My blog is now part of my website. You can find it at http://www.anemulligan.com

I've just posted about finding the 5 sisters I didn't know I had!

Posted by Ane Mulligan at 9:00 AM | 0 comments Links to this post    

My crit partner's husband, Scott Dotta, has sold his first song. You can listen to it on Novel Journey. You can also download it for free there. It's a beautiful song and I'm so proud of him! Congratulations, Scott!

Go listen and leave a comment for him there.

Posted by Ane Mulligan at 11:37 AM | 0 comments Links to this post    
Labels: free Christian song download

2009 Mentor of the Year- Donita K. Paul
2009 Membership Service Award- John B. Olson
2009 Editor of the Year Award- Ami McConnell, Thomas Nelson
2009 Agent of the Year Award Steve Laube, The Steve Laube Agency

2009 Book of the Year Contest
Debut Author- A Passion Most Pure by Julie Lessman
Lits- Sweet Caroline by Rachel Hauck
Long Contemporary- Symphony of Secrets by Sharon Hinck
Long Contemporary Romance- Controlling Interest by Elizabeth White
Long Historical (tie)- My Heart Remembers by Kim Vogel Sawyer, and I Have Seen Him in the Watchfires by Cathy Gohlke
Mystery- For Whom the Wedding Bell Tolls by Nancy Mehl
Novellas- Stuck on You in A Connecticut Christmas anthology by Rhonda Gibson
Short Contemporary- Family Treasures by Kathryn Springer
Short Contemporary Suspense- Broken Lullaby by Pamela Tracy
Short Historical- Family of the Heart by Dorothy Clark
Speculative- The Restorer’s Journey by Sharon Hinck
Suspense- Fossil Hunter by John B. Olson
Women’s Fiction- The Shape of Mercy by Susan Meissner
Young Adult- The Big Picture by Jenny B. Jones

ACFW 2009 Genesis Contest
Contemporary Fiction- Jennifer Griffith, Magpies in Trees
Contemporary Romance- Christy LaShea Smith, The Bridge Between
Historical Fiction- Christine Schmidtke, Unveiled
Historical Romance- Lacy Williams, Marrying Miss Marshal
Mystery/Suspense/Thriller- Alan Schleimer, Q.doc
Romantic Suspense- Jan Warren, Katherine Octavia, C.I.A.
Science-Fiction/Fantasy/Allegory- David Fry, Lies To See
Women’s Fiction- Cathleen Armstrong, The Church of Last Chance
Young Adult- Gretchen Hoffman, Rewind

Congratulations to all the winners!

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Labels: ACFW Fiction Contest Winners

Kimberley Woodhouse is a wife, mother, author, and musician with a quick wit and positive outlook despite difficult circumstances. A popular speaker, she’s shared at more than 600 venues across the country. Kimberley and her family's story have garnered national media attention for many years, but most recently her family was chosen for ABC's Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, The Montel Williams Show, and Discovery Health channel’s Mystery ER. Welcome Home: Our Family’s Journey to Extreme Joy, releases from Tyndale House Publishers September first. In addition to her non-fiction, she also writes romantic suspense and children’s books. Kimberley lives, writes, and homeschools in Colorado with her husband and two children in their truly “extreme” home. www.kimberleywoodhouse.com

Welcome Home!

By Kimberley Woodhouse

Published by Tyndale House Publishers

ISBN: 978-1-58997-573-6

Back Cover:

Overwhelming trials … met with overcoming joy

Kyla Woodhouse is not your typical twelve-year-old. Due to a rare medical disorder, she feels no pain, doesn't sweat, and needs protective cooling gear just to go outside. With her restrictive lifestyle, countless hospitalizations, including brain surgery, and the resulting mountain of hospital bills, what's a family to do?

How the Woodhouse family has faced seemingly impossible challenges is a story that has captured the hearts of America. Millions of people have experienced glimpses of their lives on Discovery's Mystery ER, The Montel Williams Show, and Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, (recently voted one of the show’s all-time best episodes!).

Now Kayla's mom, Kimberle

y, takes readers behind the cameras to reveal their family's journey as never before told. From medical sleuthing to cross-country moves, from freak fires to battles with insurance companies, Welcome Home proves that truth is stranger than fiction. This candid life story reveals both success and failure and demonstrates how, even during tough circumstances, you can shift your life from heartbreak to extreme joy.

