Gary Corby's "The Marathon Conspiracy"

Gary Corby is the author of the Athenian Mystery series, starring Nicolaos, his girlfriend Diotima, and his irritating twelve year old brother Socrates.

The books in order are The Pericles Commission, The Ionia Sanction, Sacred Games and The Marathon Conspiracy.

Here Corby dreamcasts an adaptation of The Marathon Conspiracy:

The big problem with casting The Marathon Conspiracy is the bear. Yes, it’s a giant brown bear. It’s also one of the suspects. There’s bound to be someone who supplies giant brown bears for movies, but I don’t know who it is. We must hope the bear doesn’t eat the other actors.

The Marathon Conspiracy takes place at the Sanctuary of Artemis at Brauron, which was the world’s first official school for girls. That means we need some schoolgirls. I’ll cast my daughters and their friends. I think they’d enjoy the experience.

I believe it was W.C. Fields who said, “Never work with animals or children.” Since the The Marathon Conspiracy is well stocked for both, I think it only fair that we cast him for a role. I’ll give him the role of Pericles.

For Socrates, I think I’ll cast Socrates. The rules do allow me to use anyone from any time!

For Nico and Diotima, my hero and heroine detectives, I’ll have Daniel Radcliffe, who against all my expectations has turned out to be a for-real actor; and Natalia Tena, who did a good job as Tonks in Harry Potter.

Visit Gary Corby's blog.

Writers Read: Gary Corby.

The Page 69 Test: The Marathon Conspiracy.

--Marshal Zeringue

Donis Casey's "Hell With the Lid Blown Off"

Donis Casey is the author of seven Alafair Tucker Mysteries, The Old Buzzard Had It Coming, Hornswoggled, The Drop Edge of Yonder, The Sky Took Him, Crying Blood, The Wrong Hill to Die On, and Hell With the Lid Blown Off. The award-winning series, featuring the sleuthing mother of ten children, is set in Oklahoma and Arizona during the booming 1910s.

Here Casey dreamcasts an adaptation of Hell With the Lid Blown Off, which deals with murder near the small Oklahoma town of Boynton after a killer tornado sweeps through in the summer of 1916:

My sleuth, Alafair Tucker, is a woman in her early forties, who lives with her husband Shaw and their ten children on a prosperous farm in Oklahoma in the early part of the Twentieth Century. She never sets out to solve murders, but all those pesky kids keep getting involved in unsavory situations and need their mother to get them out of trouble. Fortunately for me, Alafair is the kind of woman who will literally do anything, legal or not so legal, for her kids.

Many of the details of Alafair’s life on the farm, such as using kerosine-soaked corn cobs to start a fire, come from my mother, who grew up on a farm during the Depression. Many of the incidents related actually happened, both in my family and my husband’s (the less savory ones, he points out).

I made a point of not physically describing my main character, Alafair, except in generalities, even though I have a clear picture of her in my head. After seven books, a few details about her appearance have slipped out. She has dark hair that she can’t do anything with. She has dark eyes and a sun-browned complexion. She’s middle-sized. I didn’t create Alafair or any of the other characters with actors in mind. Alafair and her family are all based on friends or relatives of mine, living and dead.

But that doesn’t keep readers from casting my movie for me.

One fan of the series suggested to me that Alafair should be played by Kathy Bates. Not two weeks later, another woman thought Joan Allen would be a good Alafair. That certainly runs the gamut of physical types. I’d be thrilled to have either of these actresses play Alafair. However, not to put too fine a point on it, they’re both too old. Sandra Bullock is closer to Alafair’s age, though considering that Alafair is a farm wife with many kids, Sandy would have to be deglamorized quite a bit. Of course, if Meryl Streep would agree to the part, that would suit me just fine, no matter how old she is.

