Robin Reed was born on the south side of Chicago, lived in Egypt for a year at the age of five, traveled through Europe at eleven, and went to India when she was eighteen. After that, things went downhill. Robin was an avid reader at a young age and started writing while in grade school. She also wanted to be a cartoonist, and drew cartoons instead of listening to her teachers. As as an adult, she cared only about pursuing these artistic fields. She never wanted to enter any career that would be hard to leave when the big break in writing or cartooning came. As a result, she has had only low level, low paying jobs all her life. The big break still eludes her. She currently lives near Los Angeles and, while the entertainment industry ignores her, she has made some progress in writing, with a number of short stories published and five self-published books available on Amazon.com and other outlets.
The Same Six Questions
1. Have you published a book yet?
I have published several Mama is the story of two families. The Conovers are moving from Los Angeles to Chicago because Jeff Conover's career as an actor has gone nowhere. His teenaged daughter Alison, his nine year old son Michael, who is obsessed with insects, and his wife Lee sit in the car, each stewing in their own resentments. Along the way they attract the attention of Mama and her three kids, who seem to be a slovenly and ugly family, but are truly something else. Mama uses the Conovers as a lesson for her kids, like a lioness teaching her cubs to hunt. When the Conovers start to fight back, Mama gets really mad. Mama is published under my pen name for horror, Robin Morris.
2. When did you know you wanted to be a writer?
I became an avid reader at a young age, and within a few years started writing. I wrote short stories before I was ten years old. Not good ones, mind you, but I wrote them.
3. What was your first lengthy piece of fiction (say, >1000 words)? What was it about? When did you write it? Do you still have it?
Oh, gee, that's hard to remember. I was also a cartoonist, and I did a cartoon book when I was in high school called "The Cocktail Party." I wrote a fantasy short story around age thirteen that I thought was a devastating satire of the of the educational system I was forced to endure every day, but my parents didn't understand the satire part.
4. When was your first indication, "I can do this (write)"?
Probably when my father, an anthropology professor, showed a story of mine to his colleagues. It was humor, something about an ancient species that was an ancestor of humans.
5. If you could meet one of your characters in real life, which would it be?
Xanthan Gumm, from my first novel. He is an alien who comes to Earth to be a movie star. I put a lot of myself into his character.
6. It's a dark and stormy night...you're alone in the house...there's a knock at the door...you open it, look out, and proceed to scream like a little girl. What's on the doorstep?
Nothing. Then I close the door and the knock comes again. I open it and see nothing. I close the door. Knock knock. Now I am afraid to open the door. The knocking continues. I fling the door open and only the rain and wind greet me. I stare into the heart of the storm for a while, daring who or whatever has been knocking to face me. After a while, I close and lock the door. I am sure I have rid myself of the mysterious knocker. I sit down and relax. I almost fall asleep. Knock knock, harder and louder than before. That's when I scream like a little girl.
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Thanks for stopping by and sharing with us today, Robin! Be sure to check out more of Robin's work on her blog and Facebook page.
Be sure to swing back on Thursday when my guest will be the Wingers, Charlie and Diane! See you then!
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