Peak inside the Woodhouse family’s life (and their famous house) with a 16-page photo insert.

Review:

I will ever be grateful to Kim Woodhouse, a fellow ACFW member, for penning her family's story in Welcome Home. There are two life-changing themes inside its pages: extreme joy within the trials and normalcy.

These are truths that every Christian needs to grab hold of and weave into the fabric of their lives. Kim Woodhouse shows rather than tells how she learned that joy. I love a book that doesn't preach.

But it was Kim's statement "her normal isn't like everyone else's normal" that turned on a light for me. I'm not in my thirty's (as much as I would like to think I am). I've lived a lot of years thinking parts of it were lacking. What Kim gave me in Welcome Home was a gift—the gift to accept that my normal is okay.

If you feel your life isn't "normal" or you're in the midst of trials and tribulation, you need to read this amazing story. Even if you aren't, you need to read it. But be sure to have tissues handy. Your heart will be touched.

Posted by Ane Mulligan at 7:01 PM | 4 comments Links to this post    

JASPER

We have a fox terrier by the name of Jasper. He came to us in the summer of 2001 from the fox terrier rescue program. For those of you, who are unfamiliar with this type of adoption, imagine taking in a 10-year-old child about whom you know nothing and committing to doing your best to be a good parent.

Like a child, the dog came with his own idiosyncrasies. He will only sleep on the bed, on top of the covers, nuzzled as close to my face as he can get without actually performing a French kiss on me.

Lest you think this is a bad case of "no discipline," I should tell you that Perry and I tried every means to break him of this habit including locking him in a separate bedroom for several nights. The new door cost over $200. But I digress...

Five weeks ago we began remodeling our house. Although the cost of the project is downright obnoxious, it was 20 years overdue AND it got me out of cooking Thanksgiving for family, extended family, and a lot of friends that I like more than family most of the time.

I was assigned the task of preparing 124 of my famous yeast dinner rolls for the two Thanksgiving feasts we did attend. I am still cursing the electrician for getting the new oven hooked up so quickly. It was the only appliance in the whole darn house that worked, thus the assignment.

I made the decision to cook the rolls on Wed evening to reheat Thurs am. Since the kitchen was freshly painted, you can imagine the odor. Not wanting the rolls to smell like Sherwin Williams #586, I put the rolls on baking sheets and set them in the living room to rise hours.

Perry and I decided to go out to eat, returning in about an hour. The rolls were ready to go in the oven. It was 8:30 PM. When I went to the living room to retrieve the pans, much to my shock one whole pan of 12 rolls was empty.

I called out to Jasper and my worst nightmare became a reality. He literally wobbled over to me. He looked like a combination of the Pillsbury doughboy and the Michelin Tire man wrapped up in fur. He groaned when he walked. I swear even his cheeks were bloated.

I ran to the phone and called our vet. After a few seconds of uproarious laughter, he told me the dog would probably be okay, however, I needed to give him Pepto Bismol every 2 hours for the rest of the night.

Heaven only knows why I thought a dog would like Pepto Bismol any more than my kids did when they were sick. Suffice it to say that by the time we went to bed the dog was black, white and pink. He was so bloated we had to lift him onto the bed for the night.

We arose at 7:30 and as we always do first thing; put the dog out to relieve himself. Well, the dog was as drunk as a sailor on his first leave. He was running into walls, falling flat on his butt, and most of the time when he was walking his front half was going one direction and the other half was either dragging the grass or headed 90 degrees in another direction.

He couldn't lift his leg to pee, so he just walked and peed at the same time. When he ran down the small incline in our backyard, he couldn't stop himself and nearly ended up running into the fence. His pupils were dilated and he was as dizzy as a loon.

I endured another few seconds of laughter from the vet (second call within 12 hours) before he explained that the yeast had fermented in his belly and that he was indeed drunk. He assured me that, not unlike most binges we humans go through, it would wear off after about 4 or 5 hours and to keep giving him Pepto Bismol.

Afraid to leave him by himself in the house, Perry and I loaded him up and took him with us to my sister's house for the first Thanksgiving meal of the day. My sister lives outside of Muskogee on a ranch (10 to 15 minute drive). Rolls firmly secured in the trunk (124 less 12) and drunk dog leaning from the back seat onto the console of the car between Perry and me, we took off.

