Recap: Make a Spark! Conference and How it Reignited Me

Since our son left for boot camp, I’ve grappled a bit with melancholy, and writing hasn’t been coming easily for me lately. We’re very happy for him and where he’s at, which is exactly where he wants and feels called to be. And while I’m excited about his new adventure, I just really miss him and being able to communicate with him as was our norm. His huge personality and joie de vivre filled a lot of space in our home, and I’m keenly feeling the void he’s left. So as I try to write, I’m often going through the motions, faking it till I make it. I keep showing up, hoping words will come. I’ve needed something to reignite the fire in me.

This past weekend was the Make a Spark! Writers Conference, offered by Spark Flash Fiction. I didn’t teach any classes this year but attended to support my fellow staffers. It also ended up being one of the best things I could’ve done for myself. The conference did indeed make a spark for me, reigniting a flare in my heart toward writing. I want to share some of my favorite highlights with you.

For the first session, Spark offered a choice between two classes: an intro course into Writing Romantic Flash Fiction or Hitting Your Word Count: Self-Editing Tips. Even now, having written numerous flash fiction pieces over the past two years, I can always get better. As writers, we’re to continually work at our craft, trusting with time, teaching, and practice, we’ll grow in our skills.

Hope Wellborn’s self-editing session was an excellent reminder of the punch an economy of words packs, using fewer, stronger words to communicate most effectively. Find a way to make each word count and the result is a more compelling story. Something I still struggle with is over-explaining. Readers are smart and fully capable of filling in blanks or using their imagination to see a scene in their minds. Hope encouraged us to RUE—resist the urge to explain. If we master this, our words show rather than tell, and our story is more engaging. I’m excited to revisit these concepts to improve my writing and editing.

The Lunch & Learn session Working with an Editor: Mastering Track Changes and Feeling Confident in the Editing Process was fantastic. I appreciate Abbey Downey’s two-fold approach to this session. Abbey explained the different types of edits and offered overall wisdom on professionally receiving edits, reminding us that editors want to help make our stories the best they can be. She also interactively walked participants through the nuts and bolts of navigating and utilizing Track Changes in Microsoft Word, as it’s the most widely used program in the industry. 

The conference’s natural flow had conferees focused on marketing next. Jordan Millsaps’s Utilizing Canva for Author Marketing session was outstanding. She showed us the many things you can do in Canva: promos, quotes, cover reveals, reviews, and more. I loved Jordan’s step-by-step tutorial on creating story slides to share on Instagram. I feel less intimidated and more encouraged to play around in Canva to step up my marketing game.

Best-selling author Toni Shiloh taught our grand finale session. If you haven’t read any of Toni’s books, you’re missing out! She is so, so good at writing swoony romance; she was the perfect teacher for The Balancing Act: Using Tension to Keep the Reader Engaged.

Toni shared how layering elements in a story builds the tension between characters. What’s at stake? What internal and external conflict exists for the characters? What are their wounds? What tropes can we use to put them in situations that ratchet up tension? Toni highlighted the importance of pacing—the slow build, the give and take, the rise and fall—and how important it is to get it right for the length of our stories (novel, novella, short stories, or flash fiction).

She also encouraged employing all the senses to create the perfect atmosphere for our stories. And these are just a few of the valuable points Toni had for attendees. I’m now reading through Toni’s award-winning In Search of a Prince (which I am seriously loving!), keeping all of her wonderful teachings in mind and taking notes along the way.

Sometimes when we’re in a funk, the best thing we can do for ourselves is to shake things up a bit. The Make a Spark! Conference came at just the right time with the right material to remind me of my love of words and stories and prod me to just keep putting them on the page. I’m excited to get back to working on my WIPs again. Writer friends, what do you do when life has you distracted from your writing goals? What ways have you found to reignite your passion for writing when it’s eluded you?