Tell us a little more about who Hope Russell Nunki is?

The easiest way to start answering that question is to say that Hope Russell
Nunki is a figment of my imagination. It’s a pen name assembled from things
that are important to me—virtue, family, and cosmic perspective. The surname is
both the name of a navigational star and the name of my childhood pet Shetland
Sheepdog.

But to get to the real point of your question, I’m an
ever-evolving piece of work these days. I am a former professional
mascot, signmaker, thespian, and school teacher. The common thread among these
roles is a passion for illuminating common yet complex issues in accessible yet
unusual ways. With a degree in theatre arts, communications, and English,
I taught, directed plays, and coached speech teams in central Iowa before leaving
academia and returning to my roots in the suburbs of Chicago just before
the turn of the millennium.

With more than 15 years of experience in professional
services marketing, I recently started a freelance writing, editing, and
marketing consulting practice, Noon Key Productions LLC. Publishing Release was
the launch pad for this new chapter in my life. In addition to working on my
second novel, I ghost-write and by-line all manner of written content for
a wide variety of clients, and I am actively seeking editing clients for
fiction manuscripts, as well.

By night, I volunteer my time and opinions far
too easily and laugh really obnoxiously. I serve at the pleasure of
my college sorority alumnae chapter, my daughters’ cheerleading team,
multiple blood drives each year, and the Society for Marketing Professional
Services (SMPS). I practice hatha yoga intermittently and run 5K races
poorly. My husband and I are raising four daughters who are convinced
we are the modern day incarnation of the March family.

One of the book clubs who read Release shared a picture of their gathering on Nunki’s Facebook page. Nunki regularly makes herself available for book club appearances in the Chicago area and nationally via Skype.

What made you start writing?

Basically, I had to write. Storytelling is the most enlightening, cathartic,
and arousing thing I could imagine doing with my life. It’s my purpose, which
sets the stakes pretty high. Not doing it—or worse, not doing it well—just
isn’t an option. Because of that, it can also the most frustrating, terrifying,
and soul-crushing thing I could imagine doing. While that’s not exactly an
endorsement of my chosen profession, it’s the valleys that make the mountaintops
that much more rewarding.

I played it safe for a long time, channeling my passions
in stable-seeming jobs and socially-acceptable outlets, but I never felt truly
alive. The closest I’ve ever felt to the way I have in the past few years as an
author was during my thespian era. I was good, but I was never going to be a
great actress. I was a very good director, and I think I could be a great
playwright. I hope that more theatrical work is somewhere in my future.

And who are your inspirations?

I admire dozens if not hundreds of people, often within a single day. Narrowing
the scope of the question to purely literary inspiration, I’m an insatiable
Diana Gabaldon fan. She’s a brilliant researcher, her character development is
unparalleled, and the breadth of emotion she elicits with her lyrical prose has
no equal in modern literature. I usually don’t go for historical fiction
because many authors of the genre rely too heavily on the built-in drama of the
chosen setting. I’m not a particular fan of science fiction, either, because I
see too much reliance upon its stock characters and tropes. Classification-defying
Gabaldon does neither; she just writes damned good stories that elevate and scintillate.
Other authors I’ve really loved of late have included Lisa Unger, Jeffrey
Eugenides, Sara Gruen, and Maria Semple.

Amanda Feeley, proprietress of Esscentual Alchemy, is a natural perfumier and a long-time friend of Nunki. Based upon the descriptions in Release, she produced a trio of fragrances inspired by the novel. www.esscentualalchemy.com

What do you love most about being an author?

Where do I start? I love that every blank page is a new opportunity to evoke
thought, emotion, and action. I love that the publishing evolution during the
last decade has expanded the platform, so that anyone with a story and the will
to take it to market can do so. Conversely, I also love that publishing is
still meritocracy—that marketing schmooze only gets you so far; the provocative
power of your story takes you the rest of the way.

Can you describe your writing process?

On the planners-to-pantsers spectrum, I’m probably closer to the pantser
crowd. With my first novel, and with the manuscript I’m currently polishing, I
started out with a synopsis—a two- or three-page summary of the story’s events.
I supplemented the synopsis with a relationship map indicating each major
character, lines indicating who knows who from where, and little offshoots from
each character’s point on the map describing minor characters’ influences, or
maybe some key backstory elements.

