The other day, a fan of my historical fiction series stopped me to tell me how much he's been enjoying my books (always the quickest way to an author's heart). With a twinkle in his eye, he asked, "So… When can we expect a movie or a film series based on them?"
I was very flattered, but I had to smile. "Oh, no time soon I'm afraid. That's a whole different kettle of fish."
"Admit it, though: you have dreamed about it."
"Well…"
"You could put Port Townsend on the map like Twilight did for Forks!"
I gave a short laugh. "Well, I certainly prefer Port Townsend —I'd love for my books to draw attention to it."
The fan was a long-time PT resident who'd lived here back in the early 1980's when Richard Gere's An Officer and a Gentleman was filmed here. He told me how exciting it had all been, and how good for the community.
"I'm sure it was!" Fort Worden and other landmarks in Port Townsend still attract fans of Gere's movie.
"It could happen again —with your books!"
I smiled but shook my head. "I suppose every writer does dream of seeing their work on screen, but there would be some pretty stiff problems in the case of my series…" I contemplated some of the historical details which are so easy to resurrect in print but would be virtually impossible to replicate properly on film.
In the first place, there are the cycles. High-wheel bicycles are hard to come by in the twenty-first century, high-wheel tricycles even more so. It's one thing to write about the wide array of sizes and styles of machines which would have been available to a club in the late nineteenth-century; actually assembling them today would be a task worthy of Hercules.
I was very flattered, but I had to smile. "Oh, no time soon I'm afraid. That's a whole different kettle of fish."
"Admit it, though: you have dreamed about it."
"Well…"
"You could put Port Townsend on the map like Twilight did for Forks!"
I gave a short laugh. "Well, I certainly prefer Port Townsend —I'd love for my books to draw attention to it."
The fan was a long-time PT resident who'd lived here back in the early 1980's when Richard Gere's An Officer and a Gentleman was filmed here. He told me how exciting it had all been, and how good for the community.
"I'm sure it was!" Fort Worden and other landmarks in Port Townsend still attract fans of Gere's movie.
"It could happen again —with your books!"
I smiled but shook my head. "I suppose every writer does dream of seeing their work on screen, but there would be some pretty stiff problems in the case of my series…" I contemplated some of the historical details which are so easy to resurrect in print but would be virtually impossible to replicate properly on film.
In the first place, there are the cycles. High-wheel bicycles are hard to come by in the twenty-first century, high-wheel tricycles even more so. It's one thing to write about the wide array of sizes and styles of machines which would have been available to a club in the late nineteenth-century; actually assembling them today would be a task worthy of Hercules.
Image courtesy http://www.oldbike.eu/museum/childrens/1890s-tiller-treadle-juvenile-tricycle/
Even assuming the unlikely possibility that enough cycles could be put together to represent the club, an even bigger challenge would be faced in finding riders who could skillfully maneuver high-wheel bicycles and who could also act. Casting Ken, with all his fancy-riding tricks, would be incredibly difficult, as there are only a few handfuls of people currently alive on the planet who can pull off the sort of tricks Ken is constantly doing. (To see some of them, go to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uTFfAFbwpok&t=173s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iRuqNxh55zA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kUVNU1KOnXI
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JpLQkY8MhDI)
And if casting the amateur trick-rider Ken would be difficult, casting Peter (from Book V) with his professional-level fancy-riding skills would be well-nigh impossible. Sigh…
On the other hand, sets would be easy, since all the places described in the stories really do exist…
Not that all of their owners would necessarily allow filming there —again, it's one thing to pick out a historical house as the Kellams' residence or Silas' house, but not everyone wants a film crew overrunning their home.
Oh, and of course there's the eensy-weensy issue of the fact that no one actually connected with the film industry has approached me or is likely to do so —details, details…
But, all that said, nothing of course keeps me from being immensely flattered when people say they'd love to see movies based on my books. (I'll admit it: I would love to see those movies, too, much as I doubt I ever will.) Explaining all the reasons why it wouldn't be practical helps highlight what a wonderful form of art the written word is and why I so love writing books. With paper and ink, books can bring back whole societies and infrastructures which have vanished. Because of the way my husband and live our lives, we know better than anyone all the many challenges involved with resurrecting even a tiny portion of the past. When I write my books, I can bring the whole world to life again —and invite my readers to go there.
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