TV and Film Adaptations of Novels- How Far Should They Stray?

Normality has just about returned to my writing schedule and I'm now on the last chapter of Draft 1.

I know a few writers who use well known actors and actresses as templates for what their fictional characters look like.

Sometimes an actor in a TV role will have the 'look' I envisage one of my characters as having.

And I'm sure we've all had moments when we've thought, who would we choose to play our characters if a film or TV adaptation was made of our book...?

But we all know the reality.

If the option has been bought, yes it means money for the author, but no guarantee it will ever reach the screen. And for the majority of those few that do, the writer has to accept that their characters and storyline may not fit exactly what is wanted, so will be changed.

We're realistic enough to understand that a lot of the story in a novel will have to go to slot it into a 90 minute film, or a short series. Perhaps characters have to be amalgamated into one to continue to fulfil their roles; or a character who didn't appear in the book is put in to take on those (combined) original parts.

Over the Christmas holidays Clark Gable and Vivien Leigh could be seen in Gone With The Wind. The film is over 3 hours long and doesn't stray too far from the book, even though the script went through various versions to get it to length.

The 2014 TV season is bringing versions of Daphne Du Maurier's 'Jamaica Inn', 'Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell ' by Susana Clarke, and 'The Musketeers', from Alexander Dumas's 'The Three Musketeers'.

How far they stray from the original text to accommodate the needs of a television production, will be interesting to see.

Meanwhile there was an item in the Bookseller about the ending being changed for the film version of Gillian Flynn's 'Gone Girl'.

This film adaptations has been written by the author, who has apparently admitted writing a new final scene, a scene that was not in the book.

There is a spoiler in the original article from Variety magazine. So don't click on the link, if you want to wait to find out about the new ending. The film comes out in October this year.

So, do you think it is better to read the book first, then see the TV/film adaptation? Or the reverse, watching the adaptations then discovering how different the original story actually is?

My Characters Are Calling...

Some of my characters in waiting have started getting impatient, reminding me they are there and they are waiting for me to get on with their story...

Unfortunately I can't handle two different romances at the same time. Each hero is different and it won't help continuity if characteristics from Marcus (from my Dorset novel) start transferring themselves to Hugh (in my Nottinghamshire novella).

I may have to assign different days of the week to each story just to keep them happy.

At the moment another couple of characters are popping into my mind, so I think I need to do some brain clearing- writing down all the ideas/characteristics that have developed since I first started to give them reality (at Sally Quilford's Pocket Novel workshop a few years ago).

I'd like to attend Sally's next workshop in September, but I won't be able to; but do go if you can, you'll learn a lot and enjoy it.

You can find out more on Sally's blog, here. It's titled 'Recipe for Making Love Stories'- and if you book now, you get it for less.

I've just finished reading Sally's latest My Weekly pocket novel, 'Take My Breath Away'. It all starts with Cleopatra- at least the making of a film about her... :-)

I was so near the end of the story, and didn't want to wait until the following day to finish it, so I stayed up until nearly one o'clock in the morning.

Right, I have to go. I need to start recording my characters' latest revelations...

Do your characters-in-waiting start trying to interrupt, when you're writing something else?

No Time to Procratinate...

I've had one of those busy weeks, so my normal routine has been grabbing a break; but it will be back to the novella on Monday...

Saturday I'm leaving my OH and the family at home while I do a one day workshop being run by the writers' club- Writing for Children - is it kids stuff?  With author Ann Evans.

Although writing for children is not my preference I know I will still find many aspects useful.

In my novella, my heroine Sarah is starting to have nightmares and dreams, which are actually memories - except they are memories of when she was ten years old.

So I'm hoping I will learn something to help me recreate the younger Sarah.

I'll tell you about the workshop next week...

Enjoy the weekend.

Fortunately I Can Sit Down to Write...

I've been suffering since last week.

