All are welcome free of charge to the 8:30 am and 4:00 pm general session in the Ruesch Auditorium.
COST: Only $45
plus $15 if you are not a YMCA member
or not staying on campus
Homeschooled student: Only $33 with 25% discount
plus $15 if you are not a YMCA member
or not staying on campus
Better still register for the entire conference at 60% off
and Teens Write is included.
Email mbagnull@aol.com for a brochure.
Parents, teachers, and pastors are welcome to attend workshops
during Teens Write at the special price of $25 for one, $45 for two.
They can pay at the door or register on the Teens Write form.
9:30 – 10:15 Heroes TIM SHOEMAKER
Here’s a truth: Readers will begin reading a book because of the plot, but they keep reading because of the characters. Creating characters that live on the page as real people is imperative to writing good fiction. Readers want to live the story through the characters, and the only way to engage the reader is to learn to create authentic, real people to populate your story world. This workshop will show you how to get inside your character’s head and give him or her life on the page.
Tim Shoemaker
Author, Speaker
http://www.mikedellossobooks.com
Mike is the author of nine novels, an adjunct professor of creative writing and popular conference teacher, a husband, and a father. He is also a colon cancer survivor and healthcare worker. Born in Baltimore, Mike now resides in southern Pennsylvania with his wife and four daughters. His books include Centralia (releasing in June), The Hunted, Scream, Darlington Woods, Darkness Follows, Frantic, Fearless, A Thousand Sleepless Nights, and the novella, Rearview.
10:15 – 11:00 Oooohh, It’s Shiny!
Overwhelmed with reading endless books on how to self-edit your manuscript and then not understanding how to apply it all? In this class, we'll go over a simple, one-page list of basic editing tips that anyone can learn to polish that manuscript until it shines.
Kimberley & Kayla Woodhouse
http://kimandkaylawoodhouse.com
http://kimberleywoodhouse.com
Kimberley is a multi-published author of fiction and non-fiction. A popular speaker/teacher, she’s shared her theme of Joy Through Trials with over 150,000 people at over 1,000 venues across the country. She lives, writes, and homeschools in beautiful Colorado with her husband of more than two decades and their two awesome teens.
Seventeen-year-old Kayla’s zest for writing comes not only from her natural ability, but also from her love of the written word as witnessed by her voracious reading appetite. One of only a few dozen cases in the world, Kayla was born with HSAN (Hereditary Sensory Autonomic Neuropathy), an extremely rare nerve disorder. Unable to sweat or feel pain, she’s also been through brain surgery. In addition to being homeschooled and writing with her mom, she’s an amazing swimmer. She has given hundreds of interviews and has appeared on ABC’s Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, The Montel Williams Show, Mystery ER, Focus on the Family’s Broadcast, Chris Fabry Live!, The Hour of Power, the Harvest Show, ChooseNowRadio, and numerous other national programs. She is the co-author of No Safe Haven, her first release from B&H Publishers, and Race Against Time written with her mother, Kimberley — making her the youngest author to have a full-length novel published by a royalty paying publisher. She was asked to be one of the contributors for God (“Hearts”) Me, a girls devotional. She writes a mother-daughter column for ChooseNowMinistries with Kimberley, as well as articles for Book Fun Magazine. She has a blog focused on purity. In 2010 Kayla founded the J.O.Y. Puppet Troupe, which has since performed nation-wide for churches, schools, women’s events, and youth groups. Kayla is a gifted speaker and loves to share her love for God and writing with groups all over the country. She has a passion for purity and wishes to share God’s truth with others.
11:00 – 11:30 Dynamite Dialogue
If you don’t write dynamite dialogue readers’ brains will turn to oatmeal. When readers’ brains turn to oatmeal they go to Chinese buffets and lick the spoons in the food. Don’t let your readers become spoon-licking oatmeal brains! Write Dynamite Dialogue.
Darcie Gudger
Author
http://darciejgudger.com/
Darcie is a YA author who loves teenagers. Her debut novel, SPIN, was released in September 2014. Aside from making up stories, she is the director of the award-winning color guard program at Evergreen High School where she teaches students to throw things, catch things, and dance with them. To music. Wearing costumes. She holds a masters degree in education from the University of Colorado. Whenever she gets the chance, Darcie escapes the city with her husband and son into the pine-scented Colorado Rockies.
11:45 – 12:45 Lunch
Lunch available in Aspen Dining Hall for $10 ($6.50 if under 12 years old) or you may brown bag.
1:00 - 1:40 Your Mission . . . DIANNE BUTTS
Greetings. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to take the strategies you already know and use them to train your readers how to engage in the spiritual battles we are currently facing. Gaming has already taught you these strategies. Let us show you what they are, how they show themselves in the spiritual arena, and how to use them in your writing. This message will self-destruct in . . .
N. Paul Williams
Author
Nathan is the author of the Christian horror novel, Ripper Grimm, party-to-blame for the disastrous novella, Unpublishable: The Book Isn’t Always Better, co-founder of the Square Peg Society, and current designer of a role playing game Bible study designed to help people deal with their issues before their issues deal with them. Driven by his passion to see others know Jesus on a deeper level, he combines unconventional thinking with creative applications to share his wisdom and insights. He lives in Colorado with his beautiful wife and two precious sons.
Charlie Wolcott
Author
Charlie has a powerful testimony of overcoming trials and difficulties. He grew up with moderate physical and learning disabilities and did not have any reading comprehension until he was 12 years old. He grew up on the mission field and has a combined 22 years of missions experience. He has been a competitive fencer for 15 years. This laid the foundation for his first books, a spiritual warfare trilogy titled "The Battle Cry Saga" being released throughout 2014 and 2015 through OakTara Publishing. He is a weekly blogger for Worldview Warriors, a ministry that teaches the Biblical Worldview to teens and adults. He is also a member of the Square Peg Society. Charlie is interested in encouraging new authors to pursue the craft. He prefers action/adventure, fantasy, and other speculative fiction.
1:45 – 2:15 Panel of Authors & Editors
Get your questions answered by Susan Baganz, Dave Lambert, Rowena Kuo, Marti Pieper, Chris Richards, Kimberley & Kayla Woodhouse
2:30 - 3:15 From Here to There ALEX
Plotting can be difficult. There are many ways of figuring out how to get from the beginning to the end of the story and how to take the reader with you. No one method is best for every writer. Discover what works best for you!
J. Christine Richards
Author - www.PassingTheQuill.com
Acquisitions Editor – Lighthouse Publishing of the Carolinas
Founder, WAY – Words And Youth Writers Conferences
Chris is an author, editor, and speaker. The passion of her heart is helping other writers get published. She speaks on the craft and heart of writing at Christian and secular writers groups and conferences including the Colorado Christian Writers Conference, Write To Publish, and the Greater Philadelphia Writers Conference. Chris is an acquisitions editor with Lighthouse Publishing of the Carolinas. She is a member and past president of the South Denver American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW) Chapter, Words for the Journey Christian Writers Guild, the Castle Rock Chapter of Toastmasters, and a member of the Colorado Independent Publishers Association. She is also the founder of WAY – Words And Youth Writers Conferences for teenage writers. Chris lives in Colorado with her husband where she can be close to her children and grandchildren. She spends her time with family, writing, taking pictures, doing needlework, and enjoying the beauty of her home state.
3:15 - 3:45 Wrap Up & Closing Challenge – I Think I Can . . . I Think I Can . . . – Kim Woodhouse
Encouragement and focus tips to keep your writing train on the tracks no matter what obstacles come your way.
