Presenters

*Denny Boultinghouse

lived in a number of states while growing up and, as an adult, did full-time ministry in the Central Valley of California. He graduated from Memphis State University in 1972. His favorite writers are a diverse lot including: Eric Hoffer, Richard Goodwin, Molly Ivins, Cal Thomas, Jim McGuiggan, Philip Yancey, Tony Campolo, and Brennan Manning. Married for over 34 years, he and his wife have a daughter who is an attorney in California and a son who recently graduated from Louisiana Tech. Boultinghouse has been employed at Howard Publishing for over twenty years where he continues to be "the most fun person at Howard Publishing."

Marlene Bagnull

has made over 1,000 sales to Christian periodicals and is the author of 5 books including Write His Answer – A Bible Study for Christian Writers and the compiler/editor of 3 other books. She has served on the faculty of over 70 conferences and given more than 50 day-long seminars throughout the United States. In 1983 she founded the Greater Philadelphia Christian Writers Fellowship. She directs their yearly conference and since 1997 also has been directing the Colorado Christian Writers Conference. Marlene mentors Christian writers through her At-Home Writing Workshops and helps them self-publish affordably yet professionally through Ampelos Press.

*Ken Camp

is managing editor of the Baptist Standard, the Texas Baptist news journal. Prior to assuming the editorial post in January 2004, he worked more than 19 years with the news and information service of the Baptist General Convention of Texas communications office, including several years as news director. He holds a bachelor's degree in English and journalism from East Texas State University (now Texas A&M-Commerce) and a master's degree in communication from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. He and his wife, Diane, have three sons: Daniel, Matthew and Nathan. They are members of South Garland Baptist Church, near Dallas.

Marie Chapian

is known around the world as the author of more than 30 books. Her latest novel, I Love You like a Tomato(2003), is a secular Italian immigrant story and the first of a trilogy. The book was selected by the Sons of Italy's National Book Club for an award in 2006 and nominated for a Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award. Earlier books include Telling Yourself the Truth, Mothers and Daughters, Why Do I Do What I Don't Want To Do? Growing Closer, Free To Be Thin, The All-New Free To Be Thin, Of Whom the World Was Not Worthy and the devotional series,A Heart For God.

A many-faceted writer, Chapian is not only a novelist and devotional/motivational writer, but she is also a columnist, a radio personality, a poet, a playwright, an actor, and an artist/illustrator.

She has been a regular columnist for Total Health Magazine, Charisma, and the newspaper, Good News. She is currently a book reviewer for the San Diego Union Tribune, contributingeditor forHunger Mountain, is the editor and publisher of the online poetry journal,Roads, and has published in major religious periodicals such as Christianity Today and Today's Christian Woman.

Her book, God's Heart for You (2005) coincided with the launching of her radio program of the same name which is heard on Christian and secular radio stations across the nation. Her book of poems, Slow Dance on Stilts, won the San Diego Award of Excellence. She wrote and illustrated the Alula-Belle children's book series, and a new children's series, Harold and I … She writes and performs for the theatre, and has studied art in New Yorkand California. Her artwork is shown in galleries, books and periodicals internationally.

Since her first book was published over twenty years ago, she has received many awards for writing, including the Cornerstone Book of the Year Award (twice). Chapian holds a doctorate in counseling and a master of fine arts degree in creative writing. In 2005 she was nominated for the Pushcart Prize for her poetry, fiction and famous profiles published in the literary journals.

Chapian will be our keynote speaker at the Friday banquet with a talk entitled "The Pain Free Life of Art and Literature from A to Z (Learn it all here)," and she will also present a workshop entitled "How to be the Writer You've Always Wanted to Be."

Andrea Chevalier

graduated with honors from East Texas Baptist University in 1997 with a Bachelors of Science in Education degree. She taught in public and private schools before becoming a motivational speaker, Certified Personality Trainer, and author. She recently began Reach For It! Ministries and is the co-founder of the Divine Divas ladies conference. She has published articles on Crosswalk.com and has been a contributing author to The Groovy Chicks Road Trip to Love (2006), Wounded by Words (2007), and The One Year Life Verse Devotional (2007). She was also a contributing author for two of Marita Littauer's latest books, Wired That Way and Communication Plus. Most recently, Andrea has joined the staff of the CLASSeminar, a national seminar that trains both speakers and authors.(www.classervices.com) She lives in the Dallas area with her husband Gary, who is a worship pastor, worship consultant, and author. Together they are raising the two best gifts from God they could have ever asked for, Audrey Grace and Allison Geri.

