Congratulations
…to Inspire Writer Keli Gwyn for her outstanding achievement in the National Excellence in Romance Fiction Awards!
Keli’s debut novel, A Bride Opens Shop in El Dorado, California was awarded first place in the Inspirational Romance category and second place in the Best First Book category.
Chris will be on hand to sign your copies of The Prisoner of Carrot Castle. You’ll also have the opportunity to participate in all the day’s events:
Farm Stand
Purchase fresh, local, organic vegetables & fruit
Cooking Classes & Workshops
Farm Tours & Nature Walks
Kid’s Garden Activities
Face Painting & Photo Booth
Community Education Tables
Local Arts & Crafts
Live Music: Mind X Quartet & More!
Morning Food, Snacks & Lunch
Learn About:
American River’s Native Plants
Gardening • Composting
Raising Chickens
Beekeeping • Cooking
Native Edibles • More
To celebrate the launch of the book in print, the iPad version is FREE for the first time ever! Hurry! FREE offer is good from (May 16-19)
I’m delighted to announce that Inspire Christian Writers is expanding to Sonoma County with a brand new group in Santa Rosa!
If you’re looking for a Christian writers group to provide encouragement, prayer support, feedback and fellowship, join us on Saturday, May 11, for an informational meeting with Christy Hoss, our newest group leader. Jennifer Hamilton and I will both be on hand to answer your questions and get the new group off to a great start.
Meet with us at 10 am at Starbucks, 860 Hopper Ave in Santa Rosa.
For more information about this group, contact Christy at Christy.Hoss@gmail.com
If you have questions about joining Inspire Christian Writers, contact JenniferHamilton@InspireWriters.com
The whole earth will be filled with the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea (Hab. 2:14). Will you write words, inspired by the Holy Spirit, that cause the hearts of the nations to burn for Jesus? Join us for three days of training, impartation, worship and encouragement as we answer the call to penetrate every domain of society with the Word of truth.
Dates: June 5-7, 2013
Place: Bethel Church, 933 College View Drive, Redding, CA
For more information and to register, please see: http://www.ibethel.org/events/2012/12/writing-unto-the-glory-933-college-view-dr-redding-ca-96003
On Wednesday, April 10 at 6pm (CA time) we’ll host a Tweet Chat with Jenny Lundquist.
You can participate on Twitter by:
1. Type #InspireChat in the search line in Twitter. You’ll see the tweets from our chat streaming.
2. Join in by commenting or asking questions. Be sure to use the #InspireChat hashtag each time you tweet.
3. Don’t hold back, we’ll be giving away a copy of Plastic Polly three lucky participants.
Plastic Polly is Jenny’s second published middle-grade novel. The story is told through the eyes of Polly Pierce as she discovers the pitfalls of popularity.
Polly Pierce likes being the second-most popular girl at Winston Academy, right after her BFF, Kelsy.
Popularity comes with special privileges, like a seat at the best table in the cafeteria and a coveted spot on the planning committee for the school’s big talent show competition, Groove It Up! And since all Polly has to do is agree with whatever Kelsy says, being popular is easy—even if kids do call her “Plastic Polly” behind her back.
But when a freak accident takes Kelsy out of the picture, Polly is suddenly in charge of the Groove It Up! committee. She’s not prepared for her new status—and neither is anyone else. Backstabbing friends, an intimidating crush, and diva demands from an injured Kelsy all threaten to derail Polly’s plans. Can she prove to everyone—and herself—that she has a personality of her own?
You’ll get a bonus entry in our give-away when you leave a comment here answering this question: What was the hardest thing about middle school for you? (We called it “Jr. High” back in the day.)
Has God given you victory over a situation or circumstance in your Christian walk? Or, do you know someone who has overcome loss, adversity, illness or other obstacles with God’s help.
Now is your opportunity to tell that story in non-fiction, short fiction or poem.
Inspire Christian Writers will publish our third annual anthology, Inspire Victory, in the Spring of 2014.
Our anthologies are written exclusively by members of Inspire Christian Writers.
We are accepting submissions between May 1 and August 1, 2013. Start writing and editing your story now. Then come back May 1, to submit your piece(s). Submissions will be accepted through this website.
1.You must be an Inspire member to submit. Not a member? You can join today on our website.
2. You may submit inspiring fiction or non-fiction manuscripts, up to 1500 words, or poetry up to sixteen lines.
3. Write from your heart—be open, transparent, and vulnerable.
4. As soon as you submit your piece using the online form, you will receive an e-mail confirming that we’ve received your manuscript.
