We’re Keeping a Spot Warm for You at the Called to Write Conference
With this harsh 2018 winter, maybe some of you are already thinking about a trip to Orlando this spring. You’re welcome to join us Floridians for a one-day event to connect with other writers, grow in your craft, and learn about Cru writing opportunities. If you’re a Cru writer of any stripe, we’d love to have you join us at Called to Write on March 8th.
How to Sign Up
If you would like to be encouraged that writing is a valid part of our ministry as staff members, learn some skills that will take your writing to the next level, and connect with other writers and writing opportunities, then you won’t want to miss our first-ever writing conference for Cru staff, Called to Write. We’re capping at 48 people. Register here to get your name in!
We’ll meet in Orlando, on March 8, 2017, at Lake Hart in east Main from 8:30 AM to 5:00 PM. Cost is $25 per person and includes lunch. If you can hang around afterwards, we’re encouraging writers to meet in smaller groups for dinner in some of the local restaurants.
What to Expect
Come at 8:30 on March 8th, 2017, to check in. Judy Douglass will open the conference with a message at 9:00 AM to set the tone for our day together. Rick and Katie James and also Mark and Anne Marie Winz have already agreed to provide content you won’t want to miss. We should finalize content and speakers soon. Check the main conference page occasionally for the latest information. Better yet, I’ll send updates to registrants through email.
Great Speakers and Practical Workshops
We’ll have plenary sessions as well as breakouts with workshops. We’re planning times for you to network, to write and receive feedback, and to learn. The conference is carefully put together with Cru writers in mind.
Ministries Looking for Writers
Representatives within Cru who are looking for writers will join us. We’ll provide time in the schedule if you’d like to talk with any of these folks.
Blogging Consulting
I’ll be offering blogging consulting.
I’ll offer consulting during the conference on Thursday but limited because I don’t think you’ll want to miss any of the speakers and workshops. So, I decided I will offer additional consulting on Wednesday afternoon for our out-of-town guests. If the idea of some consulting for your blog appeals to you, let me know and we’ll start making arrangements. Depending on the response and your needs, I might be able to adjust this plan. (I’m assuming air fares and such will determine when you fly in.) Contact me at sus dot schmitt at cru.org to pursue this idea.
Stay in the Loop
We want to be sure anyone who has any interest in the Called to Write conference receives needed details as we get closer to the date. I’m sure I’ll put up at least one more post on eQuipping for eMinistry with more details as we finalize them, but it’s best if you register to stay informed. By registering, I can send emails alerting you to more news about the conference.
We’re very close to finalizing many details. Another way to know the latest info, especially if you don’t want to register yet, is bookmark:
- the official Conference page (content, schedule, speakers,…) and/or
- the Facebook event page (which is more intended for helping you connect with who’s coming).
We’re considering video and/or audio taping our content (especially for those of you who can’t make it) and will have that information as well when we get these things set up.
Who’ll Be There
Judy Douglass
Judy’s passion is to encourage God’s children—especially His daughters—to become all they were created to be and to accomplish all they were created to do. In more than 40 years on staff with Cru, she has done that through writing, editing and speaking. As she partners with her husband, Steve, to lead Cru, she focuses on Women’s Resources. Judy travels all over the world to speak and is known for her realness. A native of Dallas, Texas, Judy Douglass is a graduate of the University of Texas with a degree in journalism. She has served as Editor of a magazine targeting college students and another for young adults and has authored four books: Letters to My Children: Secrets of Success, What Can a Mother Do? Finding Significance at Home and Beyond, He Loves Me, and Single and Complete.
Judy and Steve live in Orlando, Florida. They have three children, Debbie, Michelle, and Joshua and nine grandchildren. Follow her blog, Kindling, at JudyDouglass.com or follow her on Twitter or on Facebook.
Rick and Katie James
Rick James serves as publisher of Crupress, the publishing arm of Cru, spending the last 30 years in campus ministry. He speaks on university campuses and at conferences and is the author of numerous ministry resources and several books, including A Million Ways to Die, Jesus Without Religion, and Watch. Rick’s M.Div is from Trinity Seminary and he’s presently working on his dissertation for his Ph.D in Philosophy of Religion at Southeastern Baptist Seminary.
Katie James has an MFA from Columbia University where she received the Felipe P. De Alba fellowship and taught undergraduate fiction. Her debut novel, Can You See Anything Now? (2017, Paraclete) won Christianity Today’s award for best fiction of 2018, and her as yet to be titled memoir that recounts her son’s overdose on heroin will be published this year. Her essays and poetry have been published in various journals and anthologies, including In the Arms of Words, St. Katherine Review, The Other Journal, Between Midnight and Dawn, and Everbloom, and one of her short stories was a finalist for a spring Narrative Prize. She is the acquisitions editor for Crupress. Follow Katie on Twitter or on her blog.
Rick and Katie live in West Chester, Pennsylvania. They have three wonderful, grown children.
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