Interview with Author and Genesis Contest Coordinator Pamela S. Meyers

By Jeff Reynolds

About a year ago, I had been reading a batch of suspense stories. I had thought of reading a novel by my favorite author, Randy Singer, who specializes in legal suspense. But I felt a need for a break, a breath of fresh air. Well, one of the books just below the one by Singer was a title I won on-line – Thyme For Love by Pamela S. Meyers. That book was exactly what I needed. It kept me guessing on who did it, but I also found it lightened my spirits. (I love suspense, but you could say cozy mysteries are my literary comfort food.)

It is my privilege to interview Pamela Meyers this month. Besides her writing, she's very active with American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW) as the Genesis Contest Coordinator. I'll mention that I had sent her the questions a couple of months ago to give her time to write this.

Jeff Reynolds: Welcome to Hoosier Ink, Pam. Your web-page states that while your debut novel came out in 2011, your desire to write Christian fiction has been around a while. Can you tell us when you first caught the writing bug, and how you got from there to where you are now?

Pam Meyers: I think the desire to write was in me for many years. When I was 8 I asked for a diary for Christmas which I received and I began recording my daily activities in it – which lasted about a month. I may have stopped making regular entries in the little book, but I still came back to it many times over the years -- now it's a hoot to read.

As an adult I have always journaled, mostly related to my spiritual walk, but it wasn't until I returned to college and entered an accelerated adult program where most of the assignments were written reports that the writing bug really took hold. I took all the writing courses I could and was flabbergasted when my writing prof suggested I pursue writing for publication. It was several years before I focused on fiction, but once I did, I've never looked back. Even then, it took a long time of learning the craft, networking, and growing as a writer in many ways. I like to say that when I began the fiction-writing journey Bill Clinton was in the White House and gas cost $1.15 per gallon.

JR: During that time, you had several articles published. Some of them have great titles: "Snared by the Internet", "Finding Mary", "How I Overcame Grief" and "God Helped Me Forgive." What inspired these, and how did these aid you on your road to the publishing of A Thyme For Love?

PM: All of these articles were based on personal experience. "Snared" appeared in Today's Christian Woman and was about getting caught off guard in the new frontier of social networking. I "met" a man on a chat list and before long our private exchanges went a direction I hadn't expected them to go. I shared that experience through my article to help other women. I wrote the story anonymously and just recently learned from the woman who was Editor of the magazine at the time that my article garnered more reader mail than any had up to that point. That was very humbling to know.

Finding Mary was in Ancestry Magazine, published by Ancestry.Com. The article chronicled the steps I took to find an elusive ancestor I knew existed but could not find anything to document who exactly she was. She turned out to be a sister of my paternal grandmother :-). The "grief" article and the "Forgive" article were both in Victory in Grace Magazine. They are short articles relating how God helped me through some difficult periods of my life. As far as how they aided me on my journey to writing my first contracted story, other than being writing credits I'm not sure they helped. I think developing my fiction writing skills really helped with some of the articles as I incorporated those skills in the anecdotes I included in the articles.

JR: Let me deal with where you are now. In the last two months you've had two new releases. Can you tell us about Love Will Find A Way and Love Finds You In Lake Geneva, Wisconsin?

PM: Love Will Find a Way is the sequel to Thyme for Love. Both are romantic mysteries. When Thyme for Love ended my main characters, April Love and Marc Thorne had finally reconciled after an 8-year separation that had begun when their engagement ended. After April had to turn amateur sleuth to find the real killer of their boss before Marc would be falsely accused, they realized they really did love each other. Now that the mystery was solved, they wanted to start dating as a normal couple. In Love Will Find a Way April's eccentric Aunt Kitty buys her an old Victorian to house her new catering business, but before renovations can be completed it's apparent someone doesn't want April's business to open. She's ready now for Marc to pop "the" question, but too many roadblocks keep cropping up which makes her wonder if they ever will get married.

Love Finds You in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin is set in my hometown, a beautiful picturesque small town on the shores of Geneva Lake in southeastern Wisconsin. I have dreamed a long time about setting story there, and when I was given the opportunity to do so, it was a real blessing from God. The story is set in 1933 during the Great Depression--the same year the Riviera Ballroom was opened on the lakeshore. The building still stands today and is featured on the book cover. My characters, Meg Alden and Jack Wallace both work for the Lake Geneva News Tribune, the town's weekly newspaper. Meg aspires to be a news reporter for the paper but, like most in the news biz of that time, her boss believes that news reporting is a man's job. Women should only write society fluff. This creates a lot of conflict because Jack is hired to fill an open reporter position--the position Meg thought should be hers. She doesn't want to fall for Jack but she is. I had a lot of fun researching for the story and writing it. And I learned a lot of things about my hometown I never knew. Through the research I found myself falling in love with my hometown all over again. I could go on and on about the book. It truly is the book of my heart.

