We recently connected with Marina Rubin and have shared our conversation below.

Marina , thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Alright – so having the idea is one thing, but going from idea to execution is where countless people drop the ball. Can you talk to us about your journey from idea to execution?

After the release of my 3rd poetry collection “Logic,” I realized no one cared about poetry… I looked around, the year was 2007, what was happening in the universe? Facebook…The iPhone just came out…The screen got so much smaller…The attention span shrunk to a couple of hundred words…That’s when it hit me – I am going to write desperately short stories, 300 words of so, a mini Babel, a shrunken Chekhov, it will have a plot, a cast of characters and a conflict. And it will speak to the modern reader who only has one minute to concentrate. I remembered the lesson I learned in my creative writing class — in order to write well, write what you know. What did I know? A family of five arrive from Ukraine with no English and two suitcases per person. Young women looking for love at ESL classes. The book “Stealing Cherries” (Manic D Press, 2013) practically wrote itself and sold itself too, there was a fellowship, sold-out venues, book tour, I was on the cover of arts sections of newspapers. I was yanked out of obscurity, and most importantly, readers loved the book! And so, when my next book of short stories came out “Knockout Beauty and Other Afflictions” (Crowsnest Books, 2023) I already had a following and they knew what to expect…

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I am an award-winning author of 3 poetry collections, and 2 books of short stories – the critically acclaimed “Stealing Cherries” (Manic D Press) and “Knockout Beauty and Other Afflictions” (Crowsnest Books). I am an associate editor of Mudfish, Tribeca’s literary and art magazine, and a 2013 recipient of COJECO Blueprint Fellowship. My work has appeared in over eighty magazines and anthologies. I am also an avid mountaineer, having summited Kilimanjaro, made it to Everest Base Camp, and completed Tour du Mont Blanc and Camino de Santiago. I live in Brooklyn and continue my storytelling through costume design, image creation, performance art, and video editing.

Have any books or other resources had a big impact on you?

I am a huge fan of Tony Robbins. His book “Awaken the Giant Within” pulled me out of obscurity, complacency, depression, and gave me the fuel to pursue my dreams, no matter how impossible they seemed. I had read it at least 3 times in a period of 15 years, as I kept writing and publishing and fighting for recognition as a writer. The best lesson I learned from the book is this: Pain is your best friend, if you know how to use it. I took my pain, and utilized it to hone down on my craft, to write impactful, compelling stories that other people could identify with and heal from. Pain pushed me to level up, to fight, to keep on fighting, and I loved every second of it, because it wasn’t about the destination anymore, but rather the journey.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

Recently I had learned that creativity does not need to be boxed into a specific genre. Just because I am a writer, does not mean I am confined to a page as my only forum for speaking the truth and being authentic. There are a million ways to communicate your vision, and to be restricted to just one genre is a very limiting point of view. Nowadays, I express myself through costume design, image making, performance art, video editing (my reels could easily get 9K views). I serve my muse, and I let the creative force filter through me in whatever way it wishes. It’s actually very liberating.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.pw.org/directory/writers/marina_rubin
• Instagram: marina_rubinnyc
• Facebook: marina.rubin.399
• Twitter: Nashamarushka
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/@marinarubinglamwriter

Image Credits

The profile photo by Chris Bentley
The Bonnet Bash photo by Jane Kratochvil
The photo in Chinese dress by Wesley Sherow