Remove from your mind the slick, Hollywood press release type stories glamorising the rise of contemporary stars. Charles Casillo’s The Fame Game tells the dirty truth of how desperate people really play to make it. The book explores the modern obsession with celebrity – a world where gimmick has replaced talent and fame is for the sake of fame, rather than accomplishment. Dripping with sardonic New York attitude and laced with the seductive glamour of Hollywood, The Fame Game is a hip, modern-day cautionary tale of just how much our dreams can cost us.

Charles Casillo, who has worked in New York and Los Angeles as a model, actor and entertainment journalist, describes The Fame Game as “chick lit with a dick, because it is written by a guy – me!” We caught up with Casillo to find out more.

You started your career as a model and then as an actor, and you’ve also worked as an entertainment journalist. When did you start writing books?
I think I've been writing books in my head for as far back as I can remember. But I didn't start putting the words down on paper professionally until I was in my twenties. It's a perfect example of letting life call the direction. As a kid, I never dreamed of being a writer but - when I look back now - I remember I was always making up stories in my imagination. I used to draw pictures of my characters and the pages would look something like a comic book for adults - because even as a child my characters were involved in very sophisticated adventures. 

As a teenager I wanted to be an actor. Like Mikki Britten in the novel I thought that modeling would be a doorway into acting. Modeling didn't work out for me because at the time I had a very low self esteem and I felt I wasn't beautiful enough. That world was way too cruel for my temperament. I also wasn't having too much success as an actor. I started writing about arts and entertainment as an outlet. If you're a creative person you will find some way to express yourself. Writing is the thing that started taking off for me and what I was being recognized for - so I decided to go with it. Writing books was a natural progression. My first novel was published in 1999.

Tell us about The Fame Game.
It's about modern hunger. This current appetite to be famous. It follows the careers of three extraordinarily ambitious wannabes: a female model, a male prostitute and the daughter of a Hollywood director, all who are starving for celebrity because they can't find any self worth in their current lives. They need fame to validate themselves. They are desperate for it. They become playthings in the game - using each other and being used by others. The story is about the various terrible things they do to 'make it', in show business. Prostitution, perversion, lying, deception, plagiarism, rape, murder - the usual fare. More than anything I hope it's an entertaining read - but I also wanted it to say something about the times we live in.

Given your background in show business, is it safe to say that the book is mainly autobiographical?
Yes and no. I am not any of the characters and yet I am all of the characters. It's autobiographical in the sense that I used experiences and characters that come from my real life. These were the tiny seeds I built on. But it's fiction in the sense that I deliberately distorted and re-imagined everything. 

What was your aim in writing about pop culture and ‘the fame game’ in such a satirical and rather dark way?
Fame today is a black comedy. What can we do other than laugh at it while we cringe? Whereas once beauty, talent, vision, and hard work were rewarded, nowadays it's all a grab bag of gimmicks and scandals. You know what I mean? Murderers and paedophiles get the same star treatment as Hollywood actors in the media. To me that is very dark indeed. Who can deny it? Look at the entertainment and talk shows on television. Talent barely comes into play anymore when playing the fame game. 

"Fame today is a black comedy. What can we do other than laugh at it while we cringe?"

How did you go about creating such sordid characters as Mikki, Carla and Mario?
Sordid behavior becomes the norm when you run in show biz circles. I used the seedy characteristics of the people I knew and worked for and befriended and loved in New York and Los Angeles. I also looked at the sordid aspects I developed in my own personality. That's what show business does to you if you muck around in it long enough. It's like walking through a mud hole wearing a white suit - stain by stain you're going to get dirty.

The three main characters of the book actually have a core of innocence, vulnerability and humanity. The despicable things they do is a result of trying, not only to reach the top of the ladder of success, but also to survive the climb. Carla, Mario and Mikki come from different backgrounds but they are all damaged to begin with, which is why they so desperately crave the shield of fame. Each monstrous act they do is another stain on their soul - after awhile they become so tainted they can't see right from wrong anymore.

Do you have any favourite scenes in the novel?
There's a scene that stands out in my mind because it's a sort of homage to Jacqueline Susann. I have always loved the scene in The Valley of the Dolls when the two female characters have a vicious confrontation in the ladies room. I wanted to have a chapter that bows to that scene and I wrote one where the two female leads, Carla and Mikki, get into a ferocious cat-fight and end up breaking a sink and flooding the powder room in this swank restaurant. I'm one of these writers who likes to acknowledge, whenever I can, people and works that have influenced me.