JR: These stories both have the words "Love" and "Find(s)" in the title, but they're different genres. (I won't mention that one of them shares a title with one of my favorite Pablo Cruise songs.) Did you have the luxury of writing one at a time, or were they written more or less simultaneously? If the latter, how did you manage to balance the creation of two unique stories?

PM: I actually had nothing to do with the titles of the books. Love Will Find a Way was a title my editor at OakTara gave the story, and Love Finds You in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin is part of the "Love Finds You" line from Summerside Press. They are from different publishers, and are different genres. One has no connection with the other. I had written LFYLG long before I wrote LWFW. I did not have to write them both simultaneously. I would find that difficult to do, although I know that some authors work the way.

JR: Not only do you have two books to market, but at the same time you're also coordinating ACFW's Genesis Contest. How are you managing your time between these various activities?

PM: Well, you see how long it's taken me to complete this interview :-). LWFW was to release in November but, as sometimes happens, the publisher delayed the release date and it ended up coming out just as I was kicking the LFYLG promotion into high gear. And, as you mentioned, I am overseeing the ACFW Genesis writing contest for unpublished writers. Because LFYLG is set in my hometown and we have a specific window of opportunity over the coming summer months to promote the book during Lake Geneva's tourist season, my focus has been nearly 100 percent on that book's promotion. I have scheduled several appearances already in and around the area, beginning with a Power Point presentation at the Geneva Lake Museum on April 27th, followed by a signing the next day at a popular gift shop in town. I plan to mention my other books and have some with me to sell. Once the major push for the Lake Geneva book is over, I'll focus more on getting the word out about LWFW. The Genesis's biggest time consumer is the first round and that will be ending May 3. Right now I'm dividing my time between Genesis and getting ready for April 27th. Just don't ask me how much writing I'm getting done right now LOL.

JR: Speaking of Genesis, how long have you been working with that contest? Any highlights from your work there? (I'm not sure about lowlights -- it might scare me off from entering it.)

PM: I had been a category coordinator for Genesis for several years prior to taking over as head coordinator last year. I had very big shoes to fill when Camy Tang stepped down as contest coordinator. Last year we had an unprecedented 620 entries and it quickly became apparent that we did not have enough volunteer judges. Every entry requires three judges. I relied a great deal on prayer and the willingness of many volunteers to make themselves available. That was truly the highlight of the year for me, when I came to the end of myself and told God I couldn't do it, and He'd have to take over. He provided and then some. This year we have had a new challenge in that the entire contest is now automated with a new software program our techies built. As with any new software, there have been our share of "bugs," and troubleshooting those has been a huge time-grabber. But the highlight of this year has been the team effort by the category coordinators, the techies and other ACFW staff to get it done. Again, all of it is bathed in prayer.

JR: I'll be honest: sometimes the only way I find to keep encouraged to keep writing is to bury my head in the sand and avoid watching the news. I'm sure I sound like Chicken Little, but it's easy to doubt that things will be stable long enough for me to publish my novel. Is there anything from your experience writing and working with Genesis you can encourage me with? (Sometimes I think I spent too much time bonding with my Uncle Eeyore.)

PM: I agree the news can be very unsettling and I do wonder where we're going to be in another year or two. Will the publishing world look the same or will some of the major players even be around by then? Then I come back to where is God in all this? He is still in control and will be always. He's not surprised by any of the negatives that have happened and I just have to trust in Him. If he wants my books, your books, or anyone's books published, it will happen. There are some fantastic gifted writers around, and He keeps giving us more and more ideas for stories to write. If He wills it for you, it will happen.

JR: Thanks for the time from your very busy schedule. I'll be looking forward to your books.

PM: I've enjoyed it, Jeff. You ask some very good questions. Thought-provoking and challenging.

Jeff to readers: Hope you've been encouraged by this interview with Pam Meyers. How do you find encouragement/motivation to keep on in the slow phase of getting published or in our uncertain times? How do you manage your many hats between writing and non-writing duties? Any other thoughts this interview encouraged?

