Entries from May 2008 ↓

My family needs my undivided attention now, and I won’t be posting here probably for about a week or two. I just want you to know that I’m not abandoning the blog and that this is only a temporary lull.

Check back soon!

Victoria Rowell, best known as Druscilla Winters on CBS’s daytime series “The Young and the Restless,” first penned her memoir, The Women Who Raised Me, last year. It went on to become a best-seller and won many awards. We first featured her here in March, where we talked briefly about her background as a foster child and an actress.

Now the paperback and audio versions of The Women Who Raised Me are available at bookstores everywhere. And if you order them from Victoria Rowell’s website (see below for addresses), you can get her to send you an autographed copy. Victoria Rowell is fast becoming a writing powerhouse, with more books and even a novel on the way! Read on for all the juicy details.

Connie Briscoe: Your memoir, The Women Who Raised Me, received widespread recognition in the literary community and hit the major bestseller lists including the New York Times and Essence magazine. Do you have plans to do more writing in the future? If so, what kind of book might that be? Fiction, nonfiction, more memoirs?

Victoria Rowell: Yes, I plan on writing two companion books—The Men Who Raised Me and The Perfectly Imperfect Inheritance. Currently I am working on a novel, which will be my next book, Secrets of a Soap Opera Diva. I am also happy to announce that the audio book version of The Women Who Raised Me is complete, which is read by me and went on sale May 1, so please log on to www.victoriarowell.com and get your copy. It’s a great Mother’s Day gift!

CB: It sounds perfect for Mother’s Day. Was writing what you thought it would be? In other words, was it harder or easier than you had imagined to open up and put your thoughts and feelings on paper?

Victoria Rowell: Actually this was the hardest thing I have done in my career. Ballet was hard, but writing has been the hardest because of the solitude nature. Revisiting people in my life was also a challenge. I can say it was really joyous and painful at same time.

CB: What time of day did you do most of your writing and what was your favorite writing spot. Why do you think that was?

Victoria Rowell: Morning time. For The Women Who Raised Me (hardback), I was really under a tight schedule. I had a serious deadline to meet so I would get up around 4:00 a.m. and write prior to going to the CBS set for The Young and the Restless tapings. By nature, I am a morning writer.

CB: What were you trying to accomplish by writing your memoir? Who were you hoping to reach?

Victoria Rowell: The purpose of writing my memoir is to thank all of the extraordinary women throughout the country for sharing their lives. I wanted to share the fact that too often our mentors do not get enough recognition. I also wanted to shine light on the ordinary people doing extraordinary things…the millions of mothers and mentors who go unheralded. I want The Women Who Raised Me to be a call to action so I have listed resources in the back of the book. Anyone who is willing can be a mentor, a volunteer or foster parent if your heart and mind are in the right place. Connie, I really think we achieved that in the hardcover, which, as you stated, is a New York Times and Essence magazine bestseller! For more information on my book, you can visit www.thewomenwhoraisedme.com.

CB: My children were adopted out of foster care at ages 6 and 8, so I’m well aware of how important good foster care homes are. What is the message about foster care that you hope we get from The Women Who Raised Me and your work supporting foster children.

Victoria Rowell: I want all to be aware of the fact that 98% of foster parents are doing a great job! Unfortunately, the media tends to write about very discouraging stories. It is very important that I write about the majority. My ambition is to smash this myth that all foster parents are not doing their job, when it’s really only about 2%.

CB: Thanks for doing that. It’s so important. What’s next for you in film? Anything in the works?

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