Hollywood Car Wash

College drama student Amy Spencer dreams of starring in independent films. When her roommate signs her up for a mysterious "television project" audition, she blows away the competition with her girl-next-door looks and impressive acting chops, inadvertently getting a starring role on a major TV show and going from Michigan teen to Hollywood starlet overnight.

To keep the part she didn't even know she wanted, Amy finds herself taking a spin through the "Hollywood Car Wash" to make her more marketable. First, she'll have to lose twenty pounds (don't ask how). Then it's new clothes, new teeth, blonder hair, new friends, and a megastar, high-profile boyfriend (though hers comes with a big secret). Bombarded by jealous, two-faced colleagues, overeager plastic surgeons, and manipulative network executives, Amy slowly learns that the only way to survive in Hollywood is to lose her identity. Will Amy get too caught up by the glitz or will she get a grip on her life before it's too late?

The hands-down winner of Touchstone's "Media Predict" Contest — a competition similar to American Idol for books, Hollywood Car Wash is as delicious and addictive as the celebrity gossip that inspired it.

"Originally self-published last summer and (more than likely falsely) rumored to be a roman clef by a Katie Holmes insider, this primer on selling your soul chronicles the rise and abrupt fall of talented, fresh-faced actress Amy Spencer, star of a wholesome breakout TV hit. The Michigan co-ed lucks into the lead role of a Dawson's Creek — like series and then immediately gets tossed into the Hollywood sausage maker. Amy might have the soul of an indie chick, but she's been an 'emotional robot' since her beloved dad died, and her grief is no match for the temptation of fame, money and a studio-selected, contractual boyfriend with a not-surprising secret life. But can the simple Michigan girl-next-door keep up the grueling Hollywood life? Amy finds her Tinseltown antidote, but the rescue for her sullied soul ends up being far more mundane. Glammy, dishy and disposable — a beach book shoo-in." Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)

Inspired by true events, this shockingly accurate novel about the ins and outs of Hollywood pulls no punches detailing [the] heroine's encounters with jealous colleagues . . . and manipulative network executives (Adam Belanoff, co-producer of "The Closer").

Lori Culwell is the founder and president of Get Creative, an internet consulting firm whose clients include Johnson & Johnson and Apple among others. She has contributed to Salon.com and the San Francisco Bay Guardian and divides her time between New York and Los Angeles.