You're Kidding...You Want ME to Write??? Part II

Soon after joining the writers' group, I heard about a small, local writers' conference. I hemmed and hawed, but my husband convinced me it would do wonders for my confidence.

The workshops and meetings with editors were pivotal to my future as a writer. One editor liked my writing sample and offered me an assignment in her ezine. We often chuckle about that day. She said I looked like a deer staring into the headlights of a car. Like many newbie writers, I couldn't fathom producing a devotional or article if it didn't spontaneously spring up from some inspirational moment. The devotional was the first of many short articles I did for this publication.

I eventually attended the Greater Philadelphia Christian Writers' Conference. The contacts with editors resulted in several other writing credits, including 7 devotionals for Devotions Magazine. One of my stories appeared in an anthology called, His Forever.

As a teen, I'd often read the Sunday School take-home paper, LIVE. I dreamed of someday writing an article for them. You can imagine my excitement when they accepted a short, true story.

For the last 3 years, my novel about a Christian family in the year 2025 has been my pet project, my passion, my frustration, and the focus of my writing life. I can't count the number of times I came home from a writers' conference or a workshop and re-wrote entire chapters because of some new technique I'd learned. After being told at one conference that I had a good first draft, discouragement threatened to tank the whole effort. Instead, I did a major re-write.

With many edits behind me, I've decided to seek agent representation at this year's Philadelphia Conference. My writing journey is a long road with many miles still ahead. I'll keep you posted.