We want to hear YOUR stories! InstantCast is re-designing our success story page and we want to hear from YOU! Do you have a great success story to share with us? Email in your story, leave a comment on this blog, or Tweet your story to us!

Hollywood’s abuzz with the news that Hilary Duff–who has grown up a lot since Lizzie McGuireand A Cinderella Story–is joining the cast of Gossip Girl! Hilary will play Olivia, Vanessa’s roommate at NYU. She’s a movie star looking to lead a normal life at a normal college with a normal boyfriend: Dan! Good, we want Chuck Bass all to ourselves.

Any Iowa InstantCasters out there? The Experiment is coming to Des Moines, and you could get cast this week with Hollywood’s heavyweights (and Best Actor Oscar winners) Adrien Brody and Forest Whitaker.

It’s good to know what roles suit you best, but versatility is the key to success. If you find yourself always auditioning for the same parts, try to mix it up a bit.

Steve Schirripa, who played Bobby Bacala on The Sopranos for 7 years, is now playing a father on the ABC Family teen drama The Secret Life of the American Teenager. He was smart to go in a completely different direction and show his range.