 

Genesis Judges

In the months leading up to ACFW Conference, contestants wore knee-shaped holes in the rugs beside their beds and judges in the first two rounds kept a low profile, maintaining secret identities. I’m not suggesting they donned trench coats and fedoras, but anonymity helps protect the integrity in the contest. These judges are acknowledged at the conference banquet. However, the final round judges are posted as soon as they are confirmed.

According to Pam Meyers, Genesis Coordinator, “When people see that certain editors or agents are going to be judging the final round in a given category it increases the interest in entering the contest.” Even so, to a contestant, it can seem as if the whole judging process is somehow mysterious.

Pam added, “The final round judges don't necessarily have a different score sheet (than the previous judges, which is available on the website). We always give them one as a guideline of what to look for in the entries, but they are not required to score every element listed on the score sheet. All we need from them is an all-around score for the entry. Of course if they want to make comments regarding the entry, they are more than welcome to do that.”

By the end of September, excitement over this year’s contest had pretty much quieted except for the winner, who can possibly still be seen on clear nights orbiting the earth. It was then that I contacted, Jeff Gerke, the owner and editor of Marcher Lord Press, to get the perspective from the viewpoint of a final round judge.  

Jeff had judged Genesis twice before and knew what he was getting into when he was approached by the contest coordinator. So why did he do it? He laughed. “Mainly because I was asked.”

Jeff went on to explain that the contest coordinators have made the judging very easy. “The biggest difficulty is making sure my scores are consistent across all the entries I judge. I’m not the only judge, even in the final round, so my average scoring level might be higher or lower than other judges. I can’t worry about that. I just call ‘em as I see ‘em.” This year, he received three entries, but recused himself from those he’d already seen as a freelance editor.

“Not many contests are based on just the first fifteen pages of a novel,” Jeff said. “It’s an interesting idea. I usually can spot fantastic writing in the first ten plus pages. Now, whether or not the author can keep it up until the end of the novel is another story.” In his experience, it’s possible to become interested enough in a story that he would request seeing a complete manuscript from even a non-winning participant.

What advice did Jeff offer to future Genesis finalists? “Don’t worry if you enter and get disheartening or even conflicting feedback from judges. There is no ‘right’ way of writing fiction, but pretty much every fiction expert will tell you there is. Only their right way is diametrically opposed to the other guy’s right way. Don’t take it all too seriously. Almost nobody makes more than $5,000/year writing Christian fiction, even authors you’ve heard of, so keep working on your fiction for the love of the task only, not for hope of riches.”

 

Good advice, Jeff. So to Jeff Gerke and all the other Genesis judges, thank you and God bless. We’ll do it all again next year.

Here Come De Judge

by Rachael Phillips

I know, I know. The Genesis judges aren't perfect. I, too, upon receiving my critiques and scores back, have said something like this:

• "I can't believe I paid money to have you read my stuff!"
• "Aha! [leafing through ten dictionaries, the Chicago Manual of Style, Strunk's, and the Bible] "I knew you were wrong about that apostrophe!"
• "You made exactly one comment about my manuscript. Did you even read it?"
• "Can you read?"

The most saintly of us competitors fall back on praying for our judges--if not for their salvation, certainly for their walk with God. Obviously, they don't know Him very well, or they would recognize the superior talents with which He gifted us.

I never quite reached that plateau of generosity. Usually, upon scanning scores, I threw my manuscript into a drawer until I had undergone my official detox process. It consisted of swearing off writing forever; throwing a few books; pounding a few pillows; and eating a few bags of chocolate while crying more than a few tears.

Eventually, I did look on the bright side. Checking out the judge's publishing credentials, I told myself, "Well, if she/he can get published, anyone can."

One year, however, properly prepared with books to throw, pillows to pound, and bags of chocolate to snarf, I stared at my scores and received a phone call: I had finaled. Instead of detoxing, I celebrated--and even more when at conference I won my category.

The following year, however, I discovered that past Genesis winners were strongly encouraged to serve as judges.

Me? A judge?

I thought of the scripture, "In the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you."

I heard God laughing.

Since then, I have judged the Genesis several times, and I know other authors who have wedged critiquing manuscripts between sorting socks, working a day job, baking birthday cakes, visiting in-laws, surviving root canals, soothing angry spouses, attending kids' plays (three times), shopping for prom dresses, spending time with amorous spouses, starting potty training, attending traffic court classes--and somewhere in there, too, she/he probably is trying to write a book or two or three. Or edit a few dozen.