Apple Tree in Spring

I woke up last Saturday morning with a pain in my left foot- looked like my instep was bruised as it was red and I could only hobble on that leg. :(

So I was a pitiful sight getting round the garden with my secateurs trying to help with the 'spring' (ha ha) tidy up- that should have been completed a month ago!

I've just about stopped hobbling now and can flex my foot without discomfort. But I could have done without the busy week as it limited my writing time, and meant I've not given my foot much rest..

But I've made up for it, today I added 897 words to yesterday's 482. The novella is about to pick up speed as I head toward the last three or four chapters. I'm on chapter 12 currently.

The break from writing over Easter did help me get my thoughts in line, and the content of a couple of chapters have changed order from my original outline.

I have decided that working on the skeleton of the first draft does seem to work for me.

Scene order and content, along with dialogue has been my framework, with any detail where I knew what I needed to know already, written in as I've gone along.

I've got some questions noted too- like yesterday, my heroine Sarah, was weeding the vegetable patch when the baddie turns up.
We have lots of tools for gardening nowadays, but what did they use in the early 1800's- and could it have been used as a defensive weapon if needed? I thought holding a nearby spade in front of her might work, but were they heavy, easy to lift?

Fortunately I have a few reference books which might have details, otherwise I'll be Googling...

Draft 2 is going to be a lot harder work as quite a few of the chapters lack description, and I have one scene that I marked in place on the manuscript, but haven't written yet- as the description elements in the scene need to be right.

It's very true about only ever needing about 10% of your research in the book, but you still need to understand the other 90%...

Draft 3 will be the checking for inconsistencies, plot holes, corrections; then Draft 4 will be editing.

Once I'm at that stage I have a couple of readers to give me feedback- if I've missed anything, or something isn't understood, they'll tell me.

Meantime I have a few competition entries for the writers' club to get on with...


Image courtesy of Vlado and www.freedigitalphotos.net

Back To Writing...

It's always hard get back into routine after a break, and that certainly goes for writing too.

I was at a difficult point in my manuscript just before the Easter holidays and having had a break for a few weeks, I've had the necessary time to sort out what was bothering me- my heroine had been getting very introspective in the last chapter and I wasn't sure if I was letting her get away from the plot.

But with time away, I've realised I'm just at that point where she is changing from who she was at the start of the story, to whom she will become by the end.

And the next part of the story is going to be hard work as both my protagonists are in that changing process. Sarah is the one with the problems now, while Hugh's initial source of conflict has been resolved. But of course, he isn't go to have the rest of the story to relax in- he will still have issues to resolve... :-)

Now I'm feeling comfortable with my writing process, I'm going to try adding in some other writing.

Last year, I did say I was going to enter more of the competitions run by the writers' club I go to- and as Chairman, I really should be leading by example...

So, I have deadlines for handing entries in by the first few days of July- these are annual competitions.

One is a new non-fiction competition for members; we need to write a piece on what kind of future for the printed book- I already have a few ideas for that one.

I also want to try the story suitable for radio. There was a useful short column in Writing Magazine recently which will be very helpful. And I'll be checking out the BBC's Writers Room pages.

I do have a deadline for a short story competition in early June, so I better get my ideas jotted down...

And in a couple of months I'll be performing a piece of flash fiction (already written) at the second 'Fringe at The Ship' event, on the last Saturday of the Lowdham Book Festival. (The festival runs throughout June.)

So the next few months will be busy.

A Temporary Halt in Progress...

I've been making steady progress on my novella but have now come to a temporary halt.

Why?

Because my floppy disk reader has gone astray - I know one of the family borrowed it, but can't remember who, and I know they'll all deny they ever had it, or if they did they gave it back.

If they'd given it back then I would have known where it was!!!

When I first got the idea for the novella I had a scene in my head, which I wrote down, and saved for later. At the time I was still using floppy disks as my computer tower didn't have a Cd/DVD drive.

Now I intended to transfer everything over, but just didn't get round to it, and yes, you've guessed it, the scene that I saved onto the floppy (at least it's on one of them) is now needed to refer to...

