Listen to Heidi discuss her new biography, Kid Carolina: R.J. Reynolds Jr., A Tobacco Fortune, and the Mysterious Death of a Southern Icon with Frank Stasio of WUNC's radio show, "The State of Things."
"Reynolds' biographer has confected a compelling, indeed an obsessive narrative, perfectly poised between resolving certain conundrums of her subject's life and giving full play to episodes that must remain a mystery...North Carolina natives will certainly relish this page-turner, but it is also written with such grace that anyone intrigued with one of the country's great families or interested in reading about a true American eccentric will find this biography irresistible."
-Charlotte Observer
"...an enthralling yarn...screenwriter Heidi Schnakenberg delivers a yarn that outdoes "Dallas" and "Dynasty" with little effort...the author clearly knows how to tell a story..."
-Wilmington Star News
"In this thoroughly researched account of Reynolds' raffish life, Schnakenberg does not judge her subject...Schnakenberg fairly shades in the light and the dark in her portrait of the restlessly rich Reynolds."
-Booklist
"A life up in smoke, with plenty of heat, passion, and scandal along the way. Heidi Schnakenberg's lively chronicle of riches-gone-wrong proves that money may not buy happiness, but it sure makes for a good read."
--Deborah Davis, author of Gilded: How Newport Became America's Richest Resort
To read an excerpt of Kid Carolina, select Heidi's Excerpts page above or check out Hachette's OpenBook site.
Heidi Schnakenberg's debut biography, Kid Carolina: R.J. Reynolds Jr., A Tobacco Fortune, and the Mysterious Death of a Southern Icon was released by Hachette Book Group on March 10, 2010! For more more information, please click the book image above for Heidi's Kid Carolina page. Kid Carolina is available now at Borders, Barnes and Noble, Amazon, Powell's Books,FlipKart, and many other booksellers. Get your copy now!
Heidi Schnakenberg is an accomplished writer, producer, and performer with over ten years of experience in entertainment, publishing, and business. As a screenwriter, her first assignment out of college was a commission to write a film adaptation for Oscar-winning director Francis Ford Coppola. She is also a journalist and business editor who has written for dozens of Fortune and Global 500 companies, and her columns have appeared in several national and international publications. Heidi is a graduate of New York University's Tisch School of the Arts. For a complete biography, select the image above or Heidi's Bio page.
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Heidi Schnakenberg was once a small town kid from the heartland who ended up in far-flung places around the world and accumulated a wide range of interests and experiences along the way.
Once an award-winning singer, Heidi graduated from New York University's Tisch School of the Arts, and studied politics and performing arts at the University of Malta and the University of Ghana. While putting herself through college, Heidi found work in theater administration for several Broadway productions and later founded her own theater and film company, for which she wrote and produced shows. Heidi got her big break when she was commissioned by Francis Ford Coppola to co-write the screen adaptation of the best-selling novel, The Girl's Guide to Hunting and Fishing, by Melissa Bank, and was invited to Coppola's studio in Napa to co-produce and film scenes for development.
Since then, Heidi has continued writing and developing original screenplays and narrative non-fiction with a focus on biographical, human-interest stories, and has worked as a part-time journalist for a variety of publications. She is also a technical and business writer and has been a corporate scribe for numerous Fortune and Global 500 companies. Heidi is currently completing her sophomore screenplay, El Barrio del Sol, and her debut biography, Kid Carolina , was published by Hachette Book Group in March of 2010. Select Heidi's Creative Career page for more on her career highlights and new projects.
In her spare time, Heidi works on a variety of community service activities for women and families who have been affected by domestic violence. She loves to travel and has visited dozens of countries, and has a large collection of her own travel photography. She lives in California and New York with her husband and two sons.
Heidi's background and experience cover numerous fields and disciplines, and she remains active in almost all of them. Below is a short list of the highlights.
* Recipient of numerous state vocal music awards, Iowa, 1991-1997.
* All-State Singer, State of Iowa, 1996-1997.
* Twice-invited to perform as a classical singer at Carnegie Hall, New York, 1998-1999.
* Recipient of Shakespeare Showcase Acting Award, New York University, 1999.
* Directed and performed in multiple productions at New York University's Playwrights Horizons Theater School, 1997-2001.
* Worked in theater administration and development at National Artists Management Company for the Broadway shows, Chicago , Annie Get Your Gun, Seussical, and many others, 1998-2003.
* Founded theater and film company, Tea Girl Productions, 2000.
* Produced and co-wrote sold-out production of the original play, The Grid, by Tea Girl Productions, for Clemente Soto Velez Cultural Center, 2002.
* Commissioned by Francis Ford Coppola to co-write the screen adaptation of the novel, The Girls' Guide to Hunting and Fishing , by Melissa Bank. Filmed workshop of the adaptation at Coppola's SRG Studio in Napa, CA. All with Tea Girl Productions, American Zoetrope, and SRG Studio, 2002-2004.
* Part-time columnist for the Des Moines Register , 2005 - 2006.
* Part-time columnist for Women's eNews , 2006-2008.
* Technical and business writer for numerous Global and Fortune 500 companies, 2005-Present.
* Writer of biography on R.J. Reynolds Jr., titled, Kid Carolina: R.J. Reynolds Jr., A Tobacco Fortune, and the Mysterious Death of a Southern Icon - Hachette Book Group, March 2010.
* Writer of screenplay on early 1990s Spanish Harlem, titled, El Barrio del Sol. To be completed in 2010.
Heidi is currently available for story editing and screenplay development work and is available for business writing projects of all types. If you seek more information about Heidi's work, please contact Farley Chase at Waxman Literary Agency.
NEW PROJECTS
In addition to the exciting release of Kid Carolina in March of 2010, Heidi will soon complete her sophomore screenplay, titled El Barrio del Sol. This original story is centered on a teenage boy and pre-teen girl whose simple dreams are constantly challenged and eventually bargained in order for them to survive the complicated, unforgiving streets of Spanish Harlem. The story takes place during the early 1990s climax and fall of the New York City neighborhood's notorious reign of violence. The neighborhood of Spanish Harlem, affectionately known as "El Barrio," is as much a character in the story as the featured individuals. While the characters have been fictionalized, their stories are inspired by true events and experiences of young men and women of the "Lost Generation" who survived the 1980s and 1990s crime spree in El Barrio. Excerpts of the script will be available soon.
Agent
Farley Chase
Waxman Literary Agency
80 Fifth Avenue
Suite 1101
New York, NY 10011
farley_waxmanagency.com
212-675-5556
Publicists
Shanon Stowe
Director of Publicity
Hachette Book Group
Shanon.Stowe_hbgusa.com
615-371-7784
Lola Honeybone
MEDIAworkshop
lola_mwnashville.com
405-921-4046
Laura Troup
laura_mwnashville.com
615-364-2175
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