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by Allison Carr, '06
 Russell Working, '82, has found his passion: fiction. At 26, Working was the youngest writer to receive the Iowa Short Fiction Award, for his first book, Resurrectionists. "I was almost feverish with excitement when I was called a promising young writer in The New York Times Book Review," Working says. "Now I feel more like Rip Van Winkle, awakening after a long sleep." While Working continued to publish in major literary venues, it was not until The Irish Martyr (which has been awarded the Richard Sullivan Prize for short fiction) was published this year that he reemerged forcefully onto the literary scene. "This is like a rebirth as an author," Working says.
During the "long sleep," Working remained an active writer. A successful journalist for many years, he is fascinated by issues of social justice. Early on in his career he spent 24 hours in jail to write about a new drunk-driving law. "I was thrilled by the way journalism thrust me, as a writer, into alien environments," he says. The poverty, marginalization, and crime Working has witnessed in his journalistic work have also found their way into his fiction. "I often find myself wrestling with injustices I have encountered as a reporter," he says.
In 1996, when he was a staff reporter at The Tacoma News Tribune, Working met his future wife, Nonna. She was with a group of Russian journalists visiting the paper, and she found Working a job as an editor in Vladivostok. "In Russia, we lived for five years in rat-infested apartments with minimal heating and 16-hour-a-day blackouts that lasted for months at a time," Working says. "Before I started freelancing, I had to survive on a salary that amounted to $150 a month." But he is thankful for the adventurous life he has led and for his family's health. "I have been blessed," he says.
Working now lives in Oak Park, Ill., with Nonna and their two-year-old daughter, Lyova (he also has a grown stepson, Sergei). He is writing a series of pieces for The Chicago Tribune. "My main literary goal is to finish my novel," he says. "It would be nice to be reviewed widely and win all kinds of major awards, . . . but along the way, I would be gratified if readers believe I have cast light on the suffering and struggles of a few characters."
Working's busy life delayed his graduation from Whitworth; he wrapped up his last class and received his degree in 2000. He says of the college, "I recall great friends and a place where living a good life, in an ethical and spiritual sense, was paramount for many people, both faculty and students, and a matter of daily conversation. People truly wanted to make a difference in the world. For all that I am grateful."
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