No, Genesis judges aren't perfect. A few sadistic egomaniacs no doubt have sneaked into our ranks, as they do in every profession, organization, or ministry. Sometimes, when called upon to judge, we say "yes" mostly because we're really bad at saying "no." Still, many of us judge the Genesis because although we, too, cringe at receiving critiques, we know we would not have progressed this far without them. In other words: we care.

Are we perfect? No. (God's laughing even harder.)

Please feel free to pray for our walk with Him. And pray that with His help, we'll do the best job possible.

Thanks!

The Impact of Genesis Past

As it is each spring, Genesis is well underway. Writers are biting their nails or distracting themselves with work and first round judges are rubbing tired eyes while evaluating entries.

After I finished my allotted group, I wondered what happened to previous winners so I randomly choose 2005 and contacted winners Ruth Logan Herne for General Fiction, Cheryl Wyatt for Contemporary Romance, and Camy Tang for Mystery/Suspense/Thriller to ask what they were currently doing and what impact Genesis had.

Ruth: I'm having the time of my life working for Love Inspired Books. My most recent release was the 4 Star Yuletide Hearts, part of the Men of Allegany County series, and I'm looking forward to A Family to Cherish, my July release. I was blessed to final and/or win in the Noble Theme, later called Genesis, multiple times. I love this contest. It allows Christian authors a chance to shine in their genre, and that's rare. I contracted my first agent as a result and caught the interest of several editors, exactly what I wanted to accomplish.

The Genesis/Noble Theme was good to me and for me. I began to see the broad scope of Christian fiction, how its growth has opened up doors of opportunity for so many. It was worth every penny I spent and got me lots of great feedback even when I didn't win. I also made sure I entered several different entries, hoping to shine multiple times. And it worked!

Cheryl:Winning Genesis significantly affected my career. My now-editor, from my dream house, Love Inspired, was sitting in the front row. She was very excited and remembered me from another manuscript I had submitted. I sold my first book to them days after returning from the conference...it had won the Romance Category of Noble Theme the year prior. Now, I'm on my 10th book...in a medical mini-series titled Eagle Point Emergency. The Doctor's Devotion is on sale for pre-order now. Doctor to the Rescue will be available in December.

Even the years I'd entered and not finaled were beneficial because the judges' comments steered me to things I needed to work on craft-wise. It also helped me see my strengths. The positive reinforcement gave me courage to keep trying even though I didn't score high the first couple times I entered. That I started out with very low scores then progressed to win and to contract is a testament that this contest has far-reaching benefits.

I think in the beginning, most writers aren't as far along as they think they are. I see a lot of open hostility from people who don't final. When you complain openly, you're making yourself look unprofessional. That always bothers me because they don't realize that agents and editors are watching. As one editor wisely put it: the industry has a looooooong memory. Stay humble, teachable, Christ-like and determined to learn. Judges aren't right 100% of the time. But they are right MOST of the time.

Camy: The editor who would later buy Deadly Intent, my first Love Inspired Suspense, was the first person to congratulate me after I won in 2005. Getting the attention of editors and agents was the most surprising aspect. I had been unaware of the growing prestige of the contest and hadn't thought that the editors who hadn't judged the contest would pay that much attention to the winners. Now that Genesis has gained so much respect among the Christian publishing industry, I think current winners can be assured that their names are being noted by editors, especially when the finalists have appointments with them at the ACFW conference.

It's hard to put your "baby" out there and I applaud participants for it! Go into it with a humble heart because even the most critical comment could have a grain of truth in it that will help you improve your writing. I have gained the absolute best feedback from my judges, even the ones who gave me low scores. It kept me constantly striving to improve my craft and hit the audience I want to write for. My most current book is Protection for Hire published by Zondervan.

Congratulations to the winners. Continue to improve your craft. Editors and agents will be watching, so show them you're hard-working, humble, and kind. Also show that you're generous with your time in giving back to the Genesis—offer to judge next year!

Thanks, ladies. These authors had more to say. Complete transcripts are available when you request by comment below. For the list of winners from other years or for more about the contest, go to www.acfw.com.

Wrestling Alligators (Or, What to Do with Genesis Feedback)

Writing is the hardest way of earning a living, with the possible exception of wrestling alligators.

- Olin Miller

(I'm no relation to Olin.)