Gary Chevalier

Gary Chevalier is the Pastor of Worship Arts at Ferris Avenue Baptist Church in Waxahachie, Texas, and a freelance worship consultant, author, and speaker. He has recently joined the faculty for the CLASSeminar, a national seminar that trains both speakers and authors (www.classervice.com), writes a monthly column for the Baptist General Convention of Texas Department of Church Music Newsletter, and was also a contributing author for Marita Lettauer's recent book, Communication Plus. He shares his life with his amazing wife, Andrea, who is also a speaker/author, and their two darling girls, Audrey and Allison.

a certified copyeditor, B. Kay Coulter seeks to serve her clients by helping them develop their writing skills and learn what it takes to get published in today's market. Coulter is an associate editor and a published author who has written and published three books: Proverbs for Personalities (2000), Victim, Victor: It's Your Choice (2002), Free to Be (2004) and is a contributor to two new books being released this year: Divine Stories of the Yahweh Sisterhood and Hope Lives On. She also is an outsource editor for BookSurge Publishing.

is senior editor of The Write Way Editorial Services. Janet K. Crews strives for excellence in Christian communication. She uses her educational background (B.A. degree in English and History), her expertise as a conference speaker and writer, and her experience as a free-lance book editor to modify and enhance the writings of others.

*Michael Farris

graduated cum laude from Texas Tech University School of Law in 1983, where he served as an associate editor on the school's Law Review and was inducted into the prestigious Order of the Coif. He then practiced law for fifteen years with one of the largest law firms in Dallas. In 1998, Farris left the law firm to pursue personal interests, primarily writing, ghost writing, and free-lance editing, before opening the literary agency with his wife. He is also an award-winning screenwriter, having served as president of the 100-plus-member Dallas Screenwriters Association.

earned a cum laude English degree, with a communications minor, from Stephen F. Austin State University in Texas. She then obtained a law degree from Texas Tech University School of Law in 1983. After graduating and prior to opening a literary agency, she has had a general, mainly civil, law practice in Dallas County. Farris has also edited several non-fiction publications and has been a consultant to screenwriters, novelists, and non-fiction authors.

has published over 600 inspirational articles in over 200 magazines and newspapers such as Today's Christian Parent, Guidepost and The Upper Room. She has also published numerous books including Women Who Encountered Jesus (Broadman Press, 1982), Walk and Pray (Beacon Hill Press, 1982) and A Stone Rolled Away (Guideposts, 1994). Field holds a Master of Arts degree from Southern Methodist University, has taught English and Bible at several colleges and universities, and she often participates in conferences and workshops for writers.

is an experienced and widely-traveled journalist who retired as the editor in chief of the Long Star Eagle in ???. He has traveled and worked in twenty-five foreign countries, including as a war correspondent in Vietnam. He has been an investigative reporter for the Shreveport Times, city editor for the Shreveport Journal, Director of Public Relations for the Baptist General Convention of Texas and Bureau Chief of Baptist Press. For ten years he was senior editor for Huntington House. His published writings include several biographies, medical and inspirational books and numerous magazine articles.

John Krueger

is the editor at The Light and Champion newspaper in Center, Texas. He has held the position for more than a year, already receiving several awards while in the position. John is a 17-year veteran of the print media and served seven years in public relations at two NCAA university and conference positions before returning to East Texas. Krueger has worked at newspapers in Nacogdoches, Lubbock, Perryville, Missouri, Bethany Beach, Delaware, and Martinsville, Virginia, holding positions from news writer to sports editor.
He served as Director of Sports Information at Rockford College, in Rockford, Illinois, and in a variety of other positions in other parts of the country. He has earned several prestigious awards in writing and editing. Krueger is single and resides in Center. He has two children, Mark, age 17, and Annie, age 14, who attend Nacogdoches High School.

Pete Litterski

has been a weekly newspaper editor, sports editor, copy editor, news editor and editor for nearly 30 years. He is the senior editor/editorial page editor of the Longview News-Journal where he was the editor for the prior 10 years. As senior editor of the Longviewnewspaper, he is responsible for the daily editorial pages as well as the Sunday Focus and OpEd pages. He also developed the newspaper's Saturday Forum Page, a feature that replaced that day's Opinion Page with a page dedicated to the contributions of local writers who contribute essays and commentaries on a wide variety of topics.

