Her book The Truth About Horses, which was published in August 2023, has garnered early acclaim in literary circles and has captured the admiration of the equestrian community. It was an Amazon Bestseller and #1 new release. In addition to her successful debut novel, Christy is also the creative mind behind two beloved children's books: The Not-So-Average Monkey of Kilkea Castle and Petri’s Next Things. These enchanting stories draw inspiration from the true tale of a heroic monkey residing in the historic Irish castle.
Christy, her husband, and their two sons, Jay Michael and Quinn, live in Boston and spend time in Ireland and on Cape Cod. Christy has three dogs and three horses and is an avid equestrian, riding both stateside and internationally, all year long.
She is currently working on her second novel, Beulah, and her third children’s book, The Cat Named Peanut Shrimp Cookie Fry Muffin Who Lives on Staniel Cay.
1 - How did your first book change your life? How does your most recent work compare to your previous? How does it feel different?
The process of writing The Truth About Horses has definitely changed my life. In order to write Reese’s character from an authentic point of view involved a lot of self discovery. Taking the time to delve into her character also involved realizing things about me that I either had never coped with or possibly coped with in an unhealthy way. In some ways it gave me the opportunity to revisit myself as a 14 year old, who was struggling with the state of being human. In some ways I had to learn how I worked as a writer. I had to learn that when things got difficult in the process to write my way through it. I had to learn to dedicate time when sometimes I didn’t feel like I had any. Taking the time was possibly the most important thing I’ve ever done for myself. I learned to be proud of myself in a way that I have never been before. When I look back at some of my work before The Truth About Horses it feels very ‘writerly’. Almost like I was trying to write how I thought I should write as opposed to writing from an authentic place.
2 - How did you come to fiction first, as opposed to, say, poetry or non-fiction?
The part of the book that came to me first was the image of the wild horses. I wasn’t even sure what it represented, but I knew it was powerful. I knew I would weave it into my story. I knew I wanted the story to be grounded in real feelings and true relationships, but I also wanted an element of magical realism which was best suited for fiction.
3 - How long does it take to start any particular writing project? Does your writing initially come quickly, or is it a slow process? Do first drafts appear looking close to their final shape, or does your work come out of copious notes?
The Truth About Horses took 9 years, but I was also putting it down for long periods of time. Sometimes for months. But I did try to keep working on something. I wrote a couple of children's books, a couple of articles, I constantly journaled and even started a gratitude journal. But I had to learn my process as I wrote. One of my favorite expressions is “I was building the plane while I was flying it.” It seems so appropriate because although I may have a natural ability for my craft, there were so many tools that I had to learn along the way. Those tools are the things that sometimes were more important to me than my natural ability. The ones that made me sit down to write even when I didn’t feel like it, the ones that taught me to believe that writer's block is really just a reason to write more. I think the fact that I would take a break for months from my manuscript, pick it up again and be inspired and invigorated was a sign for me that the story was worth writing. And more importantly, worth finishing. I would say that there are large chunks of my original draft that were maintained through other drafts but structure was something that I worked on all the way through revisions. And working on structure in and of itself feels like it takes a whole other skillset. I’ve learned that I am not necessarily a fast writer and I’ve learned that I’m okay with that. Things seem to take a long time to cook for me. I think I’m realizing that with time there’s a lot of added flavor.
4 - Where does a work of fiction usually begin for you? Are you an author of short pieces that end up combining into a larger project, or are you working on a "book" from the very beginning?
I am always drawn to worlds first. If I can start to see a world and begin to describe it then I know I can create believable characters to live in that world. Those characters will then have the rug jerked out beneath their feet, then forced to see their world anew. Worlds, whether they be a house, a barn, a town, or a hospital room are what make me tick as a writer. The sheer excitement of understanding a world with all of its layers is often what makes me sit down to write. I very rarely work on short pieces. For some reason, I enjoy the three act structure, with well developed characters and well-paced plots.
5 - Are public readings part of or counter to your creative process? Are you the sort of writer who enjoys doing readings?
I definitely enjoy doing readings. I know that it's fun for me to hear authors read their own material, because I get an idea of exactly what the author was thinking. I think public readings only enhance the experience of being an author. I think the whole dream of being a creative person is to one day share your work.
6 - Do you have any theoretical concerns behind your writing? What kinds of questions are you trying to answer with your work? What do you even think the current questions are?
It’s impossible to be a creative person and not be full of self doubt. In some ways, it’s the self doubt that drives me. Therefore, there will always be questions. One big theme that I enjoyed writing about was recognizing how we can be living our lives, being busy and doing everything that we think we should be doing without truly connecting. I was really influenced by the play Our Town by Thornton Wilder. My mom and dad took me to our local playhouse to see it. It was impossible to not incorporate some of the themes from that play into my novel.
7 – What do you see the current role of the writer being in larger culture? Do they even have one? What do you think the role of the writer should be?
