Inspired by Life ... and Fiction

Novelists bound by the pen, sisterhood, & more

ACFW 2023

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My apologies for being late with this post this morning. Yesterday Ken and I returned from the 2023 American Christian Fiction Writers Conference in St. Louis and I’ve been playing catch-up since then. But oh, what a wonderful conference it was, and I have some fun photos to share of our time in St. Louis!

The conference ran from Thursday through Sunday morning and was packed with activity! I’ll share just a few photos from our time.

I taught a workshop on Writing Cinematically to about forty attendees.

I got to do one of several book signings with these great authors, L to R. Jerusha Agen, me, Ashley Clark, Crystal Caudill, Amanda Cox.

So many great meetings in the hallways, including a surprise visit from our own Becky Wade, who decided to come to St. Louis at the last minute! And for good reason!

The final night of the conference is always the Genesis and Carol Awards. Inspired by Life…and Fiction was well represented! Our own Robin, Julie, Becky, and I, plus Jody Hedlund who wrote for this blog for many years, were all semi-finalists. Becky and I advanced to the finals, and Becky won the Romance category with her novel Turn to Me. Yay, Becky!!

Our keynote speaker, author Charles Martin, hit it out of the park with his talks. The ACFW Lifetime Achievement Award was given to James Scott Bell, and my agent, Steve Laube, was awarded ACFW Agent of the Year—both so well deserved!

I loved catching up with some of the members of my local St. Louis ACFW Chapter! And it’s always a joy to have my wonderful husband, Ken, at conference with me!

I’ll leave you with a few sweet measures of our worship time. (Click on the image or link below to play.)

https://youtu.be/knFnvaLf3gM

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Deborah Raney

DEBORAH RANEY's first novel, A Vow to Cherish, inspired the World Wide Pictures film of the same title and launched Deb’s writing career. Forty books later, she's still creating stories that touch hearts and lives. Her novels have won RWA's RITA Award, the ACFW Carol Award, the National Readers Choice Award, and the HOLT Medallion. She is also a three-time Christy Award finalist. Deb is on faculty for several national writers’ conferences and served on the executive board of the 2,500-member American Christian Fiction Writers organization for 18 years before retiring in 2022. She is a recent transplant to Missouri, having moved with her husband, Ken Raney, from their native Kansas to be closer to kids and grandkids. They love road trips, e-biking, Friday garage sale dates, and breakfast on the screened porch overlooking their wooded backyard.
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Comments

  2. It was a wonderful conference! I’m so glad we had a few minutes to talk. I loved your workshop!

  5. It was a wonderful conference. I feel blessed for the opportunity to attend and to see your sweet face.

  7. Thanks for the photos and the worship video. Maybe one day I will be able to attend!

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