Local authors shine with anthology, free writing workshop
Each spring—without fail—an email from retired B-52 pilot Charles “Chuck” Sutherland arrives in my inbox.
Sutherland, president of the Louisiana chapter of American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW), wants to make sure people know about this group’s yearly free workshop for writers. He’s one of the most organized authors I’ve known—and committed to helping others learn to tell their stories.
He honed writing skills in the Air Force, where he wrote everything from lesson plans and manuals to a comical “Combat Crew Magazine” series to instruct SAC aviators, about a detective called Fix Hammer, “the Instrument Investigator.”
“In 1999, during a combat deployment to Saudi Arabia, I tried writing a novel but life got in the way. Still, my abortive attempt taught me that I had much to learn about writing fiction,” he said. And much to teach.
He has since published a variety of books under the pen name C.D. Sutherland, including “The Dragoneers,” “The Lost Dragoneer” and “The Last Dragoneer,” and is project manager for the 9th annual ACFW Aspiring Writers Workshop, from 8:30 a.m. until 3:50 p.m. April 27 at Barksdale Baptist Church in Bossier City. The program, with a panel of local authors, will provide instruction on basic story-crafting theory and techniques and focus on “wholesome” narrative fiction.
Even if you have no interest in writing fiction, this announcement should bring a smile to book lovers. It’s another reminder of the large number of hardworking North Louisiana authors, everyday people being published right and left. The chapter collaborates to produce a collection of stories available for you to read (and to be used as a teaching tool at the conference). This year 15 authors wrote for a two-volume anthology, “Time Passages,” available via Amazon or at the conference.
“We agree on a ‘common element’ for our stories, mainly because our diversity prevents us from agreeing on a common theme,” Sutherland said. “We invite you to take notice of the techniques used by this array of talented authors to weave those time-related appearances into their stories.”
Volume I authors include Sutherland, Jann Franklin, Datha Hopkins, Beverly Flanders, Susan Hiers Foster, Jonni Rich, Mary Lou Cheatham and Donna M. Copeland.
Volume II features stories by Bruce Hennigan, Calvin Hubbard, Eileen Keir Copeland, Tina Middleton, Cindy Chandler Pye, Carole Lehr Johnson and Marguerite Martin Gray.
Authors, including some of those above, volunteer their time and are serious that the workshop be productive. This is the only book event I write about that reminds attendees to bring a sack lunch—no wasting time going out.
“Experience shows that all aspiring writers have the same questions but often don’t know how to ask them,” Sutherland said. “While aspiring writers usually have a particular premise or unique character pinging away at their muse, logic suggests they must acquire the fundamental story-crafting skill sets before they write a satisfying story.”
Attendees will be taught how to determine their audience, to immerse readers in setting, develop interesting characters and deal with points of view—and will have opportunities to talk with published authors, receive individualized feedback on work done that day and get books signed. While the workshop opens and closes in prayer and “some speakers are a little more direct than others in sharing their faith, this event is not a church service,” Sutherland said.
To preregister, go to http://www.narrowwaypress.com/aspiring-writers-workshop/. For more, email Sutherland at TheAspiringWritersWorkshop@gmail.com.
About the ACFW chapter
The group meets at Barksdale Baptist Church at 11 a.m. on the last Saturday of each month except November and December and is part of the national ACFW. For more, see www.acfw.com. “While almost everybody is published, we are a diverse group united by our love for Christ and our interest in writing, even as our primary genres vary widely,” Sutherland said.
Columnist Judy Christie and NYT bestselling author Lisa Wingate co-authored “Before and After: The Incredible Real-Life Stories of Orphans Who Survived the Tennessee Children’s Home Society,” the nonfiction sequel to Wingate’s bestselling novel “Before We Were Yours.” For more about Christie, see www.judychristie.com or follow her on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/JudyChristieAuthor.
This article originally appeared on Monroe News-Star: Local authors shine with anthology, free writing workshop
