Nancy began writing in December 2009 as a way of “reconnecting the wires,” helping to restore memory and cognitive function following twenty years of chronic Lyme disease. Her therapy immediately became a passion, and she joined both a local writers’ group and an online work-shopping community. She also works as a clinical massage therapist, helping to rehab injuries in both horses and humans. In her spare time she hikes, raises chickens, and plays with her two horses, Lucy and Louise.
Nancy was born in California, grew up on the North Shore of Massachusetts, and now lives with her husband, Jim, in southern New Hampshire. Her story, “Lime Green and Not Deep,” was recently accepted for publication by A Cup of Comfort® books, and her novel-in-progress, Finding Sara, has been selected as a finalist in the 'Strongest Start Four Competition' on the Next Big Writer website. Current projects include a number of short stories, a novel about a young woman who hears voices in her head, and daily writing practice, experimenting with a wide range of genres and voices.
Take a look at Nancy’s winning story here, then c’mon back and join us for our chat with her.
WOW: Thanks for taking time out for us today, Nancy! Congratulations on your winning entry. How are you feeling about it all?
Nancy: It feels great. Not a very literary answer, but there you have it.
WOW: (laughs) Not a problem with your answer, I love it! Let’s talk about your entry. Your piece, ‘Note’, is a great example of writing short and tight, with plenty of sensory details. I shared in your character’s myriad emotions as I was taken back to a few recitals of my own. What inspired you to come up with your story?
Nancy: I come from a very musical family, and this was inspired by my niece, Rebekah. She's a talented kid, and she works hard. But the thing that really gets me is her courage. I remember when she tried out for some big fancy chorus in Boston - the youngest applicant - and she just plain blew them away. So, that was my starting point. The rest came to me as I wrote and edited and tried to add a bit of tension and back story.
WOW: How thrilling about your niece’s accomplishment! Have to tell you, I was kind of disappointed to reach the end of your story, I really got caught up in it! Marvelous job!
Now, you’ve mentioned admiration of your niece’s courage, but you’ve displayed some yourself. Your bio states how writing has helped your healing in the aftermath of a chronic disease. Can you tell us some more about that?
Nancy: I have chronic Lyme disease. It went undiagnosed for seventeen years, and for much of that time I was not able to read and retain more than a few sentences. The pain was horrific, the fatigue debilitating. I had hallucinations, and vivid nightmares in which I died, over and over again. I heard moths fluttering in my ears, felt constant rage, and experienced lost time. I'd get in my car and end up lord knows where with no memory of driving there and no idea how to get home.
But the worst part was the loss of self. I could
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By: Jill,
on 10/26/2010
Blog: WOW! Women on Writing Blog (The Muffin) (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Spring 2010 Flash Fiction Contest, Nancy DeMarco, Jill Earl, Add a tag
By: Annie,
on 10/19/2010
Blog: WOW! Women on Writing Blog (The Muffin) (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Runner up, LuAnn Schindler, honorable mention, Spring 2010 Flash Fiction Contest, Karen Simmonds, Add a tag
By: Margo Dill,
on 10/12/2010
Blog: WOW! Women on Writing Blog (The Muffin) (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: MFA, Margo L. Dill, flash fiction winner, Spring 2010 Flash Fiction Contest, Add a tag
Here's Tara Cowie, one of the runners-up for the Spring 2010 Flash Fiction Contest. If you haven't read her winning story, Confirmation, you can check it out here.
Tara lives and works in New York City. She received her BA in English from Colgate University and her MFA in fiction from New York University. Tara is passionate about words and writing and is currently at work on her first novel. In addition to writing, she enjoys riding her horse, reading, traveling, and exploring the world.
WOW: Hi Tara, welcome to The Muffin, and congratulations on your win. Where did you get the idea for Confirmation?
