Timothy A. McGhee is a storyteller whose career spans more than two decades, weaving together experiences as a novelist, sportswriter, and now screenwriter. Since 1998, he has authored two novels—”Wise Fools” (2001) and “Risk, Return, and the Indigo” Autumn (2006)—along with numerous sportswriting contributions. His ability to cross genres demonstrates a versatility rooted in both sharp observation and lived experience. We got the chance to have a conversation with Timothy A. McGhee, and we have prepared a bunch of questions to get to know more about his storyline “American Money”

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Qs. One: Hi Timothy, hope you are doing well. You’ve been writing since 1998, with novels and sportswriting under your belt. How did your journey as a writer begin?

Timothy: First, thank you to Indie Cine Awards for the recognition. My journey as a writer began in a two-fold manner. My older brother Patrick taught me to read when I was 4 years old. I read everything, spreading the newspaper out on my parets’ living room floor at age 6 and reading while crawling across the articles. When you combine those early language skills with my forever penchant to actively imagine stories and think in prose, one has the makings of a writer.

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Qs. Two: “American Money” is your first screenplay. Can you tell us what inspired it?

Timothy:  A terrible economy forced me to change careers dramatically after only one year as a mechanical engineer. Unemployment reached TWENTY percent in West Virginia in 1983 as the basic industries of coal mining, steelmaking, and chemical manufacturing, once staples of the United States business engine, laid off workers by the millions. I went with the hot hand: Wall Street. Four years into my stockbroker career I experienced a raging bull market ending abruptly, with stock prices cut in half in two months. My imagination was fired up, asking the question, “What if you bet it all on a Wall Street collapse?” That’s the story of American Money.

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Qs. Three: How closely does the screenplay follow your novel “Risk, Return, and the Indigo Autumn”?

Timothy: The script follows the novel in its basic idea, which is “renegade investors bet against the status quo and get rich” as well as the historical & chronological aspects of an October 1987 collapse following a long period of prosperity. Other than that, many of the characters changed. My story is like Jaws, Peter Benchley’s novel would have made a terrible movie, and Stephen Speilberg’s film would have failed as a book.

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Qs. Four: You’ve written novels, sports articles, and now screenplays. How does each form influence the other?

Timothy: All three media are forms of basic storytelling. Keep it factual and make it interesting. My college roommate David Sisk is without a doubt the best storyteller I know; he is still an inspiration. Even after 50 years, we talk and laugh weekly. I just spoke with him this morning. “Sisko, I’m doing an interview with an Indian film festival and you’re a topic of conversation.” He laughed.

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Qs. Five: You also have another script in progress, Padre Guns. What can you share about that?

Timothy: Padre Guns is the screen adaptation of my first novel Wise Fools (2001 Writer’s Club Press) It’s a football movie similar to Remember The Titans and We Are…Marshall. Half of the script is the game. The heroes rally from behind while overcoming racists attitudes that infected the team. The difference primarily is the novel has a strong romance element while the film script is…well, no spoilers here!

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Qs. Six: Looking back at your time on Wall Street, do you feel your experiences there gave you an advantage in telling this story?

Timothy: Absolutely! Addressing the need to experience life, my favorite Wall Street anecdote goes like this: a stockbroker approaches his seasoned elderly boss to tell him he’s enrolled in the local college to earn his MBA. “I need more knowledge,” the stockbroker says. His boss replies, “Sell Microsoft and Apple short, and you’ll learn more in those two trades than you will in two years of classes.” I made money and lost money, at times in the same week. Native Intellignece gained through experience will always override Artificial Intelligence.

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Qs. Seven: What do you hope audiences will take away from “American Money”?

Timothy: I hope the audiences walk out of the cinema with the sense that one can earn money in an honorable fashion. The renegades go against the status quo not for greed, but for justice, earning billions to benefit those who were left behind by the go-go 1980s, namely steelworkers and coal miners.

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Qs. Eight: Before wrapping up our conversation, will the audience gonna see this screenplay as movie, if yes, when can we expect the release date?

Timothy: All I can say on this date is…stay tuned! It’s possible. May the Peace of The Holy Trinity be with you all as it is with this dusty renegade cowboy. Thank you for your time.