Meandering Moments by Elsi

I’m on my way home now from the Oregon Christian Writers Summer Coaching Conference in Canby Grove Conference Center, southeast of Portland. What a glorious time I had!

I can only touch the high points here, of course. And, by the way, let me start with one of the MANY things I learned: I need to write in my blog regularly. Minimum of three times a week, preferably five or more. Okay, I hereby covenant to do that. You won’t be getting long, rambling, carefully thought-out entries, but you will get succinct thoughts, planned, revised, and done as well as I can manage. And I’ll be expecting responses from you, too, so be sure to do your part!

The very air at the OCW conference is filled with writing and prayer. Everywhere you go, people are talking about the Lord, talking to the Lord, writing, discussing writing, or relaxing with an eye to doing more writing and praying. I always come away with new ideas and inspiration, pressed down, overflowing, running into my beard as it were (Psalm 133:2).

I’m getting to know a lot of people at OCW, and it’s great to see old friends and make new ones. Plus, the grounds are accessible to me: not only can I camp at the conference center (instead of down the road somewhere), but almost all the rooms are within my walking ability. Of course, this year someone put all my workshops up a flight of stairs, but even so, I managed three of the five workshops!

My coaching class (2.5 hours a day for three days) was superb. Nancie and Bill Carmichael led a non-fiction critique group, with nine of us who had shared our writing samples in advance. So many good ideas … new direction … fresh inspiration … I’m eager to put pen to paper (well, fingers to keyboard, anyway) and get moving on my projects!

The highest high point, I suppose, was meeting and hearing Angela Hunt. If you aren’t familiar with her books, please read “Magdalene.” All her books are great; she has a unique writing style and point of view; her themes and approach are powerful. Listening to her keynote talks over three nights, I began to understand some of where the power comes from. She writes from her heart, from her understanding of what the Lord is teaching her. And it shows. We wept and laughed with her—and you should SEE the photos of her mastiff!