Crystal, out wrestling alligators, my easy job

I am an introvert. In fact on the scale of introversion to extroversion, I am negative 5 to the introversion side. (Well, almost. I scored no extroversion points at all.) Lately I've been interacting a lot with people, whom I love, and I do LOVE to be with them, but then I have to recharge. Today I'm exhausted. Forgive me if I'm mumbling.

On top of that, I seem to be in the public eyeball in the last few days, which makes me nervous.I feel totally unworthy and like a nutcase whenever this happens and get gibberishly insecure with thoughts like, "People will really hate me now," to what I think others' are saying behind my back, "What makes her so special? I know her, and she's a drip!" But I'm finally getting enough years on me that my tune is finally changing to,"I've lived long enough to say what I want and suffer the consequences." (I shudder to think of how I will be if I reach the age of my mother-in-law, age 93.)

But I still tend to want to withdraw after being highlighted somewhere, whether a positive or negative experience. Whatever your personality, it does take guts and boldness to put yourself out there. I reveal my weaknesses to make a point. Writers have to do this to be read, but that doesn't mean that sometimes they wonder why they don't do something else--like wrestling alligators or underwater ice fishing. Anything but getting feedback for writing, exposing that writing. (And if you have a reader, you have feedback.)

On Saturday in addition to being with great people who write, and listening to a stellar presentation about navigating in tandem with your writing career the social and internet media by Amanda Luedeke, literary agent with MacGregor Literary Group, we got news that several in our chapter are semi-finalists in the ACFW Genesis contest. Of the Hoosier Genesis Semi-Finalists 3 were at our state meeting, so we were able to congratulate them, and take their photo.

2011 Indiana Chapter Genesis Semi-Finalists: Carole Brown, Melanie Brasher (Joy N. Malik,) Sarah Ladd

ACFW Genesis Semi-Finalists from the Indiana Chapter
CONTEMPORARY FICTION:
(total entries: 48)

Melanie Brasher/ Joy N. Malik (Pen Name)

HISTORICAL ROMANCE:
(total entries: 73)

Sarah Ladd

WOMEN'S FICTION:
(total entries: 90)

Carole Brown (Ohio Associate member)
Michelle Weidenbenner

MYSTERY/SUSPENSE/THRILLER:
(total entries: 47)
Bob Lyzenga

We're proud of them. No question. However, of these few who made it to the final round, there are some of you awaiting your scores and comment sheets because you didn't final. You're trying to brace yourself, your expectations had been high, but you're sure you can't prepare yourself for what is coming. It's like standing on the beach, waiting for the tsunami. (Or so you think.) Some are going to have scores that just missed, and now you will be able to take those comments and polish off your manuscript. I've seen those who didn't final taking their manuscript to sold a short time later. But others of you will feel as if someone hit you with a Mack truck.

It will hurt. You might feel anger, wanting to argue with the judges. They didn't get it! Stupid judge.

And you harbor a grudge against this person who must hate writers and doesn't recognize genius. Some mealy-mouthed nit-has been, who is bitter and possibly a derelict dared to criticize your prose. (I've heard the ugly names....) I know judges who quit judging because they couldn't take the whining after the scores came back. And while some of it might be valid, it's still whining.

Here are a few things for you as your scores come back to keep you on track and to turn a seeming setback in your writing into a triumph and positive thing. See if any of this helps.

1. Rage against the judge, the contest, your 10th grade English teacher.
Yeah, go ahead. Boo-hoo!Scream into your pillow.

Just don't do it ON ANY PUBLIC social media, blog or loop. Don't Twitter it, don't Facebook it, don't write it on comments on boards or blogs. You can cry, take a minute to hurt, eat some chocolate and tell your best friend, your family, or if it gets serious, your therapist or pastor. But please, please refrain from calling these judges names, (I've heard some bad names on a nonChristian writers' loop,) question their humanity and worse, their judgment. Do they make mistakes? Well, duh, yeah. They are humans. (We suspect.) And they are your fellow Christians. Most of them agonized, prayed over you, and spent way too much time for no pay or any praise to give you feedback on your writing. They cared enough to sacrifice their own writing time, time with family and friends, sleep. They were your readers. They reacted and prayed about it.

2. After your day of chocolate overload, and you sleep off the DeBrand's buzz, look to see if there are any patterns or things you could fix quickly.
Go ahead and deal with the easy stuff first. Oh, brother, you left out a word, you misspelled flagrant, you used seventy -ly words or you used their instead of there twenty-seven times in the first paragraph (that covered two pages). Believe me, even the published authors have their pet trip-ups. Maybe you had a rough opening paragraph. Maybe you even knew something was wrong, but you couldn't put your finger on it and some judge caught it. The light bulb came on. That's why you entered this contest, right? Start with the baby food. Let it process. Absorb the good. The bad will take a natural course!

