On the Road by Terry Burns

Saundra and I just returned from the conference in Orange County California. It was a great conference and I enjoyed it very much. Heard some good pitches. We took the RV and made the trip out and back something of a vacation. We saw some really beautiful country in New Mexico and Arizona on the way out and in Nevada, Utah, Arizona and New Mexico on the way back. If you’ve ever seen the majesty of places like Zion National Park, Bryce Canyon National Park or Monument Valley you have to be awed by the hand of our mighty Lord.

Now we turn around this coming week to go to the Colorado Christian Writers Conference in Estes Park Colorado. It is one of our favorites and we have gone for many years.  It is very beautiful up there too and I hope to see some of you there. It is not only a time for working on your writing craft but a time to work on your faith through program, content and introspection.

The CCWC conference has always meant I couldn’t go to the Blue Ridge Mountains Conference but my clients that have attended tell me it’s a great conference too. I wish I could go this year for sure because I have five clients who are finalists in various categories of the Selah awards which will be given at the conference. I am confident in them winning of course and wish I could be there to support them. Other agents here at Hartline have clients that are finalists as well for a total of ten finalists, so we will be well represented.

We will be in the RV again on the way to Colorado as we love the pace of the trip and seeing the countryside. That and it keeps me out of airports which I genuinely hate. We’re lucky to have someone who will sit with the house and dogs and water the garden and greenhouse as well as clients who are understanding on the time requirement which gives us the time to do it.

I have attended several conferences a year starting long before I became an agent. They played a major role in my learning the craft of writing. They gave me the contacts that led to my getting published and later led me to be able to function as an agent.  They gave me the chance to spend time with others who understood the passion for writing that people in our lives do not always get. I’ve cut back on the number I go to but for years I was going to a couple of them a month.

If you aren’t making a conference or two a part of your growth as a writer you are omitting a major part of the development of your career. I hope to see you at one soon.

Anyone Going to a Conference by Linda S. Glaz

Just returned from Maranatha conference and am looking forward to some really awesome proposal submissions, and some that I think might be good but need a little work. Well, if they aren’t exceptional, why did I even asked to see them?

It’s really very simple. Because that individual put a boatload of time and energy into preparing their pitches as well as, many times, getting up the courage to make an appointment with me. (Everyone knows how mean I am…LOL) Does that give them special rights? With me, it does. I remember being on the other side of the appointment and how brutal it was.

Folks who shell out hundreds, and sometimes, thousands of dollars in order to attend a conference at least deserves a chance to have my attention for more than fifteen minutes. So, yes, I do offer everyone the opportunity to send me their proposals for a better look. And if I don’t take it? I can at the very least offer some suggestions. Then perhaps next year they will be that much more prepared. And who knows? They might find their connection.

Anyone going to a conference…deserves our best as editors and agents. And my best is offering a bit more of my time.

Back to Back Conferences by Terry Burns

So, here I am sitting here in the hotel in Albuquerque waiting for the Class Christian Writer's Conference to kick off in the morning. I blogged about this conference last week. It should be a good one. When I leave here I rush home, repack, get my materials ready and head out to the next one.



The next one would be the East Texas Christian Writer's Conference put on by East Texas Baptist University and held on their beautiful campus in Marshall, Texas. This regional conference is a great bargain to stretch your conference dollar. The actual dates are October 25th and 26th.

Information, schedule, registration information, etc all are found at the website at http://www.etbu.edu/News/CWC/

With a fine faculty and great facilities, this packed two day conference offers a great bargain. I've gone there a number of times and have thoroughly enjoyed it every year.

Meet you in Albuquerque by Terry Burns

Yup, it's that time. I followed this conference when it left Glorieta NM after many years, wnet with it when it moved to the Ghost Ranch in Abique NM for several years and will now be there as it is at the First Baptist Church in Albuquerque NM on October 17-19th.

I have quite a history with this conference and I don't just mean the length of time that I have gone. Way back when I was a fledging writer it was this conference that I went to in order to see how I could follow my leading to use my writing for the Lord. If you are interested you can see my writing testimony at my personal website at www.terryburns.net - just click on the testimony button. We anjoyed this conference so much that my wife, Saundra, and my mom both went with me for years before mom passed away. Saundra usually goes to this day but has a conflict and can't make it this year.

The conference is put on by Classservices and is under the direction of my client Linda Gilden and Gerry Wakefield. Any questions you might have you will find answered at http://classeminars.org/faq-writers-conference including how to get registered and the cost.

