Patrick Lee's "Deep Sky"

Patrick Lee's first novel, The Breach, hit the world at the beginning of 2010. It was followed by a sequel, Ghost Country, and the final volume of the trilogy, Deep Sky, is out this week. The series tells the story of Travis Chase, a man who finds himself caught up in the chain of events surrounding the world's most violently kept secret.Here the author shares some insights about casting the lead in an adaptation of the series:Strangely enough, the character I never have a visual sense of is my protagonist, Travis Chase. That's probably because I'm usually writing from his point of view, the

Read more »

{[['']]}

Garret Freymann-Weyr's "French Ducks in Venice"

Garret Freymann-Weyr (née Weyr) was born and raised in New York City. She inexplicably went to college in North Carolina (UNC-Chapel Hill) and, just as inexplicably, got an MFA in film (NYU). She now lives in North Carolina with her husband. She has written five books for young adults, one of which, somewhat inexplicably, won a Printz honor. Her work has been sold to countries including the Netherlands, Germany, Japan, and China. Her new book, French Ducks in Venice, is a picture book for a younger audience.Here she shares some casting ideas for an adaptation of French Ducks in Venice:This fe

Read more »

{[['']]}

Nick Drake's "Egypt: The Book of Chaos"

Nick Drake's critically acclaimed novel Nefertiti was shortlisted for the Crime Writers’ Association Ellis Peters Historical Crime Award; his Tutankhamun was a Publishers Weekly top 100 books selection. He has published two award-winning collections of poetry, and his play Success was performed at the National Theatre in London, where he is a literary associate. Drake's screenplays include the critically acclaimed Romulus, My Father (starring Eric Bana), which won Best Film at the Australian Film Awards in 2007.Here he writes about the actor he'd like to see play the lead in an adaptatio

Read more »

{[['']]}

Kristine Louise Haugen's "Richard Bentley"

What made the classical scholar Richard Bentley deserve to be so viciously skewered by two of the literary giants of his day—Jonathan Swift in the Battle of the Books and Alexander Pope in the Dunciad? The answer, according to Kristine Haugen in her new biography, Richard Bentley: Poetry and Enlightenment: he had the temerity to bring classical study out of the scholar’s closet and into the drawing rooms of polite society.Here Haugen shares some insights about casting the biopic adapted from her book:Unfortunately for Bentley, his personality and persona resembled those of Daniel Day-Lewis in

Read more »

{[['']]}

J.J. Murphy's "Algonquin Round Table Mysteries"

J.J. Murphy, an award-winning health care writer in Pennsylvania, has also been a long-time Dorothy Parker fan.She started writing The Algonquin Round Table Mysteries after the birth of twin daughters, as an escape from toddler television.Here she shares some thoughts on adapting the series for the cinema: Who could play the infamous Dorothy Parker and the members of the Algonquin Round Table in a movie? Fortunately or unfortunately, these were real people. So their appearances are already a matter of record.Also, I’m going to cheat...I have my own poll on my website, so I’ll let the readers

Read more »

{[['']]}

Tim Riley's "Lennon: The Man, the Myth, the Music"

NPR critic Tim Riley is the author of Tell Me Why: A Beatles Commentary (Knopf/Vintage 1988); Hard Rain: A Dylan Commentary (Knopf/Vintage1992, Da Capo 1999); Madonna: Illustrated (Hyperion 1992); Fever: How Rock'N'Roll Transformed Gender In America (St. Martin's/Picador 2005).Here he writes about the above-the-line talent for an adaptation of his latest book, Lennon: The Man, The Myth, The Music:This is easy: Brad Pitt has been talking about doing Lennon for a couple years, and he would be both box office and a fascinating entry to the Lennon sweepstakes. My favorite Lennon so far is Ian Ha

Read more »

{[['']]}

Kameron Hurley's "Bel Dame Apocrypha"

Kameron Hurley currently hacks out a living as a marketing and advertising writer in Ohio. Her personal and professional exploits have taken her all around the world. She spent much of her roaring 20′s traveling, pretending to learn how to box, and trying not to die spectacularly. Along the way, she justified her nomadic lifestyle by picking up degrees in history from the University of Alaska and the University of Kwa-Zulu Natal.Here she shares some ideas for casting adaptations of the first two volumes of the Bel Dame Apocrypha:Oh, the God’s War and Infidel movies… the bloodiest, most bad-a

Read more »

{[['']]}

Caragh O'Brien's "Birthmarked"