This week I've been dealing with a lot of introspection with my heroine, Sarah. She's at a turning point both emotionally and mentally, which makes writing tiring. Plus I'm having to jiggle the content on a couple of chapters around because of how the story has actually developed around the scenes in my mind.

No doubt some of Sarah's soul searching will eventually be edited out, but this missing scene belongs here at the point I have now reached in my manuscript. I know I'll rewrite the scene anyway, but the details are being elusive.

The version on the floppy is from about 8 years ago, and my brain seems to work like this: once it's typed onto the screen, and saved, the details go into brain deep storage- perhaps my memory just deletes them entirely because it knows the information has been recorded somewhere, so it's no longer in stand-by.

Weird idea, I know. But that's how it seems to me... :-)

With Easter week almost here and the family being around, my opportunities for concentrated writing will be brief, so I think I better make sure I get these floppy disks sorted, so as soon as my normal routine can be restarted, I'll be able to get on with the story.

So my total so far this month, 4, 553 words, but I have to admit that 200 of those were for a flash fiction piece for the March, One Word Challenge on the writers-online Talkback forum. And the character in that story has more tales to tell but that's for another day- they're contemporary rather than historical...

The 5,000 words a month remains unfulfilled, but it continue to be an on-going target.

smiley from: http://www.freesmileys.org/

Would We Marry Our Fictional Heroes if They Were Real?

I ask this because apparently there has been a trending topic on Twitter this week- #FictionalCharactersIWantToMarry.

In the short piece in the Guardian Bookblogs section 'Want to marry a fictional character? You could do so much better', Alison Flood makes some interesting remarks, read it here.

So who would I choose?

The first one that springs to mind is Alex Randall from M M Kaye's 'Shadow of the Moon' (I mentioned this book in my glomming post). There he is trying to do a tough job in a volatile situation, falling in love and then having to watch her marry another man, but maintain a co-existence, only to have everyday life violently fall apart with the Indian Mutiny, and then keep not only himself alive, but the woman he loves and one of her friends too... He's strong, compassionate, dutiful and emotionally torn by the circumstances.

Mr Darcy? No, I think I'd want to kill him after a week!

I suppose I do have a soft spot for my hero, Hugh, from my current work in progress. He's considerate but not a push-over; he can be tough when needed but not a bully, dependable and intelligent.
I've just realised that I've been borrowing a few characteristics from my OH for Hugh, but I won't tell him that. :-)

Fictional characters are just that, fictional, but to be believable to the reader, they have to display characteristics that we recognise and can relate to, whether they are things that you like, hate or are indifferent about.

Perhaps you could liken reading to a series of short relationships; some are disasters, others are fine while you're together, and a few stay in the memory and become longtime friends.

What do you think?

Reaching for Targets...

Word count targets...

Well my mini target of a minimum 500 words a week on my work in progress - which I started in January - has been working really well and even on difficult weeks I'm exceeding that target.
In fact this month I almost managed 5,000 words, but have fallen a little short by less than 250 words.

I'll be continuing the minimum word count each week, but my new challenge will be to write 5,000 words in March.

I'm now at a stage where not only am I discovering information about my heroine that I didn't foresee when I was doing my character sheets last year, but elements within specific chapters (that I had outlined) have needed shifting around a little too.

When the idea for the novella first came to me all those years ago, I wrote two different scenes, both involving my heroine Sarah, and having written one of those two scenes earlier this month, and reached the other scene today, I know I must find those original pieces- they captured something that I can't grasp now, but know is needed for these scenes.

So I'll be looking through old floppy disks this weekend- I have a plug-in floppy drive fortunately- and searching DVDs for the elusive words...

There's no more school/college holidays until Easter, so I have just under 4 undisturbed weeks to reach my new target...

Do you find setting yourself targets a help, or a hindrance?


