Kim DeRose's "For Girls Who Walk through Fire"

Kim DeRose writes dark, magical stories about strong, magical girls.

She grew up in Santa Barbara, California, where she spent childhood summers reading books and writing stories (which she was convinced her local bookstore would publish). She now lives in New York City, where she spends all seasons reading books and writing stories.

DeRose earned her MFA in film directing from UCLA, and currently works in digital media.

When she’s not reading or writing she can be found listening to podcasts on long walks, drinking endless cups of coffee, and spending time with her family.

Here DeRose dreamcasts an adaptation of For Girls Who Walk Through Fire, her debut novel:

My YA novel, For Girls Who Walk Through Fire, was pitched as The Craft meets Promising Young Woman and has been called “a searing examination of sexual assault centering teen witches who fight back” by Kirkus Reviews and described as a “bold and compassionate debut” by Booklist.

Now, you might think that because two films were used as comparative titles, and because I earned an MFA in film directing, I thought about this book as a movie all along. But while, when writing, I did often visualize the book’s scenes almost as if they were film scenes, I rarely considered how I’d approach the book as an actual film.

Until now! And I have opinions!

First off is our pink-haired, fearless coven leader and protagonist, Elliott. And this one is easy. Hands down, my dreamcasting would be Jenna Ortega. I love her in Wednesday and loved her in The Fallout. And while Elliott is white in the book, I’d love the movie’s casting to be more expansive by making her Latina or bi-racial. Jenna Ortega would absolutely nail this part.

Elliott’s dad is also easy. My dreamcasting? Pedro Pascal. We’ve seen him play the dad figure in The Last of Us and Mandalorian, but I want to see him play an actual dad. Right? Right?!?

For straightlaced Catholic schoolgirl, Madeline, Kiernan Shipka from Sabrina the Teenage Witch would be fantastic. She could really capture Madeline’s outer type-A, prima ballerina persona, as well as her internal fire and fierce strength.

For private-school socialite Chloe, I’d love to see what Ella Jay Bosco from Birds of Prey would do with the part. I really like her comedic instincts. And because she’s such a talented musician, it would be great if that was somehow leveraged in the movie – let’s make Chloe a songwriter!

For quiet Oboe player and track-star, Bea, Storm Reid of A Wrinkle in Time, The Last of Us, and Euphoria would do such a superb job. She brings such nuance and strength to her roles and could really capture Bea’s thoughtfulness as well as the many layers that exist under Bea’s seemingly quiet demeanor.

I think Keiko Agena from Gilmore Girls would be wonderful as Mary, the support group leader. I would definitely buy her as a positive, supportive force in teens’ lives.

And for Prudence, Elliott’s grandma, I would die of joy if she was played by either Kathy Bates or Dianne Wiest.

As far as directors go, I would obviously want a female director. There are four who would be absolute dream directors: Emerald Fennell, who directed Promising Young Woman, Greta Gerwig, who directed Barbie, Sarah Polley, who directed Women Talking, and Oliva Wilde, who directed Don’t Worry, Darling.

Lastly, music is a huge part of the book so I would really want a great soundtrack that makes use of all the 90’s songs Elliott listens to. But there’s one catch: I want all the songs to be performed by women. That obviously means including songs by Tori Amos, Bjork, Fiona Apple, PJ Harvey, and Alanis Morrisette. But I’d love to hear someone like Karen O do a cover of “Give it Away” by Red Hot Chili Peppers, or Sharon Van Etten do a cover of “Come as You Are” by Nirvana. And while this song isn’t mentioned in the book, I really want a gender-flipped female performed version of “Used to Love Her” by Guns N’ Roses. (Also, now that I’ve said that I dare you to get that fictional version of the song out of your head.)

Visit Kim DeRose's website.

Q&A with Kim DeRose.

The Page 69 Test: For Girls Who Walk through Fire.

