#WriterWedenesday Author Interview with Christi Keating Sumich
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I’d like to welcome Christi Keating Sumich to the blog!
Hardest thing about being a writer: Figuring out what I want to write.
Easiest thing about being a writer: Writing almost every day. I love it.
Things you need for your writing sessions: Two dogs and a cat sharing my chair with me
Things that hamper your writing: My family members coming and going when I’m working from home.
Something you’re really good at: Pilates
Something you’re really bad at: Mario Party
Last best thing you ate: Frozen yogurt with chunks of fudge brownie
Last thing you regret eating: Sushi (food poisoning)
The last thing you ordered online: Meds for my dog
The last thing you regret buying: Nail clippers for the cat
Things to say to an author: I loved your last book!
Things to say to an author if you want to be fictionally killed off in their next book: I’d write a book if I had more free time.
Favorite places you’ve been: Perth, Australia
Places you never want to go to again: Pittsburgh (Sorry, Pittsburgh, it was a work thing. Not fun.)
The coolest person you’ve ever met: Whoopi Goldberg
The celebrity who didn’t look like he/she did in pictures/video: Enrique Iglesias
The nicest thing a reader said to you: Your book made me cry.
The craziest thing a reader said to you: Your book was too wordy.
Besides writing, what’s the most creative thing you’ve done: I chalk-painted all the cabinets in my kitchen.
A project that didn’t quite turn out the way you planned it: Those same cabinets!
My favorite book as a child: Green Eggs and Ham by Dr. Seuss
A book I’ve read more than once: Cabinet of Curiosities by Preston and Child
Your favorite movie as a child: The Sound of Music
A TV show or movie that kept you awake at night as a kid (or as an adult): Alien
About Christi:
Christi Keating Sumich is a lifelong resident of New Orleans. She is married to her high school sweetheart and is the mother of three grown children (plus a daughter-in-law). She has a soft spot for “unconventionally attractive” animals who need homes. Her claim to fame is being the winningest contestant on Hollywood Squares.
She holds a PhD in history from Tulane University and a master’s degree in English. She has taught history classes at Tulane University and Loyola University New Orleans.
Christi’s writing combines her fascination with history with her love of the mystery genre. Her debut novel is Lafitte Lives (Level Best Books, February 2026), a historical mystery centered around her ancestor, the notorious pirate Jean Lafitte. She is also the author of the Old New Orleans Bookshop Mysteries, featuring characters from Lafitte Lives. The Swamp Ghost is the first book in the series (Level Best Books, September 2026).
Christi and her mom, Sharon Keating, are the co-authors of Hauntingly Good Spirits: New Orleans Cocktails to Die For (Wellfleet Press, August 2024) and The Brandy Milk Punch (Louisiana State University Press, March 2025), part of the Iconic New Orleans Cocktail Series.
Let’s Be Social:
Website: https://christisumich.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/christi.keating.sumich.author/about?section=contact-info
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/christisumich/
