Bookpleasures.comwelcomes as our guest Suzie Plakson author of The Return of King Lillian. Suzie has been in love with fairy tale and myth ever since she was a young lass growing up in the wilds of suburbia. The idea for The Return of King Lillian first came to her when she was a struggling theatre actor in New York City, doing odd jobs, improv comedy, and various off-off-Broadway productions. 

She eventually landed a lead in a national tour, which dropped her off in Hollywood, and since that time she has appeared in such films and television shows as Mad About You, Love and War, Wag the Dog, Dinosaurs, Everybody Loves Raymond, How I Met Your Mother and Star Trek.  She has also done voiceovers, written short stories and poetry, written and recorded an alternative country album, created an allegorical solo show, and produced sculptures large and small in her otherwise unused oven.

Norm: Good day Suzie and thanks for participating in our interview.

Suzie: Well, hello there, Norm. Thanks so much for having me!

Norm: How did you first get involved in acting and what motivated you to act?

Suzie: I was always one of those kids who, if I saw, say, “Mary Poppins” I’d suddenly have to say everything in a British accent. It drove my family crazy. Or if I went away to summer camp and my friends were from the south, I’d come home with some variety of a southern drawl. I was always smitten by the idea of transformation and of becoming someone much more fascinating.

Norm: How many times in your career have you experienced rejection? How did that shape you?

Suzie: Wow… Well, in my acting and voiceover career alone, that number is easily in the thousands, and if you add in the other artistic expressions, we’re talking a tsunami of rejections! It’s been a long, slow trial by fire, and I imagine a lot of useless ego likely got burned away in the process. And of course, it’s made me infinitely less fearful of rejection – always a handy attribute for an artistic type.

Norm: I notice you are a person of many talents. How has your environment influenced you in pursuing all of these different artistic avenues?

Suzie: Well, I do believe I owe a debt of gratitude of a darker shade, perhaps, to all those rejections; I was so frustrated at not being able to fully express in one direction that I was forced to express in others – all art stems from the same well within, after all. The truth will out, as Shakespeare said, and by the same token, so will art, I guess!

Norm: In your bio on your website you state that “sculpting has taught me more lessons about Art than any other medium through which I’ve expressed.” Could you tell us why?

Suzie; Largely, I suppose, because it’s such a physical activity that I could physically SEE the lessons. There were/are always tangible metaphors happening.

For example, when I first began to sculpt, a piece I’d been working on for a long time literally exploded in my oven.  Initially, I was so distressed, of course, but then, as I was “repairing” it, I saw, quite clearly, that the sculpture now had a life in it that had been missing before.  It was a mysterious little revelation about art, about life and perhaps, about the art of life.  Perhaps we become more than we were not in spite of our breakage, but because of it, and because we are willing to incorporate it into who we are, it makes us stronger.  There’s something about a seemingly “imperfect” turn, a mistake – in fact, even something that appears to be calamitous – that turns out to be the absolute necessary thing to have happened.

So it was with sculpture that I first consciously experienced the age-old bumper sticker of artists:  I’m Just The Vessel. The work of art has its own mind, its own personality, its own mission. And if you’re not doing it right, why, it’ll even blow itself up to help set you on the right path.

Norm: What have your other careers taught you that you have been able to apply to your career as an author?

Suzie:  To openly welcome mistakes, which is somehow never all that easy. But they are always strangers bearing gifts. Truly welcoming the “bad” idea, the “wrong” word, the “rotten” performance encourages the best expressions to show themselves.

For example, in the recording of the audiobook (easily one of the most delicious creative experiences I could ever hope to have) I was constantly cognizant of how doing it not so very well on one take so specifically informed and directed the next attempt.  Learning from the failures always makes the performances better, in the end.  Mistakes are generally uncomfortable and no fun at all, but along the way I’ve realized that they’re absolutely essential.

Norm: How did you become involved with the subject or theme of The Return of King Lillian? Why did you choose this particular genre?

Suzie: Well, firstly, I’ve always been in love with faerie tale and myth from childhood. I ingested so much of it, I suppose it was bound to come through in another form, somehow.  Then a vision of Lillian and her wildly colorful world came to me in a flash of a dream in my late 20s, during a very difficult period of my life, and that glorious vision stayed with me and began to haunt me. Over a great span of time, more of those flash-dreams followed, and ultimately, I became so enchanted by the character and her journey that I felt more and more compelled to bring her world into this one.

Norm: Can you share with our audience a little bit about The Return of King Lillian?

Suzie: Sure! Here’s how we describe it: When Lillian, the one and only heir to the throne, is cast out of her kingdom by malevolent forces, she accidentally wanders into the Forest of Forgetfullness, where she is rescued by wolves and raised by an eccentric old wise woman. When she comes of age, she is called by Destiny to return home.

The trouble is, when Lillian steps out of the Forest, she has no memory of who she is or from whence she hails. Undaunted, the spirited, self-reliant young woman sets off into the unknown, determined to rediscover her long lost self and to reclaim her stolen birthright. Most of the tale is told by Lillian herself, as she chronicles her extraordinary adventures.

This audiobook/paperback/ebook is an allegorical saga full of comedy, calamity, and a host of kaleidoscopic characters.  It’s an unconventional fairy tale, a fable full of fables for dreamers of all ages. 

Norm:  What do you hope will be the everlasting thoughts for readers who finish your book?

Suzie: Awww… how wonderful to think they might actually have everlasting thoughts for my book! Well, I hope they feel uplifted by it, and– whether they’ve listened or whether they’ve read – I hope that The Return of King Lillian has been a place of respite from this mad, mad, mad, mad world.

Norm: Where can our readers find out more about the book and yourself?

Suzie: They can find out a bit more about me at MY WEBSITE.  Or, better yet, they can go to  THE RETURN OF KING LILLIAN, where they can read and listen to excerpts from the book and, if the spirit moves, sign up to get the first chapters free!  And of course the book and audiobook are also available for purchase on Amazon, Audible, Audiobooks.com and many other retailers that don’t begin with an “A.” 

Norm: As this interview comes to an end, what would you like to say to anyone in the world of art be it as an actor, writer, artist, or musician that are reading this interview and wondering if they can keep creating, if they are good enough, if their voices and visions matter enough to share?

Suzie: Norm, I hope you don’t mind, but I’m gonna give this one over to the Master, Kurt Vonnegut. “Practicing an art, no matter how well or badly, is a way to make your soul grow, for heaven's sake.” I’d say the world needs as many creative souls as it can get, don’t you think?

Norm: Thank you so much for taking the time to answer my questions. It's been an absolute pleasure to meet with you and read your work. Good luck with The Return of King Lillian.

Suzie: Thank you so much, Norm. Much gratitude to you!