With the encouragement and pressing of my counselor and dear friend, I gathered up my courage and resources and flew across the country to Nashville, Tennessee to attend the American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW) Conference.
To be honest, I had no idea what I was getting into. I think I had some vague idea of workshops/lectures about how to write (in a general sort of way; I hadn't thought what exactly they'd be teaching) and meeting other writers who are working on their stories. Also, though I didn't realize till I got there, I think I had assumed that a good number, if not most, of them would be fantasy writers like myself. Granted, this latter assumption probably came because most of my good friends are fantasy writers and/or enthusiasts so I thought the rest of the world was the same.
Boy was I in for a surprise.
Now to debunk all the assumptions I held coming in:
1) "workshops/lectures about how to write": OK this one wasn't actually wrong. Most of the sessions I went to were about how to create believable characters, compelling stories, realistic settings, and tasteful presentation. However, there were also lots of things like points of view (called POV and referring to whose view/head you're telling from) and platform (how visible you are, mostly via social media, to people not family and friends) that I hadn't really considered or even thought of. Also, Ted Dekker, the key note speaker, imparted some fantastic advice about writing/story sources, that the greatest stories are those about transformation and come from a place of self-discovery, learning a truth or lesson with and through the characters. By the end of the weekend, my head swam with everything I'd learned and wanted to implement. We'll see how I do in integrating them.
2) "meeting other writers who are working on their stories": Again, not entirely untrue. Everyone that I met was working on something. However, what I hadn't expected was for many to already have finished one if not several novels and a good number of the authors already published. I had thought that many would be like me, coming to this conference with very little finished and desirous of learning how to finish well. It was very humbling, and a bit intimidating, to meet people who are so much further along in the writing process than I. One thing I must say though is that everyone I met was encouraging and friendly to the utmost. While I felt a bit inadequate being there in terms of my writing, I found it comforting to be surrounded by so many who hoped, even in a casual way, for my success out of a sense camaraderie.
3) "that a good number, if not most, of them would be fantasy writers": This was probably the most erroneous of everything I thought. Most of the people I met wrote romance in some form (contemporary, historical, suspense, high-adventure). In some ways, I suppose this shouldn't have surprised me since romance is apparently the most popular genre because everyone wants love. In reality, the fantasy/sci-fy/paranormal crowd (called speculative apparently) is one of the smallest and less desireable than many of the other genres to publishers and agents. However, I was still able to meet several other fantasy writers who were lovely and encouraging.
Overall, an amazing adventure that I am very glad I took. I have returned with so many new tricks to try and processes to practice.
However, I have also returned with questions. Seeing all the complications of the publishing world and the dedication that many of the others around me possessed, it made me look at my own desire for writing. Do I want to pursue this more intentionally or allow it to stay as it is, an occasionally dabbled-in hobby? But not only was my writing passion questioned but even my relationship with God. Throughout the conference, people talked about how the Holy Spirit encouraged their writing or how their stories came out of their searches into problems with God's help. It made me face the fact that not only is my writing largely done on my own strength but also most of the rest of my life. While I have been learning to live in grace over the last year and a half, I still have well-ingrained habits of trying to do things on my own that must go if I am to grow not only as a follower of Jesus but also as a writer. So lots to ponder.
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