This is a great conference that I always enjoy attending. If you are a fledging writer looking for that first publication credit attendees work with industry pros during the course of the conference and get a chance to be in an anthology produced during the conference. This is one conference that you can walk away from as a published writer.

There will be chances to pitch agents and editors, for individual coaching, and the chance for a lot of networking with other writers and with industry professionals. So what are you waiting for? Go to that site now and come meet me in Albuquerque!

A nice regional conference by Terry Burns

If you live in the Oklahoma area a writing short course is being offered at Rose State College which is located in Midwest City (on the East side of Oklahoma City) this coming weekend. That would be September 27-29th.

Details on the conference and registration information is located at http://www.rose.edu/shortcourse and it is not too late to get in on this as they are still encouraging late registrations. The theme of the conference is "Finding your voice in the changing world of words."

I'm going to be there taking pitches from authors and doing a program on "Surviving your way to publication" and one on "Sure ways to turn off an editor or agent." The guest of honor will be bestselling author David Morrell, author of "First Blood" and creator of "Rambo."

They have a great faculty lined up including authors who will be sharing writing secrets and techniques, agents talking about the business side of writing and having one on one appointments with attendees, and editors there to talk with attendees interested in writing for their publications.

Regional conferences are a great way to stretch those career growth dollars and are a great investment. I hope to see you there.

See What's New! Traditional PowerPoint Vs Prezi by Jennifer Hudson Taylor

#presentations #workshops #conferences

If you are still creating the traditional slide shows in PowerPoint, then allow me to introduce you to a new option, Prezi, a cloud-based presentation software and storytelling tool for presenting ideas on a virtual canvas. 

Many of you give writing workshops, speak at conferences, and have businesses and other full-time jobs where you often need to provide presentations. Why not try something new?

Both PowerPoint and Prezi are tools to creating and presenting a message. We are in a transition of technology crossovers and both will have it's place among different audiences. For instance, PowerPoint is considered traditional presentation software and the format with which most people are familiar. Therefore, you might consider using it with a more traditional audience. However, Prezi is considered new and innovative by many cutting-edge, techie business owners, especially the younger generations and to them a traditional PowerPoint presentation is boring and outdated.

Differences Between PowerPoint and Prezi

1) Storage and Creation
PowerPoint files are saved and created on your own computer. Prezi files are web-based and created and stored on a cloud. You can access it from any computer with Internet access, but you can also download and save it offline.

2) Content Delivery
PowerPoint advances from slide to slide on a linear level, while Prezi is more like watching a movie. It used movement to zero in on key messages by zooming in and out, like panning a camera from one side of a large board to another side of a large board. Music and video seem to be more seamless in Prezi than PowerPoint.

3) Customization Options
PowerPoint delivers more background options, colors and fonts, while Prezi is still limited to a number of templates. I anticipate these templates and customization options to increase in quantity and styles as Prezi grows and becomes more established.

Now for Some Examples

Since you are all familiar with PowerPoint slides, I am only providing examples of Prezi presentations in this post. You will need to allow each prezi to load. There is a little circle in the bottom left corner that will stop spinning when it is ready. Click the arrow buttons at the bottom to advance or move forward. If there is a video embedded into the Prezi, just click on it like you would on a website and it will play. If you don't want to watch the whole video, you can click the arrow button and move on.

Let me know your thoughts in the comments section after you view a few of these. Have you tried Prezi?

Point of View

Hot Off The Librarian's Desk

How Coca Cola became Digital Marketing Rock Stars

A video tutorial showing how easy creating a presentation in Prezi can be.

Meet you at Atlanta? by Terry Burns

Will be on the road headed to the "Catch the Wave" Christian Writer's Conference in Atlanta, Georgia. The conference is August 22-24th at the Lodge at Simpsonwood and is put on by the Christian Authors Guild. I've been there once before and it is a beautiful facility and a great place for a conference.

I have a little more expanded role this time as I'm going to set the tone for the conference in an opening talk on "Just Say Yes." Decisions that we make take on a whole new meaning when we realize that there are only two answers when we come to realize that the Lord wants us to do something, yes or no. Later, maybe, I'm not qualified, I can't do it, are just forms of saying no. We'll talk about what this means for writers . . . and just for Christians in general.