Image courtesy of Vaximilian and http://freedigitalphotos.net

Characters That Start Talking to You...

It's very useful when your characters talk to you; reveal information about themselves, or other people, even tell you what they thought about the behaviour of another character.

 As long as they don't do it at the wrong time...

The wrong time being: when you're in a room full of people; it's noisy; you don't have a pen or pencil, or any paper; without a recording device you can spill their burst of thoughts into...

Then there's when you're in the shower and you're washing your hair- yes, Jago did that- he's my very attractive support character from my Dorset novel- then he waited until I was almost dressed and had started cleaning my teeth... :-)

A couple of writer friends confirmed this issue the other day. One mentioned the bathroom scenario, while the other despaired over characters talking at her while she was trying to concentrate on cooking a meal.

Now mine used to interrupt during cooking, but I just went and got a pen and notebook and started writing. I think that annoyed them...

So whether relaxing or creating, a character will grab the opportunity to break through and start whispering in your ear, or looking over your shoulder as they can't wait any longer to give you the details of something that happened in their past, which explains something else that didn't make sense previously, but now you know why you wrote it into the story...

Then they'll slip back into the mists, or in my case behind the wispy curtain, without so much as a see you later...

It's all to do with the writer's subconscious of course.

Everything under construction goes there. The ideas that have been triggered by an image, or an over- heard conversation. An incident observed, or noticed without consciously being aware of it.

It will synergise while normal everyday life goes on, and then when you sit down at the keyboard it all comes together. The plot problem that you thought couldn't be resolved, turns out to have a solution after all.

And most importantly the subconscious keeps the writer sane- well sort of... :-)

So, do your characters choose inconvenient moments to pop in to your conscious, or is it a specific place that brings them out?

The Hazards of Writing About the Past...

It's Monday so it must be catch-up day.

I really don't know where the weekend went to, but I didn't get my regular blog post done, or my word count totals for the week recorded.

Glad to say I managed to exceed my minimum word count again last week, but it was slightly down on the previous weeks totals- only 815 words this time.

I'm one of those writers who needs quiet, with the minimum of interruptions- if any, when I'm writing.

Sadly my first session last week came to an abrupt end when after two phone calls, I was disturbed by music so loud I could actually hear the lyrics clearly. It was permeating through the walls from my next-door neighbour, and that was enough to drag me out of 1802 completely...

Every writer has their personal writing routine. I need coffee- and often toast- to get me settled.

I keep a log of every writing session I do. So I have one just for the novella, another for short stories, and another for my novel. Before I start any writing I note down the session, date and time started, and the intended work.

Then I read through the previous chapter, make minor adjustment, and make a note of anything major that occurs to me as I go along. So by the time I get to where I left off, from the previous writing session, I'm 'in the zone'... :-)

The best way to describe it, is as if I'm an observer to the scene I'm writing. I can step back a little and decide that, say, a piece of dialogue or an action would be better done this way, rather than that way, but I'm still tied into the scene in my mind, aware that the 21st century world is still going on just over my shoulder, but in the scene in my mind I'm in 1802...

I can get up to look at a reference book to confirm something, or go and make another cup of coffee, but I don't lose that link, an invisible cord between my characters and myself.

Often I don't realise how much time has gone by, until I get to a stage where my concentration wavers, or I start to feel hungry- you can use a lot of energy without realising it. Once I reach that stage my characters start to slip away from me, and I know it's time to stop.

I save my work, and if I've completed a section then I'll print it out. I'll see how many words I've done in the session and make a note on my time sheet, and the time I've finished at.

Within 5-10 minutes all the modern sounds of the surrounding world start to consciously register again and I'm totally back in 2013...

But it really isn't a good idea for anyone to ask me a question about anything, or ring me, until I'm totally back in the present.

If you write about the past, have you found anything that helps you with any stage of the process?


Current Word Count 

Work In Progress
image courtest of Salvatore Vuono and http://freedigitalimages.net

 

Total for January: 3,084                          

It's All In the Mind...

