Professional History
Robyn Russell got her start in publishing at The Amy Rennert Agency, Inc., a boutique literary agency in the San Francisco Bay Area that represents a select group of fiction and nonfiction writers. During her nearly eight years at the agency, Robyn had the honor of working with a number of luminaries, including Pulitzer Prize winner Herman Wouk, Jimmy Buffett, Kris Kristofferson, two-time Tony Award winner Patti LuPone, The New York Times bestselling author of the Maisie Dobbs series Jacqueline Winspear, Amy Krouse Rosenthal, and the director of Pretty Woman Garry Marshall.
In 2012, Robyn relocated to her home state of Hawai‘i to be closer to her family and to pursue what she loves most: Working directly with authors. To date, she has edited, written, and/or co-written more than 150 manuscripts and nonfiction book proposals. Her clients have secured leading literary representation, gone on to receive critical and commercial acclaim, become national bestsellers, won awards, and scored ink in The New York Times, The San Francisco Chronicle, Newsweek, O, The Oprah Magazine, and The Los Angeles Times. Her work as a ghostwriter, blogger, and author has appeared in The Washington Post, Vogue, Health, Women’s Health, Seventeen, Teen Vogue, Well Being Journal, The Rumpus, Literary Mama, Livestrong, Maria Shriver’s The Shriver Report, Scary Mommy, and Wander, among others. Her writing was also featured in Nothing But the Truth So Help Me God: 73 Women on Life’s Transitions, which Eve Ensler described as a “testament to what is possible when we show up for our sisters.” One of the more recent projects Robyn worked on—David A. Treleaven’s Trauma-Sensitive Mindfulness: Practices for Safe and Transformative Healing (Norton)—was praised as a “rare combination of solid scholarship, clinically useful methods, and passionate advocacy for those who have suffered trauma” by the author of Hardwiring Happiness Dr. Rick Hanson. A former writer for Healthline’s PsychCentral, she’s acted as Dr. Laurie Steelsmith’s ghostwriter for nine years.
Robyn is also a copywriter at Copycat Copywriters, where she’s written on topics as wide-ranging as cybersecurity, digital marketing trends, skincare, and bikinis—and for brands ranging from AT&T and Lily Pulitzer to Roche/Genentech and The Honest Company.
Robyn is presently at work on finalizing her debut novel, In Case of Emergency Please Don’t Call, and a collection of linked stories titled Fires for the Cold. She holds an MFA in Writing from the University of San Francisco and lives on Maui, where she’s a member of the Women’s Wailea Literary Society.
Personal Philosophy
I was raised in a veritable beach shack on Maui’s southernmost edge. My father had an open door policy when it came to friends, family, guests, and even strangers—an ethos I absorbed at a young age as I embraced Hawai‘i’s “talk story” culture. This gave me the gift of patience as I listened to aunties, unkos, pals, cousins, and vagabonds share their anecdotes, trials, and joys. At the same time, I pursued what I love most: writing, reading, dancing, and playing with the boys. (I’m nothing if not a tomboy at heart.) I trained at Hawaii State Ballet and taught ballet and tap to little girls at Punahou before retiring as a dancer at the age of 20.
Such a youth shaped what I believe most: We all have a valuable tale to tell. For some, that expression emerges in prose. For others, it’s movement. For others still, it’s nature. I welcome all three—and more—as a writer, editor, and yoga teacher. As a ghostwriter and collaborator, I’m simply a channel; as a developmental editor, I’m here to provide a “mini MFA” and help you unravel, then structure and enrich, your vision. And as a yoga instructor, I guide individuals towards greater confidence, flexibility, and strength.
I tend to become close (if not lifelong) friends with most of my clients, which has been one of the rewarding aspects of my career. I bring humor, awe, appreciation, and curiosity to every project I work on, whether it’s an article on antibody development or an experimental novel. I’m also an advocate of women’s rights and addiction recovery—two passions that manifested in my former role on the Board of Directors of Na Wahine Ho’omana, a nonprofit dedicated to improving the health and well-being of marginalized Maui women.