--Marshal Zeringue

Paula Munier's "Home at Night"

Paula Munier is a literary agent and the USA TODAY bestselling author of the Mercy Carr mysteries. A Borrowing of Bones, the first in the series, was nominated for the Mary Higgins Clark Award and named the Dogwise Book of the Year. The sequel Blind Search, inspired by the real-life rescue of a little boy with autism who got lost in the woods, was followed by The Hiding Place in 2021 and The Wedding Plot in 2022.

Here Munier dreamcasts an adaptation of her new Mercy Carr mystery, Home at Night:

In my Mercy Carr series, former MP Mercy and her bomb-sniffing dog Elvis team up with game warden Troy Warner and his search-and-rescue dog Susie Bear to solve mysteries in the Vermont wilderness. My heroine Mercy is a smart, fierce redhead; Rose Leslie, who played Ygritte on Game of Thrones, would be perfect. My hero Troy Warner is the stand-up guy you can count on in every emergency, the boy next door who’s more at home in the woods than in town, protector of forest and family alike. Luke Grimes (Yellowstone, American Sniper) has the right look; he’d wear the uniform of a game warden well.

In Home at Night, it’s Halloween and Mercy needs a bigger place to accommodate her growing menagerie of two- and four-legged friends before winter comes. Grackle Tree Farm seems perfect, with its thirty acres of woods and wetlands and a Victorian manor to die for—even when they tell her it’s haunted and Elvis finds a dead body in the library. Setting a book at Halloween allowed me to introduce a lively supporting cast of characters, including lost poets and missing children and Druids and ghost witches. I’d cast as Sir Patrick Stewart as the head Druid, a wise if eccentric leader. The ethereal Anya Taylor-Joy would make the perfect ghost witch, who's an apparition…or is she more?

Lee Child once described my writing as “a compelling mix of hard edges and easy charm” and if that’s true—and I’d like to think that it is—then I think the perfect director for Home at Night would be Patty Jenkins, who’s directed such amazing female-driven films as Wonder Woman and Monster, not to mention the pilot for one of my favorite shows of all time The Killing. She would understand Mercy Carr and make the most of the Ghost Witch of Grackle Tree.

Visit Paula Munier's website.

Coffee with a Canine: Paula Munier & Bear.

My Book, The Movie: A Borrowing of Bones.

The Page 69 Test: A Borrowing of Bones.

My Book, The Movie: Blind Search.

The Page 69 Test: Blind Search.

My Book, The Movie: The Hiding Place.

The Page 69 Test: The Hiding Place.

Q&A with Paula Munier.

My Book, The Movie: The Wedding Plot.

The Page 69 Test: The Wedding Plot.

Writers Read: Paula Munier.

--Marshal Zeringue

Allison Epstein's "Let the Dead Bury the Dead"

Allison Epstein earned her MFA in fiction from Northwestern University and a BA in creative writing from the University of Michigan. A Michigan native, she now lives in Chicago, where she works as an editor. When not writing, she enjoys good theater, bad puns, and fancy jackets. She is the author of historical novels including A Tip for the Hangman, Let the Dead Bury the Dead, and the forthcoming Our Rotten Hearts.

Here Epstein dreamcasts an adaptation of Let the Dead Bury the Dead:

My book Let the Dead Bury the Dead follows four central characters through the streets, palaces, and battles of 19th-century Saint Petersburg. It's an alternate-history, fantasy-adjacent story of unlikely allies drawn together by a popular revolution bubbling against the tsar—and by Sofia, the mysterious woman at the center of it all.

Sofia is the only character I pictured as an actor while writing: Anya Taylor-Joy. She has the perfect mix of ethereal beauty and spooky otherworldliness. Is she an ancient spirit with shape-shifting capabilities? Who's to say. She's gorgeous and I'm afraid of her, which is exactly Sofia's vibe. (I hope Anya Taylor-Joy takes this as the sincere compliment I mean it to be.) I didn't mentally cast my other three central characters, but I'm always game to try!

