Sarah Easter Collins's "Things Don't Break on Their Own"

Sarah Easter Collins is a writer and artist. A mother to a wonderful son, she has worked extensively in the field of education, teaching art in the UK, Botswana, Thailand, and Malawi. Collins now lives on Exmoor with her husband and dogs, where she loves running and wild swimming. She is a graduate of the Curtis Brown Creative novel writing course.

Here Collins dreamcasts an adaptation of her debut novel, Things Don’t Break On Their Own:

Things Don’t Break On Their Own is a story about sisters, hidden histories and the unreliability of memory. Female friendships are at the heart of the novel, as is a girl who goes missing on her way to school at the age of thirteen. The entire novel spans a period of some thirty years, with one character in particular being seen in one scene as a six-year-old but in other scenes in her late thirties, but in terms of thinking about who might play these characters in a movie, I’m going to think about each character as their adult selves, at the age where they gather together for a supper in London.

Robyn as a character is generous, straightforward, warm, loyal and loving. She carries into adulthood a deep wisdom that comes from having grown up in a home environment that is safe and loving, where broken things are mended, and where generosity and kindness are the order of the day. She’s described as sporty and having a wonderful smile with dimples, but there is great depth to her character too. I think Carey Mulligan would be amazing in that role. I once had the privilege of seeing her on stage in David Hare’s brilliant play Skylight, in which she was stunningly good. I think she’s a phenomenal actor and she also has a perfect impish smile. She was also brilliant in the film adaptation of Never Let me Go, one of my favourite ever books.

In Skylight, Carey Mulligan played opposite Bill Nighy, another actor I love, and I think he would make an amazing Chris Bee (Robyn’s father). Firstly, he has the physical presence required of that role. In Things Don’t Break On Their Own, he is described as tall and a little stooped plus, plus he is wise and generous. Another actor who I’d love to play that part, and for similar reasons, would be Richard E Grant, someone who is a little gawky, but who also expresses great natural warmth.

Ben Whishaw would be brilliant as Robyn’s brother Michael: he is the perfect combination of geeky and warm.

Willa is a damaged soul. She is beautiful and highly intelligent, but her adult life has been overshadowed by both her domineering father and the loss of her sister, meaning she has never pursued a career or, vitally, accepted her own sexuality, and as a result she is not, as an adult, in a safe and loving relationship. I would love to see what Daisy Edgar Jones could do with that role. In the brilliant adaptation of Sally Rooney’s Normal People, she played Marianne with such amazing mix of vulnerability and damage. Jodie Whitaker would also be amazing, as would Jodie Comer.

Willa’s father, Bryce, is highly domineering, powerful, physically large, handsome, mercurial, and chameleon-like: a man who comes across as benevolent and generous to outsiders, but who is a terrifying presence within his family home. Imagine Brian Cox playing a younger version of Logan Roy. Dominic West would be brilliant in this role.

Willa’s mother is highly protective of her daughters and as a result stuck in an impossible situation: she can’t risk leaving. She is the proverbial ‘doll in a music box’: a beautiful woman who is turning on the spot. She is capable of great anger, but it is usually deeply hidden. I’d love to see Rosamund Pike in that role.

Laika: this part needs to be played by someone capable of expressing strength, anger, intelligence and resilience. I think Jessie Buckley would be amazing in this role.

Visit Sarah Easter Collins's website.

The Page 69 Test: Things Don't Break on Their Own.

Q&A with Sarah Easter Collins.

--Marshal Zeringue

Ellen Won Steil’s “Becoming Marlow Fin”

Ellen Won Steil is the bestselling author of Fortune and the newly released Becoming Marlow Fin. She grew up in Iowa in a Korean-American family and earned her BA in journalism from Drake University and law degree from William Mitchell College of Law. She lives in Minnesota with her husband and two young sons. Steil believes most good stories have at least a hint of darkness.

Here the author dreamcasts an adaptation of her novel Becoming Marlow Fin:

Becoming Marlow Fin is a suspense, family drama that centers around the sudden appearance of a little girl at the Baek Family’s Lake Superior cabin, and how her absorption into the family disrupts their seemingly perfect lives. Isla watches on as her adopted sister Marlow, grows up into a famous model and actress, their lives continually intwining with both moments of closeness and tension. Told through Isla’s reflections and Marlow’s perspective in a sensationalized “tell all” interview format, the twists and turns all culminate into a deadly incident at the lake where it all began.

As an author, I’m very visual in my process and tend to picture “scenes” playing out in my mind as I write them. Even with dialogue, I find it helps to envision the characters and their facial expressions. Especially with this story, I wanted characters who were diverse and uniquely beautiful, showcasing how our physical differences are truly our gifts.

For Marlow: The absolute dream, ideal casting for this multi-layered character is Zendaya. Unique in her loveliness both inside and out, she personifies how the standard for what we consider “beautiful” has changed. There’s something enigmatic about her and it’s hard to picture anyone else as close to the character as her.

For Isla: This character requires someone who can be both understated and then unexpectedly brash. Ashley Park has that persona. I’ve seen her play bold roles like Emily In Paris, and more subtle yet powerful ones like Naomi in Beef. She’s so fiercely talented and it would be amazing to see her take on this complex role.

Visit Ellen Won Steil's website.

--Marshal Zeringue

Molly MacRae's "Come Shell or High Water"

Molly MacRae spent twenty years in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains of Upper East Tennessee, where she managed The Book Place, an independent bookstore; may it rest in peace. Before the lure of books hooked her, she was curator of the history museum in Jonesborough, Tennessee’s oldest town.

