Despite what many may say or believe, ideas don’t just pop into a writer’s head from out of nowhere. Writers are inspired by a great number of things, big and small, and when those disparate elements align at just the right moment – BOOM! – it’s like the Big Bang of inspiration or something. The idea hits and suddenly you’re like, “Whoa!”
For me, the idea of writing GUESTLIST actually came together very slowly. In the mid-aughts, I was very heavy in the Miami Beach nightlife scene. By day, I worked in operations and marketing for an entertainment company that owned and operated two of South Beach’s hottest nightclubs; by night, I hosted and managed parties at other venues as a side hustle. It was an interesting position in which to find myself because I found myself on both ends of the spectrum (the corporate end and the entrepreneurial end) and I dealt with two separate crowds within the same industry: the hip-hop/urban contingent and the electronic dance music group. Or, to put it even more bluntly, the Black crowd and the white crowd. Hey, that’s what it was.
I was fortunate to get into the game with the assistance of some true heavy hitters. I began working with longtime South Beach promoters Tommy Pooch and Alan Roth at their company, TAI Entertainment. Tommy and Alan showed me the ropes and introduced me to the glamorous Miami Beach jet set crowd. They held parties at then-poppin’ venues like The Delano, The Raleigh, Touch Restaurant, and Suite Lounge. Sure, I started low on the totem pole – collecting emails and passing out flyers and such. But eventually Tommy and Alan gave me real responsibilities and made me feel like a valuable member of the team. For that, I’m forever grateful.
I then moved on to the now defunct Mantra Entertainment, where I basically did everything. The wonderful thing about Mantra was that it afforded me a true behind the scenes understanding of what goes on in the nightlife business. For most, it’s all about popping bottles of champagne and partying with the beautiful people. Sure, that’s much of it, but not all of it. The nightlife industry is a billion dollar business for a reason. It’s all about entertainment and marketing. The education I got working with Mantra is probably more valuable than the one I supposedly got in college.
Not only that, I made a great deal of friends while working in nightclubs. You’d think that such relationships would be superficial and fleeting given the nature of the industry. Thankfully, that has not been the case.
While working with Mantra, I was also able to connect with a few of the city’s prominent club promoters and work with them on events as well. People such as Mike Gardner of Headliner Market Group, Phil the Mayor, and Michael Madd all contributed to my knowledge and experience working the club scene. Sometimes they taught me things outright; other times, I had to study their moves and learn on my own. But the thing is, I always kept a watchful eye on my elders in the game. Hey, you never know what you’ll discover next.
I know, I know, this is a lot of background info. Why else do you think I’m splitting this into two parts? Haha! The point is, I know the world I’ve written about in my novel GUESTLIST. I know the world very well. I know the people – and that includes the partygoers, the promoters, the club owners, the club staff, the celebrities, everyone – and I know their stories. And so, when the inspiration hit me to tell some of these stories, well, I felt confident that I knew what I was doing.
Alright, I’ve bored you enough with background info. Next time, I will share with you the actual inspiration for GUESTLIST, what ignited the initial spark and how that, in turn, became the raging fire that is my debut novel.
Let me know your thoughts in the comments below!
(via soundviewshogun)
Meet the Real Author of the Matrix!
an named Sophia Stewart, Black Author wins The Matrix Copyright Infringement Case. A story that restores faith. More power to Sophia!
This little known story has met a just conclusion, as Sophia Stewart, African American author of The Matrix will finally receive her just due from the copyright infringement of her original work!!!A six-year dispute has ended involving Sophia Stewart, the Wachowski Brothers, Joel Silver and Warner Brothers. Stewart’s allegations, involving copyright infringement and racketeering, were received and acknowledged by the Central District of California, Judge Margaret Morrow presiding.
Stewart, a New Yorker who has resided in Salt Lake City for the past five years, will recover damages from the films, The Matrix I, II and III, as well as The Terminator and its sequels. She will soon receive one of the biggest payoffs in the history of Hollywood , as the gross receipts of both films and their sequels total over 2.5 billion dollars.
Stewart filed her case in 1999, after viewing the Matrix, which she felt had been based on her manuscript, ‘The Third Eye,’ copyrighted in 1981. In the mid-eighties Stewart had submitted her manuscript to an ad placed by the Wachowski Brothers, requesting new sci-fi works….Stewart goes on to say: ’The reason you have not seen any of this in the media is because Warner Brothers parent company is AOL-Time Warner…. this GIANT owns 95 percent of the media… let me give you a clue as to what they own in the media business… New York Times papers/magazines, LA Times papers/magazines, People Magazine, CNN news, Extra, Celebrity Justice, Entertainment Tonight, HBO, New Line Cinema, DreamWorks, Newsweek, Village Roadshow and many, many more! They are not going to report on themselves. They have been suppressing my case for years.’
Read the entire article by going to the above listed URL
yesssssssssssss!!!!!!!!!
This was on my dash earlier with a snopes link. She filed but didn’t show up to court and the case was dismissed.
And The Terminator? Umm, homegirl needs to sit down, Harlan Ellison already proved James Cameron got that from him.
Probably as a result of listening to Earl and Goblin and The Dena Tape and Rolling Papers and Nostalgia, Ultra damn near all day yesterday. But anyway …
I say it was a “jam session” because it didn’t seem like your typical show. Tyler was in some kind of performance area working with a band and performing what seemed to be new music. Yet the place was packed with OF fans, all of whom seemed to be … young.
So whatever, I’m there chillin’, enjoying the music and thinking of ways I can pitch this story to Billboard or EW when suddenly some kid approaches me and announces to the others, “Hey, this is him! This is the old dude.”
I’m pretty good-natured, so when everyone comes over and starts ribbing me—”What was it like to be alive before cell phones were around?”—I took it all in stride. But then I felt a hand in my back pocket. Was someone going for my wallet?
The fuck?
So, as an immediate reaction, I uppercutted the shit out of the entire crowd. It was like the Burly Brawl, everyone went flying into the air.
The commotion was enough to stop Tyler’s performance, and he screamed out, “Ohhhhh shit! Did you see that? Old dude just dragon punched these niggas!”
And that’s all I remember.
Yeah, yeah. I already know what you’re going to say.
“Cool story, bro.”