First, there's Felix, the dissolute grand duke who unexpectedly joins up with a popular revolution. The perfect person to play Felix is Michael Sheen circa 1998, which is an annoying answer but a true one. Felix starts the book as a playboy who thrives on attention, and one of my prime delights in life is watching Michael Sheen chew the scenery in roles like this. But the actor would have to convey the pain of keeping up a bright, sociable facade while everything you care about in life crashes around your ears. Michael could do this gorgeously.

Then, there's Marya, the headstrong co-leader of the revolutionary collective. For her, I'm seeing Stephanie Hsu, who by the way needs to be cast in everything as soon as the actor's strike is over. Marya walks a razor's edge between kind, supportive friend and ruthless, determined warrior, and Stephanie Hsu has this quiet, self-possessed cool that I think would really convey that. Plus Marya and Stephanie both feel approachable in a way that I think would play super interestingly against Anya's forest-spirit vibe.

Finally, there's Sasha, the soldier who has to weigh his devotion to his country against his love for Felix. I'm saying Dev Patel for one of the silliest possible reasons: they have the same face. This wasn't intentional on my part, but I can't unsee it. Besides, Sasha's character is all about the flashes of emotion that dart through the walls he puts up between himself and the world, and I can picture Dev playing with those subtleties to build a character that's both attractive and deeply frustrating. Also I want more period dramas where Dev Patel wears cool coats and broods.

Visit Allison Epstein's website.

My Book, The Movie: A Tip for the Hangman.

The Page 69 Test: A Tip for the Hangman.

Q&A with Allison Epstein.

--Marshal Zeringue

Paul Vidich's "Beirut Station: Two Lives of a Spy"

Paul Vidich's new novel is Beirut Station: Two Lives of a Spy. His previous novel, The Mercenary, was selected by CrimeReads as one of the top 10 espionage novels of 2021. His debut novel, An Honorable Man, was selected by Publishers Weekly as a Top 10 Mystery and Thriller in 2016. It was followed by The Good Assassin. His third novel, The Coldest Warrior, was widely praised in England and America, earning strong reviews from The Wall Street Journal and The Financial Times. It was shortlisted for the UK’s Staunch Prize and chosen as a Notable Selection of 2020 by CrimeReads.

Here Vidich dreamcasts an adaptation of Beirut Station:

Beirut Station is set in Lebanon and evokes the crossroads of that Lebanon has always been – first as a Roman outpost, part of the Ottoman Empire until the end of World War I, and then French until it earned its independence. It has always had a mix of Europe and the Middle East and its characters, in any film, need to reflect that.

Analise Assad, the non-official cover CIA case officer, should be played by Zineb Triki, the French Moroccan actress from The Bureau, who played the part of Nadia El Mansour.

Corbin, the journalist in the novel, is a handsome man with an honest face and a duplicitous mind, and I would cast Damian Lewis, who played Kim Philby’s good friend in the TV show, A Spy Among Friends.

Gal, the elderly Mossad agent, should be played by Lee Strasberg, if he were alive, or Eli Wallach.

Bauman, the avenging Mossad agent, should be played by the wonderful Israeli actor, Lior Raz, who always seems wound with anger in his roles.

Visit Paul Vidich's website.

Q&A with Paul Vidich.

My Book, The Movie: The Mercenary.

The Page 69 Test: The Mercenary.

The Page 69 Test: The Matchmaker: A Spy in Berlin.

Writers Read: Paul Vidich.

--Marshal Zeringue

Gwen Florio's "Best Be Prepared"

Gwen Florio grew up in a farmhouse filled with books and a ban on television. After studying English at the University of Delaware, she began a decades-long career in journalism that has taken her around the country and to more than a dozen other countries, including several conflict zones. Her first novel in the Lola Wicks mystery series, Montana, won the Pinckley Prize for Crime Fiction and the High Plains Book Award, and was a finalist for the Shamus Award, an International Thriller Award and a Silver Falchion Award. She has since released four other books in the Lola Wicks series and three standalone novels.