MacRae lives with her family in Champaign, Illinois, where she recently retired from connecting children with books at the public library.

Here MacRae dreamcasts an adaptation of her latest novel, Come Shell or High Water:

Professional storyteller and mollusk biologist Maureen Nash sees narrative cues woven through her life. Like the series of letters addressed to her late husband from a stranger—the owner of The Moon Shell, a shop on Ocracoke Island off the coast of North Carolina. The store is famous among shell collectors, but it’s the cryptic letters from shop owner Allen Withrow that convince Maureen to travel to the small island at the tail end of a hurricane.

In Maureen’s first hours on Ocracoke, she averts several life-threatening accidents, stumbles over a body, and meets the ghost of an eighteenth-century Welsh pirate, Emrys Lloyd. To the untrained eye, these unusual occurrences would seem to be random misfortunes, but Maureen senses there may be something connecting these stories. With Emrys’s supernatural assistance, and the support of a few new friends, Maureen sets out to unravel the truth, find a killer, and hopefully give the tale a satisfying ending . . . while also rewriting her own.

Winona Ryder will make a fine Maureen Nash. Maureen, in her early fifties, has an adventurous streak, a love for jokes and puns, and a healthy fear of unhealthy situations like being in a sinking boat surrounded by sharks. While practical, she’s also prone to flights of fancy. Ryder has a wide range of talents and proved, in Beetlejuice, that she can hold her own with a ghost.

There are other actors who might play Emrys Lloyd, the ghost, but I can’t think of anyone better than Adam Driver. Emrys died in 1750 at age thirty-seven. He claims he didn’t mean to be a pirate, only did it once, and it didn’t end well. He has a beautiful tenor and a bit of an ego. Can’t you picture Driver in a tricorn hat, full-skirted knee-length coat, waistcoat, knee breeches, stockings, and buckles shoes? If he can do a Welsh accent, he’s got the part.

British actor Miriam Margolyes (Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries, several Harry Potter movies, etc.) and the late Wilford Brimley will play siblings Glady and Burt Weaver. Glady and Burt spend a lot of time arguing with each other, correcting each other, and confusing Maureen by answering her direct questions with somewhat adjacent answers. But they like Maureen and decide to help her solve the murder, even though they don’t seem to trust her (and vice versa).

Frances McDormand is National Park Ranger Patricia Crowley. Patricia always looks unruffled and in control when she’s in uniform. On her days off, in civies, she admits she becomes “a mass of Sturm und Drang.” In the book, Patricia is in her early 50s, and National Park Rangers are required by law to retire at fifty-seven, but who cares. McDormand will be fabulous.

Dr. Irving Allred, the island physician, believes he sees “tokens of death” before people die. He’d also dearly love to see – or catch – a ghost. At best he’s a snoop and a quack. If Wayne Knight is available, he’ll be the perfect Allred.

To bring this movie to life, I’ll approach Nigel Cole who directed Saving Grace (2000, Brenda Blethyn, Craig Ferguson), Calendar Girls (2003, Helen Mirren, Judy Walters), and many episodes of the British TV series Doc Martin. Cole is great at bringing out the subtle humor in situations and he knows how to film a setting so that it becomes a character too. Mr. Cole, if you’d like a new project, may we talk over lunch?

Visit Molly MacRae's website.

My Book, The Movie: Plaid and Plagiarism.

The Page 69 Test: Plaid and Plagiarism.

The Page 69 Test: Scones and Scoundrels.

My Book, The Movie: Scones and Scoundrels.

The Page 69 Test: Crewel and Unusual.

The Page 69 Test: Heather and Homicide.

Q&A with Molly MacRae.

Writers Read: Molly MacRae.

The Page 69 Test: Come Shell or High Water.

--Marshal Zeringue

Derek Milman's "A Darker Mischief"

Derek Milman is the author of Scream All Night and Swipe Right for Murder. A graduate of Yale Drama School, Milman has performed on stages across the country, and appeared in numerous TV shows and films, working with two Academy Award-winning film directors. He lives in Brooklyn.

Here Milman shares some ideas for an on-screen adaptation of his new novel, A Darker Mischief:

Well, A Darker Mischief is YA, and it features teenagers, and while sometimes I do occasionally think of actors, I haven't much in this case, as I'm not familiar with too many teenage actors, and the ones I've seen I can't quite see in this world.

In terms of directors, I think that's the easier route for me. I can see Italian film director Luca Guadagnino returning to his queer roots and taking a shot at this, if he can nail the atmosphere and not chop up the narrative. Within that same theme, I feel similarly to Gus Van Sant, going back to his Private Idaho days. Sofia Coppola would dream up a gloriously stylized world, which an adaptation would need, but I haven't seen her take on queer characters. What might be interesting is to blow up the staid world of the boarding school a little bit and bring in Harmony Korine who did Spring Breakers as I think that would lend a gust of neon-saturated punk to an adaptation which could work very well, since this is a fairly edgy book.

The actors from Euphoria are probably getting a bit old, but if they could play American actors, casting directors could source actors from three popular teen shows that are also queer-centered within the teenage zeitgeist: Heartstopper, Elite, and Young Royals.

Visit Derek Milman's website.

My Book, The Movie: Scream All Night.

The Page 69 Test: Swipe Right for Murder.

My Book, The Movie: Swipe Right for Murder.

Q&A with Derek Milman.

The Page 69 Test: A Darker Mischief.

--Marshal Zeringue