Tom Robbins Incognito: Tracking the Pacific Northwest's Elusive Literary Outlaw

When Tom Robbins' last novel Villa Incognito landed in bookstores across America in 2003, I thought it a timely idea to try and track down the Pacific Northwest’s favorite literary outlaw for a chat. Seemed like an auspicious time to seek advice from Those in the Know, and my Magic 8-Ball agreed that I should seek him out.

It wasn’t like I was on a treasure hunt without a map. Not only do I live just up the road from his home in the Skagit Valley, but Robbins’ new novel was drawing him out of seclusion and on to the book tour circuit. Typically as secretive as the fabled Bigfoot, he was scheduled to speak in both Seattle and Bellingham, so my chances of finding him were quite excellent, nearly guaranteed. But I was seeking more than just getting my library of dog-eared Robbins novels signed. I wanted to be more than just a member of the audience— I sought an audience, my own, with Robbins. So I set forth from my home in the mossy month of May to search for exactly that.