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When did you discover your love of writing?
When I
was seven, my dad let me paint the inside of the closet. I could write anything
I wanted. I literally saw the writing on the wall!
Why did you decide to make the leap from writing nonfiction to
writing a novel?
The
truth is, it was a bit manipulative. I so wanted to reach people who struggled
with food but didn’t see it as an emotional occurrence. I figured if I could
entertain them and keep them engaged in a fun, love caper, maybe through the
character of Genie Burns, they would see the connection of food and emotional
stirrings in a woman’s life, and that would, in turn, help tame food issues in
their own lives.
Describe some of the similarities and differences between
writing your memoir It Was Food vs. Me…and I Won and writing your
women’s fiction novel Surprise Me!.
The
similarity is the underlying message: It’s not about the food. Writing the
memoir was very personal, at times embarrassing, but I knew I
had to be honest in order to gain a reader’s trust and ignite their hope to get
past it. Writing the novel was pure fun, though certainly, Genie and I have a
ton in common!
What inspired you to write Surprise Me!?
The
story, as I said, was a means to convey a message. But both the characters and
relationships in Surprise Me! were inspired by some of my own experiences. I
guess you could say that Genie and I both came a long way.
What advice do you have for people who want to stop emotional
eating and have a healthy relationship with food?
I’m so
happy you asked the question in that way. Isn’t it so interesting that we talk
about our “relationship” with food? I always said, “I want a normal
relationship with food.” The reason I don’t have the same power struggles with
food is that I demoted it from relationship to object. What I mean is that I
work hard to face my emotions upfront so that food doesn’t “attack,” which is
what it used to do before I made the connection. The real relationships and
feelings in my life are faced very honestly, which calms food way down. My
fears, insecurities, flaws, passions, goals, failures and successes… they go
beyond food, diet, and weight loss. But I use cravings and food moments to feed
me information about what’s going on around me. There’s a total correlation, and
it’s cool.
What message do you hope readers will get from your novel?
I hope
the message is that if we are out of control with food or a person, it’s
because we’re not making the right choices, given who we are and what we need. For
food, we can allow our cravings and still maintain our best weight. As far as our eating extravaganzas, food gets
loud when we don’t listen to our feelings. A crazy craving is our truth
screaming at us… Listen to me or I’ll make you eat more! I hope the novel tells
that story and explains how to live differently. I call it a novel/diet.
What are you working on now?
A few
things. I’ve developed a website, authornancygoodman.com, inviting members to
join and be part of my “living room” which is a chat room type thing for me to
connect with my readers. I want them to have a “safe” place to go to process
this and work through it. I’m there every day, available to talk, and they can
connect with each other. I’m also
working on a program for kids to teach the same messages through fun. And I am
working on the sequel to the novel.
Is there anything else you would like readers to know about you
or your books?
Yes.
How do I express this without sounding like I can’t take criticism? Here goes: If
you get mad at my writing, or you think my book is lame, I have to learn to be
okay with that since I know I’m not for everyone. BUT, if something in my book
riles you, I ask you to look a bit deeper, challenge your reaction and see what
it is I’ve tapped into.
It’s possible that when you start to feel
uncomfortable, you distract with food and that’s why you need it. Then you
blame it for your problems. In that case, my words would pose a threat. Without
realizing it, food was that decoy for me, too. But I found out that facing those
unpleasant feelings has an enormous upside. You learn you can survive them! Better
than that, all of our creative potential is held right there. I promise, those
nasty feelings you try and avoid are your quickest road to the best, strongest,
and least fearful version of who you are and who you will become. That’s what I
want you to know.
Thank you, Nancy!
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