Robin Donovan, author
Robin Donovan is reading TODAY Feb. 25, 5pm at Mystery Bookstore on 13th Street next to Bohemian Cafe in Omaha. She shares with LFF about getting into writing and blogging, feminism, the Omaha community and much more...
how did you get into writing? I was an English major, and then a high school English teacher. I got into advertising about 30 years ago and always felt as though I wanted to write a book. I was just waiting for the right time. why did you start your blog I started my blog because my business partner, Kim Mickelsen, suggested it. She had gotten me into blogging on Marketing (Marketinginsideout.com was our first company blog and Insights is now our company blog). Kim pointed out that so many women would ask me about menopause that there was clearly a need. Menopause is a strange area. Even the most intelligent women aren’t prepared – it’s such an avoidance category that most women think they’ll deal with it when they have to. I remember thinking that I wasn’t “old enough” to be menopausal so why should I read up on it. Then, after my hysterectomy, I was quick to point out that it was surgical menopause – not brought on by age (at least not completely). There was such a strong cultural stigma about menopause – and our avoidance was helping to perpetuate the myth. I only got vigilant about trying to change society’s view of menopause after I had it myself. At the time I started Menologues, there was nothing entertaining/funny that was also informational. There were dry-as-dust textbooks and outrageous comedic pieces – but nothing that could guide you (not pretend to be a healthcare professional) from a “here’s what I’ve observed” standpoint and keep you from being bored to tears. I have had a ton of appreciative feedback (you probably know menologues is republished on vibrantnation.com and alltop.com). I even had one person say that she recommended it to a friend – and the friend told her I saved her life. Because you feel so alone – old and alone – and you don’t know where to turn because there’s a lion behind every door! and write the book? What finally got me to write the book was the perfect storm. I have a writing background, I own an ad agency so I could promote a book, I had somewhat of an audience in the women 50+ demo since I’d been blogging to them for over a year, and then we got a publishing company as a client at the agency. That’s when I said to myself “it’s now or never, the stars have aligned.” I’ve always wanted to write humor. I love murder mysteries but I have a pet peeve when the authors make sloppy mistakes, I wanted to write about what I know (a menopausal woman in the young business of advertising), I wanted to dispel some myths about menopausal women being old ladies, I wanted to dispel some myths about Omaha still using covered wagons, I wanted to dispel some myths that non-skinny women can’t be hot and attractive. It was the right time. tell me why your writing is important to you. I love humor, I love to make people laugh. I would almost go as far as to say “cleanliness and humor are next to godliness!” I thought the actual writing would be difficult – it was incredibly fun! I only wrote on weekends and I could spend all day Saturday and all day Sunday writing – and just wish I could have another day. I looked forward to every weekend – not to go shopping for shoes! – but to sit at my computer and write! I got to create characters that each told their own story. They were ridiculous – but who isn’t? They were more real than some real people. I got to poke fun at everyone – including myself! does feminism play a role in your work? I look at authors like Mary Higgins Clark. Her protagonist is always a brilliant woman. I want to know – if she’s so brilliant – why does she knowingly make an appointment to be alone with a suspected murderer? And then he captures her and she’s surprised – and has planned NO back up – so her rescue is a total fluke. How smart is that? My protagonist is very careful – if she gets herself into trouble it’s not because she walked into it knowingly. It’s not about being a guy and being tough and being able to attack the killer – it’s about being smart with what you are and what skills you have. My character is a business owner, but she doesn’t try to pretend that good things aren’t often more of a fluke than careful planning. Sometimes it’s just about getting lucky – and sometimes when you are genuinely brilliant – it’s kind of a dud. Sometimes, in business and in life, you feel as though you’re body surfing on an endless wave and you’re just wondering where it will bring you. People think if you own a business, you’re driving the wave – and sometimes you’re the one riding the most treacherous section and hanging on for dear life. Women business owners are like men business owners. There is still a bit (just a bit thank god) of residual of those who think that a woman owned business is really run by her husband with her name on it for some kind of a tax break or something – I guess it really used to be that way – I never see that now. In my book a lot of the guys like Donna and run to help her when they know she’s in danger – but it’s her female business partner who calls the police which is the smart thing to do. Men and women may respond differently sometimes – but a woman’s response is not inferior to her male counterpart. is Omaha a good place for creative women? First and foremost, Omaha is welcoming of outsiders. In many other areas of the country, a woman (or a man) would not be able to move there from somewhere else and be supported in buying one of the older, more respected businesses. That makes Omaha an amazing place. In New England they have a saying, when the welcome wagon comes to your door the guy says “I just wanted to tell you, since you weren’t born here you can’t be buried here.” Woman in business have a distinct advantage here. If you are a woman in the Northeast, especially in advertising, it’s difficult to escape the fact that you’re different. The sexual tension there – at least a decade or two ago – was ever present. You weren’t part of the “team,” you were a woman on the team. I’ve never heard of a woman in Omaha being told that she couldn’t be part of the travel team to go and make a presentation because the guys were doubling up on hotel rooms – so she was getting left behind. That happened to me in Connecticut. Since the day I moved to Omaha I have felt like a business person. I have never been treated differently than anyone else around me. It’s a great feeling!
_______ Visit rldonovan.com for more information!