Now I know you probably don't believe that dogs burp, but believe me when I say that after eating a tray of risen unbaked yeast rolls, dogs will burp. These burps were pure Old Charter. They would have matched or beat any smell in a drunk tank at the police station. But that's not the worst of it.

Now he was beginning to let off gas and it smelled like baked rolls. May lightening strike me dead if I am not telling the truth! We endured this for the entire trip to Karen's, thankful she didn't live any further away than she did.

Once Jasper was firmly placed in my sister's garage with the door locked, we finally sat down to enjoy our first Thanksgiving meal of the day. The dog was the topic of conversation all morning long and everyone made trips to the garage to witness my drunken dog, each returning with a tale of Jasper's latest endeavor to walk without running into something.

Of course, as the old adage goes, "what goes in, must come out" and Jasper was no exception. Granted, if it had been me that had eaten 12 risen, unbaked yeast rolls, you might as well have put a concrete block up my behind, but alas a dog's digestive system is quite different from yours or mine. I discovered this was a mixed blessing when we prepared to leave Karen's house.

Having discovered his "packages" on the garage floor, we loaded him up in the car so we could hose down the floor. This was another naive decision on our part. The blast of water from the hose hit the poop on the floor, and the poop on the floor withstood the blast from the hose. It was like Portland cement beginning to set up and cure.

We finally tried to remove it with a shovel. I (obviously no one else was going to offer their services) had to get on my hands and knees with a coarse brush to get the remnants off of the floor. And as if this wasn't degrading enough, the darn dog in his drunken state had walked through the poop and left paw prints all over the garage floor that had to be brushed, too.

Well, by this time the dog was sobering up nicely so we took him home and dropped him off before we left for our second Thanksgiving dinner at Perry's sister's house. I am happy to report that as of today (Monday) the dog is back to normal both in size and temperament. He has had a bath and is no longer tricolor. None the worse for wear ... I presume.

I am also happy to report that just this evening I found 2 risen unbaked yeast rolls hidden inside my closet door.

It appears he must have come to his senses after eating 10 of them but decided hiding 2 of them for later would not be a bad idea. Now, I'm doing research on the computer as to: "How to clean unbaked dough from the carpet."

Posted by Ane Mulligan at 5:19 PM | 2 comments Links to this post    
Labels: dogs, drunk dog, funniest story, pets

Denver – The tenth annual Christy Awards presentation was held Saturday evening, July 11, 2009, at the Denver Marriott City Center, in advance of the International Christian Retail Show. The dessert reception featured a keynote address by best-selling author and speaker Richard Foster, who presented a talk entitles "The Spiritual Formation of the Writer." Christy Advisory Board member Susan Brower of Zondervan emceed the event. To involve Christian fans not able to attend the event in person, a liveblog of the event was provided online, and an archive of the event can be accessed at http://www.ChristyAwards.com.

The Christy Awards honor the best in Christian fiction in nine categories. The Christy Awards Advisory Board is pleased to announce the winners of the 2009 Christy Awards.

Contemporary Romance
Beyond the Night
by Marlo Schalesky
WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing

Contemporary Series
You Had Me at Good-bye
by Tracey Bateman
FaithWords

Contemporary Standalone
Dogwood
by Chris Fabry
Tyndale House Publishers

First Novel
Blue Hole Back Home
by Joy Jordan-Lake
David C. Cook

Historical
Until We Reach Home
by Lynn Austin
Bethany House Publishers, a division of Baker Publishing Group

Historical Romance
From a Distance
by Tamara Alexander
Bethany House Publishers, a division of Baker Publishing Group

Suspense
The Rook
by Steven James
Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group

Visionary
Vanish
by Tom Pawlik
Tyndale House Publishers

Young Adult
I Have Seen Him in the Watchfires
by Cathy Gohlke
Moody Publishers

Posted by Ane Mulligan at 11:33 AM | 0 comments Links to this post    
Labels: Award Winners, Christian fiction, Christy Awards

Randy Ingermanson is the author of six novels, which include the Christy award-winning “City of God” and “Oxygen” series. After receiving a doctorate in theoretical physics from the University of California Berkeley, Randy began to write character-oriented thrillers about "life at the intersection of Faith Avenue and Science Boulevard." He is particularly interested in the history of early Christianity and has published three time-travel novels set in first-century Jerusalem. Randy has also published several academic articles on the “Jesus Family Tomb,” which have generated widespread interest among Biblical scholars. He currently serves as author and publisher of Advanced Fiction Writing, the world's largest electronic magazine on how to write fiction. Randy and his wife have three daughters and reside in southern Washington. For more information, please visit his website.

