Stefanie Newell fully understands America’s growing obsession with celebrity chat. As the founder of the blog, The Music Hot Spot, and author of the novel, The Buzz: When Celebrity Gossip Goes Wrong, Newell delves into our fascination with the stars. The book revolves around the fictional story of Ebony, a successful black woman whose pursuit of the high life wreaks havoc.
“The Buzz is told from the perspective of a person who starts celebrity gossip, and what her motivation is for being the way she is and being the type of person she is,” Newell says of her protagonist.
With years of freelance experience via Unrated Magazine, Newell, who received a degree in finance from DePaul University, found inspiration for the novel on the message boards of AOL’s Black Voices.
Like the lead character of The Buzz, Newell’s exploration of the lives of famous people came with embracing new technology. “I remember back when I was coming up, I only heard celebrity gossip in magazines and on the radio, but now you can get celebrity gossip on the Internet, on your phone — anyone can start gossip at this point and it will be all over the world within seconds,” she says.
The Buzz is currently available on Amazon and at local Borders and Barnes & Noble bookstores. Newell couldn’t be happier with her debut. “It takes a lot of hard work and a lot of dedication to finish a book,” she says. “To see your ideas come to fruition, it’s really fulfilling.” –gavin philip godfrey
For more information, visit www.writeonepublications.com.
