Introducing Rianna Hardesty

Bio:

Rianna Hardesty was born in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, on October 4th 1988, and was raised in Columbus Wisconsin. As a student at Columbus High School, Rianna graduated in the top of her class and enjoyed participating in many extra curricular activities such as performing the lead role in a school theater production. Currently, Rianna is entering her senior year as a student at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, pursuing a Bachelor’s degree in Communication Arts with a concentration in Radio, Television & Film. With interests in acting and modeling, she ultimately aspires for a career in the entertainment industry with an emphasis in directing.

Questions:

Hobbies? Interests? What do you like to do for fun?

I’m a very artistic person and I used to spend a lot of time drawing in high school. I love to read and am a huge fan of horror and fantasy novels, despite not reading as much as I’d like to due to school. Film is also a passion of mine- not only do I love watching films, but also making and acting in movies is something I find a lot of fun.

Describe your sense of style. What kinds of fashion styles do you enjoy?

I’ve always been attracted to the Victorian style. I’m a huge fan of lace, frills, and anything girly. Long bustle skirts and corsets ought to be brought back into style!

What do you think you will take away with you from this experience?

I had a wonderful time and feel extremely honored by being chosen for this experience, no matter what comes of it. It was wonderful to get a chance to actually be involved in an industry that I have always found fascinating, and I will always remember the fantastic people I met and the amazing time I had in New York. I’d love to get the chance to go back and spend more time there someday.

Publisher Harper Collins publishes Carol’s latest book

Featuring the gorgeous young beauty Rianna Hardesty (a University of Wisconsin co-ed selected by Carol Alt and a teeming audience of online fans in an open-sourcing cover design contest) on the cover, MODEL, INCORPORATED continues the saga of Carol’s alter ego, Mac, as she continues to claw her way to the top of the modeling industry – and discovers just what it takes to remain the reigning queen of the catwalk.

Alt is a dedicated mentor to aspiring models, and uses her books as platforms to help young women succeed – and survive – in this demanding arena. “Much of what I write about within these pages happened to me, or to other young women who rose through the ranks with me. I hope that This Year’s Model and Model, Incorporated will help give a healthy awareness of what it really takes to make it big…what really goes on certainly isn’t covered in today’s highly-glossed reality TV platforms.”

Keeping an eye towards nurturing future talent, supermodel Alt launched a contest in 2008 to put a face to Model, Incorporated covergirl ”Mac” discovered a truly fresh new face: young university student Rianna Hardesty won an online competition engineered by the author, in conjunction with her publisher and the fashionable retailer Lord & Taylor, and her gorgeous visage graces the cover of Model, Incorporated.

This Year’s Model introduced readers to Melody Ann Croft, a stunningly beautiful young woman who is discovered by a well-known fashion photographer while waiting tables in Morristown, NJ to make money for college. Now, in MODEL, INCORPORATED, Melody—rechristened Mac Croft by her agent—wants to take her career to the next level. But is she prepared to make the sacrifices this cutthroat business demands?

Mac is a small town girl with a level head and a loving family; so far, she’s kept herself well- grounded enough to avoid the pitfalls and temptations of the fashion industry. But after getting a sweet taste of success (glam gigs, flying around the world first class and staying in five-star hotels) — her attitudes and priorities are changing.

Modeling was supposed to be a short detour on her way to college; now it’s hard to imagine trading a life of catwalks and cameras for one of lectures and books. Making it to the top, though, requires a punishing routine of racing around Manhattan for go-sees and photo shoots, not to mention demoralizing rejection and the outright hostility of a certain Chanel-clad executive. Meanwhile, the pressure to be stick-thin leads Mac into some dangerous habits.

Filled with wit, warmth and plenty of fabulous designer labels, Alt’s second novel will make readers fall even deeper for Mac, as she tries to keep it real in a business built on fantasy.

Some photos from Rianna’s photo shoot

 

CAROL’S NEW NOVEL, “MODEL, INC.”, BOWS AUGUST 11, 2009

“Model, Inc”, the much-anticipated sequel to Carol Alt’s first work of fiction, “This Year’s Model”, will be launched on August 11th. It will be available at Barnes and Nobel bookstores and on Amazon.com.

“The cover, of course, features the young model who won the contest we ran last year and she’s just adorable! Rianna (Hardesty) couldn’t have been a better pick for my book and I’m really thrilled for her!”, Carol says. When Carol teased Rianna recently about being “so old” (at 21!), Rianna said, “But…but…I’m not so old!” Carol, of course, was kidding her, but she found it rather charming that even at the tender age of 21, someone can still be a bit sensitive about age.

“Model, Inc.” follows the further adventures – both personal and career-wise – of MAC, the heroine of the first novel. “It’s not just difficult to get to the top”, Carol tells us, “it’s difficult to stay on the top, as Mac (formerly Melody Ann Croft) learns. Models have a lot of choices and decisions to make throughout their careers, often on a daily basis. When you make those choices based on what your heart tells you, things tend to work out well. Choices based upon finance or ego, or that come from simple greed, generally do not turn out as well.

However, there is one BIG word that has helped Carol to become a star and to stay there! Carol explains:
“Even early in my career, LOYALTY meant the world to me and I would sometimes agree to work for less money for my old, established clients. My agencies weren’t always pleased by those decisions, since it obviously meant less money for them, too. But my attitude was – and still is – that these were the clients who helped establish my career. They had been loyal to me; why wouldn’t I return the favor?! In other words, they were the ones who made me famous, but now that I was famous, I wasn’t going to work with them, just because they couldn’t pay me what newer clients paid? No way! I’ve never treated people that way.

“There’s also a practical side to loyalty: If someone I’d been loyal to moved to a new company, trust me, they absolutely remembered me! Many times they would take me along with them to the new place – most times at double the money!”

“What you rarely hear mentioned in our business is the concept of loyalty, of being correct with people and paying it forward. But I’ve always lived my life according to those principles and have rarely regretted it.”

It’s been pointed out that what Carol has done for Rianna Hardesty is a prime example of “paying it forward”. “Absolutely!”, Carol says. “I wanted to give someone else a chance, which, I’m sorry to say, is not something I was usually given by other women. I never wanted to be one of those types; I want to help other women and give them a fair shot at succeeding in whatever it is they choose to do. I realize that I’m always being judged, based on my appearance or job title, which I can’t help and I guess that’s just human nature, but it’s not MY ‘human nature’. Jealousy and anger, based upon what other women look like, or are doing, or their success, just is not what I want to have in my life and it never has been. But I certainly know how it feels to be on the receiving end of that kind of petty behavior. Maybe it helps me to write more interesting, realistic experiences for Mac…!”

Here’s an adage that Carol has lived by ever since she first heard it when she was about 20: At 20, you have the face you were born with; at 30, the face you have worked for; and at 50, the face you deserve. “In other words, if you waste your time on negative thoughts and anger and jealousy, it’s going to eventually start showing on your face. You can tell what kind of life someone has lived just by looking at their face! Who needs that? So, I’ve spent a lifetime trying to avoid all of that.”

As for “Model, Inc.” cover girl, Rianna Hardesty, Carol and her publishers flew her in to New York, where Lord & Taylor’s provided a beautiful outfit for her, and then they even spent some time over at the Ford Modeling Agency, where she met Carol’s agents. Rianna is a full-time student, but who knows where all of this might eventually lead her?

If you’ve been waiting to find out where fame and fortune (and a positive attitude!) have led Melody Ann Croft, pick up a copy of “Model, Inc.”. And remember: Carol would love to hear your reaction, after you’ve read the book.