Today we’d like to introduce you to Rona Simmons.
Hi Rona, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Much has transpired in the five years since speaking with VoyageATL in 2018. Back then, I wrote that my path forward was clear, I had decided to write. Now, I think I see this more as VoyageATL sees it… a true voyage. I hadn’t “arrived” at my chosen second career, I had only begun the journey. I had seen three novels published and on the bookshelves and the internet and I had embarked on another work focusing on one of the pivotal events of our times, World War II. Little did I realize that small detour would lead me to a parallel universe, if you will, a global community of historians, history buffs, veterans of long past wars as well as those just returned from defending our country in some far off place–people who share my passion for preserving the past and celebrating its heroes. I am now on my fourth book on World War II and have at least a dozen ideas for more. So, yes, it’s a journey and I have learned to accept that I am not sure where it will lead.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Of course, no journey is without its potholes and roadblocks, its ups and downs, but all in all, I would say I have arrived where I am without any major catastrophes, actually without any real catastrophes. In part, I attribute that to two things. One having a plan and sticking to it. Not just an idea of where to go and what to do but a written plan with goals and timelines, and actionable steps, much like the business plans I once crafted for corporate clients when I worked as a consultant. And two, to having been fortunate to have had incredible mentors who gave so selflessly of their time and effort and, most of all, their belief in me and what I wanted to do.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
So, yes, I write (at least at this stage in my journey) about the Second World War, in part because I believe it had much to do with how our country developed and what it has stood for ever since. In part, too, because while it occurred three-quarters of a century ago, it is an era that you can almost touch with your fingertips. We won’t be able to do that much longer as the people who were eyewitnesses to the war, those who willingly stood up for our freedoms and helped ensure they would endure are nearly gone. With them, they take their stories—many of which have never been heard. And that is what I try to do and what I am most proud of, uncovering their untold stories and giving them a voice.
We’d love to hear about how you think about risk taking?
When I began writing about World War II, I faced being pigeon-holed in a very narrow field. Some people said, “Why write about World War II, no one cares about that anymore. It’s done.” Even some publishers say, “Oh, no, not another World War II book!” But I was convinced as long as I had something new to say about the war or a fresh perspective on the war, I would find an audience. As a result, my books have explored noncombat soldiers and sailors, and soldiers with PTSD long before PTSD had a name, and soldiers who spent the war at “home”—what was termed then as the zone of the interior. All are forgotten or ignored segments, yet each are filled with people whose remarkable tales were waiting to be told.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://ronasimmons.com
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ronasimmons.author/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rona-simmons/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/rona_simmons
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWC6uTiNUultU51zGaoxmew
Image Credits
Rona Simmons
