NOTE FROM EVA MARIE EVERSON

LOOKING AHEAD FROM EVA MARIE I received a bit of interesting news today. According to an email from Billie Wilson, our illustrious leader at Florida Christian Writers Conference, I have two registrants already signed up for my Fiction Mentoring Track. I'm doubly excited.   For one, I love the Fiction Mentoring Track because it's about getting "in there" with "both hands" and helping other writers. It's about more than just my ideas or my so-called expert opinion. It's about Christian writers learning and growing together. It's about forming bonds. It's about one day seeing a book on a shelf that you didn't write and saying, "I had a hand in that" and being truly proud of and for the author.       But the doubly comes because, after last year's Fiction Mentoring Track, we learned that there is much to say and much to do and the hours we were given were not enough. So, I groveled at Billie's feet and she graciously gave us more. YES! (I didn't really grovel...) So then, what do we do in this Fiction Mentoring Track and who is qualified to sign up for them? Question one:  Well, for one we sit around and nibble on little squares of chocolate. But more importantly, we work on the basics of fiction and those all-important first pages, the contract-winning proposal, dialogue, character arcs and plot lines. This track is about making words sing! About making them jump off the pages and right into the reader's heart. This is about finding what works and making it work harder and finding what doesn't work and editing it to pieces.  And, again, it's about doing it as a team. Question two: who is qualified to sign up (real question: Are you qualified to sign up?).  If this is your very first writers conference, if you are getting your feet wet in this wonderful world of the pen (or keyboard), then by all means you do not want to venture in. There are a host of classes and workshops prepared just for you. But if you've been at this long enough to feel ready, if you've written a good chunk of your manuscript and you want to see if it's set to meet the eye of an editor, if your manuscript has already met the eye of an editor and they'd like to see if again after you do a little self-editing, if you think you are ready for the gruesome task of self-editing, if you think it's time to move closer to publication but feel the work needs a little more polish ... well then! You are not only qualified, you are just who we are looking for for the Fiction Mentoring Class. Just know that while others are sitting in a wide variety of hour-long workshops, we will be together for long periods of time, hands-on working. And writing. Later on I'll share what you will need to bring ... but in the meanwhile, if you want to join this illustrious group at FCWC 2011, just let our lovely leader know.  And I'll bring the chocolate... Eva Marie Everson Fiction Mentoring Leader FCWC 2011