Lights! Camera! Action!

Can you imagine what a thrill it would be to be an author and to have his/her book noticed by filmmakers, asked to submit a screenplay and to have it considered for a television series (it is still being considered)?  This is what happened to my good friends, Tamy Burns and Kymber Lee Hughes, co-authors of What She Knew, and my guest authors today.  I happily turn the page over to them.  Take it away, Ladies:              

 

Who are you and what is your background?  I am Tamy Burns (pen named, T L Burns) and I am from Ridgecrest, California.  I am married and am the mother of two grown children.  In the past I taught at a private school, and I still enjoy mentoring and teaching.  My co-author is Kymber Lee Hughes (pen named Kymber Lee and K R. Hughes) of Amarillo, Texas.  We are both currently residing in Atlanta, Georgia.  Kym holds a degree in English and a minor in Journalism, and has published a historical romance novel titled, Treasured Love by Kymber Lee.  It is available at www.Amazon.com.  Her latest romance novel under the signature of Kymber Lee, to be released on November 15, 2012, is titled Lord Tristan’s True Love.  Our co-authored novel titled, What She Knew, also available on Amazon, is a story that offers an interesting twist to the death of actress, Marilyn Monroe.  Log on to www.whatsheknew.com and you can read the first chapter of the novel. The synopsis of it is as follows:      

While many believe that Marilyn Monroe was murdered on that fateful night in August 1962, the real question still remains: What was the actual reason for her death? Marilyn was a well-loved personality who ran in all the right (or wrong) circles. What could she possibly know that was such a threat that only her death would seal the secret? Was it Hollywood and the finishing of the film she'd been fired from and then rehired on? Maybe it was her involvement in Las Vegas with the Rat Pack and mobsters, or possibly her association with the Kennedys, especially Patricia and John F. that would lead to her death. In 1962, sinister forces were at work plotting to kill America's sex goddess to keep her from divulging deadly information.  While mobster Sam Giancana played nice with Frank Sinatra, leader of the Rat Pack and America's favorite crooner, Frank was being equally nice to Peter Lawford, JFK's brother-in-law, in order to enter the political circles that Marilyn already had access to. As this circle was being completed, one vital bit of information was passed on that would end the life of Marilyn Monroe, or did it? In this 1960's conspiracy story, Marilyn Monroe is saved by Peter Lawford and Bobby Kennedy replaces the real Marilyn with a body-double allowing the whole world to think her dead. Badly beaten and bruised, Marilyn struggles to come to grips with her near-death experience and the realization that everything she worked for is gone forever. The actress and sex goddess is dead.

 

What is the latest news about your book?  We just finished the sequel to What She Knew.  The title of the new book is What She Knew Too. In addition, our agent scheduled an exciting summer and fall agenda for us of book signings, speaking engagements, a book tour, television and radio interviews in Atlanta, Dallas, New York City and Hollywood and lots of other places in between.      

What inspired you to write, and when did you first consider yourselves as professional writers?  With her background in journalism and a grandmother who encouraged her to write romance novels, Hughes has written a total of five historical novels in addition to Treasured Love, Lord Tristan’s True Love and What She Knew.  I was dragged into the business when Hughes took a private writing class with a well-known author.  Actually, the idea for What She Knew was conceived while she took that class.  Hughes and I teamed up to write what is now part of chapter two in the book and she presented it in that class. The teacher loved it so much that she persuaded us to turn it into a novel.  However, it wasn’t until our first book signing for What She Knew that we considered ourselves as bonafide authors. 

 

How would describe your specific writing style?  Sparse in detail and rich in action and dialogue—everyone knows what an Italian restaurant or the White House lawn looks like.  People don’t always need a lot of flowery details to get the image in their heads.

 

What is the source of the title and of the book cover?  We struggled for the title for a long time and then one day it just popped up based on the fact that MM was an insider in politics, show business, and even organized crime.  It is completely believable that she knew all kinds of secrets.  Perhaps it was What She Knew that was the cause of her death.  Just sayin’. Kenny Burns from Amarillo, Texas rocked the cover art.

 

Is there a message in your novel?  If readers wonder if MM was really murdered, well, we can’t help that, now can we?

How much of the book is historically accurate?  It was my job to do the historical research and I took great pains that it squared with the historical record.  We love that if feels so real for a fictional novel.  We want to emphasize to our readers that this is FICTION – Marilyn Monroe died!  Please do not contact us and ask us where we’ve hidden her and what she is doing now.  Marilyn Monroe died in 1962 – really! 

What types of books have had the most influence on you and what writer do you consider a mentor?  Mystery/conspiracy/drama.  Agatha Christie is our mentor.   

 

What books are you reading now and what new writers are of interest to you?  Numerous novels dealing with the Johnson era are occupying our time.  We have come to love several authors with whom we have become acquainted through the Facebook writer’s group called Master Koda.  No names please—we love all of them.

   

What are your greatest sources of support and what are your greatest writing challenges?  Of course, our families and our literary agent, Janet Espy support us in every way.  Our greatest challenge is finding the time to write among all of the other tasks that are necessary in the process.  

If you had to do it all over again, would you change anything in your latest book?  We actually got a do-over.  We wrote the pilot episode for J J Abrams, and decided we liked some of the action scenes in the script and added them to the re-release of the novel.  How blessed are we?    

Did you learn anything from writing your book and what was it? We learned a lot about the Kennedys, Marilyn Monroe as a person, and the mob.  We also realized a truth we’d instinctively known for a long time.  Not only are we best friends:  ying-yang, but we are also an excellent writing duo.  We absolutely love spending time together and we have a rhythm to our writing that is natural and easy.  We have no trouble recognizing that each of us has strengths and we play to those.

Do you have any advice for other writers? Write, write, write!  Write something every day. Give yourself a goal of one page or ten pages but WRITE!  Why do you think we’re called writers?  It’s because we WRITE.  Don’t give up on writing, all right? LOL

If you weren’t a writer what else would you like to be? Probably a critic! LOL 

Where can readers find you on the web?  www.whatsheknew.com, www.gcaentertainment.com, www.krhughestlburns.wordpress.com .  Find us on Facebook us at What She Knew and on Twitter @whatsheknewbook.

 

Note from Linda Lee Greene - I know all of you will enjoy the work of these two writers.  Please join me in giving them support and encouragement.