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Norah Woodsey

Goodreads Author

Born

Brooklyn, NY, The United States

Website

http://www.norahwoodsey.com

Twitter

norahwoodsey

Genre

Science Fiction, Historical Fiction, Chick Lit

Member Since

December 2013

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Norah Woodsey is the author of The States, The Control Problem, Lifeless, and the novella When the Wave Collapses. After short careers in finance and tech, she has dedicated herself to creating fiction. Her subjects of intense interest but not quite expertise include history, physics, genetics, sociology and gender studies. The product of four generations of Brooklynites, she now resides on the west coast with her husband, children, and their dog Saoirse.

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Popular Answered Questions

What’s the best thing about being a writer?

Norah Woodsey I love collaborating with talented, hardworking people. I didn't realize that writing books could bring you that experience until recently.

For a long…moreI love collaborating with talented, hardworking people. I didn't realize that writing books could bring you that experience until recently.

For a long time, I hated letting others read my stories. I tried to get over this feeling in high school, but it didn't work. I believed any praise came from the reader's sympathy and any dislike or confusion was evidence of my own failure. It wasn't until I met my husband, an incredibly talented and creative individual, that I felt like I could share my stories.

Now, my writing has a collaborative bent, rather than remaining an insomniac's hobby. I'm finishing up my second book and looking forward to the first pieces of feedback from my small army of first readers. After I make revisions, I'm excited to find and hire an artist to do the cover. (less)

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What mystery in your own life could be a plot for a book?

Norah Woodsey My great-grandmother, an Irish woman named Catherine, left home for the United States by herself in her early twenties. That part isn't so surprising;…moreMy great-grandmother, an Irish woman named Catherine, left home for the United States by herself in her early twenties. That part isn't so surprising; times were hard in Ireland and she had found love with a Swedish man in Brooklyn. But after her my great-grandfather was killed in a tragic accident, she did not return home. She struggled to support her two young children alone in New York in the lead up to the birth of her third child. When that baby was born, he died of milk poisoning at five months old while she was at work. The next record is of her leaving her two eldest children, including my grandfather, in an orphanage in New Jersey. She does not collect them for years. The time left a terrible mark on my grandfather.

Meanwhile, her family in Ireland had acres of land, farm animals, business dealings listed in newspapers. They were upper middle class, not impoverished. So why didn't she go home? Why did she think an orphanage was better than going back to Ireland?

Years later, after doing who knows what to survive, she reappears with her children in her custody, the owner of a building in Manhattan. She takes a trip to Ireland with her then-teenage daughter. Soon after, her sister dies. They return to New York, and she never returns to Ireland again.

I would love to know what happened. I can imagine, of course. But I would like to know. (less)

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Norah Woodsey’s books

Average rating: 3.84 · 103 ratings · 57 reviews · 5 distinct works • Similar authors

	The States 3.51 avg rating — 51 ratings — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Control Problem 3.88 avg rating — 34 ratings — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	When the Wave Collapses 4.56 avg rating — 9 ratings — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Lifeless 4.88 avg rating — 8 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Test Space (Wave Function Book 2) it was amazing 5.00 avg rating — 1 rating	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

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Norah Woodsey's Blog

introducing: Spoil Me

There is a lot of discussion about spoilers. In 2016, UC San Diego announced a study that readers enjoy a book more when they have spoilers.

Article after article (you can look it up) debate whether spoilers are bad, that books should be able to withstand having spoilers revealed, etc. As a reader, I prefer not to have spoilers, but I do understand the impulse. A person who prefers having a spoile

Norah is Currently Reading

Norah Woodsey is currently reading

A History of the World in Twelve Shipwrecks

by David Gibbins (Goodreads Author)

bookshelves: currently-reading, wtwc-sequel

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Sep 03, 2024 05:22PM

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Stories Are Weapons: Psychological Warfare and the American Mind

by Annalee Newitz (Goodreads Author)

bookshelves: wtwc-sequel, currently-reading

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Sep 03, 2024 08:58AM

Norah Woodsey is currently reading

Last Ones Left Alive

by Sarah Davis-Goff

bookshelves: currently-reading

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Feb 24, 2023 07:35PM

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Norah’s Recent Updates

Norah Woodsey wrote a new blog post introducing: Spoil Me There is a lot of discussion about spoilers. In 2016, UC San Diego announced a study that readers enjoy a book more when they have spoilers. Article a Read more of this blog post »
Mar 05, 2026 04:21AM · like
Norah Woodsey is currently reading A History of the World in Twelve Shipwrecks by David Gibbins (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Sep 03, 2024 05:22PM · like
Norah Woodsey rated a book it was amazing How To Build A Car by Adrian Newey	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Sep 03, 2024 08:58AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of How To Build A Car by Adrian Newey. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — How To Build A Car by Adrian Newey <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Norah Woodsey started reading Stories Are Weapons: Psychological Warfare and the American Mind by Annalee Newitz (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Sep 03, 2024 08:58AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Stories Are Weapons by Annalee Newitz. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Stories Are Weapons by Annalee Newitz <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
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Sep 03, 2024 08:58AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of How To Build A Car by Adrian Newey. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — How To Build A Car by Adrian Newey <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Norah Woodsey rated a book it was amazing The Radium Girls: The Dark Story of America’s Shining Women by Kate Moore (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Sep 03, 2024 08:56AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Radium Girls by Kate Moore. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Radium Girls by Kate Moore <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Norah Woodsey rated a book it was amazing The Daughter of Doctor Moreau by Silvia Moreno-Garcia (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Sep 03, 2024 08:56AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Daughter of Doctor Moreau by Silvia Moreno-Garcia. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Daughter of Doctor Moreau by Silvia Moreno-Garcia <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Norah Woodsey rated a book it was amazing The Daughter of Doctor Moreau by Silvia Moreno-Garcia (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Sep 03, 2024 08:55AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Daughter of Doctor Moreau by Silvia Moreno-Garcia. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Daughter of Doctor Moreau by Silvia Moreno-Garcia <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
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Norah Woodsey answered Goodreads's question: What mystery in your own life could be a plot for a book? My great-grandmother, an Irish woman named Catherine, left home for the United States by herself in her early twenties. That part isn't so surprising; times were hard in Ireland and she had found love with a Swedish man in Brooklyn. But after her my See Full Answer
Apr 20, 2024 09:03AM · like

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Norah’s Quotes

“Now let me be clear; millions of women around the world nurse their children beautifully for years without giving anybody else a hard time about it. Teat Nazis are a solely western upper-middle-class phenomenon occurring when highly ambitious women experience deprivation from outside modes of achievement.”
― Tina Fey, Bossypants

tags: humor

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