Interview with Nancy Christie
Got another fun author interview for you guys! Please welcome to my blog another lovely author from Pixel Hall Press, Nancy Christie, who stopped by to tell you guys about her upcoming work Traveling Left of Center and Other Stories.
Thank you for taking the time to appear on my blog. Can you tell my readers a little about yourself?
I’m a writer by profession and by preference. I make my living writing magazine articles and handling copywriting projects for companies and agencies—all to feed my need to write fiction!
That sounds like a cool job! So what first inspired you to get into writing?
I don’t actually remember when I started writing. I always made up stories as child, and wrote my first story in second grade. Writing wasn’t a choice but just something I did naturally—like talking or eating or breathing.
So who are your favourite authors?
There are so many, so this is a far from complete list and in no particular order but… Agatha Christie, Mark Helprin, Isaac Asimov, Ray Bradbury, Shirley Jackson, Enid Blyton, Jules Verne—there are undoubtedly more but I’d better stop there.
Do you have any other hobbies other than writing or is that your whole world?
Not to quibble about words, but for me, writing is not a “hobby” but a requirement of living. Or my addiction. Or so much a part of me that I don’t know where writing starts and I stop. Now my hobbies are gardening. And biking. And running (although I walk more than I run). And reading.
Do you have a particular favourite genre to write in?
Probably literary fiction, although the novels I am working on tend to be more mainstream. But when I write short stories, they end up falling into the “literary” category.
Without giving away too many spoilers, can you tell the nice people us a little bit about your new/upcoming book?
Traveling Left of Center and Other Stories is a short fiction collection about characters who, whether by accident or design, find themselves traveling left of center. Some manage to get back on the correct side of the road, some don’t, and others weave back and forth, courting disaster.
Sounds interesting. Where did you get the inspirations for this?
Some of the stories were inspired by events I witnessed or conversations I overheard, while others started from experiences I had that I then took further down the path of imagination.
As this is a collection, I guess there isn't really a "main character" as such, but do you have any favourite characters from any of the stories?
Not so much favorites, but the protagonist in “Annabelle” breaks my heart every time I read her story.
Awww. Sounds like it's a tear jerker. If your book was turned into a film/TV series, who would you get to play the characters? Do you have a favourite director you would choose for this?
I’ve no idea. I am so clueless when it comes to the current crop of directors or actors. But since I’d like to pursue that possibility in the coming year, I guess I better get educated!
Just as heads up, if Michael Bay comes your way - say no straight away! He'd probably just replace your stories with loads of explosions! Speaking of which, what in your opinion is more important – story or characters?
I don’t think you can have one without the other. A good story is what happens to the characters, but if the characters are badly written, the story will fail.
And what do you look for in a good story?
Believability. Not that it means that it can’t be a fantasy or science fiction or magical, but I have to believe that somewhere that story is actually taking place—that there is an alternate reality where the characters are living. If the story is well written, then it takes me to that place.
Very true - and this is often the problem I find with some Fantasy or Sci-Fi. As long as the setting is believable and the characters lifelike, you can take a fictional setting and make the audience get lost in the world. So what is the best advice you can give to authors?
Understand that this is a business. Yes, it’s wonderful to have written a book but that’s just the beginning. Now take off your author hat and put on your biz owner hat because your book is a product and it’s up to you to get it out there in the marketplace where it will vie for attention with all the other books that are out there.
That's really good advice - and indeed something that any author needs to bare in mind when promoting their work.
Ok, now for the REAL questions of the interview – and these are real life or death here! The fate of the world rests on this question and could cause a time collapse that will wipe out all life in the Universe. So think carefully before you answer. What DOES the Fox say?
Why am I always the bad guy in fairy tales?
Thinking about it, yeah. Foxes do get a bit of a bad rep. Especially in Naurto. But I have a more important question. Why did the chicken cross the road?
It was faster than tunnelling under it.
And finally... how much wood would a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck would chuck wood?
It depends entirely on how far he had to chuck it and how much each piece weighs. He’s not exactly a champion at tossing lumber, you know.
Well that was a fun little interview there! Thank you so much for taking the time to appear on my blog, Nancy. Hope you guys found the information she gave useful. You can follow her at any of the following links.
Be sure to stop back tomorrow for another author interview. Until then, enjoy your weekend guys :)
PANDRAGON DAN
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