In an article on your MySpace page, you have said that The Fame Game was ‘written from an emotional place’ in you, your ‘gut reaction to pop culture madness’. Does this mean that you found the book personally difficult to write in any way?
Well, I would say it was cathartic rather than difficult. I had been seeing this trend in 'what becomes famous' for years and I was struggling for a way to understand it. I was brought up to believe that if you play by the rules you will succeed. How wrong I was! Success and fame today is an absurd game where there are no rules. Naturally I became disillusioned. I was able to pour out all the rages and disappointments that were inside of me into the book. As a writer I use the raw material life throws my way. This is the era I was born into. Writing The Fame Game was one of my ways of making peace with it.

Conversely, are there any parts of the book or its characters that were fun to write?
The ageing actress Victoria Sweetzer, propped up in her bed, watching soap operas, swilling vodka designed to look like water - and fawning over her farting, little dog - was fun to write. Of course, that character is also very sad, but because she's towards the end of her life she has a "what the hell" attitude and I could really let loose in creating her.

What has the publishing process been like for you? Is it as ruthless as show business?
I can't defend this statement with anything but my own personal experience but I've seen the same kind of back-stabbing, jealousy and unfairness in publishing as there is in the professions involving film, theatre, and modeling. Actually, mediocrity has taken off its shoes and is running amok and barefoot through the publishing world. But, as in all areas in the arts, there is a precious few in high places who recognize talent and reward it with kindness and graciousness. 

I've been blessed in my career to have worked with some wonderful people and I've landed myself, occasionally, in really good hands. The biggest problem any emerging artist is going to come up against is having to get their work into the hands of a talented, objective person with some power - and without an agenda - who really wants to further you. You certainly meet your fair share of monsters. 

You have a choice - and believe me you have to make it early on - whether your going to try to maintain some of your integrity and sensitivity, or give yourself over completely to being a hardened whore and just step on and climb over anyone who comes in your path in order to get somewhere. I could have tried to toughen myself up and played the game better when I was younger. I chose to hold on to some of my core self- I think that makes you a truer artist but a lesser businessman. Every decision I ever made came from a place in me that truly believed it was the right thing to do. I've paid the price. Sometimes I feel five years behind from where I should be - but in the long run I think I'm exactly where I'm supposed to be.

"Fame is a cess pool. Let's put on our bikinis and dive in".

Are there any particular authors or works that you would say have influenced your writing?
John Rechy, the legendary writer who had been a male prostitute and then wrote about decadent experiences in City of Night with such lyricism and sensitivity. He taught me to look at the humanity in the most sordid characters and the poetry in the most lurid situations. And at a later point in my development I discovered Mary Gaitskill - an awesome writer. I've also learned a lot from her. She has such a talent for looking at the most extreme situations and describing them, accurately, with objectivity and intensity. She amazes and delights me.

What books would you recommend to readers who liked your novel?
I was at a holiday party earlier this year and a woman approached me and said that she had heard me speak at a book reading and because I mentioned The Valley of the Dolls, she read it and loved it. I don't really think my novel is very similar to that book except that it has a show business setting and follows the careers of three hopefuls. But critics have also found similarities and Valley certainly remains a remarkably entertaining read.

What’s next for you?
Lovely things, I hope. I truly feel as if I'm entering a new phase in my life. I'm finishing up a movie I wrote, acted in and co-produced with Kelvin Dale. I thought it was going to be an eight month foray into filmmaking and it turned into a three year odyssey. But I'm very excited about it. It's in the final stages of post production and I'm hoping it opens up a whole new world for me. And I'm also working on a new novel.

What else would you like to say?
Fame is a cess pool. Let's put on our bikinis and dive in.

Find out more at www.myspace.com/charlescasillo and www.myspace.com/thefamegamecasillo.

Read our review of The Fame Game and read Part 1 and Part 2 of our interview with Charles Casillo about his book, Outlaw: John Rechy.

The Fame Game, by Charles Casillo
Publisher: Alyson
Released: 2 October 2006/4 October 2007 (reprint)
ISBN: 1555839770/1593500432

Buy The Fame Game online and save some money to put towards Outlaw: John Rechy, also by Charles Casillo.