I think it’s the writer's job to entertain and provoke feeling. If I read something or watch something or see an exhibit and it makes me feel something, possibly unexpected, then the creator has done their job. The role of the writer is to make us feel. End of story.
8 - Do you find the process of working with an outside editor difficult or essential (or both)?
I had a fantastic relationship with my editor, Louise Piantedosi. She was the perfect editor for me because she was sensitive to all of the details and nuance of the story. She even helped me to dive deeper into the characters, their relationships and the description of the horse related scenes. I felt like having Louise’s perspective was crucial for my book.
9 - What is the best piece of advice you've heard (not necessarily given to you directly)?
“When a scene pops into your head, you have to write it, even if it doesn’t end up in the story.” I think the writing takes place in the subconscious, so much so that when I found myself overthinking a scene it was usually a scene that I had to scrap. I found that when a scene popped into my head out of nowhere, my first instinct was to dismiss it. The deeper I got in the process, the more I realized how important it was to write every scene that popped into my head because that’s my subconscious trying to tell me something. It might just be informing me of a feeling or a detail that I hadn’t thought of, but either way the information was always necessary.
10 - How easy has it been for you to move between genres (children's books to the novel)? What do you see as the appeal?
Writing the children’s books really started out as an exercise for me. While taking a class, one of my instructors told me that writing children's books was a great tool to use. It helps to distill a story down to being able to tell the story very simply and not overcomplicate the themes. I found it extremely helpful and I would advise anyone writing a novel to try it. It’s a reminder that writing is supposed to come from a creative and fun place. Writing children's books is a great tool to bring the fun back into writing.
11 - What kind of writing routine do you tend to keep, or do you even have one? How does a typical day (for you) begin?
My writing day depends on what stage I’m in with my story. In the beginning I forced myself to take classes in order to be accountable. I knew myself well enough that I knew if I wasn’t in a class, I wouldn’t take the time to write. In order to get a first draft, I took several years of different writing classes. My goal was just to keep writing even if I wasn’t working on the manuscript in the classes. After I got a first draft, then I realized that having the eyes of an editor would be helpful because at that point I was too close to the canvas. During editing and revisions, I found that since the story was there and mostly on paper, it was almost like I had to put on the hat of an architect in order to see the bones of the story and where the plot points were.
I write best in the mornings, with my coffee before I’m swamped by texts and emails and life. Whether it’s fifteen minutes or six hours, I feel best when I start my day with writing in the morning.
12 - When your writing gets stalled, where do you turn or return for (for lack of a better word) inspiration?
I walk my dogs. Or take a trail ride on my horse. Nature is always an inspiration.
13 - What fragrance reminds you of home?
A skunk. They were always hit on the road outside my house.
14 - David W. McFadden once said that books come from books, but are there any other forms that influence your work, whether nature, music, science or visual art?
Inspiration comes from so many different places. Definitely TedTalks, podcasts, documentaries, stories behind art exhibits, and museums for sure. For me music can be distracting unless it's a nondescript instrumental.
15 - What other writers or writings are important for your work, or simply your life outside of your work?
The most influential books I’ve read for my writing, I probably read between the ages of 12 and 15, Anne of Green Gables, the Narnia Tales, the Red Pony, Of Mice & Men to name a few. I also love almost all the lyrics from Cat Stevens. Later on in life, writing inspiration came from Dave Eggers, John Irving, Frank McCourt, Wally Lamb, Tom Perrotta, Olive Ann Burns and Gail Honeyman.
16 - What would you like to do that you haven't yet done?
Write a book that becomes a series for an online streaming service. I would also like to have a writing retreat in Africa as part of my mentorship program. Would also love to take my family, dogs and horses to live off the grid for a while.
17 - If you could pick any other occupation to attempt, what would it be? Or, alternately, what do you think you would have ended up doing had you not been a writer?
Without a doubt a veterinarian. I am very interested in holistic health for animals (and people). But I would probably practice on my husband and children.
18 - What made you write, as opposed to doing something else?
I was very frustrated with my experience in the film world, and as much as people love the collaborative part, it was very difficult to have my voice and maintain it when there were so many other ‘more important’ people vying for position. Compared to the collaborative work that's done in the film world, I enjoyed the lonely journey of writing a novel.
19 - What was the last great book you read? What was the last great film?
The last great book I read was called The Yellow House by Sarah M. Broom. I recently watched the tv series Love & Death on HBO, and I thought the acting was incredible.
20 - What are you currently working on?
My next novel, Beaulah, is a novel that is set in the Smoky Mountains in Tennessee, in a fictitious town called Beaulah in the 1980’s. The main character is Barrett Childress Owens, and she goes to her high school one day to find one of the girls in her class has gone missing. It sort of is about what happens when a town is gripped in fear. How hypocrisy creeps into friendships and relationships and poisons them.
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