Hi! I’m Nettie Reynolds, a writer based in Austin, Texas. My creative work spans plays, essays, fiction, creative non-fiction, and public storytelling, all of which center around the themes of grief, love, humor, and spiritual transformation. As a former hospice chaplain, I’ve had a front-row seat to some of life’s most poignant and unpredictable moments, and this has shaped how I approach storytelling.
My work has been published in literary journals like The Bangalore Review, Rio River Literary Magazine, Humans of the World, Little Old Lady Comedy, The Chautauquan, Dallas Observer, The Ponder Review, Hysteria Magazine, and most recently Chicago Story Press. I’ve also performed my stories as a storyteller for Queer to Tell in both NYC and Austin, a nationally recognized event.
Two of my ten-minute plays, The Groovy Ride and Detecting Obstacles, were produced as part of the national Out of Ink play contests by ScriptWorks. Additionally, my one-woman show, Toys of My Youth, was performed at Hyde Park Theater, and my storytelling show, Things We Forget to Mention debuted at The North Door. I was also part of the national performance of Listen to Your Mother. My plays were also part of the national One-Minute Play Festival.
I was also a two-time featured speaker at the prestigious Erma Bombeck Writers’ Conference. I’m a member of the Screen Guild of America and the New Play Exchange, and I’ve had the honor of performing my stories on stages across Austin and New York.
Currently, I’m working on The Goodbye Hours, a memoir and one-woman show that explores how we hold space for one another—and for ourselves—during life’s most uncertain transitions. In addition to writing, I’m passionate about teaching and have led workshops for organizations like the Writers’ League of Texas and the Texas Governor’s Conference for Women.
I earned a Master of Divinity in Interfaith Chaplaincy from Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary and a Bachelor of Arts in English, with a focus on Creative Writing and Latin American Fiction, from Goddard College. I’m committed to the belief that stories have the power to connect, challenge, and unite us, and I continue to explore this through my writing, teaching, and performances.