Alafair’s husband, Shaw, is one-quarter Cherokee, six feet tall, hazel eyed, with black hair and a floppy mustache. Sounds just like Burt Reynolds or Tom Selleck in his prime. However, Shaw has a certain straightforward, honest, Western sensibility that reminds me of parts I have seen played by Matt Damon or Matthew McConnaughey. Two blonds who’d need a dye job to portray Shaw, but they’re about the right age. If George Clooney is looking to expand his repertoire, I’d be willing to give him a shot at it.

Jubal Beldon, the villain/victim in Hell, hardly has a redeemable feature and is pretty creepy-looking, too, rather like Giovanni Ribisi’s weirdly calculating backwoodsman in Cold Mountain. But I vote for Tim Roth as Jubal. He was a fabulous villain in Rob Roy--heartless, smart, yet with a hint of wistfulness.

It’s good for a writer to keep in mind that once your work is out of your hands, the characters aren’t yours any more. They’re the reader’s. So I leave it to the readers to cast red-headed Trent, exuberant Wallace, mysterious Randal, Miz Beckie, and all those lively Tucker children and members of the extended Tucker family. Except for Grandma Sally, that is. I’ll play her myself.

Visit Donis Casey's website.

Writers Read: Donis Casey.

The Page 69 Test: Hell with the Lid Blown Off.

--Marshal Zeringue

Michael A. Kahn's "Face Value"

A trial lawyer by day, Michael A. Kahn is the award-winning author of ten novels and several short stories. His new novel, Face Value (Poisoned Pen Press), is the ninth in his Rachel Gold mystery series.

Here Kahn dreamcasts an adaptation of Face Value:

Readers, friends, and relatives have been casting Rachel Gold and her brilliant, fat, and crude best friend Benny Goldberg since they first appeared 25 years ago in The Canaan Legacy. Back then, many suggested that Rachel be played by Amy Irving (who’d starred in a few films in the 1980s), and that Benny be played by John Candy (as a stand-in for John Belushi, who had died earlier that decade). Over the years, Amy’s career has faded and John Candy sadly followed John Belushi into the grave.

Also over the years, two other recurring characters have emerged, namely, Sarah Gold, Rachel’s irrepressible Jewish mother, and Jacki Brand, the massive former steelworker who underwent a sex-change operation while working as Rachel’s secretary (and attending law school at night) and who is now a partner in Rachel’s law firm.

Here are my casting choices:

Rachel Gold: Everyone seems to have their own Rachel. My top two choices are Natalie Portman and Kate Winslet;

Benny Goldberg: Seth Rogan or Jonah Hill;

Sarah Gold: There are so many wonderful actresses over the age of 60 that this is a tough casting decision. How do you choose among Judi Dench, Meryl Streep, and Susan Sarandon? Each would be an awesome version of Sarah Gold. I think, though, I will opt for Jane Fonda. She could channel that feisty, no-nonsense personality of Sarah Gold that so exasperates her daughter and so endears her to readers.

Jacki Brand: This role requires a burly male actor in drag. A younger James Gandolfini would have been perfect, but he’s obviously no longer available. My first choice is Channing Tatum. If he’s not available and we are able to sign Jonah Hill to play Benny, then I’d opt for Seth Rogan, who’d look lovely in lipstick and heels.

Visit Michael A. Kahn's website.

Writer Read: Michael A. Kahn.

The Page 69 Test: Face Value.

--Marshal Zeringue

Daniel H. Wilson's "Robogenesis"

Daniel H. Wilson is the author of the New York Times bestselling Robopocalypse and seven other books, including How to Survive a Robot Uprising, A Boy and His Bot, and Amped. In 2008, he hosted The Works on the History Channel. He earned a PhD in Robotics from Carnegie Mellon University, as well as Masters degrees in Artificial Intelligence and Robotics.

Here Wilson dreamcasts an adaptation of his new novel, Robogenesis:

Robogenesis is a sequel to the bestselling Robopocalypse, which was purchased by DreamWorks and put into movie development hell with Steven Spielberg attached to direct. That was years ago, but I’m still hoping very hard that the movie moves forward. Chris Hemsworth was attached as Cormac Wallace, which sounds good to me (although in my mind, Cormac is not quite as Thor-like in his buffness). My most ardent hope, however, is that the dozens of Native American characters in Robogenesis (including Lark Iron Cloud, Hank Cotton, and Cherrah Ridge) will someday be played by native actors.