Creating: Choosing Your Creative Style

There's an old saying in fiction writing: "Get it written, then get it right."

Fact is there's a huge difference between the creative phase (getting it written) and the editing phase (getting it right). If you try to edit yourself while you're being creative, you're going to give yourself a nasty case of writer's block.

So the old saying is great advice. Unfortunately, it's not enough.

How, exactly, are you supposed to "get it written?"

Should you just slam out that first draft without any planning, or should you plan it carefully and then slam it out?

If you want to start a war at a writing conference, ask this question and then put on your flameproof cloak.

Different writers will make wildly different claims on how best to write that dreaded first draft.
I've been thinking about this for many years, first as a clueless wannabe novelist, later as a published author, and most recently as a writing teacher. My well-known "Snowflake method" is one answer to the question of how you write a first draft. But it's not the only answer, and it's not the only right answer.

The more I've thought about it, the more I've come to see that different people are wired differently. Different people use different "creative styles" to produce their first drafts.

And that's OK.

I don't think anyone knows all the different possible "creative styles" that writers use. There's a spectrum, depending on how much planning a writer puts in up front. Normally, the more planning before the first draft, the less editing after it.

At one end of the spectrum is the "Seat Of The Pants" writer, commonly called the "SOTP" writer or sometimes the "pantser."

SOTP writers typically just start writing, often with no clear idea where they're going, who their characters are, or what's going to happen. The act of writing makes the story unfold. It's like driving through fog with the headlights showing only a few feet ahead. This is exciting to SOTPs, often excruciatingly scary.

But it works. Stephen King writes this way, as do many other famous novelists. If you write the SOTP way, you're in good company.

On the other end of the spectrum is the outliner, who writes a meticulous, detailed synopsis of the story before writing the first draft. Outliners don't have a cool acronym, nor do they have the sexy, stubble-chinned image of the SOTP. Outliners are sometimes regarded as emotionless accountants who want to keep chewing their gum long after all the sugar is chewed out of it.

But outlining also works. Robert Ludlum was a well-known outliner, with some of his novels requiring 150 pages of synopsis. Many excellent novelists find it impossible to work without a very long synopsis. If you're an outliner, you've got some great compatriots.

These aren't the only options, of course. Another approach is a modification of the SOTP creative style. I call this the "Edit As You Go" creative style, because the writer first writes a page or two, or even a whole scene, seat-of-the-pants. Then, instead of continuing on with the story, the writer edits the page or scene several times. I've heard of writers who edit it 20 or 30 times before moving on. By the time the page or the scene is done, it's in final form, ready for the editor.

"Editing As You Go" works. Dean Koontz writes this way. If you edit as you go, you're among stars. Just be sure that you aren't mixing the creative phase with the editing phase. Write first; then edit.

I'm known around the world as "the Snowflake Guy" because of a fourth creative style, which I call the Snowflake method. (Google it if you want all the details.) In the Snowflake method, you do quite a bit of planning up front, both with your characters and with your plot, but the longest synopsis you ever produce is only four pages. You leave the details of the story unexplored, so your first draft will have some surprises for you.

The Snowflake method works. Every novel I've written has used some elements of the Snowflake. I hear from writers all the time who find that the Snowflake works for them.

I'm currently writing a book titled WRITING FICTION FOR DUMMIES, in which I cover these creative styles in more detail. Early in the planning process for the book, my editor asked me to make it a little clearer which style is "the right one."

I'm afraid I shocked my editor a bit. I told her there isn't any such thing as "the one right way to write your first draft." The best way for one writer will be the worst way for another writer.
I've met writers who thanked me effusively for the Snowflake method, which gave them hope after years of struggle. I've met other writers who told me that the Snowflake almost wrecked their story.

The same is true of ANY of the common creative styles. For some writers, SOTP is salvation. For others, it's damnation. Ditto for editing-as-you-go and for outlining.

The important thing is to find the best way for you. Your best creative style may be one of those I've named, or it may be some mix of them. That's for you to find out.

When you find the right way for you, stick with it. There really is one best way for you. Just don't assume that it's also the one best way for everyone else.

Visit Randy's Advanced Fiction Writing Blog for new tips.

