We had the good fortune of connecting with Roni Robbins and we’ve shared our conversation below.
Hi Roni, why did you pursue a creative career?
I always liked to write, from my penmanship to calligraphy, poetry and song lyrics. So when a very “popular” high school friend said she planned to major in journalism, I decided to follow suit. Maybe I thought it would make me popular too. It did not. But it also seemed like a great way to write and get paid for a creative pursuit I enjoyed.
The stars aligned and my early journalism experiences were successful, which confirmed my career choice. I did very well in my first journalism class, preparing the school yearbook. The teacher and class selected my opening copy for the yearbook, and I became the publication’s copy editor, which meant writing most of the copy. Not exactly what a copy editor does today, which is strictly editing
others’ content. A poem I submitted also was chosen for the front of our class commencement program.
From there, I got a journalism scholarship and in-state tuition to an out-of-state public college and worked my way up the school newspaper to become editor-in-chief in my senior year. Overall, my decision to make use of my writing talents and become a journalist has served me well. I really never wanted to do anything else. Still don’t.
Can you open up a bit about your work and career?
We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
Looking back, I took very calculated steps in my career from deciding on a major in a pursuit I enjoyed to practicing my skills in leadership writing positions in high school and college. I gained experience writing for daily and weekly newspapers of varying sizes and focus; freelancing in specialties such as environmental, women’s issues, business and healthcare news; serving as an editor for a few years; creating a book and having it professionally published.
I’m certainly proud to have achieved some successes over the years through multiple awards and articles picked up by Forbes and HuffPost with opportunities to write for Medscape, WebMD, Healthline, Adweek, the New York Daily News, and others. My novel was reviewed by The Jerusalem Post and is in the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C. in addition to libraries around the country and The National Library of Israel. I also was featured in a
large book festival here with such authors as Nikki Haley, Jon Meacham, Michael Oren, Jodi Picoult, Andrew Young, Bernie Marcus, and (remotely) Benjamin Netanyahu.
The journey definitely wasn’t easy. I had so many rejections along the way, and I certainly worked for less as a journalist than many of my peers in other careers. My novel took me years to write while freelancing and raising my children and I held out for more than a decade to find a professional publisher, losing my first one in a legal dispute before landing my current Amsterdam Publishers.
I believe my biggest strengths are patience and persistence, keeping my eye on the goal, and refusing to give up or accept defeat, despite the roadblocks. I’ve learned to push past the obstacles, whether emotional or financial, and not let anyone steal my dream by questioning my abilities or stamina.
The world should know there are still well-trained journalists like myself with high ethical standards, who keep their biases to themselves in print and maintain an open mind to those with differing perspectives. I certainly recognize the stories each of us has to tell and I try to capture the ones I believe are worth sharing through my talents as a writer. My story and the lives I capture in my novel show the power of the human spirit to overcome tremendous challenges, but remain steadfast to achieve their goals.
Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
So many places to explore. In terms of historic sites, I’d take them to the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site, Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum, Atlanta History Center, and Margaret Mitchell House, and for more recent history, Centennial Olympic Park.
We could walk around Piedmont Park, eat lunch at The Varsity and dinner at Mary Mac’s Tea Room with a show to top off the day at the Fox Theatre followed by late-night breakfast at the Majestic Diner. The World of Coca-Cola and the Georgia Aquarium also would be worth exploring with dinners planned for the Atlanta Fish Market, Landmark Diner, and Ray’s on the River.
Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
My mother has been my greatest cheerleader. She gave me cassette tapes my grandfather, her father, left the family about his adventures and near-death experiences in Europe and America, which I used to create my novel Hands of Gold. At 81, she still helps manage the family blacksmithing business her husband started in our garage when I was young. I’m blessed have a mother who sets such a high standard as a businesswoman, attentive matriarch, and leader in her spiritual community. Thank you Mom!
Website: https://www.ronirobbins.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/roni.robbins/
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/ronirobbins/
Twitter: https://www.x.com/ronirobbins/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/roni.k.robbins/