Learn more about the book and author at Daniel Wilson's website.

My Book, The Movie: A Boy and His Bot.

The Page 69 Test: Robopocalypse.

My Book, The Movie: Amped.

The Page 69 Test: Robogenesis.

--Marshal Zeringue

Lisa O'Donnell's "Closed Doors"

Lisa O'Donnell won the Orange Screenwriting Prize in 2000 for The Wedding Gift and, in the same year, was nominated for the Dennis Potter New Screenwriters Award. Her debut novel, The Death of Bees, was the winner of the 2013 Commonwealth Book Prize.

Here O'Donnell dreamcasts an adaptation of her new novel, Closed Doors:

Closed Doors has a lot of children in it and so I guess a director who is accustomed to working with children would be ideal. I am a big Jim Sheridan fan and I cite him all the time when asked this question. He works well with kids. My Left Foot, In America and Dream House. I also think Alan Parker would be equally amazing. Angela’s Ashes was an excellent interpretation of the book. Ideally you want a filmmaker who can take any kid and turn them into the characters created by the writer and that’s hard. Working with children isn’t easy.

I’d love Emily Watson to play Ma. Colm Meany to play Da and Phyllida Law to play Granny. I love her and we don’t see enough of her on screen. She’s from Glasgow and her performance in The Winter Guest where she plays opposite her daughter Emma Thompson is really special.

Learn more about the book and author at Lisa O'Donnell's website.

The Page 69 Test: The Death of Bees.

Writers Read: Lisa O'Donnell.

The Page 69 Test: Closed Doors.

--Marshal Zeringue

Mike Mullin’s "Sunrise"

Mike Mullin’s first job was scraping the gum off the undersides of desks at his high school. From there, things went steadily downhill. He almost got fired by the owner of a bookstore due to his poor taste in earrings. He worked at a place that showed slides of poopy diapers during lunch (it did cut down on the cafeteria budget). The hazing process at the next company included eating live termites raised by the resident entomologist, so that didn’t last long either. For a while Mullin juggled bottles at a wine shop, sometimes to disastrous effect. Oh, and then there was the job where swarms of wasps occasionally tried to chase him off ladders. So he’s really glad this writing thing seems to be working out.

Mullin holds a black belt in Songahm Taekwondo. He lives in Indianapolis with his wife and her three cats.

Here he shares some ideas for casting an adaptation of Sunrise, his third novel:

Since the last time I guest posted in this space, Ashfall has been optioned for development as a television series. However, casting the book is still a complete fantasy exercise for me—authors almost never get a voice in casting.

There’s a good reason not to include me in casting an Ashfall television series—I would be hopelessly bad at it. I watch very little television and only perhaps a dozen or so movies per year—I prefer to spend my time reading. So I had to turn to Twitter to get suggestions for this post.

For Alex, @seaofships suggested casting Nick Robinson.

And as Darla, @dahlia_lala proposed Maisie Williams.

There’s a small problem with their ages: Nick is 19 and Maisie is 15. In my books, of course, Darla is a year and a half older than Alex. But I suppose that is what I get for crowdsourcing the casting suggestions on Twitter. Who would you pick? Let me know on Twitter or Facebook.

Learn more about the book and author at Mike Mullin's website.

My Book, The Movie: Ashfall.

Writers Read: Mike Mullin.

The Page 69 Test: Sunrise.

--Marshal Zeringue

Jenny Milchman's "Ruin Falls"

Jenny Milchman's journey to publication took thirteen years, after which she hit the road for seven months with her family on what Shelf Awareness called "the world's longest book tour." Her debut novel, Cover of Snow, was chosen as an Indie Next and Target Pick, reviewed in the New York Times and San Francisco Journal of Books, won the Mary Higgins Clark award, and is nominated for a Barry. Milchman is also the founder of Take Your Child to a Bookstore Day and chair of International Thriller Writers' Debut Authors Program. Her second novel, Ruin Falls, just came out and she and her family are back on the road.

