Angela Breidenbach is Mrs. Montana International 2009, a multi-award winning inspirational speaker and the author of the Gems of Wisdom: For a Treasure-filled Life and the Gems of Wisdom Companion Guide, the Creative Cooking Series including the new release of Creative Cooking for Simple Elegance from Westbow Press. Other works by Angela include compilation books and devotionals from Guidepost, Group, and articles in magazines, ezines, and newspapers. She connects missions to her work with Hope’s Promise Orphan Ministries and the Jadyn Fred Foundation. Angela serves as an assisting minister for her congregation in Missoula, MT. She volunteers as the American Christian Fiction Writer's Publicity Officer. You can interact or learn more about Angela Breidenbach at these sites: http://www.MyGemofWisdom.com http://www.AngelaBreidenbach.com http://GodUsesBrokenVessels.blogspot.com http://WritingByFaith.blogspot.com on Wednesdays each week.

Every November a few things happen in the writing world. The new releases leap into the market for the Christmas season, and American Christian Fiction Writers members elect new officers for a two-year term.

The ACFW board rotates so half of the board changes each year, allowing half to remain for continuity. This year four officers rotate off the board: president, vice-president, publicity officer, and zone officer.

The current board:
President—Cynthia Ruchti
Vice President—Becky Yauger
Secretary—Danica Favorite-McDonald
Treasurer—Vickie McDonough
Publicity Officer—Angela Breidenbach
Volunteer Officer—Margaret Daley
Membership Officer—Sharon Lavy
Zone Officer—Ane Mulligan

You can find more information on the positions and the candidates in the Members Only section of the ACFW Website at https://members.acfw.com/elections.shtml. Voting takes place November 15–30, 2010, with the new officers announced December 1 to begin one month of training before taking over the position on January 1, 2011.

ACFW Membership

It’s easy to become a member by clicking on www.acfw.com and filling out the online form.

Membership benefits include:

*Free online monthly classes
*Main e-loop for education and writing business questions
*Fifteen regional zones
*Twenty-three local chapters: http://www.acfw.com/chapters.shtml
*Annual conference with discounts for members
*Scribes critique loop with a monthly orientation for new scribes
*Online prayer loop *Afictionado: ACFW’s monthly ezine: http://acfw.com/ezine/
*Author Lists: Alphabetical author listing in our new READERS section: http://acfw.com/readers/authorlist.shtml
*Genre Page: A new area featuring ACFW authors by genre: http://acfw.com/readers/index.shtml
*Social Issues Page: Book listing by topic: http://acfw.com/readers/index.shtml
*Author Interviews and Featured Author: New interviews posted each week: http://www.acfw.com *New Releases: New releases from our recognized publishers: https://members.acfw.com/addupcoming.shtml
*Book Club: Have your book considered by the ACFW Book Club: https://members.acfw.com/bookclubform.shtml
*Be included in the fictionfinder.com database, which links readers, bookstores, libraries, book clubs, and authors with great Christian fiction.
*Book Reviews: Submit reviews of ACFW members’ books: https://members.acfw.com/addbookreviews.shtml
*Author Contests: Do you host a contest on your site? Fill out the form to announce it to the public: https://members.acfw.com/contestform.shtml
*Genesis Contest: Unpublished member authors may enter
* The Carol Award Contest
*New! Genre loops for specific connection with authors who write what you write
*New! Novel Track: See the next section for more details

Novel Track Opens to Huge Success!

Novel Track: Writing is an e-mail loop active during the months of January, April, July, and October. It’s ACFW’s version of Book in a Month, but you set your own goal. How many words do you think you can write in one month? We challenge you to set a goal of at least 10,000 words, but if you want to go for more, that’s great. We hope you will. Can you do 50,000 words? Why not try? We’ll cheer you on to your goal!

When the month begins, keep track of how many words you write each day and report to the loop if you want support and accountability. At the end of the month, if you have reached your goal (at least 10,000 words), you’ll receive an ACFW badge to display on your blog or Website or both.

How do you carve out time to write? At the beginning of the month, we talk about ways to find time to write. The object of this e-mail loop is to encourage you and keep you writing until the end of the month. The only way a book will get done is to sit down and write it. Once you’re an ACFW member, sign up at https://members.acfw.com/noveltrackinfo.shtml

What will 2011 hold for Novel Track participation?

Novel Track: Writing (July, October, January, and April)

Novel Track: Editing (February, May, August, and November)

Novel Track: Polishing (March, June, September, and December).

If you have questions about Novel Track, please e-mail Margaret Daley, Volunteer Officer at voloff@acfw.com .