I'll be doing appointments, of course, and doing a workshop on "Developing a writer's persona" as well as one on "Agent and Editor pet peeves." I'll be speaking in the closing session as well, talking about, talking about "Why do we write?"

Hopefully there is something in these for everybody and the remainder of the conference content is very strong with presenters like Cindy Sproles, cofounder and Executive Director of Christian Devotions Ministries, Faye Lamb, acquisition editor for Pelican Book Group, and Stacy Robinson of the Robinson Talent Agency. Others are bestselling author Lynette Easton, publicist and media specialist ReAnn Ring, and Pix-N-Pens publisher Tracy Ruckman.

The conference is very affordable and a great opportunity to network and learn, particularly convenient for those who live in the Southeast. I hope I get the chance to meet you there.

Back from the Conference by Andy Scheer

For three days this past weekend, I wasn't alone in my pursuits.

I again found myself among more than a hundred people with similar goals -- people who didn't find my interests quaint, fruitless, or odd.

For three days I could easily learn more about the field and at times pass on information to willing listeners. I could talk shop using insider shorthand. And I could get answers from veteran experts, rather than rely on my own knowledge or comb the internet.

Faced with a vast array of resources for sale, I spent every dollar I'd budgeted – then an extra forty percent I'd squirreled away in case. I didn't get much sleep, but I filled my heart and spirit.

After three days packed with back to back sessions, I came home exhausted but happy. Digesting all the material I brought home will take a year.

By then I'll be ready to return. The dates are already marked on my calendar.

I hope you also have a favorite conference – a place you can call home and where for a few days, you don't have to pretend to be normal.

The Conference Trail by Terry Burns

I can almost hear Willie Nelson singing "On the Road Again."

It's the time of year when we work a lot of conferences. For me, quite a number of years ago I went to a conference as a writer trying to decide how to use my faith in my writing. I took a test as part of the process designed to tell what my spiritual gifts are. They turned out to be writing, music, and the gift of encouragement. I work as an agent and particularly go to as many conferences as I can trying to use that gift of encouragement.

I'm also there to connect with writers and to find good projects that I can help get to market. And to make connections with editors that I can interface with to help make that happen. I work for my clients, but initially it is almost like I work for the editors. I work to try and find out what they are looking for then try to help them find it. I'm like a marriage broker, I find something an editor is looking for, I find a writer that has it, then I arrange an introduction. Sort of like Barbara Streisand did in "Yentl."

People ask me if I make money going to conferences and working. There have been a few that I have actually ended up in the black, but most of the time when expenses are paid I end up breaking even at best and some cost money . . . some a significant amount of money. I try not to do that too much.

I don't like to fly to conferences. Not that I mind flying, but I genuinely hate airports and the mess they have become. When possible I drive it, far less stress, and the trip itself can be nice particularly when Saundra goes with me. We have changed to a small class B van RV for a road car. It's small so it doesn't get bad gas mileage and it can save a couple of hotel stays on the road which offsets extra gas cost. It provides a nice break and thanks to technology I can still be online while on the road getting my work done while Saundra drives. It's like an office on wheels. At least we'll be back to doing that when she gets her cast off (she fell and broke her arm).

I really believe if a writer is serious about their writing they need to try to get to a conference or two each year to network with agents, editors, and other writers. That's a primary place where things can be learned to improve their writing skills and to start learning to increase their visibility necessary for book sales. If you are doing that perhaps we will meet out on the road.

I'll be the guy in the big hat.

Meet you at the conference? by Terry Burns

Soon it will be time to head over to Marshall Texas to East Texas Baptist University for the East Texas Christian Writer's Conference. I've gone to this conference for a number of years and I love it.

Set on the shady, peaceful campus of ETBU it is an economical conference packed with lots of content and excellent presenters. The dates are October 26th and 27th, starting right after lunch on Friday and ending up about 5 pm on Saturday. The keynote speaker Friday evening will be James Watkins speaking on "I have a dream!"

I'm going to be talking about the difference in writing to reach the nonbeliever. Christian readers and nonbelievers look for different things in a book, Christians want a lot of faith content and they want it right from the get-go. But the very thing that they are looking for will cause a non-believer to put the book down. Many who say they are writing a 'crossover book' are actually writing a book that will not have enough faith content to satisfy the Christian publishers but with too much such content for the secular publishers. They end up in the 'no man's land' in between where neither want the book. A true crossover book is written for one market or the other but written in such a way that it manages to cross over to the other.