Here Milchman dreamcasts an adaptation of Ruin Falls:

Here’s the log line for Ruin Falls, the movie:

The hardest part isn’t losing everything you love. It’s getting it back.

This novel centers around Liz Daniels, a woman who at the beginning isn’t very strong. She lets herself be led by her husband…but she’s not going to have her husband around for very long. As soon as she doesn’t, she must become strong on her own. Call it a twist on girl meets boy.

Girl loses boy. Girl must find herself.

Since this movie would be basically carried by Liz, the role will require a very strong female lead. Charlize Theron, perhaps. Or maybe Jennifer Lawrence given a few years? And even though the husband won’t get a lot of screen time, he’s important enough that we need a good actor, one who will make every minute on screen count and not mind how few of them there are. Someone who's not a leading man, but is recognizable, like Hank Azaria, or a character actor who's name I don't remember...because he's a character actor.

Learn more about the book and author at Jenny Milchman's website.

My Book, The Movie: Cover of Snow.

The Page 69 Test: Cover of Snow.

Writers Read: Jenny Milchman.

The Page 69 Test: Ruin Falls.

--Marshal Zeringue

Eileen Brady's "Muzzled"

Eileen Brady is a veterinarian living in Scottsdale, Arizona. She is a wife and mother of two daughters and often has to chase her six cats and two dogs away from her laptop keyboard. The Kate Turner, DVM Mysteries is her first series.

Here Brady dreamcasts an adaptation of Muzzled, the first book in the series:

Piece of cake. I’d cast Meryl Streep as Dr. Kate Turner. When you read Muzzled you’ll know why. That’s Meryl at about 28 years old – think Kramer vs. Kramer. For Luke Gianetti, the handsome but out of reach (for now) police officer who is studying for his law degree, I’d like that handsome Irishman Colin Farrell. Of course, I’d have to do a little hasty rewrite and add an Irish ancestor into his family tree, but hey, it’s my movie, my screenplay.

I’ve got several eccentric characters in the book, such as the son of two English teachers, Henry James, a tattooed biker who loves to bake. Either Vin Diesel or Dwayne Johnson would do fine in this role. Betty White could play Mrs. Davidsen, an elderly lady whose outfits always match those worn by her much loved Chihuahua, Lil Man.

In my dream movie I’d be directing. Before I went to veterinary school to become a doctor I was an actress for over ten years. Yes, a real Equity card carrying actress with voiceovers, children’s theater and lots of off-off-off-off Broadway credits to my resume. Second choice would be Steven Spielberg because of his way with actors and animals, even extra-terrestrial ones. I’m sure that with his guidance my imaginary movie would be a fantastic one!

Visit Eileen Brady's website.

The Page 69 Test: Muzzled.

--Marshal Zeringue

David Fuller's "Sundance"

David Fuller's first novel, Sweetsmoke, was nominated for an Edgar Award for Best First Novel by an American Author, as well as being shortlisted for a John Creasy "New Blood" Dagger Award in Great Britain. It was a Discover Great New Writers pick for Barnes & Noble, and an Original Voices pick for Borders.

Here Fuller dreamcasts an adaptation of his new novel, Sundance:

As a recovering screenwriter (a term my wife coined for me a few years back, so when you hear others use it, you’ll know from where they stole it), I know the ‘business’ pretty well. And I know casting and how it works. I didn’t write the novel to be made into a movie, which is why I wrote it as a novel. But people talk, and when writing screenplays, you always start with your favorites, a little list you keep in your head. The dream list. Sometimes you even write the names down in case your agent bothers to ask who you see in the role. He’ll ignore your suggestions, but it’s nice to be asked. But before we get into the Pitts and the Clooneys and the Costners and the Hamms, when it comes to my novel Sundance, we had better begin at the beginning.