Posted by Ane Mulligan at 2:00 PM | 1 comments Links to this post    
Labels: creativity, plotting, Randy Ingermanson, snowflake guy, writing styles, Writing tips

Are you unsure if you should join ACFW? Are you a writer who joined but is unsure this is where you belong?

We sometimes hear questions like these. You might find your own concern among them.

I'm not published yet. Do I belong in ACFW?

MOST of our members are unpublished, but are working TOWARD publication. You're welcomed with open arms. Here you will find training in fiction writing and information about the Christian fiction industry that will help you reach the Lord's goals for your writing. Note that His goals may or may not include publication, but we will work with you, encourage you, and pray for you while you find out.

I write non-fiction exclusively. Do I belong in ACFW?

Although some of our members write both fiction and non-fiction, almost everything ACFW does is geared toward the novelist and the Christian fiction market. Good writing principles carry over into both "camps," and using fiction techniques brings new life to non-fiction. But unless you write fiction, you may find it more beneficial to join one of the organizations that addresses non-fiction writing, publishing, and markets. Whatever you decide, you'll want to note that discussion on the loop needs to stay focused on fiction writing topics.

I just want to promote my book here. Do I belong in ACFW?

Our primary objectives are training writers, educating them in Christian fiction, and serving as an advocate for the Christian fiction industry. Promotion of our authors is not a key function but a great byproduct of the relationships made within ACFW. The connections you make here--as well as the opportunities for enlisting book reviewers and getting your book considered for New Releases and our Author lists on the website--will help get the word out to other authors and the readers who frequent our website. But your strongest promotional endeavors will come from other sources than ACFW. However, education ABOUT promotion and marketing is one of our strong suits. Sharing information about promotional opportunities happens all the time within ACFW.

I'm self-published. Do I belong in ACFW?

ACFW's mission and vision are to prepare novelists for success in traditional publishing, helping our members strive for excellence in the craft and develop skills that will help their books attract the attention of CBA publishers. Other groups may focus more on self-publication goals. From the beginning, ACFW has sought to prepare authors and their books for acceptance by CBA publishers. We aren't tailored to guide writers to well-respected self-publishers or to help promote self-published books. Self-publishing has a different dynamic, especially in the world of fiction. But there are still ways in which you may benefit greatly from ACFW membership. As you take advantage of the wealth of knowledge and information in our craft-training classes, our website archives, and our main loop, you will grow in your craft and become even more skilled at the kind of writing the Lord has designed for you, no matter what type of publication outreach He has in mind specifically for you.

I'm multi-published and have a strong marketing team, a great agent, and more contracts than I can manage. Do I belong in ACFW?

Do you need to know that other writers understand your challenges? Do you appreciate the encouragement of those who are blessed by what you write? If you are multi-published, you no doubt have learned the secret--that a writer can never stop learning. Just as a prolific author always is digging into (or back into) a craft classic, he or she can benefit from fresh ways of looking at subjects like POV, deepening emotion, writer's block, character motivations... Or you may find your greatest joy in ACFW membership is the opportunity to help other writers over the hurdles you conquered long ago, or in some aspect of mentoring through your knowledgeable answers to the main loop. You'll find both camaraderie with other multi-published authors and plenty of opportunity to assist the yet-to-be-published in their writing journey.

ACFW is always looking to expand and enhance what we offer to both the newcomer and the veteran novelist. We understand that we can't meet every need, nor can we fully focus on every aspect of fiction that deserves attention. But we're working very hard to show that if you're serious about writing great novels, this is where you belong!

Posted by Ane Mulligan at 2:46 PM | 2 comments Links to this post    
Labels: Christian writers, professional groups, writing groups

A lot of talk goes around the writing loops about the rules or guidelines of good writing. A lot of new writers see multipublished authors break them. And they do. But when they do, it's done purposely and with panache. Ya gotta know the basics first.

Posted by Ane Mulligan at 10:16 PM | 2 comments Links to this post    
Labels: Learn to Write, Writing Rules, Writing tips

Keith Mills

Posted by Ane Mulligan at 5:26 PM | 0 comments Links to this post    

Today I received the best Christmas present I've ever gotten! My critique partner and fellow editor of Novel Journey, Jessica Dotta, captured my MUSE in a bottle and sent her to me.

Now I'll always know where to find her.

This has to be the most creative gift for a writer I've ever seen. Thank you so much, Jess.

Even Shadrach had fun with the box you sent it in.

