Dunsmuir resident Sandra Vaughan is not afraid of taking a chance, as can be seen from her diverse resume.
Vaughan, who first came to the area in 1996 from Los Angeles, has had a successful career in the film and commercial industry and published her first novel, “Two Thousand Minnows,” in 2003.
She and her partner Rob Johnston are also the new owners of the Black Butte Saloon in Weed and Curves Fitness Center in Mount Shasta.
“You can’t be afraid to fail,” said Vaughan, offering up what she sees as a key bit of advice for those set on accomplishing their dreams.
Black Butte venture
The Black Butte Saloon venture, she said, stands as a good example of how the right attitude can make all of the difference.
“We just jumped,” said Vaughan, noting that neither she or Johnston had any experience in the bar business prior to purchasing the Weed landmark.
“Rob went to bar tending school to get ready,” she said, but other than that, it has been trial by fire.
“I make my drinks with love,” said Vaughan, noting this as an underlying attitude that is part of her success.
Starting with films and commercials
Growing up in West Virgina and then Sacramento, Vaughan pursued an interest in the film industry, working on such classics as Rain Man, A Tiger’s Tale and Short Circuit while still in her 20s.
During much of her 20-year career as a freelance producer, she worked with renowned director Eric Saarinen of Plum Productions. Their list of clients included Coke, Chevy, Jeep, Reebok, Budweiser and Nike, to name a few of the heavyweights.
“Working with Eric was a real feather in my cap,” she said.
She said she travelled the world while continuing to develop her craft as a producer, describing those years as hectic but highly rewarding.
Siskiyou retreat
Vaughan said she first visited Siskiyou County in 1996 and immediately fell in love with the place. “I came with a friend on a vision quest. We went up to Stewart Springs and spent the weekend there. I also visited Dunsmuir and bought a house that weekend.” It was, she said, the first home she ever purchased.
That house eventually became her retreat, a place she visited for a couple of months each summer to, among other things, pursue one of her other great passions in life: writing.
A writing career, too
“As a kid, I grew up in a family of poets and musicians,” Vaughan said.
With no experience of her own as a writer, she “hired writing coaches to help me. That took the place of college for me.”
It was a burning desire to tell the true story of her lost sister that pushed her towards a goal that most see as a long shot.
“It’s not easy to get published,” said Vaughan, noting that she sent queries to 300 agents and got five favorable responses.
“Five out of 300 is significant,” she said. Still, the book sat with her chosen agent for over a year with no prospects on the horizon.
Then, she said, fate intervened when an acquaintance, Holly Goldberg Sloan, an established Hollywood director and screenwriter, read the book and helped get it published.
“Two Thousand Minnows,” she said, is a story about “the tragic search for the American dream.”
Vaughan said she approaches writing like any other job. “I go into my office at 8 in the morning and usually work until 2 p.m.” She emphasized that the writer’s life is often romanticized but, in reality, it can be tedious and isolating.
From the initial concept, writing, promoting and editing, it took her almost eight years to get the book published. “I had 1,000 pages that I had to narrow down to 400,” she said.
The novel, which was published by Lyons Press, received favorable reviews and sold more than 14,000 copies. “If you sell 20,000 copies, it is considered a best seller,” said Vaughan.
She has since worked on another novel, “Monsters in the Mirror,” which she hopes to publish soon, and several screenplays, all while doing some film production work in both LA and locally.
“I still need my LA hit from time to time,” she said, although those trips are fewer and farther between than they once were.
Making it happen in Siskiyou County
Vaughan said she loves living in Siskiyou County. “What I love about this place is that nobody cares about what you do. People are much more in the present with things.” That’s a welcome relief from LA, where you are judged by what you do, how much you make and where you live, she said.
In addition to owning two businesses, Vaughan and Johnston have had some success in real estate since their arrival in Siskiyou.
“We’ve bought and sold 29 houses since we’ve lived here,” she said, noting that they had the foresight to get out of the market before it crashed. “Things were getting insane,” she said. “We were able to move most of our properties before the bubble burst.”
Vaughan sees herself as part of a larger South Siskiyou county, refusing to identify with just one community. “You can’t pin me down,” she said, noting that though they live in Dunsmuir, they have business interests in Mount Shasta and Weed.
She said she has been putting time and energy into her local film production business, an offshoot of Snakebite Productions, and recently completed a promotional video for both College of the Siskiyous and the Siskiyou Arts Council.
“It’s tough up here,” she said of making a living in Siskiyou County. However, she sees that difficulty adding to the resiliency and character to those who live here. Her advice? “You have to diversify.” Clearly, she is following her own advice.
You can lean more about Vaughan by visiting twothousandminnows.com or by visiting the Black Butte Saloon and trying one of her drinks “made with love.”
Weed, Calif. —
