Brittany Richman, Author

I’d like to introduce you to one of my online critique partners, Brittany Richman. She brings to our group a variety of skills and expertise. Brittany is a former political staffer who worked for the White House and Congress, holds an MFA in writing for children from Vermont College of Fine Arts, and has published two books about women in history. I love reading her manuscripts because I always learn something new.

Barb: Tell us a little bit about yourself and include a tidbit of information not many people know about you.

Brittany: Hi Barb! Thanks for the opportunity to chat. You already shared so much about me. Yes, I worked in politics for years—and loved it!—but the job that keeps me busiest and that I love the most is being a mom. I’ve got 3 kids, ages 15, 13, and 10 (at three different schools this year!). I’m also a huge foodie. My dream vacation is to travel across Europe on a food tour! 🙂

Barb: A food tour across Europe sounds exciting. Can I join you??

Brittany: “Journey” is an accurate word to describe the process of getting this book published! I started writing it after a trip to Disneyland when I realized I had no idea who Walt Disney’s wife was or the role she played in his success. Digging up almost anything about her was tough though because she was so private and rarely gave public interviews. But once I had a draft of her story done, I had several editors tell me that to get her story published I would need permission from the Disney family. I was flabbergasted. How on earth was I supposed to do that? The Disney family is kind of like American royalty—it felt impossible.

Eventually, though, I connected with the Walt Disney Family Museum in San Francisco (a museum started by Walt and Lillian’s daughter Diane) and the communications director there sent my request to the family’s lawyer. I was hopeful. But getting Walt and Lillian’s granddaughters to read my story, approve it and then get a permission letter from the family’s lawyer still took a long and painful two years! There were moments I was sure it wasn’t going to happen. The day it came, I had to pinch myself! I even cried. The journey still wasn’t over though.

Once I had that letter, a publisher acquired it but just about backed out when they realized Mickey Mouse is trademarked and how were they supposed to publish a book about the woman who named Mickey without having an illustration of him? We were stuck for a few weeks. Then, another breakthrough came. Disney announced that the Steamboat Willie version of Mickey was entering the public domain just in time for the book to be published. That meant we didn’t have to jump through any legal hoops to illustrate that first version of Mickey Mouse (which was all we needed to tell the story) and the story could finally move forward. What a happy day that was, too!

This story taught me that just about everything in the publishing industry is out of an author’s control so we just have to do what we can, one step at a time. If it’s meant to be, we’ll find a way.

Brittany: This story doesn’t have the long drawn out drama that my Disney book did. It all started with a friend sending me a picture. She’s a flight attendant and travels a lot and happened to be at my town’s small regional airport and stopped to read about a woman whose picture was hanging on the wall. She texted it to me and said “Have you seen her before? You need to look her up.”

Turned out she was a woman from South Dakota, who learned to fly during the Amelia Earhart era. The incredible thing about her was that she was deaf since childhood. She ended up being the first deaf licensed pilot in the nation (possibly the world—but I wasn’t able to confirm that) and she was born just a few minutes up the road from me. She had an incredible outlook on life that I hope kids and adults will love.

Brittany: The day after the 2016 presidential election (Clinton v. Trump), we were shocked at the comments we were seeing on social media from other moms we knew. Many were disappointed (to the point of crying and ranting and raving and thinking the world was over) in the election results yet had done absolutely nothing to help their candidate win. We realized too few in our own generation don’t understand the power of being civically engaged—or even know what that means. We figured since moms were on social media, that we needed to get on there and get that message out. It has ebbed and flowed and evolved over the years but we are still trying to get that message out today.

Barb: Being a Presidential Leadership Scholar sounds very impressive. Tell us about that honor.

Brittany: The Presidential Leadership Scholars (PLS) program was started by former presidents George W. Bush and Bill Clinton to bring leaders together from all across the nation, various backgrounds and political spectrums to help work together to solve some of our country’s biggest issues. It was an extensive application process and super competitive and somehow at the end of it, I was one of 57 selected to the six month program. We met at a different presidential library (plus Philadelphia and D.C.) each month and got to learn from policy advisors and cabinet members of various presidents.

Barb: It certainly sounds like a worthy program that we need to foster and continue for the good of our country. How does your experience in politics influence the topics you write about?

Brittany: Working in politics gives you an added perspective of seeing the country in a different light—when you see behind-the-scenes you understand how it all works more than the average person. Because of that, I do have an interest in writing more about people and events that have shaped our country—plus encouraging others to get involved. So far, the books that I have published are about women in history. But they weren’t the first books I’ve written (the publishing industry is funny that way). I hope in the future, I will have the opportunity to publish more books encouraging the next generation to be civically engaged in good causes.

Spare Time? What’s That?

Barb: Tell us about what you do in your spare time.

Brittany: Writing, reading and baking! I feel like I don’t have a lot of spare time these days but when I do, I’m usually doing one of those three things.

Barb: Baking! I remember those days.

Is it Haunted?

Barb: It sounds like you’re a pretty busy lady. Tell us what you are working on now.

Brittany: I just finished edits on my next picture book, Haunted by History, about Harry Truman living in a falling down White House. I’m also working on my first MG book about the history of bipartisanship in our country—and basically how nothing important would have happened without compromise from those with differing views. Both come out in 2027. . . which seems forever away but I’m sure will be here fast!

Barb: I remember reading your manuscript. This will be a fun picture book.

Advice for New Authors

Barb: What advice would you give to someone who is starting out as a new author?

Brittany: Don’t give up! Stick with it even when it feels impossibly hard. The first week of my grad school program, a professor told us that the only difference between a published and unpublished author is that the published author persevered. In my case, it took probably 6 years from the first manuscript I ever wrote to holding my first book in my hands. Some people it might happen sooner, some longer. But if it’s a dream of yours, don’t give up! Keep writing. A little each day. Keep taking steps to improve. Keep exchanging your work with manuscript partners. Keep at it!

Barb: Wonderful advice, Brittany. Thank you for allowing me to interview you on my blog. I learn so much from your writings and am so happy to get to know you better.

Where Can You Find Brittany and Her Books?

Be sure to follow Brittany on the blog she writes with her twin sister, The American Moms and her other social media accounts. Her wonderful books can be found on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Goodreads, and through her publishers.

Sleeping Bear Press
Simon & Schuster
Facebook
InstaGram
LinkedIn