Posted by Ane Mulligan at 12:35 PM | 2 comments Links to this post    
Labels: Christmas gift, Writer's muse

Jessica Neale's faith is lost the day of her husband's death, and with it, her belief in love. In a journey to find peace, she encounters a gentle, green-eyed stranger who leads her to the ruins of the medieval castle, Gallimore.

On his way to battle, Colwyn Haukswyrth, knight of Gallimore, comes face to face with a storm the likes of which he's never seen, and a woman in the midst of it who claims to live centuries in the future. The Lady Jessica of Neale is an irksome, provoking bit of woman to be sure. And she's about to turn his beliefs on end. The product of a family rooted in pain and evil, Colwyn has focused on naught but himself-until Jessica.

To a mysterious prophecy stitched on a tapestry, through the invasion of Gallimore itself, Colwyn and Jessica are bound together by a lesson in forgiveness and love-a bond that might be strong enough to survive the grave.

Reviews and Other Information:

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The Shape of Mercy
By Susan Meissner
Women's fiction
Published by WaterBrook
ISBN 978-1-4000-7456-3

Back Cover:
Leaving a life of privilege to strike out on her own, Lauren Durough breaks with her family's expectations and takes a part-time job from eighty-three-year-old librarian Abigail Boyles. The mysterious employer asks Lauren to transcribe the journal entries of her ancestor Mercy Hayworth, a victim of the Salem witch trials.

Immediately, Lauren finds herself drawn to this girl who lived and died four centuries ago. As the fervor around the witch accusations increases, Mercy becomes trapped, unable it fight the overwhelming influence of snap judgments and superstitions. Lauren realizes that the secrets of Mercy's story extend beyond the pages of her diary, living on in the mysterious, embittered Abigail.

The strength of her affinity with Mercy forces Lauren to take a startling new look at her own life, including her relationships to Abigail, her college roommate, and a young man named Raul. But on the way to truth, will Lauren find herself playing the helpless defendant or the misguided judge? Can she break free from her own perceptions and see who she really is?

Review:
Susan Meissner at her best—The Shape of Mercy is a unique and captivating story where past and present intersect. Masterfully drawn, the compelling characters will live on in your heart long after you close the book.

Though I knew Mercy's sad end going in, I was as drawn into her life as Lauren, wondering what Mercy had done to be accused of witchcraft. Her only crime was being a little different and having a rival in love with the same young man. In an age where superstition grew to hysteria, all it took was an accusation to seal Mercy's fate.

Meissner is brilliant at pacing, and Lauren's story unfolded bit by bit, making it difficult to put down. It's hard to say which character was my favorite, and the surprising ending crowned a memorable read. I give The Shape of Mercy my highest recommendation. It's a five-star read.

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Kristy Dykes
August 2, 1951 - July 21, 2008

I met Kristy for the first time in Nashville at an ACFW conference. Both being redheads, we bonded as friends. Over the past few years, we've been blog buddies and email pals.

Kristy encouraged me in my writing so much. I'll miss her enthusiasm and her pizzazz. All her emails always opened with: Greetings from sunny Florida. That sunshine came from her own personality. When she was diagnosed with brain cancer, she continued to praise God. She never quit. She laughed every day. When she grew weaker, her husband still reported smiles and praise for God.

Kristy leaves a tremendous testimony behind her. More than anything else, she showed us how to die. With praise on her lips, she flew into our Father's arms, and as her hero husband said, she's now dancing on streets of gold.

Please visit Kristy's blog, Christian Love Stories, and leave a comment for her family, husband Milton and daughters Julie and Jennifer and the grands. Then spend some time reading the posts from before she was diagnosed.

While Kristy showed us how to die, she also showed us how to live and love.

I'll miss you, my redheaded friend. Save me a place next to you.

Posted by Ane Mulligan at 4:48 PM | 0 comments Links to this post    

Most definitely! While I'd written and published scripts, when I began writing novels I didn't have a support system. I was all alone—just me and my computer, alone at my desk, alone in my room. No one to talk to about writing. No one to share with. Did I mention I was alone?

Then in 2004, I received an email about a writer's conference. We (hubby and I) decided I should go. I arrived early and my room wasn't ready, so I plopped down on a sofa in the lobby next to another attendee, Gina Holmes. She'd come for the conference, too, and over the course of the conference, we ran into each other a lot.