3. Put the burrs in your saddle into a separate folder to process or to investigate.
It's possible that the judge did make a mistake. Maybe only one of the three focused on something that blew your entry out of the running. One bad score can ruin your chances. Maybe that judge didn't get it. Maybe your entry is a gem. Good writing has often been criticized and rejected by editors, too. Or maybe you do have many problems. Educate yourself on what the judge or judges pointed out to you. Time to go to school.

Here, make yourself feel better by seeing other writers who had bad days:
1. Carrie by Stephen King – 30 rejections
2. Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell – 38 rejections
3. M*A*S*H by Richard Hooker – 21 rejections
4. Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert Pirsig – 121 rejections
5. Lorna Doone by Richard Doddridge Blackmore – 18 rejections
6. Dubliners by James Joyce – 22 rejections
7. The Peter Principle by Laurence Peter – 16 rejections
8. Chicken Soup for the Soul by Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen – 33 rejections
9. Jonathan Livingston Seagull by Richard Bach – 18 rejections
10. Auntie Mame by Patrick Dennis – 15 rejections

4. Write a thank you note to your judges, even it's short and sweet, and you just thank them for their time. Let them know you will seriously consider their comments.
(Hey, this may be your best fiction writing.) But do try to mean it. Humble yourself and love the person for being a fellow Christian and for sacrificing to help you on you on your writing journey. For whatever reason, this is where you are at this time. It might be easy to be discouraged and no one blames you for feeling as if someone punched you in the guts. But don't hate the judges' guts and do give each one the benefit of the doubt. That person could end up seeing your manuscript again--only this time it could be while working for a publisher or an agent. How you react and process your scores/comments could affect how they react when seeing it again. Or consider this: if that person has the ear of the editor or an agent and your name comes up--will it be positive?

5. Do not think you cannot write, do not give up. Never give up. Don't let this be where you quit.
"Chesty" Puller, the most decorated U.S. Marine in history, and the only Marine to receive five Navy Crosses said this:
"All right, they're on our left, they're on our right, they're in front of us, they're behind us...they can't get away this time."



Have that kind of attitude. I had a writer friend who asked me to pray about her writing. She was going to quit. Discouraged. Really, she had already decided to quit. She just wanted some confirmation, so she could walk away guilt free. I said I would pray. And I did. I prayed God would send her a little encouragement to continue because she is a good writer. She didn't even realize it. But I knew. God knew. (She's getting published this year. Lots will know now.)

We can pray that you receive encouragement soon. You might need it. God hasn't deserted you. Your dream is not dead because of one contest.

Remember this in the big scheme of things: "You whom I have upheld since you were conceived, and have carried since your birth. Even to your old age and gray hairs I am He, I am He who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you." ~ Isaiah 46:3-4

That's a promise for your life as a Christian. God knows what your desires are and He knows His will and timing for you. There are people here in this chapter and this zone and this ACFW organization who can help you to keep going, keep the education going. We believe in you.

Write on. They can't get away now.

Crystal Laine Miller

Ten Top Reasons to Enter GENESIS and FRASIER Contests

Is your goal to publish a novel, but you can’t land an agent or spark a publisher’s interest?

You’d really like to attend a writer’s conference to get feedback on your wip, but you can’t afford the time or the cash. There’s an easier and less-costly solution. Get your manuscript evaluated by entering the GENESIS contest for $35 per entry or the FRASIER contest for $30 per entry.

Below are ten top reasons to enter:

• To get a pro to read your story—You want readers, don’t you? Isn’t that your ultimate goal?
• To learn—How do you format a manuscript? What’s a page break?
• To improve—What do you need to do better? Did your readers care? Why/ why not?
• To compete—How do you compare with other writers? Are you in the top 25%?
• To show off—Frasier judges pick a favorite sentence from your ms. Find out which one rocks and why. It might not be the one you loved.
• To get feedback—Published judges typically know what sells.
• To work toward a deadline—Force yourself to enter before the deadline to improve your ability to make a goal and keep it. Once you’re working with a publisher, deadlines will be constant.
• To win—scholarships and prizes, but most of all, bragging rights that look good to an agent or publisher, and visibility in the market place.
• To identify your strengths and weaknesses—Find out if you nailed your dialogue or if your hook grabbed the reader. Was your story goal believable?
• To practice how to take criticism—Once you’re working with an agent you need to learn how to stay professional—even if it means killing parts of your baby. Can you take criticism without getting your panties in a ruffle or your undies in a wad? If you can’t, who’s going to want to work with you?