Tara: I was wandering around the city one day and noticed a particularly beautiful church on Broadway. I sat on the steps for a while and just watched the people come in and out of the heavy wooden doors. The comfort offered by this massive edifice intrigued me, particularly the comfort that seemed possible regardless of religious affiliation. The night wore on, and I delighted in the dichotomy the dark created--the peaceful space inside and the hustling city street just steps away.
WOW: What a great image to spark a story idea! Why did you choose Confirmation as the title?
Tara: I wanted to relate the religious setting to the change taking place within the girl. While a traditional religious confirmation involves taking full communion with the church, I wanted to show that the girl was beginning to take full communion of herself. It is a moment of maturation and understanding of her body and her self.
WOW: The amazing thing is you did all that in a few words, too! What are the themes you are exploring in your flash fiction piece?
Tara: I wanted to explore the burgeoning sexuality of the young girl and the dual nature of this sexuality--how it at once empowers and victimizes her.
WOW: You received your MFA from New York University. How do you feel this degree prepares you as a writer?
Tara: Most importantly, my graduate study at NYU convinced me that I must write and imbued my task with a bit more urgency. The school celebrated the beauty of stories and encouraged me to reach for that beauty within my own writing. The school also prepared me in practical ways, and the workshops served as a perfect testing ground while finding my particular voice within my stories.
WOW: WOW! What an awesome educational experience. I know many writers search for a community such as you described, and it's so wonderful you had that while pursuing a degree. Can you tell us about the novel you are currently working on? What genre is it?
Tara: I am currently working on a fictional novel exploring the relationship between art and the artist.
WOW: Good luck with your project. What are your career goals as a writer?
By: MP,
on 10/5/2010
Blog: WOW! Women on Writing Blog (The Muffin) (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Runner up, Marcia Peterson, writing prompts, flash fiction contest winner, technical writing, Spring 2010 Flash Fiction Contest, Mary Elizabeth Summer, YA literature, Add a tag
Mary Elizabeth Summer is a Portland, Oregon-based writer who spends her days writing training materials for various companies and her nights racing pell-mell across the keyboard after her rampaging imagination. She writes novel-length stories with occasional forays into shorter fiction, and she writes for young adults, except for when she doesn't. She has a BA in creative writing (she BSes everything else), and she haunts bookstores for fun. Her current writing project is a young adult novel about a girl on the grift. Non-writing interests include volunteering at a horse-therapy program for autistic children and learning the fine art of parenting from her newborn daughter.
interview by Marcia Peterson
WOW: Congratulations on placing as one of the Runners Up in our Spring 2010 competition! What inspired you to enter the contest?
Mary Elizabeth: Thank you! I was very honored to be chosen from among such talented writers. Actually, I was inspired to enter the contest when I read that I could receive a critique of my entry. I didn't expect to actually place in the contest. I was happily surprised when I did, but also happy to get a professional opinion about the story.
WOW: Glad your expectations were exceeded! Can you tell us what encouraged the idea behind your story, "Of Crepes and Constancy?"
Mary Elizabeth: It's kind of a funny story. My writing group decided to try a variation of the exquisite corpse exercise in which each of us put two sentences into a hat and then draw two sentences out. One sentence was to be used as the first sentence of a story, and the second sentence was meant to be the last sentence of the story. The first sentence I drew was "How many times can you burn a crepe before it really does mean something?" In my original version of the story, I managed to end it with the second sentence, but in the revision process, I had to cut it, because it didn't quite work. As for the substance of the piece, at the time I wrote it, I was noticing a pattern in the relationships of people around me--a certain sort of insincerity that led to mind games and dissatisfaction. I had actually meant it to be a comical story, but it didn't turn out that way. Funny how characters sometimes take a story and run in completely the opposite direction with it.
WOW: For writers who may be interested in what you do for a living, could you describe what it’s like writing training materials for various companies?
Mary Elizabeth: It can be challenging at times. I have to take a bunch of information about something I know absolutely nothing about and shape it in a way that makes sense to someone else who knows nothing about it so that they learn. It involves a lot of adult learning theory and subject matter experts and ridiculous budget constraints and unrealistic turn-around times and blah blah blah corporate blah. It is a pretty sweet job, though. I essentially get to write for a living, which is the golden apple, right?