Larry McFadden

has served as a staff member in music for churches in Texas, South Carolina, North Carolina and Florida. He has served for the past twenty-five years in full-time evangelism, having conducted over 600 revivals and crusades for churches and area-wide groups. He has authored seven books on Christian living and apologetics. As an evangelist he has conducted forty overseas mission trips, mostly in third-world countries. In addition to his books, Larry has recorded several collections of Christian music. As a popular speaker and workshop leader Larry and his evangelistic association sponsors student summer camps (Engage) emphasizing teenage apologetics. Two very popular seminars are conducted for churches and groups— "Creation vs. Evolution" (teaching his book Divine Design or Cosmic Chaos) and "Weekend of Encouragement." Larry will be conducting a workshop on writing as a ministry and mission.

Jim Pence

is a freelance suspense author with two published novels to his credit. His most recent work, The Angel, was published by Kregel Publications in 2006 . His first novel, Blind Sight was published by Tyndale House (2003). Jim is also the author of three books on Web design, all published by Osborne/McGraw-Hill. In addition to writing, Jim is a gospel chalk artist and vocalist, and has drawn for churches and organizations all over the U.S. Jim currently serves full time as the director of prison ministries for First Baptist Church of Dallas.

*Patricia Saunders

Grew up in West Texas loving reading and writing. After graduating from Baylor, she taught Latin and English, created data procedure manuals, wrote freelance articles for Texaspublications and edited grade 6-12 materials for Holt, Rinehart and Winston. In 1999, Pat launched her freelance business, editing a coming-of-age novel and educational projects. For clients, she edits not only manuscripts in various genres but also marketing and publishing materials. Her memberships in Writers' League of Texas and Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators are sources for ongoing education and networking. She enjoys traveling with her husband, watching the antics of their three cats, and photographing Hill Country wildlife.

Lexie Smith

is enthusiastic about the potential of blogging, a relatively new medium for writers. In the first six months after creating Lexical Light, Smith had over 5,000 visits to her blog, earned a spot on the Intellectuelle group blog, and developed contacts with traditional media authors, book publishers, and other blog writers. She's married to fellow blogger Jack and home schools her four children, all of whom have their own blogs.

*Jim Stafford

is an associate editor of The Upper Room magazine, an international, interdenominational, and interracial devotional magazine. Staffordworked his way through college as an English major, and after college he was a technical writer and editor. In 1994, Staffordjoined The Upper Room, and has beeninstrumental in keeping the magazine current, and he has sought to build on what unites all Christian believers. The Upper Room seeks to unite all Christian believers rather than divide. Jim and his wife Kitty reside in a rural neighborhood near Lebanon, Tennessee. Stafford will present a session about writing devotionals.

Austin B. Tucker

Is an experienced pastor, teacher and writer. A graduate of ETBU (BA, 1960) and Southwestern Seminary (BD, 1964; ThD 1970), he has taught at four seminaries and is now trustee at another. He has a distinguished record as a leader in denominational service in the association, state convention and Southern Baptist Convention. His many writing credits include A Primer for Pastors: A Handbook for Strengthening Ministry Skills (Kregel, 2004). He writes regularly for Preaching magazine.

*Donna Walker-Nixon

a retired professor of English at the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor, was the founding editor of Windhover: A Journal of Christian Literature. Actively engaged in promoting the art and craft of writing, she co-founded The Langdon Review of the Arts in Texas in 2004, and has contributed to a variety of journals, conferences, and collections. Walker-Nixon's stories have appeared in Echoes, New Texas '93, Texas Short Fiction I and II, Descant, and Concho River Review.

Lois Jane Wallace

is a music evangelist and song writer who has ministered for many years in church and ministry settings across the nation. Lois Jane has served 25 years in music evangelism and women's evangelism ministry in numerous churches and conferences across the nation. Her extensive experience in concert and church music will encourage and inspire workshop participants to learn how to express one's self in lyrics and in song.

*The people whose names are starred will be available to meet with conference attendees for private consultations. Please sign up, indicating who you would like to meet with, when you register.