Deadline for the GENESIS is March 4^th and the FRASIER is March 31^st. There’s time to enter both.

Click below for contest guidelines:

http://www.acfw.com/genesis

http://www.mybooktherapy.com/index2.php/the-frasier-contest/

How many of you have entered in the past or will enter this year? What were your experiences?

Movie Biology

Want to improve your writing? Watch a movie.

Analyze it. Dissect it. Identify its parts.

Why? For one, it’ll give you a break from your usual writing, but it might also help feed your creativity and teach you how to plot your novel.

For the past few weeks, I’ve attended My Book Therapy’s Monday night online chat session with Susan May Warren and other voices. During these sessions, Susan has shown us how to dissect movies into acts and relate them to our writing. That’s when I discovered I was movie illiterate. What I mean is: I’d never watched movies to dissect them and identify their parts. Sure, I knew they had a beginning, middle, and end, but I’d never scrutinized what happened in each act.

Until now.

So, last week, I allowed myself to watch movies—lots of them—just to analyze the acts. What a blast! Have you done this? If not, you might want to try this creative approach.

I’ll show you what I mean. Have you seen the movie, Home Alone? (I think I’ve watched it a hundred times with my granddaughter.) Hopefully you have, but if you haven’t you still might be able to follow this illustration. I will separate the events that belong in each act.

Here we go. (Remember, I’m new at this.)

Act One: We see Kevin in his ordinary world with his siblings, in his home (setting), and we feel the dynamics of the family. Then everything changes. This is the inciting incident. Kevin wakes to find his family gone. Every one of them. He’s totally alone. He’s in his usual home environment, but it’s all changed. He’s never been on his own before. Something has happened TO him to change his ordinary world.

When Kevin realizes what’s at stake, he’s ecstatic. This is his dream! He can do anything he wants and no one is there to tell him he can’t. Total freedom. Since his inciting incident is a positive experience, Kevin wants to increase his enjoyment. He jumps on the beds, plays with his older brother’s toys, eats whatever he wants, stays up late watching movies, and basically does anything he wants to do.

(Note: if the inciting incident had been a negative experience the quest would be to return to the ordinary world.)

In this act, we also get a glimpse of how Kevin fears the basement and the old man living across the street. This is a foreshadowing of the fear he’ll face in Act Two.


Act Two: This is where Kevin will encounter obstacles and conflicts. For example, he has to do the laundry—which means he has to go to the basement and face his greatest fear. And he has to face it alone.

In this movie, the biggest conflict comes from outside forces—the robbers. When Kevin realizes the robbers are going to come to the house he knows he only has himself to rely on. Yes, it’s great getting to do anything he wants, but it also means he has to face everything alone. But he has a choice. He could fight or hide. He chooses to fight and lures the robbers into the house. Once he does this Kevin has reached the point of no return. There is no turning back. His choice has consequences. What’s at stake? The worse case scenario: Kevin could get captured and die.

But Kevin learns something new about himself—he’s good at playing games and tricking people. He uses this skill to keep the robbers at bay and it works—until Act Three.


Act Three: This is the final challenge, the climax, or the Black Moment as Warren calls it. It’s when everything that can go wrong does. In Home Alone this is when the robbers capture Kevin and hang him on the hook. Nothing could get worse. There’s no hope. Or, is there? Just when we think this is the end, the old man, whom Kevin used to fear, rescues him.

In this act, after the robbers are caught, we see the change in Kevin. He no longer wants what he wanted in act one—freedom to do whatever he wants. Now he wants his family. He wants to return to his ordinary world because he’s lonesome. It’s Christmas morning and the only important thing to him is having his family back.

He’s redefined as a result of his journey.

In the end, all the loose ends are tied up in a bow. The perfect ending. His family returns. They see the change in Kevin in how he did the laundry, decorated the Christmas tree, and shopped for his groceries while they were gone.


Now you try. Watch a movie. Get out pen and paper. Take notes. You might have to skip the popcorn, but it’ll be worth it. If you watch (visual), listen (auditory), and take notes (kinesthetic) you might be more apt to remember—which in turn will help you apply it to your novel. Also, as you’re writing that short one page synopsis for GENESIS or FRASIER keep these acts in mind. It’ll help you tighten your manuscript and focus on good story mechanics.