After that, I broke the synopses down into chapters. I didn’t
title my chapters, but while they were in development, they were named in the
style of old Friends episodes, such as “The one where Henry releases Mandelyn”
or “The one when Mandelyn’s mom sets her straight.” This chapter breakdown
resided in a working document. As I finished chapters, I exported them to a
second document. This helped me resist the temptation of editing when I should have
been writing new content. I read once that editing during the writing process
is a form of procrastination, and it’s absolutely true.

For ‘Release’, I edited the book while I was querying
agents. I had the book read by two beta groups. One was my own book club; the
other was a friend’s book club comprised of her husband’s mother, her sisters,
and their daughters and daughters-in-law. Once I abandoned my agent search and
decided to publish independently, I hired a professional editor to do what we
characterized as a light-developmental, heavy-proofreading job.

For ‘Decorum’, I plan to do things about the same way. To
that end, I am currently and will continue to seek agent representation for as
long as it’s reasonable to do so. I know it’s sacrilege among indie novelists,
but I really hope to be picked up by a traditional publishing house. It’s not
that I haven’t loved the freedom of self-publishing, but I’m not in love with
taking all of the marketing 100% on my own shoulders. I’m reasonably creative,
industrious, and optimistic, but that pales in comparison to the marketing
muscle of the New York juggernaut.

Five teas are described in Release. In collaboration with Tiesta Tea®, a custom set of loose-leaf selections was created to perfectly capture the essence of what you read about in the novel. In keeping with the Tiesta mission, each flavor is also a functional blend with calming, energizing, slimming, immunity, or age-reversing properties.

Do you have any sort of ritual you follow?

I have no prescribed ritual, owing to the utter unpredictability of schedule. I
write longhand; I write on my smartphone; I write on my computer. I even
dictate sometimes. Dictation’s amazing for writing dialogue. I sit on my couch,
at my kid’s athletic practices, at a desk, at the kitchen table, in my car
(while parked, of course)… anywhere works, literally. The only thing I can’t do
is multi-task. If I’m on family time, freelance time, editing time, or marketing
time, the novel files are closed.

If there’s anything I do that rises to the level of
calling it a ritual, it’s this: I write. I try to write every day if for no
other reason than to clear the pipes. Sometimes you just have to flush out the
useless gibberish that’s lodged in the way of the truth that needs to be freed.
Just thinking about what I plan to write doesn’t count; in fact, it’s utterly
dangerous. That One Great Idea has been lost countless times because I’ve been
sure I’d remember it later. That never works out well.

I wrote ‘Release’ in just under three months sticking to
this philosophy. ‘Decorum’ has taken much longer because, in addition to
whatever vestiges I still have of a personal life, I’ve been promoting ‘Release’
over the last year while trying to advance ‘Decorum’ at the same time. No
excuses, lest the project stall, as all evidence would indicate. Still,
finishing a novel within a year’s time isn’t too bad.

A screenshot of an early genuine interaction online. Nunki has built a following of more than 1000 on Facebook and she is nearing 4000 followers on Twitter.

Tell us more about your books ‘Release’ and ‘Decorum’?

‘Release’ is the story of a woman’s downfall and reclamation. Postpartum
depression, marital dysfunction, and ethical corruption push Mandelyn Ziegel to
the breaking point. To combat her unresolved grief, nostalgic yearnings, and
professional regrets, she secretly tries virtual counseling—an online,
anonymous journaling program. When her husband finds and reads her entries, he
sees the depth of her ennui and “releases” her to rediscover her purpose and
bliss. What follows is an exploration and reconstruction of Mandelyn’s psychic
foundation—her formative relationships, her character, and her ideals.

‘Decorum’ is the story of a woman on the brink of
adulthood and at the center of explosive controversies that threaten her family
and her future. Politics are truly local for Ginny Constable, whose family
unwittingly builds relationships with both the incumbent and opposing
candidates for the district’s senate seat. As the election approaches, it became
clear that outward appearances, courtesies, and protocol often mask devious,
even licentious machinations. On one side—the senator and her chief of staff,
the career politician looking to make his mark. On the other side—the
restauranteur and civic leader, supported by his former lover turned campaign manager.
Attacks are levied, accusations fly, and Ginny may become the casualty of it
all. The twist and turns multiply as this story unfolds, and the nature of
intimacy, honesty, and leadership is revealed.

How did you come to these stories?

