You've written a book about how to become a pageant winner. I was a high school teacher when I tried out for Miss USA, and, as the cliche goes, the pageant opened doors. It gave me opportunities in Hollywood, but I decided what I really wanted to do was work in television news. The guy who first hired me took a chance, but I did have the experience of being Miss USA, of being in front of people and connecting with them. Now I'm the main anchor at the Fox affiliate in San Antonio.
Some people say Southern girls are raised to be beauty queens.
I always tried to be a real person, not somebody's idea of a particular type of pageant girl. I just wanted to be Lu. I talk a lot about this in my book. When you're competing on the pageant stage, you need to think of judges in terms of their being real people, not just celebrities. And you want to make each judge feel the same way about you.