Here Florio dreamcasts the lead in an adaptation of her new novel, Best Be Prepared, the fourth book in the Nora Best series:

I didn’t have to think twice when asked who might play the lead in Best Be Prepared, the fourth in my series featuring protagonist Nora Best.

Hands down, it’s Reese Witherspoon.

First – and this is no small thing – she's age-appropriate. (OK, almost. Witherspoon is 47; Nora Best is 50. Close enough.)

When starting this series, I deliberately chose an older woman as a way to highlight the unexpected freedom many women find in middle age. Nora herself is childless, but many women in that age range are empty nesters, relieved of the most time-consuming aspects of parenting. One of the things I enjoy about writing this series is watching Nora discover that freedom and the new agency that comes with it.

Witherspoon also manages the nifty trick of projecting both strength and vulnerability. Again, this works well for Nora, who constantly questions her own reactions and decisions, especially under pressure from others.

Nora’s instincts – in Best Be Prepared, her suspicions that the death of a local environmentalist is far from accidental – are sound. But she’s the only one in their Northwest Pacific coastal community who seems to think so. Some of the strongest pressure for her to drop her inquiries comes from her new boyfriend, who’d prefer she focus on their relationship.

Nora’s torn: her previous marriage was a disaster, and she treasures this seemingly healthy new involvement. But … but …

At this point, I can see Witherspoon’s brow wrinkle.

What’s her next move? Will she bestow a radiant – if a little forced – smile upon the boyfriend?

Or will she square her shoulders and trust herself?

That’s the dilemma driving Best Be Prepared, both for Nora and the larger community as it grapples with the issue of development versus tsunami safety measures.

A final argument for Witherspoon, one seemingly unrelated to the book. But it’s why she’d shoot to the top of my list even if she weren’t so perfect for this part: her championship of books and reading.

Her choices for her book club are whip-smart – an assessment probably based on the fact that her wide-ranging and diverse selections are routinely among my favorites.

So, Reese Witherspoon. Because a writer can dream.

Visit Gwen Florio's website.

Coffee with a Canine: Gwen Florio & Nell.

Q&A with Gwen Florio.

The Page 69 Test: Best Be Prepared.

--Marshal Zeringue

William Dameron's "The Way Life Should Be"

William Dameron is an award winning blogger, memoirist, essayist and the author of The LIE, A Memoir of Two Marriages, Catfishing & Coming Out. His work has appeared in The New York Times, The Boston Globe, Salon, The Huffington Post, and in the book, Fashionably Late: Gay, Bi and Trans Men Who Came Out Later in Life. He is an IT Director for a global economic consulting firm, where he educates users on the perils of social engineering in cybersecurity. Dameron, his husband, and blended family of five children split their time between Boston and the coast of southern Maine.

Here he dreamcasts an adaptation of his new novel, The Way Life Should Be:

As Down East Magazine put it, my novel The Way Life Should Be "is a sprawling, occasionally ribald, often moving meditation on how people who love each other can overcome uncertainty and shame — and on how the consistency of the places we love, like funky Maine beach towns, can set the stage for healing." The ensemble cast includes three generations of a family perched on the coast of Maine for one summer, attempting to make a place for everyone and heal old wounds. These are nuanced characters who balance humor with poignancy, and to explore each character's growth fully, I envision it as a limited series. Not only do I imagine it as a limited series, I am writing it as one, and this is where the fun begins.

A writer's job is to utilize the medium they are working in to its fullest potential. In a novel, the writer can explore "interiority," the characters' unspoken thoughts, but dialogue and action must carry the story in a screenplay. As I write my script and study others (This is Us, Euphoria, Little Miss Sunshine), my characters' voices are becoming fine-tuned, and I am learning to hone mine.

