The drawing for the Beach House get-away in Lincoln City was held at our December Portland ACFW meeting and we have a winner. Congratulations to MESU ANDREWS! Woo hoo!

We had fun with this membership incentive this year, so we plan to do it again in the coming year for another weekend getaway. Make plans to join us in February (date to be announced) for special guest Judy Gann, and mark your calendar for the Master's Seminar coming to Portland in April. (This is open to contracted and published book authors.)

Reminder: Annual dues are due in January for 2010. Please send $10 (checks made out to Portland ACFW) Address: Portland ACFW, 17950 Davis St, Sandy, OR 97055.

Also: Miralee, Cheryl and Camille would like to thank members for the vote of confidence and will be serving another year as officers on the board.

Merry Christmas! See you in February.

"My heart is stirred by a noble theme as I recite my verses for the king; my tongue is the pen of a skillful writer." Ps 45:1

Our next ACFW Portland Chapter meeting is Monday, December 14. We will meet at 7 pm this month so you have time to eat dinner, but save room for Christmas treats. You won't want to miss this one---we are drawing the winner for the Two Night Beach House Getaway!

By attending, bringing a treat, buying a book, and bringing an ornament to exchange, you could earn up to FOUR more entries before we draw the winner.

Please bring some kind of Christmas cookie or treat to share and an ornament to exchange. We're planning on a very festive evening!

For the ornament exchange--please wrap, bag, or box your ornament. We can decide how we want to exchange. There are a couple choices, so we'll see what everyone prefers.

Leave a comment and let us know if you plan to attend. Hope to see you then!

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DIRECTIONS TO VANCOUVER CHURCH OF CHRIST

From I-205 North, take exit 32 (toward Battleground)
East on NE Padden Parkway
North on NE 94th Ave
West on NE 86th St

New Master Seminar for Authors Coming Soon

Chip MacGregor, Tiffany Colter and a group of ACFW authors are hosting a Master Seminar in various cities across the country. They’ll be coming to Portland in the spring (2010) and more information will be posted as the time draws closer. This is for published and/or contracted authors. Here’s some basic info, and we’ll be sending out an email showing a member discount via our Yahoo group. Email Miralee Ferrell (miralee at gorge dot net) if you have further questions.

What are the Master Seminars?

The Master Seminars are a series of events to be held across the US covering marketing and craft. Each city we go to will cover a single topic. The first two events [Nov. in Dallas and Dec. in Indianapolis] are on marketing. These events are limited to 16 participants. Each participant will leave with an actual step-by-step plan for marketing their novel. This is customized to each person and you will be able to brainstorm with Chip and Jim on your own project. Jim is a full time marketer and Chip is a top agent. We also have two different seminars on craft. One is on writing bestselling fiction and the other is on adding depth to your fiction. Again, these will be done with top authors [Susan May Warren, Lisa Samson and Susan Meissner] working side by side with you on your specific project.

These seminars are designed to help authors master their craft and master their marketing. In one weekend you can save time and money you would have wasted on trying old, worn out ideas. Our goal is to have authors leave these seminars with new excitement for their writing and a very clear plan to reach their writing goals both in craft and in sales.

FAQs:
1. Who are these events for?
These seminars are designed for contracted and published authors.

2. Is there a fee?
Yes, there is a fee of $399 for the November/December events in Dallas and Indianapolis. The other events are $500 BUT we may extend a special discount to our zones and chapter members.

3. How does this benefit our chapter/zone?
There are both direct and indirect benefits to your zone.

a. First, we all root for each other in ACFW, so these events offer a chance for members of our chapters to get the skills necessary to build a strong writing career.

b. Next, we will have non-ACFW members at our events and we want to promote the participating zones/chapters to our attendees. We will be distributing ACFW brochures in our marketing materials. We want to point these published and contracted authors to the local zones where they can get connected locally.

c. Third, Tiffany would like to have a promotional event in each city, if possible. Each meeting extends Friday-Saturday and goes from 9am-5pm. She would love to hold a multi-author book signing at a local bookstore or other event that is put on by the local ACFW chapter and The Master Seminars. If this is not possible then she would like to offer other ideas to draw attention the local media to The Master Seminars and the Local chapters/Zones of ACFW. Some ideas are a meet-and-greet or she could come and speak on business principles for aspiring writers.

Please email Miralee Ferrell (miralee at gorge dot net) if you have questions.

Beach Drawing & Other News. . .

Our next Portland ACFW writers' meeting, the last one for this year (around the end of Nov---the date will be announced soon) we will hold the drawing for our 2009 Beach Weekend Giveaway! You will have one last chance to get your entries in! Entries are earned by attending if you're a member, joining our chapter if you're not, bringing a guest, bringing a guest who becomes a member, bringing snacks, buying books from our used book library or from our guest speakers . . . and probably a few other ways as well.

We thought we'd post a few pics now just to taunt & torture you, get you dreaming and drooling of sand and sea and salty air, and with any luck, sun.

What will the winner receive?

A weekend at Blessings By The Sea in Lincoln City, Oregon: a 4 bedroom, 3 bath house with an ocean view and close beach access.

Our last meeting for this year will be a special one. In fact, it's so special we can't tell you about it yet. Just be thinking steaming hot cocoa , tea and spiced cider, cookies, a roaring (electric) fire, some Christmas readings, some fun, a drawing for that sweet beach trip, and of course, delectable Christmas treats. You WON'T want to miss it!

AND . . . if you're a writer of fiction, another thing you won't want to miss: the release of the long awaited Writing Fiction For Dummies, co-authored by Randy Ingermanson. I'm still not sure if it's me or my audience to whom the title refers, but either way, my copy is going to get plenty of wear. Order yours today! Get it just in time to wrap it up and slip it under your Christmas tree. Just think how surprised you'll be in a few weeks when you open it!

