Today we are interviewing Lindy S. Hudis, author of the thriller, City of Toys (Lachesis Publishing).
Lindy Sternberger Hudis is an award-winning filmmaker, author and actress. Lindy is a graduate of New York University, where she studied drama at Tisch School of the Arts. She also performed in a number of Off-Off Broadway theater productions while living in New York City.
She is the author of several titles, including her romance suspense novel, Weekends, her “Hollywood” story City of Toys, and her crime novel, Crashers. Her latest release, “Hollywood Underworld – A Hollywood Series” is the first installment of a crime mystery series.
She is also the author of several erotic short stories, including “The S&M Club”, “The Backstage Pass”, “Guitar God”, “The Guitarist”, and “The Mile High Club”.
Her short film “The Lesson”, which she wrote, produced and directed, has won numerous awards, including ‘Best Short Film’ at the Paris International Film Festival, The Beverly Hills Arthouse Film Festival and the San Francisco International Film Festival.
She is also a former actress, having appeared in the television daytime drama “Sunset Beach”, also “Married with Children”, “Beverly Hills 90210” and the feature film, “Indecent Proposal”. She and her husband, Hollywood stuntman Stephen Hudis, have formed their own production company called Impact Motion Pictures and have several projects and screenplays in development. She lives in California with her husband and two children.
Visit her website at https://lindyinparadise.wordpress.com.
Connect with her on social media at:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LindyScribe/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lindys.hudis/
BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/lindy-s-hudis
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6470478.Lindy_S_Hudis
I first came out to Los Angeles, because wanted to be an actress. I studied drama at NYU and came out to Hollywood to try my luck. CITY OF TOYS was inspired from my life as an actress in the 90’s Hollywood. Then I went into film distribution for a little while, then had my babies, then got back into film production again. Writing has always been a fantasy of mine, so one day I just did it! I have written a few books that were inspired by my Hollywood days. The 90’s was a fun time to be in Los Angeles. I find excitement in sharing that experience with the reader.
Your latest book, City of Toys, explores the dangers of Hollywood as four young women try to make it big in Tinseltown. How did you come up with this very unique idea?
City of Toys is a work of fiction but inspired by actual events. It was a different time that the action took place, as Hollywood is different now. There was no social media or Internet when I was living there, so for that reason, the characters are in much more of a precarious situation. The story is is set in Hollywood and tells the story of four young women as they try to make it as actresses. Living in a less than desirable apartment complex in Los Angeles, the four soon become friends and support each other through many lows with few highs.
Can you tell us about the main character in the book?
Each of the four girls, Rhonda, Marlo, Kim and Guyla, are completely different and each brings examples of the many different paths an aspiring Hollywood actress can take. Their current story is intertwined with flashbacks of their past. I would like to think that this information really helps the reader to understand why each of the girls is as they are today. Each of the girls has their own demons and desires. Rhonda is the small town beauty queen, Marlo is the former child actress from New York, Guyla is the Yale School of Drama graduate who has to work as a stripper to pay the bills and Kim is the sweet, girl-next-door type who falls in with the wrong crowd. They are all in Hollywood for the same reason, and that is what bonds them together.
Can you tell us about the other characters in the book?
The character of Marina, the office manager in the apartment building. She is a bit older and wiser and takes a protective attitude towards all the young women living in the building. The character of James, the sleazy producer, Brad, the sleazy manager, Vinny, the sleazy photographer, Kat, the sleazy drug dealer, and Ralph, the sleazy agent. Lots of sleaze, lol. It’s about Hollywood and I’m going for realism.
What is the very first line of your book?
It was well after midnight in the glorious City of Angels.
What is the main reason people should read your book?
If they have a friend or loved one who is thinking about coming out to Hollywood to be an actor, have this been a cautionary tale, Lol. All jokes aside, it is a gritty reality story about the seedy and dark underbelly of one of the most glamorous businesses.
You are a person of enormous influence. If you could start a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be?
I would love to see people treat each other with kindness. There is way too much cruelty and negativity in the world right now. I would like to create a “be nice to each other" movement. I think that would help heal humanity right now.
Four beautiful women seek fame and fortune in Hollywood, the City of Toys, where actresses are like dolls, playing pretend on the big screen.
Marlo: a former child actress from New York City.
Rhonda: a small-town beauty queen.
Kim: a “nice Jewish girl” with a painful childhood.
Guyla: a “serious actress” with a debilitating, stress-induced illness.
Marlo, Rhonda, Kim, and Guyla, become friends living in the same apartment complex, in the city where dreams and disasters go together. They come to rely on each other as they deal with sexual come-ons, crazed stalkers, jealous starlets and the constant pressure of trying to make it in showbiz. But when the pressure gets too much, will their friendship save them, or will the City of Toys break them?
City of Toys is available at Amazon.
╰┈➤Book Details
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Genre: Thriller
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Sub-genre: Suspense
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Language:English
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Pages: 333
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Paperback ISBN: 978-1897562703
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╰┈➤Here’s What Readers Have To Say!
“Through the magic of fiction, this novel gives a well written, in-depth look at what Hollywood can really be like for the unsuspecting would be actor or actress shooting for stardom. In fact, I think this book would be a REALLY great warning (and required reading) for ANYONE who thinks that making it in Hollywood is easy-which City of Toys shows is most certainly NOT. Not looking to be the next big star? Read it anyway for a MOST entertaining, page-turner of a story! City of Toys is a great read with a gripping storyline and realistic characters, that doesn’t gloss over the often unseen gritty underside of the Hollywood ShowBiz Machine. I enjoyed this book!” – Meredith, Amazon
“This book was graphic and, in many ways, disturbing – yet beautifully written. The raw honesty of the situations the characters found themselves in painted an ugly picture but one that is all too real for many who go out to Hollywood with big dreams only to find themselves sucked into its seedy underbelly. I do highly recommend this as a warning to any who think that big dreams won’t come with big prices to pay at the end. And it comes from someone who has the scars and the lived experiences to back it up.” – Brandy M. Miller, Amazon