So, who gets top billing? I turn to other ensemble series and actors that I admire. Murray Bartlett from The White Lotus and The Last of Us displays vulnerability in a way that would bring doubting Thomas to life. Jennifer Aniston is a shoo-in to play Annie, the sister searching for the type of love her brother Matt and Thomas found with each other later in life. In a very Meta way, Jennifer Aniston is Annie's alter ego in the novel. Think of John Malkovich playing John Malkovich. I would love to see Maggie Smith tackle the darkly comedic and complicated Grammy. Sweet, wonderful, Matt? That's the toughest one. How do I cast an actor in a role that I can only see my husband performing? (He would never go for it). I ask my readers for help, but perhaps in another Meta twist, Matt Bomer?

The third generation in the novel presents opportunities for young actors like Jenny Ortega from Wednesday as Bex, who rescues everyone but herself. Jacob Elordi from Euphoria is the handsome lifeguard Conor, who plays a dangerous game of Kiss or Slap. Sydney Sweeney from The White Lotus is coolly popular Abbie, refusing to call her father Dad in order to protect her heart. In a twist, Timothée Chalamet is neurodivergent Brian, who sees everything the others do not.

I have been told that it is nearly impossible to break into Hollywood, but I have been told my entire life who I was unable to be and what I was unable to do, and yet at 43, I came out, married my husband at 47, published my memoir at 55 and my first novel at 60. For me, this is when the fun begins. This is—finally, the way life should be.

Visit William Dameron's website.

--Marshal Zeringue

Jamie Lee Sogn's "Salthouse Place"

Jamie Lee Sogn is a Filipina American author of adult thriller novels. She grew up in Olympia, Washington, studied Anthropology and Psychology at the University of Washington and received her Juris Doctor from the University of Oregon School of Law.

She is a "recovering attorney" who writes contracts by day and (much more exciting) fiction by night. While she has lived in Los Angeles, New York City, and even Eugene, Oregon, she now lives in Seattle with her husband, son, and Boston Terrier.

Here Sogn dreamcasts an adaptation of her debut novel, Salthouse Place:

In my novel, Salthouse Place, Delia and her friends, Zee and Cara are two carefree teenagers. One summer day, the three best friends go to the lake…but only two come home.

Ten years later, Delia is still tormented by the mystery of what happened to fifteen-year-old Zee on the lake that day. When she receives an email from Cara, the remaining friend in the trio, she can’t resist the pull of the “life-changing” news in the message. Delia, hopeful for answers, travels home to see her old friend. But Cara is gone by the time she gets there, setting off another mystery. When Delia hears about the women’s empowerment group that Cara joined, she sets out for the group’s retreat property on the Oregon coast to find her and meets the enigmatic and mysterious Sage, the leader of the company, Artemis Wellness.

As I wrote the book, the only character I had already “cast” in my head was Sage and it was Rosamund Pike. I think she can have an intense look about her, but at the same time have an ability to be both warm and trusting. With a blunt blond bob and some yoga leggings and prayer beads, she is Sage come to life.

For Delia, I would love a biracial Filipina to play her, so I instantly think of Olivia Rodrigo. She might be a little young, but I think she could portray the sarcasm and distrust that Delia often exudes. Also, I just love her!

While we are “dreamcasting”, I might as well dream big and cast Zendaya as Zee, who’s disappearance kicks off the entire mystery. She’s an amazing actress and would do one of my favorite characters in the book more than justice.

For Cara, who is the third friend in the trio, I would cast Lili Reinhart. She is very much a girl-next-door type who could be both fragile and vulnerable, but biting and believable as a “frenemy” as well.

The main love interest for Delia is Tom, Cara’s brother. While writing him, I didn’t have an actor in mind, but I did have a photo of a random male model who I thought was a great image for what I thought Tom would look like. Now I think Jeremy Allen White would be a perfect choice-- he’s brooding and charismatic all at once.