WOW: It sounds like a demanding but interesting job. How do you switch gears to write fiction at
By: Anne Greenawalt,
on 9/28/2010
Blog: WOW! Women on Writing Blog (The Muffin) (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Spring 2010 Flash Fiction Contest, Doris Deluca, Runner up, Anne Greenawalt, Add a tag
Doris first saw the light of day in Panama, was reared in Germany, France and various US locations, served (briefly) as a hand on a Chinese junk, gave birth on St. Croix, and, more recently, rode the back roads of West Africa in cobbled-together buses and vans. In between some of that activity, she received a bachelor’s degree from Spring Hill College, worked as a teacher, newspaper reporter, and in insurance, and reared three sons. She lives in Upstate New York with her husband and best pal, Don, traveling, writing, and pulling weeds.
In addition to writing poetry and short stories, Doris continues to refine her ecologically concerned yet humorous novel, Cabbagehead, about the fruitful relationship between an introverted man and his extroverted, bedding plant. A chapter of the novel can be seen at the Buffalo Street Books “Works in Progress” website. Her latest endeavors include writing a mystery story and dabbling at a memoir. In the last few years, Doris has taken graduate English courses, participated in the New York State Summer Writers Institute at Skidmore College, Colgate University’s novel and poetry workshops, and the Algonkian novel and pitch workshops.
If you haven't already done so, check out Doris's award-winning story "Natural Selection," and return here for a chat with the author.
WOW!: Congratulations on placing in the WOW! Spring Flash Fiction Contest! Can you tell us how you created and developed your story, “Natural Selection”?
Doris: This is a version of a longer piece I had written, based on an experience related to me years ago by a friend. He lived next door to a woman who, he said, paid more attention to her pet monkey than to her child. From that memory I imagined the circumstance of a neighbor becoming pathologically involved.
WOW!: I always find it so interesting how little bits of memory can evolve into a whole story. I read in your bio that you’re a world traveler. How have all of your world travels inspired your creativity?
Doris: I find travel stimulating. New sights—and even new sounds and smells—provoke new thoughts. The mind, I think, makes new connections conducive to the creative process.
WOW!: If you could have dinner with one published writer, alive or dead, who would it be and why?
Doris: Only one? Then, Tolstoy. He was not only a wonderful writer, but also a visionary who incorporated his views of selflessness, love and responsibility into his writing without seeming didactic. (I guess it would help to have a Russian translator present).
WOW!: Great choice. It’s hard to choose just one when there are so many great writers out there. What is your strategy for finding or making time to write with a busy schedule?
Doris: I’m fortunate in that I’m not otherwise working. So while I have the time, I don’t use that time for writing as often as I’d wish. I’m easily distracted and battle a fear of writing. When I actually sit down to it, I find the process enjoyable.
WOW!: Ah, the fear of writing. I know that feeling well, but it does, as you said, seem to dissolve when I just sit down and do it. What is the best piece of writing advice you have ever received?
Doris: To sit down to write at a set time every day for one hour, most days a week. (The idea of one hour is
By: Annie,
on 9/14/2010
Blog: WOW! Women on Writing Blog (The Muffin) (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: LuAnn Schindler, WOW Winter 2008 flash fiction contest interview, Spring 2010 Flash Fiction Contest, Angelica R Jackson, Add a tag
Muffin readers, you're in for a treat. Today, we're going to get to know more about our third place winner in the Spring 2010 Flash Fiction contest, Angelica R. Jackson of Shingle Springs, California. If you haven't had the opportunity to read Angelica's story, Ebb Tide, head over to WOW! and give it a perusal.
