Musician
Amy was taught the rudiments of music by her maestro father shortly after she was taught to put a spoon in her mouth. As a teenager, she moved with her family from San Francisco to Los Angeles, where she performed as a cellist with symphony and studio orchestras under the baton of such conductors as Zubin Mehta, Johnny Green, and (quite memorably) Jack Benny.
She took up the electric bass in her early twenties, studying with jazz greats such as Eugene “The Senator” Wright (Dave Brubeck Quartet), Jamie Faunt, and Herb Mickman. She went on to record and/or perform with Mark Lindsay (Paul Revere and the Raiders), Lawrence Juber (Wings), Chick Corea and Stanley Clarke, and many others. She appeared as a musician in commercials and on numerous television shows: Don Kirschner’s Rock Concert, New Wave Theater, MTV, etc. She has shared Las Vegas stages with sequined showgirls and gyrating Elvises.
She moved to Aspen, Colorado in 1986. There, she has worked with The Starwood Gang (Bobby Mason, Haden Gregg, Bryan Savage), Steve Weisberg (who was renowned for his work with John Denver), Jimmy Dykann, David Blair Harding, Theatre Aspen, The Colorado Power Company, and many others.
Author
Amy has had short stories published in various magazines—most recently in the internationally acclaimed Aspen Sojourner.
Her debut novel, Aspen Haunt, released locally from Aspen to Vail/Steamboat and worldwide through Amazon.com, was enthusiastically received, enjoying five-star reviews and several appearances on the Aspen Daily News Top Ten Best Seller list. (Not the New York Times, but still....) It once hit #1, outselling the entire Fifty Shades trilogy. The most frequent remark she hears from readers of the book is, “I couldn’t put it down.”
The story in a nutshell:
When rock musician Jade Baptiste and her best friend, Coco la Rue, move to a century-old Victorian in Aspen, they are immediately hit with a barrage of terrifying and inexplicable events. Coco does her best to convince Jade that the manifestations are proof of a haunting. Jade is positive they are anything but a haunting—a series of “accidental" deaths furthers her conviction. While searching for the truth with relentless tenacity, state-of-the-art technology, and an irreverently dry wit, she unearths secrets more terrifying than she ever could have imagined.
Jade must confront the memory of a macabre childhood trauma before she can understand the true nature of a man, a murderer, a ghost, and herself.
This intricately woven tale of paranormal and psychological suspense will have the reader turning pages well into the night.
To go to Aspen Haunt's Amazon page, click here.
Editor
Amy has edited autobiographies, magazines, movie scripts, novels, etc. for a diverse clientele. She covers all aspects of editing per the Chicago Manual of Style—grammar and spelling (of course), as well as content, copy, continuity, echoes, ellipses, fact-checking, formatting, logical flow, overall narrative, paragraph breaks, proper word usage, realistic dialogue, sentence structure, tenses, etc.
Her ultimate objective is to collaborate with the client for the best possible finished piece.
Here are a few of her favorite clients….
Jerry London—If you’ve ever watched TV, you’ve undoubtedly seen Jerry’s work. He is the award-winning director of tons of television movies and miniseries. His book, written in his wry style of humor, includes behind-the-scenes tales of some of his most prestigious films. To go to Jerry's Amazon page, click here.
Acknowledgment:
Very special thanks to: My editor, Amy Hawes, who put it all together. She has a great eye and ear for content and dialogue, always making the book better.
George Clooney particularly enjoyed the centerfold.
Betts Rodden—Betts and Amy have collaborated on hundreds of projects. (As a small example, Betts did the cover art for From I Love Lucy to Shogun and Aspen Haunt, as well as a lot of the artwork on this site!) While her first novel, The Great Table and the Five Haunted Chairs, is filled with silliness, scariness, sweetness, human foibles, ghosts, and deep wisdom, the star of the show is her incredible artwork. To see more of Betts' work, click here. To go to her Amazon page, click here.
Acknowledgment:
I am eternally grateful to my sister and editor Amy Hawes, without whom this book would not exist (at least not in any form you would want to read). She has an amazing ability to herd the cats of my storyline, check my tenses, and keep things rolling on track. This skill, combined with her eagle eye, gives her the ability to spot echoes, convoluted plot twists, wayward commas, and strange words that didn’t mean what I thought they did. She has taught me so much about writing. Her patience and hard work has made the story I’m about to tell you possible to be in print. Thank you, Ame. I love you.
Michael Brown—Mike, three-time Emmy-winning story editor, wrote this story of loss and retribution, friendship and love, and white slavery in America’s past.
To go to Mike's Amazon page, click here.
Acknowledgment:
First and foremost, my sincere thanks go to Amy Hawes, novelist of Aspen Haunt, who generously gave of her time and efforts to edit this novel, correcting my many mistakes while still maintaining the integrity of my writing style. Without her grammatical corrections and appropriate words for time and location, as well as her overall editing skills, this manuscript would not have been completed in a professional manner. Thank you, Amy. You are the best!
Doc Eason—It’s more than Magic—it’s Doc! Doc is a world-famous magician who, as luck would have it, lives about a stone’s throw from Amy. His autobiography, which is filled with adventures and advice (GTFM—hahahaha), is scheduled for release in December of 2021. Sign up for info on the book’s release date, scheduled gigs, etc. here.
Acknowledgment:
At the top of the list is Amy Hawes, holder of the sharp stick she wielded to keep me moving forward. Ms. Hawes is author of a brilliant murder mystery, Aspen Haunt, as well as a musician, editor, mentor, coach, and (thanks to this book) dear friend. If you enjoy my first effort at writing (and I sincerely hope you do), it is because of her diligence and perseverance. I can’t thank her enough.
Tommy McLoughlin—Tommy, ultra-talented writer/director (and rock star!!!), is best known for his movies, One Dark Night (a cult classic) and Friday the 13th Part V1. You can find a compilation of his many films and books here.
Endorsement:
Amy has helped me on a number of my stories, scripts, and an upcoming book. She is my go-to gal! You keep using the same person if they make you read better. She is brilliant!
