Others wanted me to run digital companies and work in the media business that wasnt Hollywood.
But I needed to take some time off and figure out what I wanted to do next.
It was never a question that I was going to retire.
Im just not built that way.
When you were on that ship, did you mention your name to anybody?
This luxury small-ship cruiseline lets you choose to be part of the passenger manifest or not.
Privacy is something that has been, and continues to be, very important to me.
For instance, I dont do Facebook or talk about my personal life on social media.
Trust me, no one ever recognizes me because I take steps to confirm they dont.
Even now, whenever I travel, I dont use my real name.
Even when you check into hotels?
Im so used to hiding it because I value my privacy.
You may recall a point where there was this bounty on my head for a photo.
Which was pretty funny.
I still dont know who that woman in the picture was.
It made you that much more mysterious.
I never cultivated a mystique.
I just worked a lot.
Heres why: I had zero role in conceiving or writing or producing or consulting onTildaand never would.
Where did you come up with the idea for this fiction websiteHollywoodDementia.com?
What I realized during my time off was that I didnt want to work for somebody else.
I wanted to be my own boss again.
Im a control freak.
So I couldnt report on the entertainment biz.
And then I realized that fiction would be within the settlement.
I started to very quietly pass the word that I was interested in publishing Hollywood insiders short fiction.
And to my great surprise, people started to submit really good people.
And between March and April, I realized this could really be something.
HollywoodDementia.com is a combination of illustrations and text.
I wanted the illustrations to help draw people into the stories which are about all aspects of Hollywood.
Is it wrong to assume that these works of fiction are actually covers for events that occurred in Hollywood?
Look, all fiction is based on real life, and all art is rooted in reality.
I recently published a writers story where I recognized certain aspects of how a particular company ran itself.
But there were things in the story that also never happened.
Ideally, is there a part of you that hopes this website will be a mini-version ofPrimary Colors?
I dont think of Hollywood Dementia that way.
My goal is to present Hollywood as unvarnished as possible.
These are stories that could happen in Hollywood.
They have the verisimilitude of people and events.
What I bring to the table is knowing how Hollywood people speak, act, and transact business.
Thats my expertise and what I bring to the editing and writing process.
Not just anybody could edit this site.
You dont know the half of it.
The books are too tame.
Hell,Entouragewas too tame.
She wrote glossy mini-portraits of Hollywood filled with glamour.
And yet anybody who has anything to do with Hollywood knows it is actually an extremely unglamorous business.
Its a very tough and cruel industry.
Whats in it for the writers?
They love the exposure.
They love getting the reaction of people.
They also know Hollywood is reading the stories.
And they like being associated with the site because its got a cool factor.
Im very happy it does.
Soon, theyll also be compensated.
Its very, very exciting for all the writers who are participating.
Whats the next step for this?
How do you gauge whether Hollywood Dementia is a success?
Instead, I always thought that if you build it, they will come.
If you give people a great product they find useful and insightful, then youll get readers.
And thats how I feel about my new site.
I dont care if HollywoodDementia.com ever gets a lot of traffic.
I just care about putting out the sophisticated quality product I want to put out.
I expect every story I post to reveal something about Hollywood.
And to give a perspective about Hollywood that you dont get elsewhere.
That is all I care about.
I dont care about advertising, I dont care about readers.
I just care about being proud of the site.
And Im incredibly proud of Hollywood Dementia.
Just as I was incredibly proud of Deadline Hollywood.
Im sure a lot of your old readers want Nikki Finke the journalist back.
Amazingly, the Hollywood executives and agents claim they miss me.
I still get story tips.
They cant let it go.
Ive let it go for now.
I dont know if I will forever, but I am for now.
