Lindy S. Hudis is a Hollywood actress, filmmaker, and novelist. She’s visiting The Dark Phantom as part of her July Virtual Book Tour.
Welcome to The Dark Phantom Review, Lindy! It’s nice to have you here.
Thank you for having me!
Why don’t you start by telling us a bit about your book, and what inspired you to write such a story?
WEEKENDS is about an innocent-sounding family reunion at an exclusive California beach resort turns into a weekend of murder, deceit, exposed secrets and unexpected intimate encounters. In my words, I wanted to write a sexy, romantic California story, and transport the reader as much as possible. I guess I am one of those writers who wants to take the reader away I live in, and love, California Growing up in Tennessee, California was my dream, a magical, mystical place that I used to dream about. It is so beautiful, and it is definitely my inspiration. The beach, the mountains, and all the artistic and creative people…I could not live anywhere else. All of my stories take place here. I guess you could say that was my inspiration. I wanted to give the reader a romantic beach story, and there you go.
How would you describe your creative process while writing this novel? Was it stream-of-consciousness writing, or did you first write an outline? How long did it take you to write it?
Well, I was a trained actress back at NYU. I was thought the Method acting approach, and that is how I write. I know it sounds funny, but I let the characters tell me the story. I am “acting” when I bring my characters to life. They tell me what to do.
One a side note: As I am sure you are all aware of the tragic events that occurred in Santa Monica at the Farmer’s Market on July 16th, 2003. A man lost control of his car and plowed through the Farmer’s Market, killing several people. We were living three blocks away from that accident at the time, and my daughter and I would go to that very place every Wednesday to buy fresh vegetables. That particular day, however, my characters were literally saying to me “No, stay home and write…we are on a roll here!” and I did. I didn’t realize that something terrible had happened until I heard helicopters and received frantic phone calls from friends and family members. It was strange: One of the people killed, sadly, was a four month old baby that was born on Veronica’s due date. I think that my characters saved us that tragic day.
Have you ever suffered from writer’s block? What seems to work for unleashing your creativity?
I just ignore writer’s block, lol. I just keep on writing and eventually the juices kick in.
How was your experience in looking for a publisher? What words of advice would you offer those novice authors who are in search of one?
The experience was actually fun, exhausting but fun. I learned a whole lot. Advice? Persistence. That is the name of the game.
What type of book promotion seems to work the best for you?
I like the idea of promoting online. It seems that is the way to go. The Internet has exploded in the past few years. I think that online promoting is the best idea.
What is your favorite book of all time? Why?
As far as fiction goes – “Carrie” by Stephen King. It was the first one of his that I ever read. I just love his work, even though I don’t write horror. He is so descriptive and his characters seem to grip you and suck you in. He is also amazingly easy to read.
Do you have a website/blog where readers may learn more about you and your work?
Yes, it is: http://directorbabe.tripod.com
All the “dirt” on me is there.
Do you have another novel on the works? Would you like to tell readers about your current or future projects.
My next book, CRASHERS is a crime mystery about a trio of young people who get caught up in the seamy world of auto insurance fraud. They stage car accidents to get insurance money, and events spiral out of control, of course. My husband is a professional stunt driver, so he helped me out a little. My other book, CITY OF TOYS, is based on my struggling actress days. It is about four beautiful women who live together in Hollywood. They are all aspiring actresses, and some pretty upsetting things happen to them, as they did to me. All my books are pretty edgy, but that is what I like to do. I like to shock people. I also have a short story on Amazon Shorts called SHE’S A WHORE. That is a very dark, dramatic story about child abuse in the deep south. You can download it off of my Amazon page.
Thanks for stopping by! It was a pleasure to have you here!
Thank you for having me. Have a great summer!!!
