She's an accomplished Twin Cities writer whose short stories, essays and poems have appeared in literary journals including Ploughshares, Mid-American Review and Ars Medica. She's also had regular bylines in several local lifestyle magazines from Edina to Plymouth. But when your byline is Donna Trump, things tend to get interesting. Good-natured Trump answered a few questions about what the political season looks like when you almost share a name with you-know-who.

Q: So, Donna Trump, you currently use the word "volatile" to describe your name. Are people really reacting to you differently than before this election season began?

A: No question people have a reaction. They'll say, "I'll bet you get a lot of jokes about your name." There used to be an occasional comment when I introduced myself. Now, and I'm a little bit ashamed to say it, I've gotten more wary. I don't say, "This is Donna Trump." I say, "I'm a writer from Edina Magazine." I don't want my name to be the first thing people hear.

Q: What about when you're out in the community? Same thing?

A: Recently, at a writers' event at the Loft Literary Center, I introduced myself by saying, "Believe it or not, my name is … " On Facebook, I belong to a big group of women writers from all over the country. Sometimes, you'll jump into a conversation and the response will be, "You know what I thought when I first saw your name?" Someone joked, "Let's see a picture of your hands."

Q: Is it getting more ponderous in the checkout line, too?

Trump

A: Not usually. I just made three transactions with my credit card and nobody had anything to say. But the minute you speak, it's an issue. As a result, I am saying my name less.

Q: Does your husband, Michael Trump, get any ribbing?

A: He gets stuff but, with Donna, you're already on the offensive.

Q: You have degrees in biology and physical therapy — clearly, the path to a writer's life! How did that happen?

A: My parents both had moderate physical disabilities. They were perfectly functional but there were lots of stories about physical therapy when I was growing up. I was a good writer but my father, whom we all adored, didn't think that was a reasonable profession. I was fine with that. I had many years as a physical therapist working with neurological patients. I loved it. When my husband became a physician, working about 100 hours a week, I stayed home with the kids and started taking classes at the Loft. That's how the second act began.

Q: In addition to all your other writing, you've been blogging for two years now on donnatrump.org, where you wax on everything from politics to good books. What strikes you as most interesting about that form of creative writing?

A: It's perfectly responsibility-free. I don't write a lot of drafts. I just find something that interests me in the news and I try to respond to it.

Q: Ever suffer from writer's block?

A: Too late for that. If you wait until you're in your forties to start writing, you have a lot to say.

Q: If Donna Trump were to write a poem or short story about the current political climate, what would she title it?

A: "Days of Abandonment," with thanks to Elena Ferrante; "State of Fear," with thanks to Michael Crichton; or "Fear and Trembling," with thanks to Soren Kierkegaard.

gail.rosenblum@startribune.com 612-673-7350 • Twitter: @grosenblum