A Rut-Busting Interview with Nancy Christie

Nancy Christie is a professional writer, whose credits include both fiction and non-fiction. In addition to her fiction collection, Traveling Left Of Center, and two short story e-books, Annabelle and Alice In Wonderland (all published by Pixel Hall Press), her short stories and essays can be found in print publications and online.

She is also the author of Rut-Busting Book For Writers (Mill City Press) and the inspirational book, The Gifts Of Change (Atria/Beyond Words), which has been translated into several foreign languages.

A full-time writer and editorial consultant, Christie’s work include corporate writing projects and magazine articles. She also hosts the monthly Monday Night Writers group in Canfield, OH and teaches writing workshops at conferences and for small groups. (For more information about her workshops, go to http://www.nancychristie.com/workshops/writing-workshops-and-courses/.)

Christie is a member of the American Society of Journalists and Authors (ASJA), Florida Writers Association (FWA) and Short Fiction Writers Guild (SFWG), and is the founder of “Celebrate Short Fiction” Day.

What inspired Rut-Busting Book For Writers?

The book is an outgrowth of my popular “Rut-Busting” Workshop for Writers that I’ve been offering for several years. Every time I did one, people would ask if I had a book that went along with the workshop but all I offered were handouts.

So in spring 2017, I decided to pull all my notes together, reached out to more than 50 writers, authors and other industry professionals for their input, and voila! Rut-Busting Book For Writers was born!

What will readers find in the book?

Rut-Busting Book For Writers offers strategies to get writers unstuck, along with inspiring words and proactive suggestions from more than 50 industry professionals who have “been there and done that” and are now willing to share their knowledge and experience.

By following the tips in this book, writers will spend less time trapped in their particular writing rut and more time following their creative passion!

How long have you been writing?

I started in second grade, and except for a few “life intermissions,” I haven’t stopped writing since then!

In terms of being a professional writer, I started my career writing for newspapers and magazines in the mid-eighties, branched into corporate work in the nineties and published by the first book, The Gifts of Change (Atria/Beyond Words) in 2004. That book was followed by two short fiction e-books—Annabelle and Alice in Wonderland—and Traveling Left of Center and Other Stories (Pixel Hall Press) in 2014. Rut-Busting Book for Writers (Mill City Press), which came out in 2017, is my third print book.

I’ve also had essays and short stories published in print magazines and online.

What inspired you to be a writer?

I don’t think there was ever a moment when I thought, “Oh, I want to grow up and be a writer.” While I was always a reader— as a child, my favorite author was Enid Blyton—I certainly never considered being an author!

I think what really started it all was simply because, ‘way back when (in other words, in the late fifties and early sixties), kids didn’t watch much television but were instead encouraged to “go outside and play.” And for me and my best friend Danny, that involved a lot of “let’s pretend” type of adventures out in the woods. From there, it was a natural process to do “let’s pretend” on paper and write stories about imaginary characters.

What was your biggest challenge when writing?

My biggest challenge for all my own writing (versus client writing) is finding the time. I set aside at least 30 minutes a day five days a week to work on my short fiction, while weekends are devoted to bigger book projects.

The closest I have come to writer’s block was during a difficult time in my life when I was going through a lot of personal challenges and had stopped writing any fiction. The longer I went without writing, the more convinced I was that I would never write fiction again. And since that is my passion, you can imagine what a really ugly experience that was! Eventually, I had an idea, started writing and found my writing voice again!

That taught me to always make time—even if just 30 minutes—for fiction.

What do you like best about being a writer?

I love talking with people, learning new things, getting insights and information that are fascinating. I also like the solitude of writing—I’m not meant to work in a busy newsroom surrounded by people. I need my own space, my own schedule, my own goals.

Of course, it’s great to be paid to write, but there are times when I am writing just for writing’s sake and the words flow out and they are expressing exactly what is in my mind and heart, or the minds and hearts of my characters.

That’s a joy that has nothing to do with money but all to do with fulfillment.

What projects are you working on now?

I have recently completed my second short fiction collection, Peripheral Visions and Other Stories, and I am working on revisions to one novel while noodling around ideas for another one.

You teach writing workshops. How did that come about?

I had attended a writing class at a local adult ed center and it really didn’t tell me anything I didn’t already know. I had been writing professionally by that time so I offered to teach a more expanded class and they took me up on it.

From there, I started doing workshops at writing conferences and it just snowballed.

In your “Rut-Busting” Workshops, you talk about the dangers of being in a rut, and how there are two kinds: an overload rut and a comfort rut. It sounds like you might fall into the former. How do you avoid becoming overloaded?

It can be difficult because, being self-employed, I am always looking for new opportunities, and anytime you start something new, there is a time-consuming learning curve. But I take some time to consider if each opportunity is 1) right for me in general, and then 2) right for me at this time. I don’t want my life to get so crazy and hectic that I don’t have time to breathe!

I try to set aside one day a week as a non-working day, do my best to stop working at a reasonable time, and watch out for signs that things are getting out of control such as being cranky and over-tired. Then I know I need to take time off and get out of the home office and just have fun.

What are your hobbies aside from writing?

I love to garden, bike ride, do yardwork—anything physical to counter all the hours I spend at my desk!

What does writing do for you personally?

Writing gives me a place to explore my fears, sorrows, anger, and disappointment. I journal, or I write fiction out of my emotions which brings me a sense of release and purpose. I am a writer first and foremost—it’s what I do and what I am.

What is your concept of a perfect writing day? What do you need?

Coffee—really great coffee with some flavored creamer. A desk on a deck overlooking the water. No phone calls. No e-mails And no deadlines.

Just a day spent writing what I want to write—fiction, probably—without worrying about anything else.

If you could never write again, what would you do?

I’ve no idea. Being a writer is so much a part of me—it is me—that I can’t envision a life where I am not writing. I started writing in second grade and have pretty much kept at it. And those times in my life when, for one reason or another, I wasn’t writing or couldn’t write, were dark days indeed. I like doing other things, but there is nothing that is as necessary for me as writing.

Describe your writing life in one sentence.

It’s the framework on which the rest of my life rests and the addiction I have no desire to beat—the thing I love most to do and that makes me feel whole and complete.

To borrow one of your workshop exercises, what do you want your tombstone to read?

Here lies Nancy Christie, still writing…

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