2023
Pre-Conference Sessions
Do you want to go deeper at the Speak Up Conference? Sign-up to attend one pre-conference session. Sessions will take place in person on July 13th at 10:00 AM. You can go through the pre-recorded sessions at your own pace.
If you have a Plus or VIP ticket, one live pre-conference session is included.
In-Person Session Options
All live sessions cost $100 each. Attendees can only attend one session. If you have purchased a Plus or VIP ticket, one pre-conference session was included.
Click on a purple title to learn more about what each session will cover!
Sessions For Speakers
Videotaping & Critiquing of Speeches
$100
30-Min Time slot
15-minute video presentation with one-to-one critique with a Speak Up faculty member.
The final product will include your 15-minute (max) video and specific verbal feedback that will move your speaking to the next level. Your 30-minute appointment will begin with reviewing the answers to the questions below. Then you will view your pre-recorded video with your Speak Up faculty member. Your content can be a complete talk or a portion of a longer talk. You will receive feedback on content and delivery during your 30-minute appointment.
7 Strategies to Secure Speaking Engagements
$100
3 hours with Robyn Dykstra
Are you searching for more audiences to benefit from the messages God has given you?
Let Robyn Dykstra provide the inside scoop on securing more opportunities to speak. You’ll leave this interactive session with:
- Seven tried and true strategies to secure events.
- A great elevator pitch that will capture an event planner’s attention.
- The pro tips you need to find, land, and negotiate as many gigs as your calendar can handle.
Sessions For Writers
Book Proposal Intensive Clinic
$100
3-hour session with Dave & Cindy Lambert
This session is limited to 25 registrants
Prerequisite:
Complete and bring with you a working proposal. Please download and use one of the following templates, or you may use a proposal model you’ve found on your own.
A winning book proposal is a tool that entices seven audiences to grasp a contagious vision for a book and then equips them to successfully play their parts in placing the book into the hands of its ideal readership.
In this three-hour intensive clinic, you will be introduced to the following:
- The business side of publishing decisions
- The real details behind the closed doors of editors and publishing boards
- The craftsmanship to write an enticing proposal that captures the interest of publishing professionals.
Writing Bible Studies
$100
3 hours with Carol Tetzlaff
The daily routine of a Bible Study contains patterns that will draw the participant into a daily rhythm. The element of pattern is equally important as the thread of truth woven throughout. In this class, you will discover how to write a Bible Study that consists of both. Using this format will give you the tools you need to create your theme, outline, and content, allowing the writing process to be done systematically to expedite your writing.
- Discover unique rhythms found within a Bible Study. This will be done through examination and evaluation.
- Determine the theme of the Bible Study you wish to write and the overall format.
- Develop the “thread” or common theme throughout your study.
- Develop how the “thread” will be seen as you create the chapter/weekly themes throughout your study.
- Determine the elements found in each chapter/week and the rhythms that will be realized within your content.
- Demonstrate your content, including theme, format, and rhythm in small groups in a mastermind-style setting to complete the project.
- Determine the objectives, goals, and timeline to finish your project.
Sessions For Ministry Development
Build a Powerful Online Presence Through Blogging
$100
3-hour session with Edie Melson
Blogging can be a key part of creating an effective online community. This component can help speakers reach and engage with a vibrant community when used with email list building. But is blogging still relevant for connecting with those we serve?
The short answer is yes, more than ever before. The long answer is a bit more complicated.
Blogging is not a one-size-fits-all proposition. And it does take work and focus. However, it’s almost impossible to rely on social media to provide consistent connections to an author’s audience. We don’t own the social media networks where we hang out, so we cannot control them or guarantee the way they work from one day to the next.
The bottom line is this, unless you’re already a big-name author, blogging in some fashion is going to be a good way to concentrate your reading audience. Let Edie show you how to grow a coveted email list using a foundation of blogging.
