Nancy Thayer's Nantucket Writing Life
The beloved author gives us a behind the scenes look at her new book and the sparkly summer island she calls home.
Author Nancy Thayer is one of those rare people that you meet and adore after a single second. She picked me up in Nantucket two summers ago before I had a book signing at Mitchell’s, the beloved bookshop on the island, and she took me to lunch at the Nantucket Yacht Club. It was a hoot to people watch with the Nantucket sailing crowd and meet some of her friends. Plus, the view! I was immediately taken with Nancy’s down-to-earth stories of how she became a writer, how she managed to write SO MANY BOOKS, and what it’s like to live on this sparkly New England coastal island year-round. Spoiler alert: Amazing!
A New York Times bestselling novelist, Thayer’s new novel The Summer We Started Over is a true gem. I was lucky to get an early copy of the book and it’s so Nancy: Full of heart and humor and charm. The story follows two sisters with a close and complicated relationship who reconnect in their family home as they navigate life’s challenges and chase their dreams. The Summer We Started Over came out last week, and I’m so delighted to have Nancy stopping by Dear Fiction to chat about Nantucket, her books and why this novel is so special to her.
Welcome, Nancy!! Now let’s get into the questions!
After writing so many novels (how many exactly), how do you come up with ideas?
The Summer We Started Over is my 37th published novel. My first novel, Stepping, was published in 1980! So much has changed since then, but because I write about families and friends, I never run out of ideas. Living on an island adds another dimension to my writing. It provides complications--nor-easters when planes and ferries are cancelled, for example. That happened a few years ago after the Christmas Stroll and dozens of people were stranded and all the hotels were full. I haven’t written about that yet, but what a great plot device for two people to meet each other!
The sister relationship is so well done in the novel. What made you want to write about sisters this time around? Are you a sister?
Several of my novels involve sisters. I do have a sister, nine years younger, a darling blue-eyed blond, who was SO spoiled and got a canopy bed, not that I’m jealous. I love her and she’s provided many ideas for novels. She and I have had many long talks about our family. Our mother was wonderful, but she was frustrated because she had a college degree and wanted to work and back then, in the forties and fifties, she was supposed to stay home and keep house. Keep house. What a thought. That led me to imagine a family whose mother left, and what that would mean to the two sisters. It makes my character Eddie certain that she wouldn’t be a good mother and doesn’t want to marry. That was my starting point.
Older sister Eddie works for an eccentric writer named Dinah Lavender who ends up visiting the island in a humorous series of events. Tell us about what it was like to write such a quirky character and how she drove the story?
When I wrote my first synopsis, Dinah Lavender wasn’t even around. I draw on the events and emotions of my friends and family, whom I consider to be fairly normal. I do have one real friend named Dinah, whom I’ve known for over forty years, and who is the most glamorous, gorgeous, generous, hilarious person I’ve ever met. I dedicated my book to her. She lives in Palm Beach. She called me one day and as we were talking, a voice in my head said, Dinah Lavender! A romance novelist! I couldn’t get off the phone fast enough, and writing about Dinah was like taking dictation from a real person. I’ve heard that happens to other writers.
The younger sister, Barrett, opens a store that summer called Nantucket Blues and I want to buy everything in it. Did you base that on any particular shops on the island, and what are a few of your favorite shops?
I love the charming boutiques that line Main Street and the center of town. I buy clothes, jewelry, and gifts from Murray’s Toggery and Vis-à-vis and Hepburn. But, and this is bit of a confession, roaming the aisles of Nantucket Pharmacy or Island Variety is my personal therapy. I can find games for my grandchildren, a new shade of lipstick, a bracelet with miniature starfish, seashells, and buoys, jigsaw puzzles, toys, and delightful gift wrap. I don’t need to buy it all. It’s so satisfying simply to browse. Okay, I do need to buy some of it. Thank heavens I have six grandchildren.
I’ve often wondered what kind of shop I would have on this island, and the idea for Nantucket Blues was born. Blue is my favorite color, and our restaurants often serve Nantucket Bluefish. When I spoke with friends about my idea for Nantucket Blues, they thought it was brilliant and wanted me to open that shop. So, I did, by writing about it.
Where do you tend to write the most on the island? Where do you go when you need a break from the writing desk?
Our old house was built in 1840, and it’s narrow and high, with a wonderful view of the harbor in the attic. We put in a half-moon window and added bookshelves, and my study is very private, with my desk, books, table for my printers/quilt covered with an old cashmere sweater bed for our cat, and a stunning view of the harbor. I write “up in the attic” where it’s lovely and secluded and I’ve done so for years and years. I hate being away from my study, but some summers I take my laptop with me to stay at a hotel near my six grandchildren for a couple of weeks. I can’t say I get much written.
I have to ask this because I love Nantucket and its beaches. If you had to pick your favorite beach on the island, which one is it and why?
Surfside, on the south side, the Atlantic Ocean side, is my favorite. In the winter (my favorite season), I walk along the beach to catch the energy from the stormy waves. In the summer, I go there with children, grandchildren and friends to swim, soak in the sun, and build sand castles.
Have you ever walked away from a novel? When you find yourself struggling, what do you do to push through?
Oh, wow, I have walked away from so many novels. I really want to write mysteries, but I also have trouble killing anyone. I have boxes of research and first drafts of historical novels about May Alcott and Dorothy Wordsworth, two women who deserve to be read about. Someday.
I literally walk away from novels often. I walk around town or on the beach, and let my thoughts brew and return with some ideas. Sometimes I just force myself to write, knowing that the next day I’ll throw most of it away, but I’ll have two or three good sentences to start with.
Also, I will admit, I do keep a stash of dark chocolate-covered almonds nearby.
Lastly do you prefer writing a draft or revising it? Why, and how did this novel change as you were revising?
I prefer writing the first draft. It’s a magical process. But I value the revising, even if it’s hard to do. Stephen King said, “Always do what your editor tells you.” I have a wonderful editor, Shauna Summers, and she sends me pages of notes on the first draft. We talk on the phone. With her guidance, I can see that some parts need to be cut, or changed, or rewritten. But it’s never easy. Thank heavens for the “Copy and Paste” features.
Thank you for this questionnaire, Brooke! I can’t wait to read All the Summers In Between.
You’re so welcome! Nancy is the most wonderful person and her great big heart shows through in her pages. I’m sure you’ve already read one of her novels, but if you haven’t, this is the perfect one to start with. Purchase here or here or here!
Great interview! Makes me want to go to Nantucket this summer…I suppose I’ll have to read my way there ⛱️☀️