As a child, Angelica spent moving around southern California and attended nine different schools by the time she graduated from high school. Angelica eventually settled in the Sacramento area during the 1990s. Writing has been a constant in her life, and she reports she supplemented her writing with positions as a bookstore clerk, a photographer, and a storyteller.
Angelica has published articles on a variety of topics, including gardening, natural history, web design travel. hiking and local history. She also enjoys reading, green living, and cooking for food allergies. Ongoing projects include short fiction, poetry, a YA historical novel, art photography, and children's picture books.
WOW: Welcome, Angelica. Congratulations on earning third place honors in our Spring 2010 writing contest. I've won journalism awards but never won any fiction writing contests. So, tell me, how does it feel?
Angelica: I've entered contests before, but this is the first one where my story got any kind of recognition, so it's quite a thrill! I've been working on once novel, and just started another, so it was nice to know I hadn't lost my short fiction mojo.
WOW: That's great! Keeping a writer's rhythm is so important. The first element of your story, Ebb Tide, that stood out was the use of a diary entry. It seems like a natural fit for flash fiction.
Angelica: I genuinely didn't know it would work so well until I tried it, with a little nudge from a writer's prompt. The challenge was to write a letter or diary entry in 500 words or less.
This character popped into my head as a girl that was labeled autistic, mainly because that diagnosis was easier for others to accept than the real reason for her aversion to touch. I wanted to keep her voice just a little bit awkward, and a therapy diary seemed the perfect way to emphasize that. It's also interesting to me that because it's in the format of a therapy diary, I get mixed reactions on whether her powers are real or just a powerful delusion. I try to avoid giving a definitive answer when asked.
WOW: I wondered the same thing (and I'm glad I didn't ask)! :) Details play such an important role in flash fiction. As a photographer, do you find the craft has helped sharpen your storytelling skills, whether through the lens or on the page?
Angelica: Some of my favorite photos that I've taken are all about the details, or a different point of view, and that definitely carries over into my writing. I try to make my stories very sensory - there are lots of mentions of food and smells in my novels - and word pictures are just part of that.
I've also experienced, both in photography classes and writing classes, how a roomful of people can be given the exact same assignment and come up with such widely varied results. I think that's one of the insig
By: Margo Dill,
on 9/7/2010
Blog: WOW! Women on Writing Blog (The Muffin) (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Spring 2010 Flash Fiction Contest, Caleb Collier, flash fiction contest winner, Add a tag
Congratulations to Caleb Collier for placing 2nd in the 2010 Spring Flash Fiction contest. You can read his winning story, "Bedtime Story," here.
Caleb grew up in Pound, VA, in a hollow of the Appalachian Mountains. He is a storyteller at heart and puts words to his solitude from time to time. He works for a non-profit organization called Give Us Names, which seeks to use storytelling as a means to combat social injustice. Right now, he can be found in Columbia, working on a documentary about the tragedy of displacement.
WOW: Welcome to The Muffin, Caleb, and congratulations on your win! Where did you get the idea for "Bedtime Story?"
Caleb: I remember glancing at a picture in the newspaper of a woman I never knew. Somehow, I got this strange feeling that all this woman would ever be to me is a person made out of paper. So that, combined with that creative spark of loneliness that pushes you to dream up a lover where none exists, led me to pen the words, "There once lived a girl who was made out of paper." The piece took shape from there.
WOW: That's a great line! What are the themes you are exploring in your flash fiction piece?
Caleb: Well, there is the theme of identity. The paper metaphor serves as a way for this girl to see the "stuff" she is made of, to know who she is, and how she is put together. It is also written through the lens of exaggerated perfection. It seems to be the voice of someone completely enraptured with this woman, describing her every feature in poetic detail. I think loneliness is a thread through the story. For all we know, this girl is the only one of the Paper People. There seems to be a great deal of solitude in her life. And, of course, you have the theme of death. It seems to be a place that most stories end.
WOW: Your imagery is fantastic. How difficult was it to get the description and story into such a small amount of words?
Caleb: Imagery is often about what is left unsaid. Give the reader just enough color and let them to finish the painting.
