Meet Victoria Bolton, Author

Victoria Bolton is a writer who lives in New York. A graduate of the College of Westchester, she works as a computer technician in schools and as a part-time actress.

Bolton previously released two books in the Rude Boy USA series: Rude Boy USA Series Volume 1 and BunnyWine (Rude Boy USA Series Volume 2) The final book in the series, The Tide is High, will be released in September.

Learn more about her work by visiting her website at https://authorvictoriabolton.wordpress.com/.

1. What gave you the idea to write your Rude Boy series of books?

The ideas for the book started for me in 2010 after a concert in London. From there I kept notes for about five years before I even started typing the story. I've always liked mobster films like the Godfather series, Goodfellas, etc. However, the themes were always the same. The families were either Italian or Irish in general, the majority white. I knew that there were other organized crime groups back then, but they did not get the glamor treatment or were ignored altogether. I decided that a mixed group would be something new and exciting.

2. How much research did you need to do in terms of studying the Rude Boy culture of the 1960s as well as other history of the era regarding organized crime and other social/cultural information relevant to your story?

I was born in 1977 and NOT in New York. For the eight years that the story took place before I was born I had to interview people, rely on old footage (especially news clips) and articles to give me a sense of what it was like living during that time in New York City. As far as the Rude Boy culture was concerned, I was already a fan of the music and style so that was easy. A lot of Rude Boy culture originated in Jamaica and gained popularity in the United Kingdom. It was not widely known in the U.S., so I decided to make this the USA version. I used the style from the guys in the UK to dress my characters and the music from the Ska/Rocksteady era to come up with themes and subject matter for the plotlines, hence naming it Rude Boy USA.

3. What made you decide to construct the Rude Boy series as a trilogy, and what do you see as the challenges of writing a sequence of novels rather than one stand-alone book?

The book originally was supposed to only be standalone. However, early readers enjoyed it so much that I decided to make it a trilogy. With that decision, I had to change some character developments in the story to push the series along.

4. How do you balance your day job(s) with your writing, and when do you find time to work on your books?

I will be honest: it's tough to do. A lot of times I come home, and I am tired, but if I have an idea for a scene in my head for the story, I won't allow myself to sleep unless I have it written or typed out, or else I lose it. It took me a year to type the entire series out from start to finish because I only worked on it for about four hours a day tops.

5. Do you have plans for a new series after you publish the final Rude Boy book later this year?

I have an idea for a standalone book. I may not do another trilogy for awhile because I want to give this one time to grow. I will start on the standalone book soon. That one will be emotionally taxing on me, so we will see.

Thanks, Victoria!

Meet Sal Rastegar, Actor

Sal Rastegar is a new actor that has found his calling and love in portraying strong-man and mobster characters. He has a love for history, in particular US mobster scenes from the 1930s to the 1970s, and he enjoys the nostalgic and romantic era cinema in these decades. With great love of history, he envisions playing in epic films about the ancient times going back to zenith of such empires as Roman, Persian, Greek and up to Spanish civilizations. For more on what people say about Sal's acting you can listen to short radio pieces on www.SalRastegar.com and read this fun survey on Facebook.

But the best way to learn about Sal is to watch him at work...

1. How did you first get into acting?

By luck. I've always been lucky in getting things done when I feel it. I was asked to help produce something, and later took acting classes. I got an agent and was asked to do a scene by a good actor/friend which started it all.

2. What do you enjoy about doing mob roles?

The nostalgia of the era and the paradox of those characters: family men, passionate, loyal, and simultaneously no conscience criminals. The dichotomy is atomic pressure.

3. What kind of research do you like to do for a part?

I try not to go to the source especially if I am doing a similar role as a big star. I got the general idea and know specific stories of the time, so I look into my own experiences and my family members who are some of the toughest guys I know first. I hope to be original while I keep accomplished actors/stars in high esteem and am moved by their intensity and devotion to the skill.

4. How do you see your career growing?

My plans is to be in a Scorsese production and do several mob roles for TNT, AMC, and stations that learn about me. I also envision and expect to secure the best agents and PR pros in the business. By the way, you should let Scorsese know of my plans.

5. What are your plans and/or goals for 2016?

Several great roles for me. I expect the year to be gangbusters!

Thanks, Sal!