And, if you’d like to delve deeper into these mechanics, please become a voice with us at Susan May Warren’s My Book Therapy. You won’t be sorry you did.

ACFW Genesis Contest

The Genesis Contest is the ACFW contest for unpublished Christian writers. The contest has a multitude of categories/genres to enter, the opportunity for unbiased feedback on writers' work by published authors and experienced judges, and the chance for the Category Finalists to have their work read by Christian publishing house editors and literary agents. ACFW has been pleased to see previous Category Winners and Finalists move further on in their writing careers to become published authors.


Prizes – Each category will have a first place Category Winner and a runner up. The first place entry in each category--the Category Winner--will receive a winner's plaque and first choice for editor/agent appointments at the 2011 ACFW National Conference. The runner up in each category will receive a certificate. The Category Winners and runner ups will be announced at the 2010 ACFW Conference.

ACFW and the Genesis Contest do NOT guarantee that a winning or runner-up entry will receive a publishing contract.


Fees – $35 per entry for current ACFW members. Multiple entries will require multiple entry fees. If an entry has co-authors, both must be current ACFW members. Writers who want to join ACFW and enter the Genesis may do both online at the ACFW website. Make checks or money orders payable to American Christian Fiction Writers. Do not use pseudonyms on the entry form.


The entrant must submit the first 15 pages of their manuscript, double-spaced, and may include an optional one-page single-spaced synopsis. The manuscript and the synopsis must be in the same file, not in two different files.

The Genesis coordinators highly recommend that entrants submit their entries by MARCH 15TH, 2010, so that if the entry is lost in cyberspace or if any aspect of the entry is unacceptable, the entrant can mail a replacement entry before the deadline.

Categories –
• Contemporary Fiction
• Contemporary Romance (includes romantic comedy)
• Historical Fiction (not romance)
• Historical Romance
• Mystery/Suspense/Thriller
• Romantic Suspense
• Speculative Fiction
• Women’s Fiction
• Young Adult

Judging – During the First Round, three judges (published authors or experienced writers trained in judging the Genesis) will score each entry, up to a maximum of 100 points per entry. All three scores will be averaged. Discrepancy judges will NOT be used due to the logistics of the contest. See the GUIDELINES AND FAQ page for a more information.

The top five entries in each category--Category Finalists--will continue to the Final Round. In the event of a tie for fifth place, all tied fifth place entries will advance to the Final Round. Barring unforeseen circumstances, Finalists will be notified between May 1st and May 15th, 2010. Finalists will be allowed TWO DAYS ONLY to polish and resubmit their entries before the entries are sent to the Final Round judges.

Final Round judges:
• Contemporary Fiction: Beth Adams (editor, Guideposts), Stephanie Broene (editor, Tyndale), Barbara Scott (editor, Abingdon Press)
• Contemporary Romance: Melissa Endlich (editor, Steeple Hill), Ami McConnell (editor, Thomas Nelson), JoAnne Simmons (editor, Barbour)
• Historical Fiction: Janet Grant (agent, Books and Such Literary), Sarah Long (editor, Bethany House), Tamela Hancock Murray (agent, Hartline Literary)
• Historical Romance: Natalie Hanemann (editor, Thomas Nelson), Charlene Patterson (editor, Bethany House), Emily Rodmell (editor, Steeple Hill)
• Mystery/Suspense/Thriller: Sandra Bishop (agent, MacGregor Literary), Susan Brower (editor, Zondervan), Jan Stob (editor, Tyndale)
• Romantic Suspense: Susan Downs (editor, Summerside Press), Tina James (editor, Steeple Hill), David Long (editor, Bethany House)
• Speculative Fiction: Jeff Gerke (publisher, Marcher Lord Press), Julie Gwinn (Fiction Marketing Manager, B&H), Annie Tipton (editor, Barbour)
• Women's Fiction: Rachelle Gardner (agent, Wordserve Literary), Natasha Kern (agent, Natasha Kern Literary), Raela Schoenherr (editor, Bethany House)
• Young Adult: Jacque Alberta (editor, Zonderkidz), Terry Burns (agent, Hartline Literary), Rachel Zurakowski (agent, Books and Such Literary)

The Category Winners will be announced at the 2010 ACFW National Conference. See "Prizes" for the awards designated.

For more information, see the GUIDELINES AND FAQ page on the ACFW website.