Finally, Sage’s brother and co-founder of Artemis Wellness is Everett. He never actually appears in the novel, but in a movie, I think there would be some flashbacks and backstory with him and Sage. For Everett, I would cast Jeremy Strong. For no other reason than I am still getting over the Succession ending.

Visit Jamie Lee Sogn's website.

Q&A with Jamie Lee Sogn.

--Marshal Zeringue

Brian Carso's "Gideon's Revolution"

Brian Carso, a lawyer and historian, has studied the American Revolution and the life of Benedict Arnold for more than two decades.

Here Carso dreamcasts an adaptation of Gideon's Revolution, his first novel:

Gideon’s Revolution is based on true events, an actual secret mission launched by George Washington to capture Benedict Arnold following his treason at West Point in 1780. It would make a great movie, so here are my thoughts about actors to play the two central characters.

To play Gideon Wheatley, the story’s central character and narrator, I looked at the long list of actors who have played Hamlet on stage, because Wheatley has a problem not unlike the Prince of Denmark’s. Wheatley’s intelligence, courage, and empathy make him highly capable in life and in battle, but, when he sets out to capture Arnold—which would surely result in the traitor’s execution—these same virtues muddy the clarity he needs to accomplish his mission.

The first time Wheatley sees Arnold, the general is on horseback, courageously leading soldiers into battle at Saratoga. When both Wheatley and Arnold are wounded, Wheatley discovers the secrets of Arnold’s personal history that reveal the general’s vulnerability. Over several months, Wheatley becomes Arnold’s close confidante and friend.

It's because of this familiarity with Arnold that, three years later, Wheatley is chosen for the spy mission to capture the treasonous general. Indeed, Arnold will readily trust Wheatley and not recognize his ulterior motive. Gideon Wheatley despises Arnold the traitor, but he has known Arnold the hero, and the bond he once had with the general complicates his task.

With this in mind, having considered the actors who have played Hamlet, I’ve made my choice. I’ll cast a different Benedict—Cumberbatch, to be precise—to play Gideon Wheatley.

Who should be cast as Benedict Arnold? By no account did Arnold have movie-star looks; he has been described as “stoutly made, with a ruddy complexion.” I could envision Paul Giamatti in the role (who, incidentally, I once saw play Hamlet at the Yale Repertory Theatre), but I’m not entirely convinced. On the one hand, Arnold should look physically ordinary, but also have the ability to switch on a mad passion as he charges on horseback across a battlefield, and a smoldering anger at feeling cheated, such that he would abandon all principle to stick it to his detractors. Additionally, he must show an occasional vulnerability, for the moments we see into the tragedies of his early teenage years that most likely caused the defects of his character.

My pick? Despite his 2021 selection as People Magazine’s “Sexiest Man Alive,” (which doesn’t work at all for Arnold) I’m ready to contact Paul Rudd’s agent. I’m casting against type, but I see something we can work with in his current portrayal of Ben Glenroy in the TV show, Only Murders in the Building. Makeup can handle the “ruddy complexion,” and padding in the costume can be “stoutly made.” Ant-Man as Arnold, anyone?

Postscript: my wife isn’t buying it. She says Leonardo DiCaprio should be cast as Arnold. Maybe she has a point. In any event, Liam Neeson as George Washington, all the way. And Daisy Ridley (Rey in the Star Wars sequels) as the young English woman, Louisa Baxter.

Visit Brian Carso's website.

Q&A with Brian Carso.

--Marshal Zeringue

Deborah J Ledford's "Redemption"

Deborah J Ledford is the award-winning author of the Native American Eva “Lightning Dance” Duran Series, and the Smoky Mountain Inquest Series. Part Eastern Band Cherokee, she is an Agatha Award winner, The Hillerman Sky Award Finalist, and two-time Anthony Award Finalist for Best Audiobooks Crescendo and Causing Chaos. Ledford lives in Phoenix, Arizona with her husband and an awesome Ausky.

