Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Here’s what I’ve posted on my Amazon author’s page. It sums things up pretty well. (Sorry it’s written in the third person.)
One of 10 children from an Irish Catholic family, Nancy Hill (born Nancy Murphy), learned from an early age that stories are almost always far more interesting than reality. Her father was a teller of tall tales, her mother read bedtime stories faithfully, and her older brothers (twins) never told her the truth about anything. And so her love of all things that may or may not be what they seemed to be blossomed when she was quite young….as did her need to escape.
She recalls beginning her first unfinished novel at 10 with her best friend. A cemetery separated Nancy’s house from her best friend’s house, and so it was only natural that their book was a murder mystery. They soon became convinced they were onto something and that Nancy’s next door neighbor – a man who sold gravestones – was indeed involved in all sorts of nefarious things and would have them kidnapped before they could reveal the truth about him. Fearing for their lives, they never finished their book.
Over the years, Nancy has written all kinds of things, including rather boring business documents – annual reports, white papers, limericks when she was stuck in pointless meetings. She claims the excuses she wrote for her two children when they missed school were among her best pieces of writing. She’s also ghostwritten books for clients, screenplays that Hollywood ignorantly ignores, feature articles, and other things that strike her as worth writing.
After compiling a very impressive collection of rejection slips from publishers who foolishly overlooked her ability to spin yarns, she decided to reject the publishing world in return and is now self-publishing some of the books she’s written over the years. She is also a photographer and often illustrates her children’s stories with her photographs.
Credentials? A master’s in writing, an insatiable curiosity, an appreciation of the absurd, and the strong suspicion that there’s way more going on than meets the eye – including fairies of all kinds and massive political cover ups.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book, which is a chick lit novella, is coming out at the beginning of November. Called The Selfish Women’s Club’s not quite Legal Christmas, it’s about a five women friends who have found themselves alone after years of doing the right thing and putting other people first. One of them wants to give her maid more than the $20 gift they’ve agreed on. She proposes a compromise: If she breaks a law, she should be allowed to pay all her maid’s bills as a Christmas gift. She points out that being selfish is really only half fulfilling the group’s mission. They also need to stop being so law abiding.
The other members agree and all find ways to help make someone’s Christmas better by bending the law.
What inspired it? My scofflaw side, of course.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I tend to immerse myself in whatever I’m writing about. For example, when I was writing a YA fantasy book about kids, I bought all sorts of fairies and made fairy gardens in my house and yard. When I was creating a photobook called Book of Fools, I bought tons of jester-related things, and ended up turning the room I write in into my jester room.
I figure it’s a good thing I’ve never decided to write about fertilizer.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
Most everything influences me. My favorite writer is William Faulkner, but I love many, many books. One of my favorite contemporary authors is Kathy Heppinstall.
What are you working on now?
An anti-war novel.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I have to admit that I have zero skills as a marketer. I mean zero.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Play.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Don’t just stand there with the bat on your shoulder or you’ll never get a hit.
What are you reading now?
Swimming in Elba.
What’s next for you as a writer?
Working on my anti-war novel.
What is your favorite book of all time?
Where the Wild Things Are
Author Websites and Profiles
Nancy Hill Website
Nancy Hill Amazon Profile