Writer Al Lamanda traded the hustle and bustle of New York City for a quieter life in the Lakes Region about 20 years ago. But as his literary star has risen, he’s now found himself under the bright Hollywood lights. 

Lamanda, 64, recently wrote a screenplay, “American Violence,” which was made into a movie. The film stars actors Bruce Dern, Denise Richards and Michael Pare, and features New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski as a bodyguard.  

Lamanda spoke with the Lakes Region weekly about his work. 

Q: You’re a bit of a late bloomer in the literary world. How and when did you get started? 

A: I started writing full-time in 2008. I have written and been published 21 times. 

I had a pretty good imagination as a kid, and I was always writing all these little stories for school. It pretty much was the only thing that I got As in. So it pretty much was always there in the back of my mind.  

Basically, I made the decision in 2008 that I was going to give it a shot, and see what happens. 

Q: What made you to decide to move up to Maine, and does living in the Lakes Region inform your creative process at all?

A: Moving up here was a mutual decision that my wife and I came to. She was basically raised here … It worked out well, because I love living here and I would never go back. 

Here, the serenity of where we are affords me the time to really sit down and work undisturbed. I think that’s the only reason I’ve been able to write 21 books in seven years. 

Q: How does a guy from the Lakes Region have his work made into a Hollywood project?

I knocked on a lot of doors … and most of the time what happens is, everybody gets rejected like 99 out of 100 times. And it can be very discouraging if you lack the discipline and the willpower to launch through all that.

I just kept waiting for someone to answer the door when I knocked on it, and give me a chance to show what I’d written. So after about 40 or 50 people basically slamming the door in your face, somebody said, ‘Yeah, I’ll take a look at it.’  And that’s really pretty much how it happened, where people started to say, “Hey this is pretty good, this guy can really write.” 

So I had a whole bunch of people, all of a sudden, bidding on the screenplay. I selected the production company … because they seemed to me to be very dedicated to their work. 

Q: What was the experience like at the Hollywood screening for the movie? 

That was loads of fun. Not being part of the Hollywood circuit, nobody has any clue who I am … I’m in the background (at the red carpet), and I’m watching it all as the actors start to arrive. The photographers start to go into a frenzy taking pictures. It’s really like you see on TV. 

Then we watched the movie, and it’s a pretty intense film … About 10 minutes into the movie, all of a sudden, everybody stopped. You could hear a pin drop, and everyone was just watching the film. No one said a word until it was over. And then when it was over and the credits were rolling, they asked me to take a bow, which was kinda funny. 

The experience was a tremendous amount of fun. Not what people think, because most of the cast and crew are just regular guys and women. Everybody had a blast, and I hope I can get to do it again pretty soon. 

Q: What’s it like to have well-known actors act out words that you wrote? 

A: For me, it was very strange, to be honest. You sit down and you write a novel, and then people buy the novel. So, the voices are basically in people’s heads when they read your words … But this is completely different, because there on this giant 40-foot-long screen are a bunch of actors and actresses who are enacting your words. 

Q: How does an NFL star like Rob Gronkowski find his way into a film like this?

A: He is trying to become a budding actor … They needed someone to fulfill this particular part as a bodyguard/killer. And he pulls it off really well. I was like, wow, he has a career after football. And when you’ll see it, he’ll surprise you how good he is. 

Matt Junker can be reached at 781-3661 ext. 123 or mjunker@theforecaster.net. Follow him on Twitter: @MattJunker.

Lakes Region resident and writer Al Lamanda attends the premiere of “American Violence” at the Egyptian Theatre in Los Angeles. Lamanda wrote the screenplay for the film. 

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