edit the introduction. Each attendee received a copy which was a great addition to our conference bags!

Karen said, "In Linda Phillips' and Daniel Blackaby's workshops, word and picture prompts were effectively used to draw out creative writing from each attendee. This got me excited for what might be be drawn out of each person who interacts with the word prompts in the ABCs journal."





I was glad that my friends, Hadassah and Kelilah Murdock, came.


Tessa Emily Hall, Kelilah Murdock, Hadassah Murdock


"Writing is not my forte. Yet as I went to the sessions and spoke with some of the accomplished authors and felt my interest being kindled; I was inspired to give higher priority to learning more about the art of writing.  After a long summer of complacency, I feel motivated to dive back into my school writing projects and sharpen my skills. I am already planning to go again next year and highly recommend this workshop to anyone who has or who needs to cultivate an interest in all things paper." Hadassah Murdock

"Here are some of the many things that I enjoyed about W2I:
  • The presenters and speakers showed a genuine interest in the attendees, answering questions and taking time to talk personally about writing and story crafting with us.
  • There was a broad range of speakers (authors of many genres, editors and agents) and themes.  From the nuts and bolts of word crafting to the imaginative scope of world building, there was something useful and interesting for everyone, regardless of ability or level of involvement." Kelilah Murdock 


Unable to attend this year? Mark your calendar for 2020!




12 comments:

Linda Phillips said...

Great overview of a really lovely experience as an attendee and a presenter. My only regret is that I didn't get to hear more of the presenters, all the more reason to sign on for next year. I so enjoyed having Karen Wallace in my session, and now I am enjoying reading through her ABC's of parenting, a gracious gift to all attendees.

Sandra Warren said...

Congratulations on presenting such a great conference and including the teen writing element. It's important to encourage all writers but to zero in on teens and help and encourage them in the writing craft is fantastic.

It sounds like a wonderful conference. I'll make a note of the date for next year.

Sandra

Carol Baldwin said...

Thank you Sandra and Linda! It was a great experience for all!

Jarm Del Boccio said...

Thanks for sharing my thoughts. It was indeed a motivation to get me to the next level in my writing. And you were a big part of that, Carol!!

Clara Gillow Clark said...

Thanks, Carol, for sharing with readers about your fabulous Write2Ignite conference. How wonderful to see so many teens taking part. Teens always amaze me with their originality and talent. I’m sure you found this true. Congratulations on a successful conference!

Carol Baldwin said...

Thanks, Clara. it's one of the unique aspects of W2I that they include teens. I love that!

Rosi said...

Sounds like a fun and interesting time. Thanks for sharing.

Donna Earnhardt said...

W2I is a special conference and I'm so glad to see folks being blessed by it! You did a great job with your wrap-up and I hope to get back in the near future!

Hugs,
Donna

p.s. loved seeing you at the SCBWI conference, too!

Carol Baldwin said...

Thanks, Donna. You have your hands full now--I'll be praying for you!

Carol Baldwin said...

Glad to have been part of your journey, Jarm.

Cat Michaels said...

Congrats on your conference, Carol! You have found your passion!

Carol Baldwin said...

Thanks, Cat. You are right!

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