Thematically, ‘Release’ is a study of issues I watched friends go through
leading up to the time I decided to write about them. The story was borne of my
trying to make sense of their experiences. The “what if” questions I would
ponder after talking with this friend or that were the basis of dialogue that
takes place in the book. The third chapter and the penultimate chapter in Release
were among the first written. Getting from one point to the other was the
challenge.

‘Decorum’ is grounded in my time spent living in central
Iowa during and after college. Iowa truly is the crucible for American
politics, but living there during multiple political seasons helped me realize
that the presidential race is just the tip of the iceberg. Living all over the
United States growing up, I never saw a citizenry more engaged, informed, or
passionate about the democratic process. Visiting Iowa ever few years since I
left, I am still astounded by the incredible volume of political advertising,
political events, and political access Iowans are afforded. It doesn’t hold a
candle to anything I’ve experienced anywhere else, and I live in Chicago (okay,
in the suburbs—but I used to live and work in the city; I’m bona fide), home of
the smoke-filled room!

While in Iowa, I was still a teacher and theatre
director, which accounts for the academic aspect of Decorum. My mother was a
teacher, so I had the teacher’s mindset ingrained in me from a young age. I
have four children who are spread out from elementary to high school right now,
and I’m a pretty active volunteer and coach. Three of my in-laws are teachers,
and one is a guidance counselor. For all of these reasons, I’m still in touch
with what the school environment looks like today. Using the school as a story
setting is kind of cliché, but for good reason. The interpersonal issues kids
navigate are more than just metaphors for the rest of life to come; they are
formative experiences that are relatable to a wide variety of people across
economic and geographic divides.

Some Authors say they heard there characters inside their
head for years before they started writing. How did your characters come to life?

No one I’ve created in my novels to date is based directly upon anyone I know
in real life. Naturally, people I encounter and things I experience inform what
I write. Some of the characters in Release are composites of multiple people I
know, with very little invented detail holding things together. I think this is
pretty common for first-time novelists. Other characters in Release, and most
of the characters in Decorum are sheer fabrication.

As for hearing the characters inside my head, quoth Shrek,
“Yeah, it’s getting [them] to shut up that’s the trick.”

This is a picture of the author’s pen name’s inspiration, the family Shetland Sheepdog named for a navigation star. For more information, visit http://hopenunki.com/whats-a-nunki/

What is your favorite book(s)?

In addition to the work by the authors I mentioned above, I confess to being a
sucker for Shakespeare, Hemingway, David Foster Wallace, and Chuck Palahniuk.
Draw whatever conclusions you’d like. They’re not exactly an admirable lot, but
they all know how to write a mean turn of phrase.

What are your future plans in writing?

Beyond ‘Decorum’, I have ideas for three future novels. One is a story of a
cancer battle told from the perspective of the caregiver. Another is the story
of a woman’s disappearance and return, told from the perspective of the woman
who disappeared. Both stories are based on experiences of women I have known
for years. One approached me and asked that I collaborate with her to tell the
story; I asked the other one if she’d be interested in collaborating with me. After
those, the next novel will be the second in the Release series, told from the
point of view of Colette, a favorite secondary character of many readers and
mine. After that, I’d like to develop novels based upon other characters in Release,
although I imagine that other projects may draw my eye in the meantime. For
instance, I also have plans to co-write a novel with successful romance
novelist Jennifer Theriot.

All of this is meant to occur while I get my consulting
practice up to full speed, so I have several years of work mapped out for my
future.

What would your advice be to new aspiring authors?

Simple. Get to work!

Hope is a former professional mascot, signmaker, thespian,
and school teacher. The common thread among these roles is a passion for
illuminating common yet complex issues in accessible yet unusual ways. With a
degree in theatre arts, communications, and English from Simpson College, she
taught, directed plays, and coached speech teams in central Iowa before
returning to her roots in the suburbs of Chicago.

With more than 15 years of experience in professional services marketing, she
ghost-write and by-lines articles by day. By night, she volunteers her time and
opinions far too easily and laugh really obnoxiously. She serves at the
pleasure of her Alpha Chi Omega alumnae chapter, the local Panhellenic society,
her daughters’ elementary school association, and the Society for Marketing
Professional Services. She practicse hatha yoga intermittently and runs 5K
races poorly. Hope and her husband are raising four daughters who are convinced
we are the modern day incarnation of the March family.

Hope is not her real name, but it’s easier to say and spell correctly than her
real name.

For more information about Hope Russell Nunki please visit her website, Twitter, Facebook and on Pinterest.