InScribers Come to the Well by Nina Faye Morey

And do not neglect doing good and sharing,

For with such sacrifices God is pleased.

~ Hebrews 13:16

When I first checked our InScribe website to view the offerings at this year’s Fall Conference, I was disappointed that there were no formal workshops on offer. I read the explanation provided about the Open Concept Conference model with some trepidation. It wasn’t clear to me how this was going to work, so I did a bit of research on this type of meeting. Being an introvert, I wasn’t sure if this participant-driven format would suit me at all. I pondered it for quite a while before I finally decided to go ahead and register. Even though the format didn’t appeal to me, I had to admit to myself that this interactive Open Concept model might actually be good for me. You know . . . like that medicine that tastes awful but cures what ails you?

The explanation given for the Open Concept model included the invitation to come with an idea for a topic that we wanted to learn more about. Since I was planning to create my own website, I was eager for any information that I could glean from other attendees on this process. So, I decided to suggest this topic for one of the sessions. I had no idea whether many would be interested in this topic, but I was pleasantly surprised to see the assigned room fill up quickly with those who were eager to talk and learn about website building. There were several who already had their own websites, and it was enlightening to hear their experiences with the different website platform providers, such as WordPress, Wix, and Squarespace. There were also a few, like me, who were just getting ready to set up their own website and were looking for advice on the pros and cons of the various platforms, how easy they were to use, and what we should be thinking about including on our websites. I learned that two of the most important things to include are a newsletter and an email list for networking and marketing purposes.

The Open Concept model is governed by four “laws.” The first is the “Law of Two Feet.” It states that you are responsible for your own learning, which means that you are free to get up and leave a session at any time if you find it’s not right for you and join another. Someone suggested the analogy of “bees” and “butterflies” to explain how this works in practice. Some of us are “bees” who linger around gathering refreshing nectar, while others are “butterflies” who tend to flit from place to place. I am one of the bees, so I was happy to stick around and collect as much as I could from each session. I enjoyed all the sessions that I attended: Social Media, Medium, Marketing (Online & In-Person), Publishing with IngramSpark, and Christian Romance.

A highlight of the Conference for me was our guest speaker, Sigmund Brouwer, who writes novels for both children and adults. He describes himself as primarily a storyteller and this soon became obvious, as he is an extremely engaging and humorous speaker. I especially enjoyed his powerful presentation on and reading from his book, Thief of Glory, based on his father’s experiences as a young boy in a Japanese internment camp during World War II

So, my initial hunch proved correct. This Open Concept Conference format that initially left a bad taste in my mouth turned out to be good medicine for me. Along with refreshing the relationships I’ve developed with other InScribers over the years, this format encouraged me to come out of my shell much more than I would have during a traditional conference. Now that I no longer feel apprehensive about attending an Open Concept Conference, I’m hoping InScribe uses this format again in the future.

The joy of words - Ruth L. Snyder

I will always remember the day I understood how the squiggles on a page translated into words that told a story. A whole new world opened up to me that day!

As a young child, I lived in South Africa with my parents who served as missionaries. My father worked as a printer. I loved visiting the print shop and watching the paper fly through the machines. My Dad showed me how he set the type and checked the ink. It was fascinating. This was when I first fell in love with the smell of paper.

Around the same time, I started to pay more attention to the letters my mother read to us. Letters from people far away. I learned about my paternal grandparents who lived in Canada, where my grandfather also worked in a print shop. Letters from my maternal grandparents in the United States were full of descriptions of family adventures and funny family nicknames like Uncle Snort and Uncle Bub.

When I learned to print, my Mom encouraged me to write thank you cards and letters. My sister and I used to set up desks and play school and office. I also remember signing my letters, "Praying for you." Several months later my paternal grandmother thanked me for my prayers.

Stories were immensely enjoyable to me. I looked forward to the mobile library that visited our village. Not only did I learn life lessons, but I also experienced different places around the world through the eyes of many different authors.

A few years later, my siblings and I attended school five hundred miles from where my parents were stationed. Weekly letters were the only connection I had to my parents. I worked hard to describe interesting events and people and appreciated when my parents did the same. Each letter was a treasure.

In high school in Three Hills, Alberta, I had the privilege of working on a school newsletter as reporter and layout editor. I remember exploring events from different perspectives, including that of a mouse. Language Arts was one of my favourite subjects. My sister and I stayed with our paternal grandparents for one year during high school. We would visit the print shop where I observed my grandfather proofreading a book with one of his fellow printers by reading the words, letters, and punctuation out loud. That year I also served on the yearbook committee and received training in layout and font styles. At that time the layout was all done manually with actual pictures and type.

During my Bible College years I enjoyed being an administrative assistant for one of the professors. He taught me the difference between using a typewriter and entering information on a computer. When he noticed my ability to produce well-formatted documents which contained no spelling errors, he recommended me for a summer job producing syllabi.

After Bible College I worked in the Prairie Bookstore in customer service and then became assistant manager. Along with lessons in stock control, specialty orders, and placing orders through major distributors, the manager taught us many life lessons. During this time my mom encouraged me to take a writing aptitude test from the Institute of Children's Literature. I was delighted to be able to study article writing with a published author. Later that year I met Sigmund Brouwer when he did a book signing in our store.

As I look back, I am amazed at how God prepared me for what I am doing today:

• Writing articles, devotionals, blog posts, copy, short stories, and books
• Working as a layout editor for a quarterly newsletter as well as formatting my own and other people's books and book covers
• Coaching other writers so that they can share the messages God has laid on their hearts

How thankful I am for the joy of words! What do you enjoy about words, reading or writing?


Ruth L. Snyder spent the first ten years of her life in southern Africa where her parents served as missionaries. In 1977, her family moved to Three Hills, Alberta. She now resides close to Glendon with her husband and five children. 

For more information about coaching or publishing visit http://ruthlsnyder.com