WOW: So true. How long have you been writing and what are your favorite types of pieces to write?
Caleb: I have been writing since before I could read. It's always been the way I interpret the world around me. I have tried to tackle just about every type of written word--from screenplays to poetry, novels, letters, journal articles, short stories, and a master's thesis. I even dabbled in haikus for a summer. I get different things out of each project. I like the intimacy you can put into a letter, the dialogue in a script, the character development in novels, and well, the poetry in poetry. But I think short stories are what I enjoy most. I can tell the story I want to tell and be done with it.
WOW: What is a current project you are working on?
Caleb: Well, I have this novel I've been toying around with for the last year. It is written as a sort of faux-me
By: MP,
on 8/31/2010
Blog: WOW! Women on Writing Blog (The Muffin) (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: first place winner, Sarah Warburton, Spring 2010 Flash Fiction Contest, Marcia Peterson, Add a tag
Sarah Warburton is a writer, wife, the mother of two, and a knitter (not necessarily in that order) living in Sugar Land, TX. After earning an M.A. in Classics from the University of Georgia and another from Brown University, she spent time working in independent bookstores, reading and writing. She’s studied at the University of New Mexico with Sharon Oard Warner and Julie Shigekuni, at the Taos Writer’s Workshop with Pam Houston, and in Houston with Justin Cronin. Since 2005 she’s been a staff writer for the local monthly magazine, UpClose and member of the weekly critique group, Writers Ink. Her short story, “Margaret’s Magnolia,” appeared in the Southern Arts Journal and she has finished her first mystery novel, The Language of the Dead.
Find out more about Sarah by visiting her website: http://sarahwarburtonwriter.wordpress.com/.
interview by Marcia Peterson
WOW: Congratulations on winning first place in our Winter 2010 writing contest! How do you feel?
Sarah: Really honored and thrilled! A few years ago, I had one short story published in the now-defunct Southern Arts Journal, but it wasn’t available in many places. It’s been amazing to have this chance to share my story with so many people…and I really appreciate the opportunity.
WOW: Can you tell us what encouraged the idea behind your story, "Life Script? "
Sarah: I wanted to write a story that covered a large span of time in a short space and I was interested in the divergence between our plans for life and the direction our lives take. I thought about the difference between our vision of the writing life and the many different paths it actually takes. There may also have been echoes of my favorite movie, a sort of “When Harry Missed Sally” feeling.
WOW: Your approach was effective! It was a quietly powerful story. Have you always enjoyed the genre, and how did you learn to write great flash fiction?
Sarah: My short stories tend to be either very long or very short. One of the reasons I love flash fiction are the constraints of the genre. There isn’t any room for prevarication or words that don’t pull their weight. It’s a fantastic genre for those of us with small children, because we have such narrow moments of opportunity in which to work. Since I knew with “Life Script” that I would be moving quickly through time in little blocks of text, I could consider each paragraph in isolation whenever I had a few minutes to myself.
WOW: You've also completed a novel. Can you tell us about that? What did it take to complete that big goal?
Sarah: I think it took the kind of commitment it takes to have children…complete ignorance of the enormity of the task, plenty of support, and a dedication to doing it every day. I started almost ten years ago with eighty pages of non-consecutive scenes and now three cities, numerous writing workshops, and several writing groups later I’m making my final revisions with my agent. Without my writing group, Writers Ink (http://www.concretebride.com/) I don’t know if I wo
Thank you Jill and Nancy for a wonderful interview.
I loved the imagery and use of language in Note; I could almost hear the child singing her aria--well done!
Nancy, so early in the game and already such an inspiration! Your words,"There is no shame in rejection, but there is regret in missed opportunity." and "As long as you can still hear your inner voice, no matter how faint, you still have the potential for rebirth." should be tacked above every writers desk.
Thank you, Nancy was a great interview! And I agree with you, I'll definitely post her quotes at my desk.