Here Ledford dreamcasts an adaptation of Redemption, Book 1 of the Eva “Lightning Dance” Duran Native American series:

Native American themes are hot right now and there is a wealth of captivating talent who are finding exposure in film and other platforms they have long deserved.

Eva “Lightning Dance” Duran - Lily Gladstone. The movie I’m most looking forward to is Killers of the Flower Moon, also starring Leonardo DiCaprio and directed by Martin Scorsese. Ms. Gladstone’s other performances prove the prowess to convey the vulnerability and yet capability of the only Native female deputy for the Taos County sheriff’s department.

Kai “Single Star” Arrio - Jerry Wolf. Also appearing in Killers of the Flower Moon, this up and coming actor is one I look forward to watching his star rise.

Paloma “White Dove” Arrio - Julia Jones, best known for Wind River, Westworld, The Mandalorian and The Twilight Saga.

Cruz “Hawk Soars” Miraba - David Midthunder. As Eva’s love interest and tribal officer Midthunder holds the essence of the calm and qualified, necessary skills in maintaining harmony on the Taos Pueblo reservation.

More books are slated to continue the series, therefore a limited series would be ideal as well.

Visit Deborah J Ledford's website.

Q&A with Deborah J Ledford.

The Page 69 Test: Redemption.

--Marshal Zeringue

Kathleen Rooney's "From Dust to Stardust"

Kathleen Rooney is a founding editor of Rose Metal Press, a nonprofit publisher of literary work in hybrid genres, as well as a founding member of Poems While You Wait, a team of poets and their typewriters who compose commissioned poetry on demand. She teaches in the English Department at DePaul University, and her recent books include the national best-seller Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk (2017) and the novel Cher Ami and Major Whittlesey (2020). Where Are the Snows, her latest poetry collection, was chosen by Kazim Ali for the X.J. Kennedy Prize and published by Texas Review Press in Fall 2022.

Here Rooney dreamcasts an adaptation of her new novel, From Dust to Stardust:

What’s funny is that the real-life person (Colleen Moore) that the heroine (Doreen O’Dare) of my novel From Dust to Stardust is based on is herself the real-life inspiration of the oft remade Hollywood classic A Star Is Born.

During the silent era, Colleen was good friends with Hearst reporter and screenwriter Adela Rogers St. Johns who wrote the script for the 1932 pre-Code drama What Price Hollywood? directed by George Cukor and starring Constance Bennett and Lowell Sherman. St. Johns based the story loosely on Colleen’s marriage to the alcoholic producer John McCormick who helped her become the star she always wanted to be but also made her life miserable through his addiction and erratic behavior.

St. Johns’ script inspired the original 1937 A Star Is Born starring Janet Gaynor, which has gone on to be remade three times, including in 1954 with Judy Garland, in 1976 with Barbra Streisand, and most recently in 2018 with Lady Gaga.

If From Dust to Stardust gets adapted into a movie, I’d cast Saoirse Ronan as Doreen O’Dare for her skill in period dramas and for her ability to convey so much intelligence in addition to whatever other emotions she’s communicating. And I’d cast Nicholas Hoult as Jack Flanagan for his combination of energy and charm mixed with a slight air of instability. My dream director would be Greta Gerwig.

Visit Kathleen Rooney's website.

The Page 99 Test: Live Nude Girl.

The Page 99 Test: For You, for You I Am Trilling These Songs.

My Book, The Movie: For You, for You I Am Trilling These Songs.

My Book, The Movie: Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk.

The Page 69 Test: Cher Ami and Major Whittlesey.

My Book, The Movie: Cher Ami and Major Whittlesey.

The Page 69 Test: Where Are the Snows.

The Page 69 Test: From Dust to Stardust.

--Marshal Zeringue