Hello Diamonds - As a reader, one of my favorite things to do is discover new authors. I'm intrigued by so many different pathways that lead to publishing that first novel. It's a dream come true for all of us, but it never comes easily. I often say God parts the waters differently for each one of us, but we all have equal parts faith and a 'failure to quit' that eventually bring our stories to life.
Today, we get the chance to meet Chris Posti. She's been a great friend and source of encouragement, as we're both with Elk Lake Publishing, Inc. Within a couple of weeks, I will get to meet Chris in person at the Blue Ridge Writer's Conference. But for now, all we've got are my hot-seat questions and her enchanting answers.
Before we get started, there are two things you need to know about Chris:
1) Her debut novel, Falling Apart, Falling for You, is a Selah Award Finalist. That an amazing accomplishment!
2) She writes in a genre geared toward 50-year-old women and up. It's even in her subtitle - Real Life and Romance for the 50+ Woman. Fascinating.
Pay attention. These facts will come up again later.
First, meet Chris.
Chris Posti’s writing experience comes in a variety pack. She was a newspaper columnist for more than 20 years and has written three nonfiction books, two blogs, and a workbook. Self-employed for 30 years as a career & executive coach, Chris also wrote training programs, speeches, resumes, LinkedIn profiles, executive summaries, and proposals.
Her debut novel, Falling Apart, Falling for You (Elk Lake Publishing in April, 2021), is a fun, witty, and uplifting story of three women who reunite 40 years after graduating from high school, just as their perfect lives are upended.
Chris's second novel in this series of three will be released in late 2023.
Chris: I vividly remember my excitement the first time I read a book that had no pictures in it. I thought I’d be bored by it—but I wasn’t. After that, I got my library card and checked out piles of books every week. Reading led to writing. I still have a little book of poems I wrote for my mother when I was eight; it certainly wasn’t my first effort at writing, but it was a memorable one. Books taught me my life could turn out very different from what I saw around me—and, indeed, my life has been much more wonderful and exciting than I could have imagined, and writing has always been a significant part of it.
Me: At what point did you realize this was really going to happen?
Chris: Being self-employed most of my career, I wrote a Sunday workplace & careers column for a Pittsburgh newspaper, as well as a lot of business-related communications. As a result, I considered writing an important part of my career. But in 2011 when I self-published my first nonfiction book, I remember turning to my husband and saying from somewhere deep from inside me, almost in another voice: “I am an author.” It was a powerful moment; I knew I’d taken a big step forward in my career and in my life.
Me: Your debut novel is now up for a Selah Award. What does this change for you?
Chris: Anytime you write something—whether it’s a novel, a nonfiction book, an article, a newspaper column, a blog post, or even a carefully worded email—you always wonder how it will be received. You may think you have done a masterful job, but until you get some kind of validation from others, there’s always that doubt lingering in the back of your mind torturing you.
Since my debut novel, Falling Apart, Falling for You, was published on my 70th birthday, I didn’t want to waste any time writing any other books in this series if no one appreciated the first. So I entered a few writing contests to get some outside opinions. I was elated when Falling Apart, Falling for You got an Honorable Mention in the 2022 Angel Book Awards, followed by being named a Finalist in The Author Zone Awards.
Then, earlier this year, I was reading emails on my laptop at the dining room table when I happened to see my book had been named a Finalist in the Contemporary Novels category of the 2023 Selah Awards. I was so stunned that I slid off the chair and fell to my knees. I cried and gave thanks to the Lord!
Me: What do you wish you'd known before you published?
Chris: Before being published, I was thinking, I just want something challenging to occupy my mind during the pandemic. I figured I’d write one novel and then move on to something else like painting or mosaics. But I found love writing fiction. It’s a fulfilling mental challenge. I could be wrong, but I feel like it’s added years to my life. I’ve just finished the manuscript for the second book, and the plot of the third is already in my head. After that, I’m thinking I might write a romance about a woman in her 60s.
Me: What happens next?
Chris: Along with writing the third book in this series and possibly a romance, I would like to get involved in some kind of artistic pursuit. I always say one of these days, I’m going to paint clouds. Maybe I will. Truly, only God knows.
Me: You came up with a new-to-me genre (50+ Woman). Yet, most readers I know fit this classification. How did you choose your genre, and will you ever write for another?
Chris: I could never understand why nearly all the women in novels (and movies) were in their 20s and 30s—maybe (if they were “old”), in their 40s. When I had time on my hands during the pandemic, I searched on Amazon for novels about older women but in all honesty, I couldn’t find anything I wanted to read. Yes, there are many stories that include older women but I wanted them to be the main characters, not a doddering old granny who provides comic relief. I wanted them to be vibrant, smart, loving, real-life, and relatable women who overcome challenges, grow in their faith, have reasons to be hopeful about their future, and find some romance too. So, I wrote the book I’d like to read.
Me: Are your characters based on real people?
Chris: Sometimes, yes, but only vaguely. Suzanne was modeled after a woman I met 40 years ago who worked as a trainer in the airlines. A classmate who appeared in my sixth-grade class, who stayed in my town only that year and resided with her aunt, was the inspiration for Marla. As an inside joke, I also scatter some names of family members and friends throughout the scenes. And it probably goes without saying, there is a lot of myself in each of the main characters.
Me: What do you do for fun?
Chris: My two grandsons (6 and 3) who live nearby visit a lot and we do silly things together—mudpies, chalk on the driveway, searching for fossils in the dirt, playing hide and seek. My husband and I live in Pittsburgh, where it’s too cold most of the year to swim outside, so our house has an indoor pool. The grandsons love it, and so do I. Water a great place to play, think, exercise, and pray.
Me: What is the most satisfying part of writing?
Me: Do you know how your stories will end when you start them? Or are you as surprised as your readers?
Chris: For both my novels, I painstakingly wrote out every single scene multiple times and felt sure I knew exactly how both books would end. But somehow when you’re in the flow of the writing process, you just type and see what happens. Usually, you will be surprised. I know I was.
Check out her books on Amazon.
For more information on Chris, visit https://chrisposti.com.
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