DigDeeper Retreat with Jonathan Merritt and Brian Allain – New Jersey – June 12, 2019

Ready to take your writing to the next level? On the day after the Writing for Your Life conference we will also offer a DigDeeper Retreat, taught by Jonathan Merritt and Brian Allain. It will take place at Drew University Theological School on Wednesday, June 12, 2019 – the day after the Writing for Your Life conference.

The Retreat cost is $199 and includes refreshments (lunch and dinner are on your own). A one-hour phone consultation with Brian Allain, sometime after the conference, is also included.

Registration Now Open! Click on this link to pay now (credit card, debit card, PayPal, or PayPal Credit are accepted; all payments are processed through PayPal). After you pay, an email confirmation will be sent to the name and email address you enter into PayPal (or the one associated with your PayPal account) within 48 hours. If you need to change the name and email address please let us know.

 

Sneak peek at the schedule:

8:30 AM: Refreshments

9:00 AM: Introductions and Session 1 (Brian Allain) 

“Building Your Platform”

  • Strategic positioning – how to find your niche and become known
  • Building your platform through social media – why it matters
  • How marketing is different for spiritual writers
  • Social media marketing recommendations
  • Tactical Facebook marketing guidelines including advertising

10:30 AM: Break

11:00 AM: Session 2 (Jonathan Merritt)

“The Power of Narrative: Telling Tantalizing Tales” 
Why do some stories shock our senses while others fall flat? What makes one tale memorable and another utterly forgettable? Jonathan Merritt, author and contributing writer for The Atlantic, has distilled critical elements from time-tested stories that anyone can learn. Whether you are a blogger, novelist, or academic, this powerful workshop will give you tools you need to take your stories to the next level. NOTE: All participants should bring a narrative essay no longer than 500 words in length.

 

12:30 PM: Lunch and time for writing and reflection

2:00 PM: Session 3 (Jonathan Merritt)

“Who is the Who in Your Whoville” 
Acclaimed author and columnist Jonathan Merritt says that the biggest mistake that most young writers and many experienced ones make is that they fail to identify their target audience. Yet, in every other communication form we are aware of an influenced by a specific person we intend to speak to. In this eye-opening seminar, Merritt will explain the powerful difference that audience identification makes for a writer’s work. Come prepared to interact with others and create your own unique target audience profile.

 

3:30 PM: Break

4:00 PM: Q&R and Wrap-up

The Retreat cost is $199 and includes refreshments (lunch is on your own). A one-hour phone consultation with Brian Allain, sometime after the conference, is also included.

 

Registration Now Open! Click on this link to pay now (credit card, debit card, PayPal, or PayPal Credit are accepted; all payments are processed through PayPal). After you pay, an email confirmation will be sent to the name and email address you enter into PayPal (or the one associated with your PayPal account) within 48 hours. If you need to change the name and email address please let us know.

 

Writing for Your Life is pleased to offer 0.5 Continuing Education Units (CEUs) for pastors for this advanced writer’s retreat. Writing for Your Life is a member of the Association of Leaders in Lifelong Learning for Ministry (formerly the Society for the Advancement of Continuing Education for Ministry).

All conference participants are required to abide by our Code of Conduct.

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Leader bios:

Jonathan Merritt is an award-winning writer on religion, culture, and politics. He currently serves as a contributing writer for The Atlantic and senior columnist for Religion News Service. Jonathan has published more than 2000 articles in respected outlets such as USA Today, National Journal, The Week, The Washington Post and Christianity Today. As a respected voice, he regularly contributes commentary to television, print, and radio news outlets and has been interviewed by ABC World News, NPR, CNN, PBS, MSNBC, Fox News, CBS’ “60 Minutes” and The New York Times.

Jonathan is author of three critically-acclaimed books, including Jesus is Better Than You Imagined and A Faith of Our Own: Following Jesus Beyond the Culture Wars. He has collaborated on or ghostwritten nearly 30 additional books, with several titles landing on the New York Times, USA Today, or Wall Street Journal bestsellers lists.

Named one of “30 young influencers reshaping Christian leadership“ by Outreach Magazine, Jonathan is a sought after speaker at colleges, conferences, and churches. He holds a Master of Divinity from Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary and a Master of Theology from Emory University’s Candler School of Theology. Website: http://jonathanmerritt.com/

Brian Allain leads Writing for Your Life, a resource center for spiritual writers, and provides marketing services for authors and companies through Enliven Your Tribe! His work includes the Publishing in Color conference series, which is intended to increase the number of books published by under-represented groups of spiritual writers.  Previously Brian served as Founding Director of the Frederick Buechner Center where he led the launch of Mr. Buechner’s online presence and established several new programs and strategic partnerships. Brian has developed and led spiritual writers conferences at Princeton Theological Seminary, Western Theological Seminary, Belmont University, New Brunswick Seminary, and several churches. He led the self-publishing effort for the book Buchner 101: An Introduction to Frederick Buechner. For additional information please see www.enlivenyourtribe.com, www.writingforyourlife.com and www.publishingincolor.com.