Well my characters and plots are in my mind. In fact there will always be one or two of them wanting attention to reveal a snippet of vital information, or a sentence of dialogue that tells me something important- but they are usually the characters who are in a different story to the one I'm currently writing!

(Jago, from my Dorset novel, popped in this morning and mentioned something that told me a little more about how his sister's death effected him, in a similar way to his step-brother- my hero, Marcus.)

Since I've started my minimum words a week target I've noticed a change in my mind-set with how I approach my writing.

Previously I tried to do longer writing sessions with the plan that I would do more of a chapter. But in fact it was the reverse, I actually got less done...

Now that I'm not worrying about it, I'm actually writing more. While I'm completing scenes in the current chapter, it's actually giving me time to think about the next bit for when I start writing again.

I looked at my chapter outlines the other day (written earlier last year) and realised that the scene I'm currently working on hadn't been mentioned in the outline.

It came about because I realised that I needed to bring Hugh and Sarah back into contact, after a short chapter apart, and there was an opportunity to do so just by developing the end of the planned scene.

As I see it, this is just my writing style developing a little further.

Twelve years ago, I would have said I didn't like planning. I needed a start and end point, then a few points I knew I needed along the way, so I'd make it up as I went along.

But now I couldn't work that way...

I know my story and my characters, and as before I have certain points that I need to include- but these are more detailed than previously; but now I see the elements that can be expanded upon to reinforce my plot, or my characters' development- a skill I didn't have before.

Also, I see where I need to concentrate on areas in Chapter 2 and 3 when I get to the revision process.

Basically I'm no longer looking at the story as a scary 50,000+ words that I need to get written, just the next 500 words of the scene, or linking scene- small bits at a time...

Now my mind says it can be done. I just have to do it.


This week's total: 1,007 words.

Progress and Viewpoint...

Just a quick post today.

The minimum wordage target seems to be working for me; Tuesday I added 518 words to the first draft of Chapter 4 and sorted out my propriety issue, which I discussed in an earlier post.

I prefer to write my longer length stories in third person viewpoint. Usually the story is being told from both my hero and heroine's perspective- the she/he; but there are chapters where it will start with one and then at an appropriate point resume with the other after a break.

For me, which method I use in the chapter is about the situation my character/s are in, or if it's interaction between my hero and heroine, what is happening between them, or their thoughts and reactions to that moment- an ideal time for internal conflicts to emerge.

Occasionally I do slot in a scene from a key secondary character's viewpoint, but only when there's no other way to get an important element or information over to the reader.

But I do make it clear that the viewpoint has changed within a scene/chapter by using line breaks.

I was reading an e-book preview of an historical romance a few days ago, by an author that I hadn't read before. It was fine and then suddenly the viewpoint switched in the next paragraph from hero to heroine and I was immediately pulled out of the story.

The head-hop may have been missed in the editing process, or perhaps it was just an issue with the formatting of the e-book and there should have been a break to show the change of viewpoint within the scene. It may even have been intended to be written that way...

Some writers have successfully incorporated head-hopping (as the scene progresses without a break) in their books- I've read a few Mills and Boons where this has been done without jarring; but it isn't something I like to see, or read.

Perhaps some readers wouldn't notice or be bothered by it, but sudden viewpoint switches do seem to jump out at writers...

Well I better get on, I have a few more words to add to my weekly total...

Finding a Balance...

The good news is that since Monday I have exceeded my weekly minimum 500 words. Now I just have to keep with it.

I did 382 words on the novella, and am now ready to tackle the next scene, bringing my hero and heroine back into close proximity; after a short chapter where they weren't together, but the hero was there in the discussion that took place...

I'd intended to get on with that scene, but I had to get this other story out of my brain. I really couldn't write a scene between one couple, when another pair were telling me about their history.

Some characters have less patience than others...

So I decided to write the notes down in whatever order they came out- settings, back story, snippets of dialogue, secondary characters and important moments all mixed together.

