Introductions
"Get some thick skin": author Rebecca Wells Phillips on weathering life's storms
"I've never met a stranger," says memoir and fiction author
Rebecca Wells Phillips, "and people tell me their stories all the time."
Many of these stories are accounts from survivors of Hurricane Helene, which ravaged Rebecca's home state of North Carolina in 2024. They're recounted in her book
Hurricane Helene Resiliency After the Storm, a powerful narration of the devastating events.
Rebecca's latest project is
Lift Our Voice: Abuse Survivors Speak Their Truth, a collection of stories told to her from abuse survivors. "I'm asking people to share their stories of abuse
anonymously," Rebecca says. (Her contact information is listed after this interview.)
Here's Rebecca to talk a little about her life and work:
Why did you choose to self-publish?
I write and publish on my own terms and timetable, without having to be rejected a hundred times. The only expectations are my own, and I only answer to myself and no one else.
How have past life challenges shaped you as a writer?Growing up in a predominantly white town in East Tennessee, I was called the N-word most of my life, first beginning in elementary school. I was taught to hate the color of my skin and my soul within that skin. I have struggled with depression, anxiety, and suicidal ideation. Obviously, I've failed in my attempts at self-harm because God put me here for
his purpose. Through my pain, I write and tell of others' pain, too. Most importantly, I turn pain into purpose and tell others they are
not alone.
Get some thick skin, write whenever you can, and trust no one.
What's your advice to writers who aspire to prominence?Get some thick skin, write whenever you can, and trust no one. I receive hundreds of e-mails every week where people want to "help" me, but I've lost count of the number of times I've been scammed and lost money.
What's the most rewarding part of your career?Meeting and helping other people by giving them a voice.
Hurricane Helene Resiliency After the Storm was therapeutic for the survivors of Helene because they shared their survival stories. Now with
Lift Our Voice: Abuse Survivors Speak Their Truth, people can do the same, but anonymously.
Which of your characters was the most enjoyable to write?I would have to say I've most enjoyed writing about Sally Renee Grace, the female protagonist who was raised in a snake-handling Pentecostal church and discovers that she's a lesbian. Recently, I divorced my husband of thirty-two years to be with my girlfriend. Although
Butterfly Blossoms is fiction, it parallels the challenges in my own life.
Rebecca Wells Phillips is an author in Asheville, North Carolina. An avid writer in a Tennessee high school, she didn't publish her first book,
Hating Self (Boo Black), until November 2023. Her B.A. degrees in journalism and English from Carson-Newman have fueled her penchant for sharing stories. Rebecca gained momentum with
Loving Self,
Butterfly Blossoms (Rachel Bleu),
Hurricane Helene Resiliency After the Storm, and her short stories,
Homeless Again and
It's Only a Dream. However, interviews with Helene victims have lit a fire. She is listed on the Marquis Who's Who List for 2026 and regularly appears on podcasts. Rebecca enjoys time with her three dogs, Smokey (pit bull), Chaos (Boston Terrier), and Rylee (boxer).
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