BOOK CLUBS: the contest ends soon for the ACFW chapter to start the most book clubs. We're hearing some exciting feedback so far for our chapter. Start a book club that agrees on a book to read as a group and meets to discuss it either in person or online. That's all! Your club doesn't need to be comprised of ACFW members. ACFW wants to promote fiction reading. The chapter with the most book clubs will win a prize.

If you're starting a book club, or if you have any questions about American Christian Fiction Writers or Portland Christian Writers, just leave a comment here. Thank you!

~Camille Eide

Sec/Treasurer, Portland ACFW

October 26th ACFW: Join us for an evening with MARION DUCKWORTH

On Monday, October 26th, ACFW Portland welcomes author Marion Duckworth as our guest speaker.

Marion Duckworth is the award winning author of seventeen books and hundreds of articles. Her memoir, Naked on God's Doorstep, was released November 2007 by Multnomah Publishers. Marion has traveled widely as a speaker and Bible teacher at women's seminars and retreats. For eleven years, she and her husband John were Village Missionaries.

She has also published hundreds of articles in publications like Woman's Day, Moody Monthly, Discipleship Journal and Writer's Digest. She is a past columnist for Power for Living.

Visit Marion at http://www.marionduckworthministries.com/

And don't forget the wonderful new "twist" to our meetings. Each ACFW Portland Chapter member will be eligible to win a weekend Beach retreat at Lincoln City. The winner will be drawn at our last meeting of the year. How do you win this stay in a four bedroom beach house with a view? Everyone who attends a meeting will recieve an entry slip. Also, everyone who brings a snack will receive an entry. Whenever you buy a book from our used book fund-raiser, you will earn a chance as well. So, the more you attend, bring snacks, and buy books, the more chances you have to win the stay in Lincoln City!

More information about the raffle and the beach house will be available at the meeting.

DIRECTIONS TO VANCOUVER CHURCH OF CHRIST:
From I-205 North, take exit 32 (toward Battleground). Go east on NE Padden Parkway, North on NE 94th Ave, West on NE 86th St.

Please let us know if you can bring snacks or beverages! And remember--our last meeting for the year is coming up!! We'll draw for a winner of the beach house stay at that time. You have two more chances to get your entries in for the drawing.

Drawing--Contest!! Free Book!

Sunflower Serenade Giveaway!

I've been reading Tricia Goyer's Sunflower Serenade and enjoying this sweet story of a small town, its residents, the county fair and the country western singer who arrives and sets the town on its ear. Tricia weaves a story of gentle country life, but also more complex family relationships. I have an extra copy of this lovely, hard-cover book to give away. Here are the rules:

Leave a comment telling me if you've ever read any of Tricia's books, or any of the Guidepost series books, and you'll be entered in the drawing. If you want a second entry for another chance to have your name drawn, either link my blog to yours or follow my blog, and let me know that you did.

Here's a quick summary of the book again, in case you missed it on my earlier post.

About the Home to Heather Creek series: Charlotte Stevenson's world is turned upside down when her daughter, Denise, dies in a tragic car accident. She ran away at eighteen and Charlotte has never forgiven herself. Now, Denise's children, abandoned by their father, are coming from California to live on Heather Creek Farm in Bedford, Nebraska.

Charlotte is uncertain about her ability to care for three grandchildren who are not thrilled to give up the beach and sunshine for snow and farm chores! But she sees a chance to make amends and will do whatever it takes to keep her fragile family together. Feel the courage, strength and commitment of this family as their lives unfold in the Home to Heather Creek series.

ACFW welcomes guest speaker BIRDIE ETCHISON - Monday, August 31st

Join us Monday, August 31st at the Vancouver Church of Christ for

"FINDING YOUR NICHE: The Short and the Long of it" with Birdie Etchison.

At conferences the emphasis is on writing the novel, but what if you don’t have
time? What if you’d like to try something shorter first? Or, give yourself a break in between writing the longer muse.

How to make transitions in your life of writing. How to keep on going when the engine is rusty.

Topics we’ll discuss:

Hearing the call
Getting started
Keeping at it
Marketing
Bouncing back after rejection
Mentoring others

Birdie Etchinson first began selling short stories and articles to a variety of Christian publishers. Her first published books were juvenile, three nonfiction, and then romance. OREGON was an alternate selection For Crossings Book Club. Her nonfiction written with a non-writer became a movie made for TV. She’s also written novellas and short articles for collections like The Heart of a Mother. Her other accomplishments include being an instructor for Writer’s Digest Schools.

Birdie resides on the Long Beach Peninsula. She has six children, seven grandchildren, and nine great-grands. Her hobbies include reading and cooking.

Please come around 6:30 pm to socialize and snack. Birdie will speak at 7 pm. Don't miss out on Birdie's valuable insight and experience.


And don't forget the wonderful new "twist" to our meetings. Each ACFW Portland
Chapter member will be eligible to win a weekend Beach retreat at Lincoln City. The winner will be drawn at the end of the calendar year (our last meeting of the year.)

How do you win this stay in a four bedroom beach house with a view? Everyone who attends any given meeting will recieve a slip of paper to enter. Also, everyone who brings a snack will receive an entry slip. Whenever you buy a book from our used book fund-raiser, you will earn a chance as well. So, the more you attend, bring snacks, and buy books, the more chances you have to win the stay in Lincoln City!

More information about the raffle and the beach house will be available at the meeting.

Directions to Vancouver Church of Christ:
I-205 to the Padden Parkway exit and go east on Padden. Turn left at the 94th Ave light, then take the first left and turn left again into the church parking lot.

If you can bring snacks or beverages, please contact Cheryl Martin: calm1954 at yahoo dot com.