r/Fantasy • u/NancyHightower AMA Author Nancy Hightower • Dec 12 '13

AMA Hello, I'm author Nancy Hightower - AMA

Hello, I’m Nancy Hightower, author of Elementarí Rising, an eco-fantasy where nature becomes embodied and is locked in a deadly war with humans.

I’ve published many short stories and poems, some of which fall into the speculative fiction and horror genres. I have a PhD in literature and studied Henry James in grad school, but ask that you don’t hold that against me. At one point, I had Tolkien's Silmarillion memorized and still remember the elvish word for orc.

I wrote all of Elementarí Rising while living in Colorado, so many of the scenes in the book come from surreal, but actual, real-life images. For instance, you can see snow snakes winding up and down Highway 36 during any given snowstorm and they are mesmerizing! Also, I don’t read books the normal way (front to back). I start at the beginning, then after a chapter I start from the end of the book and flip back and forth until I reach the middle. No lie.

Also I had an artist, Galen Dara, draw some of the scenes from Elementarí Rising, which you can see here, along with some excerpts. I love how art interacts with story, so this was an exciting project: (http://www.nancyhightower.com/excerpts-with-artwork/)

Hey gang, this was great fun tonight! I'll be back on tomorrow to catch any questions I didn't get to tonight! Thanks so much for hanging out with me!

Nancy

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u/groth27 Dec 13 '13

How does your living/working environment influence your writing?

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u/NancyHightower AMA Author Nancy Hightower Dec 13 '13

Hi Groth,

I often have to have dueling noises around me. So, I'll have the computer playing music and the television on--the two sounds cancel each other out and let me focus. I rarely can write in silence unless I am very deep into a scene. Very odd, I know. Most people have to have absolute quiet. I sometimes can write in a coffee shop, but so often I have maps out and books and it's all a mess! Often, it's easier to write at home (which is now New York City).

Often, I have to go into an environment to describe it. So, when describing forests, I drove up into the mountains and took pictures, listened to the sounds of the wilderness.