As the story is set around Christmas and there is a snow involved, it was useful to be able to sit at my desk and look out of my office window, watching the snow fall, noting the movement and appearance on different surfaces.

In less than two hours I'd added 880 words to my total. And my brain is now clear to get on with the Nottinghamshire novella, while my subconscious continues cogitating this Christmas story.

It's always bothered me that whenever I start to write what I intend to be a short story, or a piece of flash fiction, I get to the end and it has turned into a scene from something that needs to be so much longer to be right...

But I've decided there's no point worrying about it. I'm grateful that I have enough ideas to choose from for when my current project is completed. And unless I make a concentrated effort to stick with one story, I won't get anywhere, so I mustn't let myself get side-tracked as I have before.

So week one of my new plan has been a success- so far...

Total: 1,262.

Bond is Back and Writers Will Like It...

Now you may not think that the latest Bond movie has much to interest a writer, other than you might like Daniel Craig as 007, the fast cars and the action scenes- the escapist fun.

But I have to say this was actually a film that a writer can truly appreciate.

At the end I came out feeling that the story had been done properly.

On previous Bond films I've seen, by the end I've felt dissatisfied, that something was missing, but this time I knew it had been done right.

(Yes, I know a lot of that is due to the Director, Cameramen/Women, Stunt Artists, and the Editor to name just a few- and the credits are long.)

Just as in a novel there are the recognisable ups and downs that a story needs. And it certainly had a beginning, middle and an end.

There were lots of little mysteries which were all tied up by the finish of the film, but even then heralded a new beginning.

You had the big climax of the film, but just as in a good book there was that final winding up that left you with a resolution.

There was a lot of character development- 'M', you really see how tough a woman in such a high position has to be to do the job- I know it's fiction, but I bet there are women in all areas of life with big responsibilities who would probably recognise aspects shown by Judi Dench's 'M'.

There's a new young 'Q' ( Ben Whishaw) - forget the gadgets, it's all up to date now with technology- but nothing's perfect...

I even had some sympathy for the villain (Javier Bardem as Silva) at times, but he was still the baddy and got what was coming to him...

Then we have Bond. We all know that our past experiences shape us, and in this film you actually get to find out some of his back-story- someone has really thought this story through.

And if you wonder why it's called 'Skyfall', like I did, you'll find out as the story builds to a climax, as long as you're paying attention...

The final thought, technology can do a lot of things, but sometimes the old ways get the job done, which is probably the appeal of Bond...

Say Hello to Serena Lake...

I've mentioned Serena before, so I thought it was time to introduce her properly- more of why now, later...

Serena writes historical romances, and she does include intimate love scenes in them- sex scenes suggests that there's no emotional connection between the characters and she insists that there has to be an emotional tie between the couple involved, not just lust- even if one, or both of them haven't recognised/admitted it by that point.

Her heroes have responsibilities that they often don't want to take on, but will because they believe in justice, family honour and duty. Though it won't stop some of them rebelling along the way...

Her heroines don't simper. They know what they want, and some resent that they can't grab the object of their desire openly - without public disgrace.

You may have guessed already that Serena Lake is my pseudonym for the historical romances I'm writing, these stories are set between the mid 18th to early 19th Century.

I've submitted competition entries (when it's historical) with this name for a few years now, but finally Serena will be published in an e-book-hopefully before the end of the year, if not sooner.

The One Word Challenge Anthology is a collection of micro fiction and poems inspired by different words. Serena and I, each have a story in the anthology.

Members of the Talkback forum on the Writers Online website, have been writing these stories and poems with a new word each month for many years; now e-book publishing has made it possible to put a collection of them together.

It's getting very exciting, as each stage of the process takes us closer to a publication date.

Serena will eventually have her own site, but for the moment she'll be getting her own page on here.

When more news is available I'll let you know...

Skinned knuckles and Short Story Frustration...

