As any successful businesswoman will tell you, success does not always happen according to plan.

Often, we are required to veer way off course to make it happen. fwm Expert Contributor Romney Humphrey knows all about that. And she has veered wonderfully off course, teaching us all a thing or two about adapting, adjusting, and evolving along the way.

While Romney’s career as a writer and producer was going well, she had a dream not yet realized. She had written a pilot for a television show centered around a Book Club for women, and all of the wonderful connections and lifelong friendships that can develop. When the pilot did not receive the attention she had hoped for, Romney created her own, extraordinary path.

She created a website around the show, and has launched the pilot as a webisode, with more to follow! The Book Club Website includes the webisode, commentary, and a community where Book Club fans can discuss the show, as well as their own book club experiences. Talk about finding a new, creative way to follow your passion! Romney has created an avenue where there was none.

Romney is still adapting to her viewers’ responses. She tells us:

After launching Book Club, here’s what I’ve learned: watching a 17 minute show via a computer is daunting to women. Our pilot got great responses from those who watched, but I heard a lot of “Oh, I haven’t had the time” from women who spend two hours a night watching television.

Is there something organic or biological that doesn’t lend itself to women watching programs online? I don’t know anyone over forty who goes to You-Tube. It’s not only uncharted territory – it’s unattractive real estate. Why?

Maybe, when we do allow ourselves to relax or be entertained we want to step away from our work and daily routines. A spa, movie out, dinner when someone else cooks – that feels good. The computer, where we work and communicate, is never a mental spa. Men, in their compartmentalizing zone, zip in and out. Maybe our brains don’t want the zip – we want a vacation – a real getaway.

We changed the format of delivery of our show to shorter 2 – 4 minute segments to test the appeal and deliver Book Club as a “coffee break” for viewers. I’m hoping, of course, that women will change their ways when given the opportunity for a short entertainment break online. Book Club is testing the waters. Let’s see what happens.

Yes, indeed--let’s see what happens!