5. Submit as many pieces as you like. You will receive two books for your published contribution.
6. The Inspire Victory editors will evaluate all incoming stories and determine which will be included in the book.
1. Choose a creative title.
2. Use a strong hook in the first sentence or paragraph.
3. Show conflict and resolution.
4. Use multiple scenes.
5. Include the five senses in your descriptions using few or no adverbs.
6. Show—don’t tell.
7. Include engaging dialogue.
8. Make the turning point clear—when the person or character changes in thought or deed.
9. Make the takeaway clear without spelling it out.
10. Offer a spiritually satisfying ending.
If you have questions about Inspire Victory, you can send them to MichelleMurray@inspirewriters.com
Today (March 5) we’ll host an #InspireChat with Shannon Dittemore on Twitter. Join us at 5pm PST. Here’s all you need to know to join the chat:
1. Add the hashtag #InspireChat to all your posts so they will show up in the chat stream and everyone can see them.
2. Find the chat stream and all the participants tweets by entering #InspireChat in the search field on Twitter. Or click on the #InspireChat in one of the tweets, this will also bring up the stream.
3. You must include the hashtag #InspireChat in all your posts so they will be visible to all participants.
4. If you’d prefer to follow the chat using TweetChat.com, you can enter #InspireChat in the search field when you 
begin, then it will automatically add #InspireChat to each of your posts.
I’ll start with a few questions and then invite you to ask Shannon yours.
We will be giving away a copy of Broken Wings to TWO lucky #InspireChat participants. Be sure to join the fun!
Enter by commenting below or chiming into our #InspireChat.
For three days only, you can save $50 when you sign up to attend the 2013 Christian Writers Seminar.
Sign up between Friday, February 15th, and Sunday, February 17th. When you mention this Inspire blog post, registration is only $79.00. That’s a $50.00 savings off the price of registration at the door!
Contact Jon Drury at jdrury@redwoodchapel.org to register for this special price, no later than 5pm on Sunday, February 17th.
If you’ve already registered for the conference, just mention this post to Jon and you’ll receive a $20.00 refund.
“The Redwood Chapel Christian Writers Seminar is one of the first places where I felt I belonged. I found encouragement, inspiration, and a sense of community, along with top-notch writing instruction at a very affordable price.” Susy Flory, New York Times bestselling author of Thunder Dog.
“I never expected God to use a local writer’s seminar to give me courage to test my wings and fly into the next season of my writing career. The critiques and workshops equipped me to sharpen my writing and taught me more about the publishing industry.” Xochi Dixon, Writer, speaker and Bible study teacher.
Inspire Christian Writers started ten years ago around my dining room table. Today there are over 100 of us and we’ve outgrown our Northern California roots, with members in several states.
All this growth has been exciting, fun, and honestly, a bit overwhelming. When Inspire began, I never imagined it would grow beyond a small group of writers working together to improve our craft and pursue publication.
Last year, serious growing pains set in. I’ve been unable to keep up with the demands on my time as a leader.
I enlisted the help of Cheri Douglas, a consultant who facilitates change management and advises small businesses and government departments on team building and strategic planning.
Together with a group of dedicated Inspire members, we created a strategic plan to help us manage Inspire’s future. With this plan in place, we’ll be better equipped to accomplish our mission.
Over the next few weeks, I’ll be sharing that plan with you. For today, I’m unveiling our new and improved mission statement:
Inspire Christian Writers exists to provide a network of support, encouragement, education, and spiritual growth for Christian writers. Our writers minister biblical truths with excellence, clarity, and love, to transform lives and the publishing industry.
The next few blog posts will introduce the exciting things we’re putting into place to fulfill that mission.
Today, Focus on the Family will air an interview with Inspire writer Joanne Kraft. Here’s a photo of John Fuller, Joanne, and Jim Daly in the studio after recording the show.
Joanne is a long-time listener (and can I say a huge fan?) of Focus on the Family. You’ll learn more about her passion for their ministry on her blog.
She’s also passionate about helping moms break the bondage of busyness and create homes where Christ is the center. Her encouragement and exhortation come enveloped in laughter.
Be sure to tell all your busy mommy-friends about the interview so they can tune in too!
During the interview, Joanne discusses her family’s head-on collision with busyness and the 12-month radical sabbatical that changed their lives. This season in the Kraft household led to the writing of Just Too Busy, Taking Your Family on a Radical Sabbatical.
In the book, families find simple ways to guard themselves from the temptation of constant distraction.
Saturday Morning: 8:00 am
Saturday Vigil: 4:30 pm
Sunday: 7:30 am, 9:00 am, 10:45 am,
12:30 pm, 5:30 pm
Saturday Vigil: 6:15pm
Sunday: 9:00am, 7:15pm
Monday, Tuesday, Thursday & Friday: 8:30 am
© 2011 Inspire Christian Writers