Ellen Notbohm

Macrame: As a writer, you have built an impressive portfolio of published work, spanning across genres and aiming at diverse audiences. Your award-winning work includes several books of non-fiction, a historical novel, and numerous short fiction, creative nonfiction, and poetry. What can you tell us about your background, and how did your writing journey evolve?

Ellen Notbohm: My writing career didn’t begin until mid-life, when I felt a need for new creative challenges beyond my business-world job. At that time, a mentor gave me some platinum advice: to succeed as a published writer, I’d need to grow a thick skin, be able to hear “no” a lot without wasting energy on it. I never bought into the melodrama of the word “rejection.” A decline, whether short prose or book manuscript, means only that I haven’t found the right home yet. My evolution as an author has taken me from magazine article writer to book author and novelist, and now coming back around to short prose, poetry, and craft writing. I’ve never for a minute been bored with it. The literary world is vast, a grand playground for exploration.

Macrame: Your most notable work includes the nonfiction classic “Ten Things Every Child with Autism Wishes You Knew”, and two other companion books. These have become a go-to resource for parents and educators worldwide. What motivated you to write in the field of autism? What does the success of these books mean to you, personally and as an author?

Ellen Notbohm: When my son was diagnosed as autistic in the mid-1990s, there were few books about autism in general, and even fewer for parents. One of my son’s early educators pushed long and hard for me to write a book. I said sure, and I’ll go out for the Olympic decathlon too. When I did finally write Ten Things, the instant viral response floored me, and I’ve never recovered. It’s a perpetual out-of-body experience, seeing the book published 60+ times in more than 25 languages. Individuals and families have reached out to me from places I didn’t even know existed. It’s kept me very humble, as a person and as a writer.

Macrame: Through deep connection to the subject matter you put a lot of yourself in “Ten Things.” Is there another kind of writing that gives back to you, provides emotional fulfillment or a personal outlet?

Ellen Notbohm: Big picture, all my writing does that. The energy and vibe vary from project to project, but stretching myself to write in many directions keeps me feeling healthy in my writing and able to take some risks. For many years, I never wrote memoir, didn’t think I could, didn’t have the courage. Then one day I did. My first memoir piece won an award. Being featured here in Macrame is my first accolade for poetry. I no longer say things like, I don’t write fantasy. I’ve learned instead to say, I haven’t written any fantasy yet.

I’ve felt comfortable exploring widely because I don’t try to attach any deep cosmic meaning to the question of why I write. It’s very elementary to me. I write because I can and because I want to. That’s it. I have a deep, unshakeable trust in the process, with all its gorgeous and tortuous soaring and plummeting, sprints and stalls.

Macrame: Your historical novel “The River by Starlight” is critically acclaimed and has garnered numerous literary awards. Set in early 20th century American West it is a departure from your nonfiction writing. What is your connection to this story? What motivated you to embark on the journey of writing this book?

Ellen Notbohm: The River by Starlight protagonist, Annie, is based on an ancestor, the proverbial family black sheep no one would talk about. It took me years of digging to uncover why—she suffered from perinatal and postpartum psychosis. I had to tell this story because it’s horrifying that a woman with what we now know is a bona fide medical condition could be judged by both society and the courts as defective and dangerous, and lose everything—home, children, personal freedom. Though seemingly powerless, she refused to give in to those trying to take her right to self-determination. She created a new definition of family and what it means to live in peace and safety. These injustices and themes are still with us today, so we cannot turn away from them. Annie lived this more than 100 years ago, but at nearly every reading I did, someone would come to me afterward in tears, saying that this was their grandmother’s story, or their mother’s story. Shortly after publication, a woman on the other side of the world wrote to tell me, “Nothing, not medication, therapy, specialists and doctors has been as healing as your amazing story of brave Annie.”

Macrame: In exploring those themes of women’s reproductive rights, gender inequality, the stigma of mental illness in the early 20th century, what overarching message do you want to stay with the readers?

Ellen Notbohm: Annie’s rebuilding a self-determined life for herself was a marvel of perseverance and resilience. One of my most cherished testimonials came from the revered Alberta historian Tony Cashman, who called it “a story told with deep understanding of the human heart, which won’t abandon hope.” (Emphasis mine.) Annie’s refusal to abandon hope speaks to the tenacity of the human spirit that lives in all of us.

Macrame: As a writer, what was it like to transition from researching and writing nonfiction to working on a sprawling historical novel?

Ellen Notbohm: My nonfiction books spring from personal experience and center on timeless themes, hence the research aspect was relatively small. I wrote those books in a matter of months. The River by Starlight took twelve years. I felt an enormous responsibility to get the story right, and I fell deeply in love with not just the characters, but the research, the world-building, the heart-stopping depth of emotion, the immersion in the details of life in a long-ago era. I traveled across half a dozen states and provinces, tapped into more than 40 libraries and archives, formed extraordinary friendships. I didn’t want it to end.

Macrame: Having already become a widely published author, what motivates you write short stories, creative nonfiction, and poetry?

Ellen Notbohm: Seeing a book through from concept to publication can be a grueling years-long process, and the promotion phase is something many introverts like me don’t enjoy. The shorter timeline of lit journal writing brings a different kind of fun and satisfaction, and so many interesting new connections with editors and readers. I love the freedom to try new, sometimes audacious, things with little risk. This is not to say that some of my short works don’t sometimes spend a long time in WIP limbo, and/or in the submission process. My first short story took two years. I have a hefty decline list, and I’ve pumped plenty of money into submission fees and tip jars that didn’t result in publication. A literary kind of Boneyard of White Elephants, yes? But I also have pieces I churned out in a day that went on to win awards. All part of the game.

Macrame: The world of literary journals encompasses a range of themes, authors, writing styles, genres. As a seasoned author, why do you gravitate toward literary journals, and what does it mean to have your work published in them? What are some of the literary journals you like to read?

Ellen Notbohm: Oh dear, that’s like asking me to name a favorite child. I write for and read a range of journals, from college student-run publications to some curated by editors of long experience. These journals tend to be on the smaller side, the better to have the kind of editorial relationships I like.  And I appreciate journals that include emerging writers. Breaking into publishing has always been tough, but with so many online journals welcoming new writers now, opportunities abound as never before.

A few journals I enjoy: Macrame, Does It Have Pockets?, Dorothy Parker’s Ashes, Brevity Blog, Fabula Argentea, Heimat Review, Bookends, Funny Pearls. But really, too many to name.

Macrame: What advice can you give to our readers about life, writing, or anything else?

Ellen Notbohm: I get queasy thinking about giving advice to people I don’t know thing one about. “Keep breathing” is the first essential step for any challenging endeavor. Beyond that, little is universal, but for me it’s hard to top Henry Ford’s “Whether you think you can or think you can’t—you’re right.”

And I had a good cry when I first read Oprah’s question, “What would you do if you knew you couldn’t fail?” It propelled me into writing my novel. I knew the odds of not making it to publication were high, but it taught me to redefine failure. Riding the joy and overcoming the agony of the process would have been enough of a triumph for me, regardless of the outcome.

Macrame: What is next for you? Do you see yourself writing another novel?

Ellen Notbohm: As a devout pantser, I can only say, we’ll see!