Today (Thursday) hasn't been as good as it could have been.

On the way to my excercise class I caught the toe of my shoe on the edge of the pavement and lurched forward. Fortunately my head missed the metal railings ahead of me, but my knuckles suffered a scraping.

So I started the day with small cuts and areas of missing skin- it was quite minor once it was cleaned up. But no experience is wasted, and if any of my characters ever scrape their knuckles, I'll be able to describe the sensation. :-)

I mentioned recently that I've been trying to write a short story for a competition at the writers' club. The judge wants a short fictional story based on a real event in history. And it has to be handed in next Wednesday...

Now I had the historic event decided three months ago, but no matter how hard I thought about it, no characters, and no plot ideas came to me; until a few days ago when my central character emerged, along with a brief plot idea.

So today I sat down with a blank document to start writing. Title? Nothing- which is not a good sign
as usually I have some sort of title at the start, even if I change it later.

I had my opening line, but it wasn't quite right, so I made a few changes, and the writing began.

I only managed to reach 161 words before I gave up.

There are problems and I know what they are:

• I consciously decided to write it in the first person. Personally I prefer third person, but usually let my writing brain decide for me. If it's really a first person viewpoint then I'll start it that way without thinking about it.
• The main character is hiding too much from me at the moment. I need to know her better.
• (And the biggest issue) My writing mind has gone into novella/novel mood, ready for the annual autumn school/college term beginning, giving me undisturbed hours to write.

Really I wish I could be more flexible, but I've discovered from trying it previously, that short stories don't work when I'm in longer writing mode.

Unless a short story idea grabs me and swamps whatever I'm doing at the time, demanding to be written down immediately, I find it better (for everyone) to go with the flow than fight against it.

I'll let you know if I do get the story written...



 

Austen and Bronte Classics Turned into Erotica...

No, I couldn't believe it either when I heard it, but sadly it is happening.

The 50 Shades trend has now reached the literary classics: Pride and Prejudice, Northanger Abbey and Jane Eyre. :(

Now I've always thought there was an underlying sexual tension between the hero and heroine of these well-known novels; but that could just have been my imagination of course. :-)

And this isn't the first time that Jane Austen's characters have been given new lives in other genres.

There's been Mr Darcy, Vampyre by Amanda Grange, and Vampire Darcy's Desire: A Pride and Prejudice Adaptation by Regina Jeffers.

Admittedly there's always been new stories or alternative versions of the original story- too numerous to mention.

Even P. D. James (Baroness and a best-selling crime novelist) had a novel featuring Darcy and Elizabeth, Death Comes to Pemberley (published in 2011) which takes place six years after Pride and Prejudice, and features Lydia Wickham arriving on the eve of the annual ball declaring her husband-the scoundrel George Wickham- has been murdered.

That I can accept. It's a new story-even though the characters were Jane Austen's invention.

But honestly, an erotic makeover for Pride and Prejudice is so wrong.

If you want to read an example- though the excerpts are quite tame- you should look at this piece from The Independent by Sherna Noah; and if you want to see the book covers, there's a gallery here.

I have to say the covers wouldn't be too out of place among many of the historical romances from US publishers.

Will I read any of them? I honestly don't know.
If I could read a longer excerpt first I might consider reading the rest.

It's sad that literary classics get mucked about with like this just to make money because erotica is the latest big selling trend.

At heart I believe books should be published because they are good and readers will buy and enjoy them. But as a writer who lives in the real world I accept that this no longer seems to be the priority.

Flash Fiction Workshop with Sally Quilford...

It was very hot in Nottingham, Wednesday evening, and I think quite a few members of the writers club were at home watching tennis in the cool...at least Andy Murray won this time round!

But the rest of us had a great evening with writer Sally Quilford who travelled to Nottingham to do her flash fiction workshop.

Now I'd been writing most of yesterday, so I thought my brain would be on strike, but the first exercises immediately got my creativity working.

We had to write about ourselves in under 100 words and it all had to be lies.

