Tom Robbins | One of the Best Selling American Novelists

Tom Robbins or Thomas Eugene Robbins is a best-selling and prolific American novelist. His most notable works are “seriocomedies”, also known as “comedy-drama”, such as Even Cowgirls Get the Blues.

His latest work, published in 2014, is Tibetan Peach Pie, which is a self-declared “un-memoir”. Even Cowgirls Get The Blues has been adapted into a movie that shares the same name by Gus Van Sant in 1993.

Early Life

Born on July 22, 1932, Tom Robbins is the son of George Thomas Robbins and Katherine Belle Robinson. Belonging to Blowing Rock, North Carolina, Both of his grandfathers were Bapist preachers. His family moved to Warsaw, Virginia when he was a young boy.

Consequently, Tom attended Warsaw High School and Hargrave Military Academy in Chatham Virginia. There he won the senior essay medal. Following which, Tom became a part of Washington and Lee University, where he did major in journalism.

In 1953, Tom Robbins got listed in Air Force after receiving his draft notice. Prior to that, He spent a year as a meteorologist in Korea, followed by two years in the Special Weather Intelligence unit of the Strategic Air Command in Nebraska. Tom was discharged in 1957 and returned to Richmond, Virginia, where his poetry readings at the Rhinoceros Coffee House led to a reputation among the local bohemian scene.

Career

In 1966, Robbins was contacted and then met with Doubleday’s West Coast Editor, Luthor Nichols, who asked Robbins about writing a book on Northwest art. Instead, Tom revealed his wish to write a novel and pitched the idea of what was to become Another Roadside Attraction.

In 1967, Tom moved to South Bend, Washington. This was where he wrote his first novel: Another Roadside Attraction. After three years, He moved to La Conner, Washington. It was at his home on Second Street that he subsequently authored nine books. He spent two years living on the Swinomish Indian reservation. In 1971, his book Even Cowgirls get the blues came out.
By the end of the 1980s, Tom began regularly publishing articles and essays in Esquire magazine. He also made contributions to PlayboyThe New York Times.

Breakthrough

Following this, Robbin made a contract with the editor Alan Rinzler and began writing Jitterbug perfume. Later, Alan reveals about editing that, Tom would read aloud his work and he would comment. He was a complete southern gentleman who brought intellectual discourse about his theme, characters, and intentions from inside. The notable thing that Alan pointed out was, that Tom took the process of conception, research, things moving around and change of voices very seriously. He wrote all of it with clear details, carefully and slowly. This made the novel evolve slowly, over the course of two years.

Adding to his praises, Michael Dare said, “When he starts a novel, it works like this. First, he writes a sentence. Then he rewrites it, again and again, examining each word, making sure of its perfection, finely honing each phrase until it reverberates with the subtle texture of the infinite.”
Throughout his writing career, Tom Robbins has given readings on four continents. Along with that, he has delivered performances at festivals from Seattle to San Miguel de Allende.

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