I'm also going to talk about how to develop a writer's persona. Many people are simply too shy to meet with editors and agents to pitch, or to do promotion or interviews, or the other activities a writer must do to be successful. There is a way to develop a writer's persona and pretty much hide behind it to do what we need to do. Others are about as shy as a chain saw but they are uncomfortable in such writing situations because they don't know how to present themselves as a writer. These are the totally opposite ends of the spectrum, but for both as well as all of the degrees in between, the answer is learning how to determine how we need to present ourselves as a writer and to project ourselves that way.

Finally, my third session will be a "look behind the curtain." I'll be talking about editor and agent pet peeves. Participants will hear a lot of things from a survey that Hartline agent Linda Glaz and I conducted, things that turn an agent or editor off. But there are also peeves that authors have about agents and editors as well, that sword cuts both ways. Those in the class will have the opportunity to unburden themselves with some of the things that bother them as well.

The conference is a short but content-packed event that people are sure to enjoy and sure to feel they really got their money's worth. Hope to see you there.

On the Road Again by Terry Burns

Time to get back on the road.

Next week I’ll be at the Oregon Christian Writer’s conference. I’ve been invited there before, good conference, beautiful country, good faculty and the caliber of the writers that attend is very good. It’s August 12-16th just outside of Portland Oregon.

Following that is the American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW) conference September 20-23 in Dallas. This is the premier conference for Christian fiction writers and will draw a large delegation of writers. The strength of the programming and the faculty at this conference is outstanding.

October 10-12th I’ll be at the Antelope Valley Christian Writers conference at Lake Hughes just outside of Los Angeles. This will be my first time at this conference but I’m looking forward to it.

October 26-27th will be the East Texas Christian Writers Conference at East Texas Baptist University in Marshall Texas. This is another conference I have attended a number of times, fast-paced, economical, with excellent programming and facilities on a beautiful college campus.

A quick turnaround on October 31st through November 4th will have me at the “Writing at the Ranch” Christian Writers Conference at the Ghost Ranch at Abique New Mexico. This is a beautiful retreat setting that helps recharge your batteries as well as providing terrific program content.

I don’t do conferences between Thanksgiving and New Year, that’s family time, so that will wrap it up for the year. I enjoy doing conferences and trying to work with and encourage writers. Most of the clients that I have came from a conference contact. It’s also a time to make contacts with editors and other industry professionals, seeking information that will help me better serve my clients.

My efforts are leveraged by clients attending conferences themselves and reporting back any information they can gather whether it might be useful to them or not. Gathering such information from any and all sources helps us keep track of an industry that always seems to be in a state of change. The writers? They are there to improve and develop their craft, and to make contacts much in the same manner that I’m trying to do. For writers who are often surrounded by people who don’t really ‘get it,’ it’s good to get off and interface with other writers. Even before I became an agent for years I attended 2-3 writing conferences a year and it has really paid off for me.

How about you? Hope I meet up with you at one of these events.

Doing Workshops and Programs by Terry Burns

I do a lot of programs and workshops, generally one or two a month. I have some that continue to be asked for even though I have done them for several years, and I add new ones from time to time as they are requested or as they occur to me.

I have one I call "Too Shy to Pitch and Promote" which is one I have done the longest. I started doing it on the spur of the moment at one conference when I realized how many writers were there that were simply too shy to take advantage of the opportunities to pitch an agent or editor. Then I discovered that a lot of writers have trouble with that even if they aren't the shy type. They have trouble because they don't know how to present themselves as a writer. I touch on both in the program now. Maybe I ought to re-title it "Developing a Writer's Personna." Whatcha think?

One that has been very well received when I have been asked to present it I call "Writing to Reach the Unbeliever." I maintain that writing with that goal in mind is 180 degrees different from writing for the family of the faithful. Writing for the Christian market the readers expect to see very strong faith content and see it very early or they will probably decide the book is not what they want to read. With a nonbeliever strong faith content right up front will probably make them put it down. In this program I talk about why I think that happens and what to do about it to reach that market. I also believe that a "crossover book" is not one that is written to reach both, that usually ends up not doing a good job of reaching either, but one that does an awesome job of aiming one market or the other and manages to cross over and be read by the other market as well.

"Editor and Agent Pet Peeves" - Hartline agent Linda Glaz and I have worked on collecting these little gems from a variety of agents and editors, as well as from a lot of writers speaking of their pet peeves ABOUT agents or editors and we both do a program on them that is both enlightening and interesting.

