Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Nancy Tupper Ling. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Nancy , looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?
One of my most meaningful book projects was my first book that was published. My Sister, Alicia May is a story about a young girl who has Down syndrome written from the point of view of her older sister,. The inspiration came from my childhood friend, Cheri, and her daughters. One day she told me that it was so hard to find a book about a child with special needs that wasn’t didactic. She longed for a story that just showed a child with Down syndrome being like themselves, like any other child in so many ways. I went home after a visit with her family and wrote a poem entitled, “Our Fragile Emissary.” Soon this poem was discovered and shared by many in the Down syndrome community. After that, I wrote My Sister, Alicia May and it was published by a small press called Pleasant St Press, selling over 5000 copies and reaching more hearts than I would have imagined.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
The whole road to publication has definitely been a journey which has required patience and fortitude, as well as a few other careers (like being a librarian) on the side. Each personal connection and book publication has helped me to refine my art and to create my “brand” as “Nancy Tupper Ling, Author.” That said, I was under the impression that book sales would happen quickly after my first picture book, My Sister, Alicia May, was published. That didn’t happen.! The small publisher, Pleasant St Press, went out of business. and I’d been hoping to work with them for many more years. During this lull, I began looking for an agent because that seemed key to getting published. That took a while too, but in 2011 I signed on with my first agent. Having a fabulous agent is wonderful, but it doesn’t guarantee a smooth ride either. While we sold three picture books fairly quickly in 2013, but then another lull. From all of this, I’ve learned to encourage my fellow writers to write everything and anything. If my picture books aren’t selling, I’m writing and publishing poetry. If that’s not working, I write blog posts. Also, ask questions! For years I had poems accepted in June Cotner’s amazing anthologies. However, it wasn’t until I met her in 2013 and asked if she needed help with any of her work that she suggested working on an anthology together! Our first coauthored book, Toasts: The Perfect Words to Celebrate Every Occasion, came out in 2014. Since then we’ve published several more anthologies together, including Family Celebrations, For Every Little Thing, and next up is Bless the Earth. So my advice: be generous to others, listen to sage advice, and revise, revise, revise. Ever onward!
Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?
My head should be spinning from the amount of pivots I’ve made of late. I worked for years as a librarian, and I loved it. But I was always trying to squeeze my writing time into my life, usually writing after 8 pm when my girls were young and they’d gone to bed. In 2021, as we were emerging from the Pandemic, I decided to “retire” from being a librarian and become a full-time author. I had several picture books under my belt at this time, but I wasn’t sure I’d be able to sell another story within the year that I’ve allotted. Not only did I sell one, I sold two that year (thanks to the hard work of my fabulous agent, Anne Marie O’Farrell.) The other pivot was actually switching agents. I wanted to sign on with someone who was willing to submit my faith-based stories. That was a big risk, though. Many agents weren’t interested in representing any works of faith. But the two that Anne Marie sold that first year were both right up that alley: Bless the Earth (Penguin/Convergent) and One Perfect Plan: The Bible’s Big Story in Tiny Poems (Penguin/ WaterBrook). Sometimes it’s worth it to not only follow your heart, but to listen to your soul.
For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?
There is nothing like the feeling of using the gifts that you’ve been given for a calling that you believe in. I joke that I surround myself with books and words in all aspects of my life, whether it was as a mother reading to my own children or whether it’s introducing a young reader to their next favorite book in the library or bookstore where I work. But the most amazing part about being a children’s author is seeing a child moved by your story… with a laugh or a cry or even by drifting off to sleep.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.nancytupperling.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ntling/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nancy-tupper-ling-4964b74/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/nancytupperling
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCaEvijSEdbAmwaQn3PgstKQ
- Other: https://www.pinterest.com/ntling/ https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1314757.Nancy_Tupper_Ling
Image Credits
Stacy Murphy Photography