Congratulations Nancy Pants Johnson! SDMWA February 2022 Member of the Month
To learn more about our wonderful Member of the Month please take a minute and read Tania Pryputniewicz’s interview with Nancy.
TP: How did you discover SDMWA?
NJ: I took a memoir writing class from Marni Freedman through San Diego Writers Ink several years ago. Marni invited our class to the very first Memoir Showcase. She is the best at connecting writers with their writing communities. I sat in the audience only knowing a few faces, in a state of amazement at the wonderful stories and actors. The next year I submitted my first story, and now I’m grateful to have stories in three Shaking the Tree anthologies.
TP: Have you always been a writer?
NJ: I’ve always loved writing. When I was in elementary school, my father bought me an antique Underwood typewriter. My girlfriend and I were avid readers of Nancy Drew, so we wrote mysteries, typed them on book-sized paper, and stapled them along one side to make a binding J
While I was still teaching high school English, I started my blog, Slightlysquinting.com during an especially difficult time in my life. I thought if I could fully open my eyes and stop saying “everything is fine,” I could begin to heal. I started to write my stories; we all know the power in writing and speaking our stories. I also started writing about teen issues for publications like Sunshine Noir II. I began submitting stories to different magazines and going to writing conferences.
TP: What impact do you think writing classes have had on your writing?
NJ: Memoir writing introduced me to writers at every stage of their storytelling. Some of us got together outside of class and read and critiqued each other’s work. The biggest impact came when I decided to focus all of the writing I had already done about my teenage years into a nonfiction book for teen girls. I would never have made that decision without the feedback from my writing classes and from Marni. At that point, I began working one-on-one with Marni as my writing coach. Things My Mama Never Told Me would never have arrived on the shelf without the support of my writing instructors and critique groups.
TP: We’d love to hear about your current writing projects.
NJ: I am currently working on a series of books for teen boys. I was going to write a full book for teen boys that was in the same format as the girl’s book. After talking to my current writing class and several teen boys, I am going to try something new. I will write smaller books, each on one topic such as Self-Esteem & Body Image, Relationships, Sex & Intimacy, etc. I am beginning with a book for teens who identify as LGBTQIA+.
TP: You had a wonderful piece in our Shaking the Tree anthology. Can you tell us about your story in the anthology?
NJ: I have a story in Shaking the Tree, Volume 3: I Didn’t See That One Coming. It’s called “The Sky is Falling.” The first sentence is, “In the most traumatic moments of my life, humans have fallen from the sky.” It’s about three falls. The first is my metaphorical fall from the dream of perfect teenage years, where I would meet and marry the perfect prince charming. The second fall was when my father fell from a 30-foot tree to his death when I was 28. In the third fall I witness a young man jump off a balcony on the 17th floor of the Marriott Hotel. These falls in my life have taught me about the unstable nature of life, and that I don’t get to choose who leaves or climbs or jumps. I always have the choice to heal and keep going.
TP: What are some of your favorite memoirs? Your favorite authors?
NJ: My favorite newer memoirs are Crux by Jean Guerrero, Orange is the New Black by Piper Kerman, How to Eat a Small Country by Amy Finley, Educated by Tara Westover, Wild by Cheryl Strayed, Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert. My favorite classic memoir is Angela’s Ashes by Frank McCourt. My favorite authors are Anne Lamott, Barbara Kingsolver, Wally Lamb, Elizabeth Gilbert, Cheryl Strayed, and Brene Brown.
TP: Any advice for new writers? NJ: Just write. At a writing conference in New Mexico an author I met standing in line said, “Write the book. When the book is written, you will find a way to publish it.”
Create a blog. At another conference in San Diego, I met with an agent who said, “Create a blog. Write short articles about your unique experiences. Once you begin to write, you’ll see who your audience is. Then hang out with those people. Volunteer and create with them. They will help you build your platform.”
Bird by bird, you’ll meet your goal. Anne Lamott says, “Just write the first shitty draft, bird by bird.
TP: Please tell us how members can find you. Website? Social Channels?
Website: https://www.nancypantsjohnson.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nancy.johnson.3766
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nancypantsjohnson/?hl=en
Go Fund Me for teen girls: https://www.gofundme.com/f/into-the-hands-of-teens-project