Barbara Trainin Blank is a writer and editor.
Self-Biography:
That’s an awfully general statement. So let me tell you a little more.
Culture Vulture:
My brother and I always laugh that despite differences in temperament, outlook, and taste, we both inherited an interest in the same things from our parents — art, music (especially classical and Broadway shows), and opera. (In my case, add ballet.) During the coronavirus, one of my short plays was produced by the Virtual Playground via Zoom.
Not only were our parents passionately interested in these art forms, but they took us to see shows, concerts, and opera at an early age. Plus, they raised us in the fertile ground of New York City, where it was hard to resist the arts.
So, it was not surprising that I grew up writing about them: Previewing theater for such newspapers as the Carlisle Sentinel and Montgomery Sentinel and magazines such as The Burg and reviewing it for such publications as Penn-Live, Maryland Theatre Guide, and BroadwayWorld.
And then, sometimes I write plays. The theaters that have workshopped or staged my works include Gretna Theatre, Little Theatre of Mechanicsburg, Oyster Mill Playhouse, Theatre Ariel, Jewish Women’s Theatre, York Little Theatre, and more …
Three of my plays have been published by Art Age Senior Theatre and one — as part of an anthology about Shakespeare’s women, by Dramatic Publishing.
A Healthy Life:
No, this isn’t about my diet or how much I exercise (not enough), but about what I write—and edit—about. Other interests are health and medicine. My brother became a doctor, and I wrote about medicine. I was a copy editor, later managing editor, of Transition magazine and wrote for Emergency Medicine, both part of Fischer Medical Publications. I also write about health trends for Business Woman and Health magazines, and for The Sun and Penn-Live newspapers.
Mental Health:
Having once dreamed of a career in psychology or social work, I often write about related people and issues, including social work students for The New Social Worker, and two anthologies mental illness. I also initiated a parenting column for Penn-Live.
History/Literature:
I married a historian of Russia and Eastern Europe and indulged in classic Russian literature and in long discussions at dinner about that part of the world and its culture. (In between, we had two daughters and now two grandchildren.) Of late I’ve dabbled in short stories tinged with Tolstoy and Dostoevsky and have also written several novels, some inspired by those brilliant authors and some by other subjects such as Anne Boleyn and Nancy Drew.