I first saw Suzanne Westenhoefer many moons ago in Philadelphia. Kim & I laughed until we almost wet our pants. Even to this day one of us only needs to spit out a punch line from one of Suzanne’s skits to make ourselves laugh (after all crazy behavior like this is part of the secret to longevity in relationships, right?).

Last year when we went on our Olivia cruise we had the chance to get an even bigger taste of Suzanne onstage not only with her own show but the little mini-bursts of hysteria when she was emcee-ing. The woman is hysterical and tells it like it is — no one is safe, not even the unsuspecting audience. If you haven’t seen her do her magic - put seeing a live show or watching one of the DVD’s on your short list of to-do’s.

I’m tickled pink and filled with gratitude that Suzanne took time out of her crazy schedule to take part in this interview… so without further ado…

1) What was the inspiration that led to your career in comedy?

I don’t think I had inspiration. More I had pushing from some friends, my partner at the time and some people where I bar tended. It honestly would never have occurred to me to do stand up. Once the idea was in my head, however…I couldn’t let it go.

2) What words of wisdom would you give to women today who are embarking on a career in comedy or entertainment?

The best words of wisdom are really just go and do it and work. Because you will work for so long for no money, or it will actually cost you money to get to the club….you will work late nights with drunks, the beginning of a comedy career is hard. I think that it’s to weed out the weak. If you don’t really feel the need from a deep space inside you to get up and do it…..the struggle in the beginning will push you out.
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In this installment of the Coaching4Lesbians interview series I am pleased to present Kathy Belge. Kathy is the expert behind About.com’s official guide to Lesbian Life as well as the “Dipstick” half of the punchy advice giving team of Lipstick & Dipstick seen in Curve Magazine. I first discovered her writing via these avenues but Kathy is a talented freelance writer with a diverse portfolio and a passion to make a difference in the world.

1) What were some of your professional experiences before becoming a full time freelance writer? How have these experiences informed and influenced your writing?

Actually, I was a social worker for fifteen years before I became a full time freelance writer. Right out of college I started working at a small women’s organization in New York State. I went on to work for Planned Parenthood and started volunteering with lesbian & gay youth. After a few years, I realized my true passion was the work with youth. I moved to Oregon in 1993 and from 1995-2003 worked with LGBT youth. When I left social services, I was director of the largest LGBT youth organization in Oregon. I loved that work, but just decided it was time to do something different. I had reached the pinnacle of that career for myself.

2) How did you first discover writing was a talent and passion for you ?

I loved writing from an early age, pretty much from when I learned to read. Books were a way for me to escape my hectic family life. (I grew up with seven siblings.) I took every writing course I could in high school and was editor of my high school paper. I was encouraged by my teachers and I actually went to journalism school. After I graduated from college, I decided I wanted to make more of a difference working directly with people. Read the rest of this entry »

This installment of my interview series is extra special. When Gina Trapani from Lifehacker agreed to participate in my interview series I felt as if the goddess of all blogs agreed to come play at my house. If you spend any time in the blogosphere and have technology leanings, then she needs no introduction to you. If, like me you were a little slow in discovering who’s who on the ‘net let me just say that she runs the biggest and most popular blog on the Internet when it comes to technology and simply finding more efficient ways to use technology and gadgets to tackle life’s more geeky challenges.

1) What was your inspiration to start Lifehacker?

Back in 2004, a tech journalist named Danny O’Brien did a presentation called “Life Hacks: The Secrets of Overprolific Alpha Geeks.” His thesis was that “alpha geeks” - and he used that term in a complimentary way, meaning people on the cutting edge of technology - develop secret systems to filter information and get their stuff done.

The idea captured me. Mostly because I’m a computer voyeur - I love to see how people get their jobs done, to pick up little tips and ideas. Also because I loved the idea of re-engineering your workflow to make tech work for you in clever ways, making the interface between human beings and machines something unique and interesting.

2) As someone who is clearly successful as an independent programmer, technology writer, and more… what words of wisdom would you give to women today who want to break out on their own and be independent or self-employed? Read the rest of this entry »

In this installment of my interview series I get the pleasure of introducing you to Joanne Fleisher of Lavender Visions. I first heard of Joanne’s work when I was networking with some folks at the Bucks County Lesbian Alliance during a virtual networking meeting I hosted. Some time passed, and then I heard about Joanne again and then again. It was one of those things where the same message - “you should connect with Joanne” came to me several times and then I finally engaged my brain and contacted her. (Sometimes I need to listen more closely to the messages around me too!)

If you (or someone you know) is a married woman coming to grips with her sexuality, you won’t want to miss Joanne’s work. To learn more about Joanne in her own words…read on…

1) What was your inspiration to start Lavender Visions?

I was conducting my private therapy practice some 15 years ago, helping numerous women with coming out issues and other concerns that would have been helped best through support or therapy groups. There were NONE in Philadelphia at the time. I decided to fill that need.

There is always an issue of how to reach women who are dealing with different aspects of coming out when they are not connected to the gay media or resources. I saw the value of the Internet- back then even though most therapists were not yet using the Internet to reach people. Lavender Visions became the site I developed to market the groups that I was offering- which included, coming out, relationship loss, and married women attracted to women groups. Women who were searching the internet found me. I also used straight media resources to reach these women. Over the years I developed many resources that became a part of my web site.

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This installment of the Successful Lesbian Businesswomen’s Interview Series finds us in conversation with Tracey Stevens and Katherine Wunder of Amazing Dreams Publishing. The sheer number of pursuits these two are up to are too numerous for me to do justice to, so I’ll let them do the talking…

1) What was your inspiration to start Amazing Dreams Publishing?

Tracey Stevens: I was inspired by my mentor, Patricia Nell Warren. My work had been rejected by mainstream NYC publishers for many years. I was searching for lesbian publishers and came upon Wildcat Press. It turned out that Patricia Nell Warren owned Wildcat Press, and Patricia’s novel “The Beauty Queen” was the first gay-themed book I’d ever read when I was 15 years old. I contacted Patricia about reviewing one of my novels. I always write about issues that most other writers won’t touch, like women becoming successful after experiencing hard circumstances, such as child abuse. Patricia was not accepting outside manuscripts at that time, but she read some of my work. She suggested I write some non-fiction books about how you can be a success even though you may have gone through hard times in the past. This is how the book “How To Be A Happy Lesbian: A Coming Out Guide” was born. Patricia also encouraged me to take back the control of my own work and open my own company–the rest is herstory.

Katherine Wunder: The publishing company is all Tracey’s idea and her baby. She has done an incredible job of building the company into something to be proud of. It is more than a publishing company, it is a lesbian community resource with many facets. There are free e-cards, a coming out support group, networking groups, LGBT links, horoscopes, etc. Again, these are all Tracey’s conceptualizations of what she would have liked to have had available to her in her coming out process.

2) What is/was your background prior to starting this endeavor? Read the rest of this entry »