Catching Up With Molly Ringwald
11.5.2012
By Shana Naomi Krochmal
The actress and writer discusses Justin Vivian Bond as an inspiration for the story 'My Olivia' and the way a parent thinks about gender
http://www.out.com/entertainment/art-books/2012/11/05/molly-ringwald-justin-bond-transgenderWhen we last spoke with Molly Ringwald, she had completed her first book of fiction, When It Happens to You, but not yet seen it published. Now she tells us how the collection's most-talked about story was inspired by her trans friends—including Justin Vivian Bond—and what kind of reception she's gotten as her book tour wound its way into the deep South.
Out: We talked a little about the story "My Olivia," but tell me in your own words what it's about and what inspired you to write it?
Molly Ringwald: "My Olivia" is the third story in my novel-of-stories, When It Happens to You. The collection centers around the theme of betrayal, beginning with a marital betrayal, and each subsequent story explores another kind of betrayal (while following different but connected characters). "My Olivia" depicts the betrayal of a mother to her child. Marina is a single mother raising a six year old boy who identifies as a girl. She is very tolerant and liberal in terms of allowing her son to be who he/she wants until something occurs that frightens her. Out of an overwhelming fear for his safety, Marina makes the choice that leads to her betrayal.
I was inspired to write the story for myriad reasons—in large part because I happen to be friends with many transgendered adults who, by the time I met them, were confident and thriving. I was interested to know what life had been like for them as children, when they were first figuring things out, and intrigued by their relationship with their parents—specifically how much their parents' denial and rejection or love and acceptance affected their development.
