Nancy Robards Thompson Shares Her Love For The Holiday Season!

THE GREATEST GIFT OF ALL 

Lily Palmer is in for the Christmas of a lifetime! When the nanny signs up to watch Dr. Cullen Dunlevy's four foster kids, she's got her hands full. The Thomas clan is the most mischievous group of youngsters she's ever had to wrangle, but Lily loves the job. After all, what girl wouldn't adore spending the holidays with a warmhearted new family—and their irresistibly handsome foster dad? 

Cullen doesn't mind Christmas, but his Scrooge-like facade is there for a reason—to protect himself. His tough childhood caused him to hide behind his work and avoid entanglements at all costs. That includes avoiding falling for the deliciously tempting new nanny that Santa left for him this year…

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Award winning author Nancy Robards Thompson holds a degree in journalism. She worked as a newspaper reporter until she realized reporting "just the facts" bored her silly. Much more content to report to her muse, Nancy loves writing women's fiction and romance full-time. Critics have deemed her work, "...funny, smart and observant." She resides in Florida with her husband and daughter.

Jan Schliesman: How often to you get lost in a story?

Nancy Robards Thompson: Thanks so much for having me on the GLIAS blog, Jan! I am constantly lost in a story. I'm always reading something. I make time for reading every day. It's my escape and reward for a hard day in the writing cave.

Jan: As a previous Golden Heart finalist and winner, is there any advice you’d offer to an aspiring author?

Nancy: Contests like the Golden Heart can help you get published. But the most important thing is to keep writing and submitting. I sold my first book the February after I won the Golden heart and it wasn't my Golden heart winner (not yet). I had completed four manuscripts before I finally got the call. My Golden Heart winner was actually my fourth or fifth sale. Then it was actually revised as a women's fiction. As you can, see it's important to keep producing even after something cool like a big contest win happens. 

Jan: Being a newspaper reporter meant you had to write concise stories on a daily deadline. Did you find it easy or challenging? Did you always know you wanted to write a book?

Nancy: I never really enjoyed reporting. I majored in journalism because it was practical. I loved writing, but fiction writing and reporting for a newspaper are two entirely different animals. I was writing for a business newspaper and the day my editor said to me, "I don't want you to be creative. I just want you to report the facts," I knew I needed to make a career change. It's funny, even though I wrote fiction for myself (mostly short stories) – and of course I've always read voraciously – I never really considered writing a book until I read an interview with Nora Roberts in Writers Digest. She was extolling the virtues of RWA and I sought out my local chapter. It was life-changing. After my first meeting, I got serious about writing fiction. It only took me three years to complete my first book. Ha ha! However that first book was my first Golden Heart finalist. It didn't win and it never sold, but it fueled my fire and made me more determined than ever to be a full-time writer.

Jan: You’ve written over 30 books since 2002. Is there a secret to being such a prolific a writer? Any favorite places to write?

Nancy: I write every day – even if it's only 100 words, but most weekdays I write at least one scene, if not a chapter. I've found that writing regularly is the key to success in this business. If you write something every day it's amazing how the pages add up. As for favorite places to write, I usually write in my office. I can't listen to music with words when I write so I have an instrumental CD that I listen to. It's sort of like Pavlov's Theory – when I hear that music I know it's time to write.

Jan: Your new release is titled:  A Celebration Christmas. Is Christmas your favorite time of year? What is your favorite season?

Nancy: I love Thanksgiving and Christmas! I really enjoy the cooler temperatures and the festive atmosphere. My absolute favorite thing about the holidays is the family getting together. I tried to capture that feeling of family togetherness in A CELEBRATION CHRISTMAS.

Jan: Are you an early bird writer or a night owl?  Do you try to keep a solid routine or is every day different?

Nancy: I am definitely a night owl. Sometimes I get my best writing done in the wee hours of the morning when the phone isn't ringing and most people aren't texting or emailing. I'm not as tempted to check social media then. I definitely keep to a solid routine as much as I can. For me family always comes first. So if my family needs me, sometimes I have to work my writing around them. But one of the things I love the most about my job is the flexibility.

Jan: How do you treat yourself when you finish a book?

Nancy: I always try to do something nice for myself when I finish a book. My hubby is great. He'll bring home a bottle of champagne. We usually go out to dinner and celebrate and sometimes I'll treat myself to a pedicure. Then I'm jumping back into the next book soon so that I don't lose momentum.

JAN’S GOTTA ASK:   

NANCY’S GOTTA ANSWER:   How lucky you are! I must admit, I've never met a flavor of ice cream I didn't like. But if I had to choose my favorite... It would be chocolate – the darker the better and chocolate with mint... And chocolate with caramel... You see where I'm going with this? 

Thanks so much, Nancy, for sharing a bit of your writing world with us!  As a bonus, Nancy will be giving away a copy of her new release, A Celebration Christmas, to THREE lucky fans who leave a comment. (This contest is limited to residents of North America only) 

NANCY'S UPCOMING RELEASES: 

My Fair Fortune - Fortunes of Texas, Harlequin Special Edition - May 2015

The Bride Who Got Away - Tule's Montana Born imprint - May 2015

Amalfi Nights - Tule's Holiday imprint - June 2015

Dating the Doctor - Harlequin Special Edition - July 2015

The Doctor Next Door - Harlequin Special Edition - November 2015

FIND NANCY ROBARDS THOMPSON:

Contact: nrobardsthompson@yahoo.com 

Website: NancyRobardsThompson.com 

Facebook: www.facebook.com/nancyrobardsthompsonbooks

Twitter: @NRTWrites

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/761602.Nancy_Robards_Thompson

Pintrest: http://www.pinterest.com/nancyrthompson/

Blogs: Sisterhood of the Jaunty Quills - http://jauntyquills.com/