Join our beach Writeaway workshop on Oct. 7

How do you like the idea of attending a workshop AND enjoying a getaway at the beach? Join the Southern Christian Writers Conference for a combination of the two at our 5th annual WRITEAWAY WORKSHOP on Saturday, October 7 in Orange Beach, Alabama.

This year's workshop will be led by SCWC coordinator Cheryl Wray and prolific author Marilyn Turk, and will include four writing sessions on the topics Finding Your Story, Writing Your Story, Finding your Voice, and Making Your Plan.

The workshop is held at Orange Beach First Methodist Church, which is just a few short minutes from the beach and a wonderful place to make your workshop into a lovely Fall weekend on the Gulf coast. (After you register, you'll receive hotel and travel recommendations if you plan on staying past the workshop.)

Our leaders:

Marilyn Turk is a bestselling historical novelist who has also had articles and stories published in Guideposts Magazine, Clubhouse Jr. Magazine, The Upper Room, Chicken Soup for the Soul, and other publications. Her latest novel is The Escape Game, a historical novel of intrigue set during World War II that recently won the 2023 Golden Scroll Award. Her other books include the Coastal Lights Legacy series, The Gilded Curse, Shadowed by a Sky, Rekindled Light Abigail's Secret, and ten novellas. Marilyn is a contributor to the Guideposts annual devotional book and is also the author of the book Lighthouse Devotions. She is a Floridian who graduated with a journalism degree from LSU and is the founder of the Blue Lake Christian Writers Retreat. Bestselling author Eva Maria Everson has said this about her teaching: "Warm and inviting, Marilyn Turk's presentations are more like sitting down with a best friend." (Learn more about Marilyn and her books at www.pathwayheart.com. 

Cheryl Wray is the coordinator of the Southern Christian Writers Conference and a prolific freelance writer and book author. She's published thousands of articles in a variety of newspapers and magazines, and has worked in a variety of capacities in the publishing world as a newspaper editor, book copy editor, and sports reporter. Her books on writing include Writing for Magazines (McGraw Hill), which was a Featured Selection of the Writer's Digest Book Club, and Writing Features Articles (Vision Press), which is a popular college textbook across the country. Her latest book is Notes from a Quarantine: Essays, Stories, and Poems (SCWC Books). Cheryl is dedicated to equipping and encouraging aspiring writers, and helping all writers along their journey toward publication. She live outside Birmingham, Alabama, and has a bachelor's and master's degree in journalism from the University of Alabama.

This year's workshop will run from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., with doors opening at 8:30 a.m. The schedule for the day looks like this:

Saturday, October 7

8:30 a.m.: Doors and registration opens

9 a.m.: Fellowship and breakfast

9:30 a.m.: Opening session

10 a.m.: Session 1: Finding your Story (Marilyn)

11 a.m.: Session 2: Writing your Story (Cheryl)

11:45 a.m.: Lunch

12:30 p.m.: Finding your Voice (Cheryl)

1:30 p.m. Making your Plan (Marilyn)

2:30 p.m: Closing session

Sessions at the workshop are designed to help all writers (both beginners and advanced) in any genre (both fiction and nonfiction). Sessions will provide both encouraging insight from our leaders, and also a lot of practical information to help you in the writing process.

This year's workshop is offered in-person in Orange Beach with an attendance capacity set at 35. It is also available virtually to those who can't make it to the beach; the entire workshop is recorded and online access will be sent to you on the Monday following the workshop.

The in-person workshop also includes snacks, breakfast, and lunch.

Our goal is always to provide the most reasonably priced writing workshops available to our members. This year's Writeaway workshop cost is:

$40 for in-person

$20 for online access

Payment can be made by Venmo to @SCWC-Conference, by PayPal to scwritersconference@gmail.com, or by debit/credit card (let us know if you'd like to pay by card and we'll invoice you). You can also send a check to SCWC, PO Box 3057, Hueytown AL 35023.  The best way to register is to fill our our REGISTRATION form; it will give you the above payment options. Link here to form: Sign up for the 2023 Writeway Workshop.

** REGISTRATION IS NOW OPEN **

We're excited to provide this regional workshop opportunity again for our Southern Christian Writers Conference members. These regional gatherings are a wonderful place to make writing friends in a "cozy" setting and also create chances for those who are unable to travel for our annual gathering in Birmingham. 

Let us know if we can sign you up (email us at scwritersconference@gmail.com) ...and we look forward to seeing you in October at the beach!