"Just Say Yes" is my strongest faith based program. I've done it as a keynote, testimony, dinner speech or devotional, as well as a regular workshop. I was stunned to come to believe that when the Holy Spirit impresses on us the need to do something, there are just two possible answers, yes or no. Maybe, or later, or a variety of other excuses are not alternate answers, they are just another way of saying no. I really don't want to be saying no to God, so coming to this realization has greatly affected my own service to the Lord. This is also probably THE greatest hurdle for people to overcome in making a decision to be saved.

"Survive Your Way to Publication" is a program I did as a month-long online program for the American Christian Fiction Writers. I was asked to do it because of a statement I used to have in my email signature that said "getting published is not a selection process, it is a survival process." This program explores how to survive the many obstacles to publication. It also looks at a proposal not on WHAT should be in them, but why the items are in there and what we want them to do.

"It's Not My Job to Sell Your Manuscript." What? I thought that was an agents job. In this one I talk about the fact that it is OUR job to sell it, not just my job and what writers can do to work with an agent to improve their chances of success.

An agents panel or editor panel are always popular at conferences, but some conferences are too small for that and I do an "Agents Q and A" in such instances as a substitute. Of course I like to do all of my workshops in a Q & A format as much as I can to better reach the needs of the participants.

From time to time I add programs or replace them. Any of them sound interesting to you or do you have a suggestion for one you would like to see done? Have any agent or editor pet peeves you want to toss out?

The Nefarious e-Book Situation

I just came from the Writing for the Soul Conference in Denver. It’s always an awesome conference although attendance was down a little this year probably because of the rising costs we all face these days. Thanks, Washington.

At the conference several agents and editors sat around and talked about changes in the industry which of course centered on the emergence of the e-book. A lot of things came out of this discussion but the overall consensus was not how to work with the situation as it now exists, but the fact that it is a fluid situation and will continue to change as technology evolves.

What does that mean? The Kindle is king right now, driven by price point and the position that Amazon is commanding in the e-book market. Will that continue? Those in the discussion felt it depends on the evolving technology. There was a feeling that the current e-books are a first generation and the situation is up for grabs as the next generation arrives. The next generation is thought to be more like the i-Pad with expanded capabilities and features. So why isn’t the i-Pad leading the pack now? A majority of e-readers are being given as gifts and the difference between the price point of e-readers and the i-Pad is making that decision. But electronics tend to come down as production increases so that may change, and/or existing e-readers may evolve to close that gap.

More and more writers are deciding to go straight to Kindle with their book. I noticed back when I first started getting submissions from some who had taken that course and (though I felt like I knew the answer) I surveyed over 200 editors to see what their position would be on receiving such a submission. It was as I expected and over 70% said they weren’t interested in a submission on a book that had already been published, including Kindle. Some did say they might look at it if the sales were significant enough, but the Kindle version had to be withdrawn first as they required the e-book rights to be in the contract. So at present those who go straight to Kindle are giving up print possibilities to do so. We may expect to see some changes there as well, but who knows when?

This may be a factor in smaller conference attendance right now as well. Newer writers that don’t see the need to go improve their craft, who don’t see the need to network with agents and editors if they are going to go straight to e-book and spending the money they would have spent going to the conference getting the e-book out. I believe those who may be making this choice will soon realize they are making a strategic mistake. Most will not make the money that way that they would make with both print AND e-book, and with publisher support behind them. However, some are making enough money on just the e-book sales. Ironically, if they are having that kind of sales, some publisher will be interested. In publishing the success of a few that defy the odds and make it big always drive the dreams of those who want to do the same.

Still, nothing is as constant as change and this emerging technology is fascinating to watch. For example those in the industry know that women buy a majority of the books and that has strongly influenced acquisitions. But with e-book readers it is proving to be gender-neutral. What? Yes, as many women buying e-books as men. This will of necessity change the mix in what will be published. 

I just saw a study report that had several other interesting facts: that there was no disparity between regions of the country, that urban book buyers bought more than rural ones, and while retirees say they have more time to read, the fully employed buy more e-books. That’s interesting.

The bottom line with the discussion was that we are not seeing the crest of the e-book revolution and change will be the order of the day. Are print books on the way out? No, there are still far too many who like a print book in their hands for that to happen any time soon. But it is a really interesting time to be involved in the publishing industry.