What a great conference! I only got to three workshops, one of which I had to miss much of the instruction, but the final one – a class on Making Unsympathetic Characters Sympathetic and Unforgettable by Tosca Lee was my favorite. She said things about characterization that went beyond the character on the page to dig deep into our own joys and fears and doubts and what if questions. Great class! And what fun to finally get to meet Tosca in person!
Robin Jones Gunn was our keynote speaker this year, and can she ever tell a story! But beyond story, she spoke to my heart. This conference wasn’t about writing for me. It was about connecting with people, connecting people to other people, but most of all listening to what God has for me – what He’s trying to teach me. I have much to ponder.
The Revell/Bethany House dinner was fabulous! The food was great, and I count myself blessed to be able to work with some of the best people in the industry. You can see my pictures of some of them on my FaceBook Page in my ACFW 2013 Conference Photo Album.
The Books and Such breakfast was equally fun, especially after we had eaten and everyone started taking pictures. One of the photos got picture bombed by our keynote speaker. But I’ll let you take a look at the album if you want to find which one.
The Awards Banquet was enjoyable, though unfortunately I didn’t feel so great that night. Frank Peretti was given a Lifetime Achievement Award and afterward there was a line of authors wanting to have their picture taken with him. I wanted to talk to him, just to tell him how much I appreciated a speech he’d given that I had on tape (remember those?) and our family had listened to over and over again called “God’s Way or My Way?” But…I hate interrupting people, and I didn’t feel good enough to stand in line. (I also saw him sitting at Starbucks earlier that day. I didn’t even know he was there until then.)
The final morning of checkout, my roommate, Kathy Rouser, another Michigan writer, Peggy Wigaru, and I had breakfast with Cindy Thomson (Grace’s Pictures). Then we were off, anxious to get home. It was a long drive, and my roommate’s GPS and my phone’s GPS sometimes argued with each other, but they managed not to get us lost.
And now I am home. Shadow was happy to see me. Tiger acted as if I had offended him by leaving for five days. I am still waiting for him to truly warm up. Apparently, people should never have any adventures. They should just stay in the house and keep the kitties safe. (It didn’t help his attitude that Randy was often running off to do this or that and not here to snuggle him either.)
Back to Rachel’s page proofs. And Tiger just hopped onto my lap. He forgives everything.
Selah~
