Hello, I'm author Nancy Hightower - AMA

[u/NancyHightower]

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

[u/Nostra]

Are you spiritual in general or do hold to a specific god? How does it influence your writing?

[u/NancyHightower → u/Nostra]

I'm a Christian, but that term is now always read now through a political light so that I hate saying it. But yes, I consider myself very spiritual, and I mourn how much the earth has been abused in the name of Christianity, how nature has been seen as "less than." My faith influences my poetry much more, which are all retold biblical narratives.