Since earning a master’s in writing at Johns Hopkins University, Caragh O'Brien has been a high school teacher, a published author of romance novels, and now a novelist for teens. Her first young adult novel, Birthmarked, was a Junior Library Guild Selection, a YALSA Best Book for Young Adults, and on the ALA Amelia Bloomer list.Here she shares some thoughts on adapting Birthmarked for the big screen:I’m often asked if Birthmarked will be a movie, but the chances of it being picked up are so slim that it’s like imagining the book being chosen by an astronaut to take along to the moon. I’ve b

Read more »

{[['']]}

Joyce and Jim Lavene's "A Spirited Gift"

Joyce and Jim Lavene are a married writing couple who live in North Carolina with their family. They get help from their cat, Quincy, and their big puppy, Rudi, who they rescued in 2010. They have been writing together since 1994 and published since 1999. Last year marked their 52nd book in print. They enjoy writing mysteries but are at home with fantasy, romance and non-fiction. The couple both work for their small, hometown newspaper, The Weekly Post.Here Joyce Lavene reports on the film adaptation of A Spirited Gift, their latest Missing Pieces Mystery:I can see the cast and crew walking u

Read more »

{[['']]}

Michael Broyles's "Beethoven in America"

Michael Broyles is Professor of Music at Florida State University and former Distinguished Professor of Music and Professor of American History at Pennsylvania State University. His book, Leo Ornstein: Modernist Dilemmas, Personal Choices, written with Denise Von Glahn, won the Irving Lowens Prize in 2007.He here shares some ideas about adapting--and casting the adaptation of-- his new book, Beethoven in America: How do you make a movie about story that spans two-hundred years of American history, about an icon who was long dead, and when alive never set foot on America? It’s not easy, but H

Read more »

{[['']]}

Derek Haas's "Dark Men"

Derek Haas is the author of the bestselling novel The Silver Bear. He also co-wrote the screenplays for 3:10 to Yuma, starring Russell Crowe and Christian Bale, and Wanted, starring James McAvoy, Morgan Freeman, and Angelina Jolie. His forthcoming film, The Double, starring Richard Gere and Topher Grace, is directed by his screenwriting partner Michael Brandt and will be released in 2011.Here he offers some insights into the casting process, and shares some idea about the look of the actor who might play Columbus, the professional assassin in his latest novel Dark Men, in an adaptation:I neve

Read more »

{[['']]}

Ed Kovacs's "Storm Damage"

Ed Kovacs has worked for many years as a private security contractor deploying to challenging locations worldwide. He is a member of AFIO, Association for Intelligence Officers, the International Thriller Writers organization, and the Mystery Writers of America.Here he writes about the actors he could see playing the lead in an adaptation of his new novel, Storm Damage: I don’t keep up with who the flavors of the year are, acting-wise. Since the hero of my crime novel Storm Damage is a genuine tough guy and MMA fighter who’s also smart and strongly ethical, I’d have to go with either Daniel

Read more »

{[['']]}

Larry Karp's "A Perilous Conception"

Larry Karp grew up in Paterson, NJ and New York City. He practiced perinatal medicine (high-risk pregnancy care) and wrote general nonfiction books and articles for 25 years, then, in 1995, he left medical work to begin a second career, writing mystery novels. The backgrounds and settings of Karp's mysteries reflect many of his interests, including musical antiques, medical-ethical issues, and ragtime music.Here he shares some thoughts on dream-casting an adaptation of his latest novel, A Perilous Conception:My characters develop slowly as I write their stories, and as I get to know them bett

Read more »

{[['']]}

Mary O'Connell's "The Sharp Time"

Mary O'Connell is a graduate of the Iowa Writer's Workshop and the author of the short story collection, Living With Saints. Her short fiction and essays have appeared in several literary magazines, and she is the recipient of a James Michener Fellowship and a Chicago Tribune Nelson Algren Award.Here she shares some ideas about casting the leads for an adaptation of The Sharp Time, her first novel:I’ve already watched The Sharp Time in my head with this perfect cast. A girl can dream, and hope, and pray that someone buys the movie rights…My dream cast for The Sharp Time, the movie:Kyle Chandl

Read more »

{[['']]}

Mary Stanton's "Angel Condemned"

About Angel Condemned, Mary Stanton's fifth Beaufort & Company mystery:Representing her Aunt Cissy’s fiancé, museum curator Prosper White, in a case of fraud, attorney and celestial advocate Brianna Winston-Beaufort hopes to settle the matter out of court. But when Prosper is murdered and Cissy’s arrested for the crime, Bree will have to solve the mystery of the Cross of Justinian—an artifact of interest in both Prosper’s lawsuit and Bree’s celestial case—to clear her aunt’s name...Here are the author's hopes for casting Beaufort & Company in an adaptation:Brianna Winston-Beaufort: Ky

Read more »

{[['']]}