Key points from the presentation:
- Find the right blogging option
- Tips for writing for mobile and Internet audiences
- Search engine optimization (SEO) basics
- Social media & email lists
- Copyright 101 and working with images
Using Artificial Intelligence (AI) Tools to Enhance and Expand Your Business/Ministry
$100
3 hours with RACHEL WOJO
Have you noticed the significant upswing in AI writing and translating tools? How can you use them creatively and successfully? You’ll leave this session with the following:
- Understanding what AI is and how it affects you as a speaker, writer, or leader.
- Exposure to a variety of AI tools that will spark new, efficient work methods
- Hands-on experience with step-by-step instructions on implementing AI tools in your business or ministry
Storytelling Strategies that Strengthen Your Spoken or Written Message
$100
3 hours with Jill Savage
Whether we’re listening to someone talk or we’re reading, stories are what pulls us in. Stories connect us to the message. Stories also make us remember the message. Because of that, writers and speakers need to be strong storytellers. In this three-hour pre-conference workshop, Jill Savage will help you:
- Identify the stories in your life that you probably don’t even realize you can use for content
- Discover how to share stories you’ve heard for your own messages
- Assemble a story bank—ready for you to pull stories from when you’re writing or preparing to speak
- Strengthen your storytelling abilities—by knowing what to include and what to leave out
Pre-Recorded Session Options
All pre-recorded sessions cost $50 each. Pre-recorded pre-conference sessions are NOT included in the basic, plus or VIP tickets and should be purchased separately. Attendees can purchase as many pre-recorded sessions as they want.
Click on a purple title to learn more about what each session will cover!
Book Proposal Intensive Clinic
$50
3 hour session | Presented By Dave & Cindy Lambert
We’ve all heard it said, “Write to your audience, not to yourself.” Good advice! Many authors, however, may know the audience of their book but have no understanding of the true audience of their book proposal.
In this three-hour intensive clinic, you will be introduced to the business side of publishing decisions, discover what really happens behind the closed doors of editors’ meetings and publishing boards, and learn how to craft an enticing proposal that captures the interest of editors and publishers.
Broken into four segments, this hands-on interactive clinic will begin with an in-depth presentation, then offer individual time to work on and refine specific proposal elements of your own, then break into small groups for fiction and nonfiction personal feedback and critique, and finally come together again for advice and guidance to launch you into the world of meeting with editors.
Marketing and Platform: Turning These Twin Dreads into Your Biggest Assets
$50
Presented By Cheri Cowell
They ask, “What is Your Platform?” and “What is Your Marketing Plan?” These two dreaded questions are part of the publishing reality. But how do you get a platform if you don’t have one, and what are you to do when the whole marketing thing overwhelms you?
In this class, you will learn to build on your strengths while tapping into a plan any writer can put into place. You will leave this class with a step-by-step course of action so you can confidently answer the twin questions with, “Yes, I have a platform and marketing plan; let me show you.”
Key concepts we’ll cover:
- Are you a speaker or someone with a message?
- Becoming the “expert”
- Getting the gigs
- The business side of writing- dollars and cents
- Marketing verses Promotion
- Getting more done with templates
- Social Media, Article Writing, Networking
- Begin before the book is written
- A blueprint for action
Increase Your Influence & Find Your Stage
$50
Presented By Jill Savage
Years ago, a speaker’s primary stage was one he or she actually stood on in front of an audience sitting in chairs. The internet and social media have completely changed that. There are dozens of stages you can “stand” on each and every day. In this 3-hour pre-conference session, you will:
- Expand your understanding of what a stage is
- Identify next steps to embrace each kind of stage
- Getting the gigs
- Discover different audiences who need your message and influence
- Learn the language of online marketing and educational platforms
- Getting more done with templates
- Be inspired to broaden your influence
- Strengthen your ability to deliver a power-packed message on any stage
Prepping & Polishing Your Pitch
$50
Presented By Katie Reid & Michelle Nietert
In this hands-on workshop, you will learn how to prepare and design each element of your One Sheet. Authors, speakers, and marketers Katie M. Reid and Michelle Nietert will also help you find a unique angle and give you time to practice and polish your elevator pitch. As a result of this interactive session, you will have a professional-looking One Sheet and a game plan for standing out during your one-on-one appointments.