Ten minutes later we all read out our fabrications- from the strange to outright bizarre (but as I've been entertained by many members writing at manuscript evenings, I could see where some of these outlandish statements had first emerged in their fictional characters).

Though where the sushi and champagne diet idea came from in my case- I have no idea. :-)

There were some interesting discussions about how flash fiction could differ from a standard short story, and it certainly caused a few raised eyebrows, but that's good.

Thinking about how a story can be written in a different way but still be effective is a beneficial exercise, as until you try it you never know if it will be a style that works for you.

The prompts  section was a great success. The audience called out a number of objects/scenarios- we had 10 in the end- and we spent time writing about our chosen prompt/s. Muddy Boots seemed to be popular...

It was great to see the variety, and there were certainly a few stories emerging that I would love to hear completed, and hope the writers finish them.

We then had to edit the pieces by 10%, and actually most managed to reduce the wordage by quite a bit more- which did seem to surprise a few.

It was an evening of fun and learning, and I'm sure we all took some insights away with us-I certainly did. Sally kindly provided handouts, so we can refer back to them when needed.

Brilliant evening- thank you Sally.

Scarred Baddies Are a Stereotype...

Late last week there was an item in a few of the newspapers about stereotyping in movies of those with facial disfigurement- scars indicate a baddie.

If you are interested in the campaign to change this attitude, then you'll find the BBC News article here and the Changing Faces website here, where you can watch their short film that is being shown in 750 cinemas across the UK.

But it got me thinking about how disfigured people are viewed in romantic fiction.

In the classic, Jane Eyre, Mr Rochester is injured and blinded in a fire. Apart from his intention to commit bigamy by marrying Jane, while his first wife is still alive and locked up for her own safety, he's not seen as a baddy, he's just a man in an impossible situation.

In an historical romance context there are going to be scarred heroes and minor villains...

Before guns, men used swords, and in a fight or a battle if you didn't die from the vicious sword wound you'd probably die from blood poisoning. And if you did survive there would be scars- yes they would fade a little in time, but they would still be visible.
Wounds would be sewn with a needle and thread, and the neatness of the scar would depend on how good the doctor (or whoever was doing the stitching up) was with their stitches...

No doubt there were people in past times who turned away from those who suffered disfigurement, or heavy scarring, just as many still do now days.

Certainly in some of the American historical romances I've read over the years, the heroine drags the scarred and/or disabled hero back into the light, and back into society by the healing power of her love.

The baddies in these stories often lack scars, in fact they look just like anyone else- they can even be women!

So no cinema stereotypes there, quite the opposite in fact...

Romance Terminology-Hero Types...

For any UK reader of Romance novels, who venture into US romance blogs, or reviewing websites there are terms you might not recognise, as well as those you'll be familiar with. So read this ABC of Romance from a few months ago and see which ones you recognise.

Alpha and Beta males are fairly standard. But now you can add Gamma Males. I like this term, as I really think my heroes fit this description. Gamma males are a mix of Alpha and Beta types and for me they can have everything I might want.

Now we like Alpha males (strong, dominant men who take charge), but honestly, I don't think I could live with one all the time and not want to smash him around the head!!!

Likewise Beta males are good (smart, know the value of humour, friendly, but aren't going to throw you over their shoulder and take you back to their lair), but sometimes you might like a little bit of those Alpha  tendencies...

So with a Gamma type you can have the nonthreatening hero who will turn into the decisive, instinctively strong male who will fight to save or protect, when those he cares for are threatened.

Alternatively, your strong man can show a softer side, supporting an unlikely charity, or has a pet that was an abandoned dog, and has now become his shadow...

Would you add any UK terms to the list in the article?

Are there any terms you particularly like or dislike?

Would you define the main types differently?

Yes, you guessed, I'm married to a Gamma type- and wouldn't change him... :-)
(Perhaps that's why most of the heroes in my stories are Gammas too.)