WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. — A local author was inspired by a famous Winston-Salem family to write a historical fiction novel.Author and restaurant designer Wade Beauchamp based his recent novel “The Purple Menace and the Tobacco Prince” on the opulent and scandalous life of Z. Smith Reynolds, one of the heirs of R.J. Reynold’s Tobacco Company. Get the latest news stories of interest by clicking hereBeauchamp was born and raised in Winston-Salem. He graduated from West Forsyth High School and later Forsyth Technical Community College. He says he’s loved creative writing from a young age. “In eighth grade, we were assigned a creative writing project and it was the first time I ever got to do something like that, and I ended up just falling in love with it,” he said. Today, Beauchamp still lives in Winston-Salem and loves to write. On Mar. 1, his latest book was published. Keep up with the latest news and weather by downloading the WXII app here.Beauchamp says it’s his first piece of historical fiction. He says he was exploring Reynolda House, a historic manor that once belonged to the famous Reynolds family, when he was inspired by the short life of Z. Smith Reynolds.“I just fell head first into the rabbit hole and said, ‘This is going to be a blast to write this story,'" he said.However, Beauchamp says his personal connection to the Reynolds family also inspired his interest in the story.“I grew up here,” he said. “Both parents, grandparents worked for R.J. Reynolds. Had aunts, uncles, cousins all worked for R.J.R., so I grew up pretty steeped in R.J. Reynold’s history. I’ve just always had a love for Winston-Salem and very fascinated by its history. ”Watch: NOWCAST streaming newscastsZ. Smith Reynolds was the youngest son of R.J. Reynolds, the millionaire businessman behind the R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company. Beauchamp says that during his research, he learned that Reynolds lived a life of grandeur despite Prohibition-era restrictions and the Great Depression. “This is the closest thing Winston-Salem has to royalty, the Reynolds family,” Beauchamp said. “So I was just super fascinated by that.”He says the story revolves around the dramatic relationship between Z. Smith Reynolds and Broadway actress Libby Holman, and Reynolds' mysterious death in 1932. The fictional characters based on Reynolds and Smith have different names, Wright Williams and Bizzy Holt. Beauchamp says fictionalizing the story gave him the creative liberty to explore his characters' thoughts and feelings more deeply. “Once you springboard off the real history, with turning it into fiction, then you’re free to assign motivations, and feelings, and get into the heads of these characters and purely speculate," he said.One spot that was particularly helpful to Beauchamp while writing his book was Reynolda. He visited the property’s historic manor and boathouse to draw inspiration for his story’s fictional version of events that took place decades ago at Reynolda. He described a Prohibition-era party that took place at the boathouse near Reynolda House.“You can almost imagine the ghosts of these people wandering around here and drinking and laughing and dancing and partying,” Beauchamp said. “And it really helps to put you in that mindset and put yourself in the time and place that these people really lived.”Beauchamp says that after his experience researching and creating his story, he is interested in continuing to look into Winston-Salem’s history. He says Winston-Salem has a richer history than people may think and wants to share its importance.“There’s a lot of history here. This was a very important city to the state and the southeast, and it still is, as far as I’m concerned,” he said.NAVIGATE: Home | Weather | Watch NOWCAST TV | Local News | National | News We Love | Trending Stories