I won't tell you what she thought of me (you'll have to ask her about that), but by the end of the conference, she'd decided I wasn't certifiable and we'd become friends. We were at about the same level of writing, what Randy Ingermanson calls Freshman.

I invited her to join the crit group I belonged to. Another writer, Jessica Dotta, joined around the same time. The three of us hit it off right from the start. The following year, Jessica joined us for a conference. It was about that time we formed our own private online crit group.

But Gina and Jess weren't the only people I met at that conference who've had a major impact on my writing life. Deb Raney has been a mentor and an encourager to me from the first day we met in her class. She also recommended we join ACFW. This was the third divine appointment. I joined as soon as I got home, and the next conference I attended was ACFW's in Nashville, 2005.

That was the best move for me in my writing. I've learned so much, but even more, I've gained lifelong friends. Only God could have brought Gina and Jessica and me together in a divine appointment. They're young enough to be my daughters, proof that God has a sense of humor.

This year, I was privileged to be on the faculty at another conference. And guess what? Yep ... another divine appointment. I spent time with a wonderful agent I'd gotten to know through ACFW, and signed with her.

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Eva Marie Everson (far right) talked Gina and me into helping her pull a surprise on Yvonne Lehman, who is the conference director. We didn't know it would involve learning the Cha-cha Slide in abotu two minutes. I did not perform gracegully. It turned funky, but we sure had a blast.

Her I am with my new agent, Janet Benrey of Benrey Literary, and her husband Ron. I'm delighted to have signed with Janet!

Deborah Raney and Brandilyn Collins have this friendly competition going on who can scare whom the most. I was enlisted when Brandilyn found out I would be at Ridgecrest when Deb was. And so, Mr. Hissie (a rubber snake seen by Deb's hand) hitched a ride with me.

I hid him on Deb's chair in the room where we held appointments. Only Deb's sppointment had arrived, and Deb pulled her chair out keeping eye contact with the woman instead of looking down as I had planned.

Deb sat on poor Mr, Hissie. I had my camera poised, ready to capture the moment she began to scream. I think she's on to you, Brandilyn. She chatted for a moment or two before she realized her chair wasn't smooth. Ah well, we'll try again in September.

By Wednesday night, we were all giddy. The elbow belongs to our good friend Cindy Sproles, who took second place in the contest for unpublished novels.

Cindy, in her excitment on Thursday (or perhaps it was the result of giddiness), tried to catch a wayward Gaitherite barehanded. It didn't work. But she's on the mend.

Here's Gina with DiAnn Mills and Yvonne Lehman.

Ann Tatlock connected with a cousin she hadn't met before. What fun for both!

I'm a lexophile - a lover of words and their sometimes dual meanings.

1. A bicycle can't stand alone; it is two tired.

2. A will is a dead giveaway

3. Time flies like an arrow; fruit flies like a banana.

4. A backward poet writes inverse.

5. In a democracy it's your vote that counts; in feudalism, it's your Count that votes.

6. A chicken crossing the road: poultry in motion.

7. If you don't pay your exorcist you can get repossessed.

8. With her marriage she got a new name and a dress.

9. Show me a piano falling down a mine shaft and I'll show you A-flat miner.

10. When a clock is hungry it goes back four seconds.

11. The guy who fell onto an upholstery machine was fully recovered.

12. A grenade fell onto a kitchen floor in France, resulted in linoleum Blown apart.

13. You are stuck with your debt if you can't budge it.

14. Local Area Network in Australia : The LAN down under.

15. He broke into song because he couldn't find the key.

16. A calendar's days are numbered.

17. A lot of money is tainted: 'Taint yours, and 'taint mine.

18. A boiled egg is hard to beat.

19. He had a photographic memory which was never developed.

20. A plateau is a high form of flattery.

21. A short fortuneteller who escaped from prison: a small medium at large.

22. Those who get too big for their britches will be exposed in the end.

23. When you've seen one shopping center you've seen a mall.

24. If you jump off a Paris bridge, you are in Seine.

25. When she saw her first strands of gray hair, she thought she'd dye.

Posted by Ane Mulligan at 2:59 PM | 1 comments Links to this post    

Posted by Ane Mulligan at 5:36 PM | 2 comments Links to this post    

Another of my critique partners debuts!!!

Posted by Ane Mulligan at 4:31 PM | 1 comments Links to this post    

Posted by Ane Mulligan at 5:34 PM | 2 comments Links to this post