Robert Redford may well be available. And if I had written the novel twenty years ago, he would be the hands-down first choice. But if you cast him now, then you have to cast an older Etta, say Helen Mirren or Judi Dench. Even if you nudge their true ages up a notch for the story, keeping in mind the Sundance Kid would have been 46 in 1913, this perhaps is a notch too far.

So here’s how it will work: You’ve got that list of four or five guys, movie stars, because our image of the Sundance Kid was created by a Movie Star. And you go after them, and this is in no particular order. Well, Brad Pitt loves your project, he wept when he read it, he laughed, he was on the edge of his seat, and he wants to do it, only he’s busy for the next four years. Okay, well, if he liked it that much, maybe we can wait. Oh, well, gee, we sort of forgot to mention that after those four years, he’s decided to take a year or two off to be with his kids. But he loved the book and wants to do it. George Clooney has decided to play only modern parts now, because that historical fiction thing doesn’t really work for him, and besides, he doesn’t like wearing hats. Jon Hamm looks great in hats, but he’s tired of being associated with American icons like Don Draper, so from now on he’s going to play only German characters, as he does a wicked German accent. Kevin Costner also loved your book, and he’d be swell, I mean, he’s perfect, he loves westerns, he wears hats, cowboy hats, and he’s a movie star. But he just committed to an AMC series about the Wild Bunch, and they expect it to run for seven years, so he’s not available.

Right then you’re thinking of giving up and you hear, “All right all right all right,” and Matthew McConaughey , 44 years old, says he’d like to play the part, only he’d prefer to play Butch, and can we change the story so that it’s Butch who’s on the journey to find Etta. Only Butch wasn’t married to Etta, so it has to be someone else he was in love with, so we have to figure that out. And then, after you go through hoops, he passes because he’s got his own Sundance Kid story idea, where the Kid goes to China and shoots up the Great Wall.

Pretty soon, producers are calling you because Dolph Lundgren needs a project, and Arnold Schwarzenegger is available because Jon Hamm is getting all the good German speaking roles.

For the time being, I’m glad that Sundance is a novel and that people are able to read my actual words, and if they like, they can imagine the movie in their heads.

Learn more about the book and author at David Fuller's website and blog.

The Page 69 Test: Sweetsmoke.

The Page 69 Test: Sundance.

Writers Read: David Fuller.

--Marshal Zeringue

Sheila Kohler's "Dreaming for Freud"

Sheila Kohler was born in Johannesburg, South Africa. She later lived in Paris for fifteen years, where she married, completed her undergraduate degree in Literature at the Sorbonne, and a graduate degree in Psychology at the Institut Catholique. She moved to the U.S. in 1981 and earned an MFA in Writing at Columbia. She currently teaches at Princeton University. Kohler's work has been featured in the New York Times, O Magazine and included in the Best American Short Stories. She has twice won an O’Henry Prize, as well as an Open Fiction Award, a Willa Cather Prize, and a Smart Family Foundation Prize. Her novel Cracks was nominated for an Impac Award, and has been made into a feature film to be distributed by IFC.

Here Kohler dreamcasts an adaptation of her new novel, Dreaming for Freud:

I can imagine two actresses in the role of Dora (Freud's young patient in my novel who remains unnamed) They both played in the film of my novel Cracks. Juno Temple played Di and has also starred in Atonement; Imogen Poots who was Poppy, a more minor role in Cracks, is also a very talented English actress who was in The Last Quartet.

As for Freud perhaps he might be played here (he's forty four in the book) by Michael Fassbender who played Jung in A Dangerous Method. That would be a nice irony there!

For a director I would love Christine Vachan (Boys Don't Cry) who was also responsible in part for Cracks. I feel she would understand young Dora, a desperate adolescent who is surrounded by adults who betray her, and her need for a voice.

Visit Sheila Kohler's website.

Writers Read: Sheila Kohler.

The Page 69 Test: Dreaming for Freud.

--Marshal Zeringue