Meet Nancy Christie
Nancy Christie is the author of seven books, including her two most recent: the award-winning Reinventing Rita (the first in her Midlife Moxie Novel Series™), published by BookBaby, and her third short story collection, Mistletoe Magic and Other Holiday Tales, published by Unsolicited Press—both released in 2023. Her two other short story collections include Traveling Left of Center and Other Stories and Peripheral Visions and Other Stories, both published by Unsolicited Press. Her fourth collection, The Language of Love and Other Stories, is scheduled for release in 2025 also by Unsolicited Press. Her nonfiction books include the inspirational/motivational book, The Gifts of Change (Atria/Beyond Words) and two award-winning books for writers: Rut-Busting Book for Writers and Rut-Busting Book for Authors (both by BookBaby).
The host of the Living the Writing Life podcast and founder of the annual “Midlife Moxie” Day and “Celebrate Short Fiction” Day, Christie teaches writing workshops at conferences, libraries and schools. She is a member of the American Society of Journalists and Authors (ASJA), Women’s Fiction Writers Association (WFWA), and the Florida Writers Association (FWA).
Read her recent essay “Making the Most of Life’s Wakeup Calls” from 50plus Today
There are lots of ways to find Nancy!
Check out her Website and Living the Writing Life podcast
Her blogs:
One on One (archived)
YouTube Channels
and Social Media
Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram,Threads, Goodreads, Medium and @nancychristie_author on TikTok
Nancy will be teaching “From Writer to Author” and “3 Steps to Achieving Your Writing Goals” and participating in the panel, “Writing Across Genres.”
Check out the Full Faculty and the Conference Schedule…
…then visit our Registration Page!
Q&A with Nancy
Nancy Christie is an invaluable member of our faculty team! Drawing from her many publications and vast marketing platform, she offers practical and advice to help every author begin and continue on their way to a healthy writing practice and career.
MWW: You have an impressive list of publications–you’ve written short story collections, creative nonfiction essays, guidebooks for authors, and so much more! Tell us how you switch gears between genres. Do you have a different process for each?
NC: My fiction (novels and short stories) usually starts with a line or two of dialogue that occurs out of nowhere. Being a pantser, I just follow the story and the characters, and especially with my short stories, often have no idea how the story will end until I get there.
My nonfiction is more planned and structured. I know what I want to write about and do a rough outline—basically with subheads as the high points. Then, I start filling in the blanks. With my two writing books—Rut-Busting Book for Writers and Rut-Busting Book for Authors—I knew I also wanted input from experts in the different categories I was covering, so reached out to them with a summary of what that chapter would cover and some questions for them to answer.
MWW: Also, how do you decide what genre best suits an idea?
NC: In terms of my fiction, my novels are contemporary women’s fiction with a humorous touch while my short stories can run the gamut from strange (think Shirley Jackson or The Twilight Zone) to more ordinary with a humorous slant to them. I haven’t really had the desire to explore other genres, although who knows what the future may hold?
MWW: Authors benefit so much from sessions on book marketing, like your “From Writer to Author,” and they always have a lot of questions. What are some of the common mishaps authors have when they approach book marketing, and how can they correct and/or avoid those problems?
NC: One of the biggest mistakes is waiting until the book is out to start promoting it. I learned that from the book marketing experts who said you should start talking about your book while you’re working on it, to get people interested in the concept. As for when to stop marketing it, only when the book is no longer available or you are six feet under!
There are so many ways to promote your book. Start by doing what you’re most comfortable with and then stretch yourself into other areas.
While you should budget a certain amount of money for marketing, don’t go overboard. At the same time, have the basics: handouts such as bookmarks for events, a downloadable sell sheet, some inexpensive signage, a social media presence, media releases ready to send out, and above all else, a website. Definitely a website. (Have I mentioned the importance of having a website???) I have more tips in Rut-Busting Book for Authors, many of which were provided by the experts who contributed to the book.
MWW: At this conference we have faculty talking about things like the Scary First Page, or Tuning Out the Noise, and you’re giving a session about achieving writing goals. What is it about writing that is so hard for us writers? How do we get out of our own heads—or ideally, get what’s in our heads into words?
NC: Sometimes it’s the fear of not being able to write. Or not being able to finish what we started. (I have a file on my computer that is full of short stories in various stages of completion!) Or having people hate what we write. Basically of being not good enough, because we all tend to measure ourselves against others.
Then there’s the fear of it being too late or being too old or not being educated enough (and no, you don’t need an MFA to be published!). And the fear that we are being selfish if we take time out of our life (and away from other people or other responsibilities) to write, especially if our writing is not going to earn us any money.
MWW: How do we overcome whichever fear or combination of fears is impeding our ability to write?
NC: Join a writing group to get feedback and feel less alone. Stop setting expectations for what your writing should achieve: money or awards, for instance. And, most importantly of all, set aside 30 minutes a day for 30 days just to write. I call it my 30-in-30 technique. The goal is to form a habit.
MWW: Who are some authors who have influenced and/or inspired you?
NC: Agatha Christie for starters. When I read her autobiography, I was struck by her practical approach to writing her books. For her it was a job, and she treated it as such. I had never before considered writing fiction as a potential income source, so that gave me the impetus to think about publishing my fiction.
Definitely Shirley Jackson. Her short stories and novels are just incredible. No matter how many times I read them, they still provoke the same reaction: a mixture of awe at her talent and shivers at the stories themselves. They are a master class in how to write fiction.
And finally, the authors who contributed to The Writer on Her Work. Reading about other women writers (those I consider far above me!) and their challenges living the writing life made me feel part of a collective and helped me recognize that women especially face unique difficulties when trying to marry life and art.
Join us for #MWW24!
We’ve put together a broad range of workshops led by top-notch faculty so that you can reach new heights with your writing alongside brilliant writers from the Midwest and beyond!
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