I just spent at least two hours writing about the authors I’ve learned from and the places I met them, when I went on an internet journey to find their books and names and couldn’t find them. One was a huge coffee-table book I thought was about the contributions of African Americans that cost $50.00 and got presented to us by John Sherrill in the 1990’s in Syracuse, NY. I checked Google, Amazon.com, and a coffee-table antique booksellers site and none had that book referenced. Maybe he brought someone else’s book that he contributed to, I don’t know. I remember thinking that $50.00 for a huge book of pictures would be a hard sell when most hard cover books sold for a lot less than that back then. It was a beautiful book and he obviously took pride in it.
He was elderly at the time and he spoke with concern over the monopolization of the media taking place. Most of the conservative-voiced news outlets were being purchased by liberal-voiced owners at an alarming rate to him, including television and print purveyors.
My husband is busy watching shows on Netflix or YouTube about eating a plant-based diet for health and vitality. A friend told me today that her sister is not responding to chemo-therapy for her cancer and she’s come out of a three-year remission. She’s trying a new chemo with hopes that that one will work for her. As my husband listened to “Engine2Recipes” the man said something like, “Phytochemicals in plants are like fire extinguishers for the body within all the different colors of fruits and vegetables going after unhealthy cells.”
This healthy-looking man tells householders that oil is not necessary for eating and he shows delicious meals made without excess salt and fats. He goes through their pantries to read labels on foods and then takes them to the grocery store for alternate choices.
Since my attention is being grabbed, I’m just going to list some people I really appreciate for sharing their knowledge and encouragement for authors. They are: Marlene Bagnull, whom I met at my first conference in Upstate, NY. I went through her book, Write His Answer, which is a Bible study for writers. On her website, www.writehisanswer.com/bookstore/ she sells a third edition which came out in 2014.
Davis Bunn was the keynote speaker at Montrose Christian Writers Conference in Montrose, PA not far from Binghamton, NY. He told us to keep working on our craft and that we beginning writers are no different than he was when he got started. I’ve read most of his books, from historical novels to suspense novels to nostalgic works to current events novels. He is a prolific writer and his wife joined him after some years as a co-author.
Elaine Miller offered classes at Montrose as well over the years; she has published books on marriage that I purchased and related to. She’s an accomplished speaker and frankly, she motivates me to listen to what’s being taught and then act on it.
David Fessenden is an agent with tons of experience as a writer and editor that I met at Montrose. His book Writing the Christian Non-fiction Book: Concept to Contract, published by SonFire Media, LLC; Galax, VA and copyrighted in 2011 is one of the best I’ve read. I marked it up and read it more than once. It tells the nitty-gritty stuff that I need to hear: one of which is re-write even if you need to do it six or seven times.
Marsha Hubler took over the reins of director at Montrose Christian Writers Conference from Patti Souder. I’ve taken classes from Marsha and gleaned insights from Patti that blessed me big time. I’m not able to attend every year, but they strive for a family atmosphere, in my opinion and reach that goal.
Ah, I need to close. All of these writers/teachers have a heart to reach people for Jesus. I’ve been to secular conferences in Buffalo, NY and Syracuse, NY that taught me a lot about writing. I just like the spiritual aspect, so I tend to attend Christian conferences when I can. I’ve gone to two or three American Christian Writers events in Upstate, NY with Reg Forder as director. They helped a ton, as well. I became a member of their association years ago and continue to do so. I heard Dr. Dennis Hensley speak there and agent Steve Laube and other professional teachers. I’ve purchased quite a few of Dr. Hensley’s titles.
I met Holly Miller at Montrose after I purchased her book, How to Earn More than Pennies for Your Thoughts: A Christian Writer’s Guidebook. It’s copyrighted in 1990, and published by Warner Press, Inc.; Anderson, IN. It’s got valid advice for today’s authors.
Maybe I can continue to research my earlier blog article and sell it to a publication. That would make my time not wasted.
God bless you!
Write Light 