Guest Post & Giveaway : Michael J. Lee

UFI welcomes Michael J. Lee Author of My Frankenstein. Thanks for Joining us!!

Screen Play vs. Book
 by Michael J. Lee

A little while ago, my friend Vivi Anna talked about adapting her books to the big screen.

I have a slightly different perspective on that. My Frankenstein was originally a screenplay that I turned into a novel. Also, in the past I worked as a reader for a production company and I sometimes read novels with an eye towards adapting them into movie projects. It was an amazing experience and it really opened my eyes to the differences between the two story telling forms.

For starters there’s a huge difference in just the number of words. Novels don’t even start until around the 50,000 word limit. Screenplays on average have around 15,000 words. A screenplay is between 90 and 120 highly formatted pages. Novels can be over a 1000 pages single spaced.

So how do novels fill out all that extra space? Well you could describe every single item and action down to the last molecule. But if your goal is a compelling story rather than a cure for insomnia you have to use a different method. Sure a novelist has to describe a lot more than a screenplay writer. But most of novels fill out those blank pages with what I call lateral movement. These can be subplots that are taking place away from the main characters, personal histories, or private thoughts. Things other than the forward movement of the main plot. This results in a deeper, richer story. It’s a useful tool because a character who physically just entered a scene can have an entire history described in a few paragraphs. In a screenplay he just walks in and the audience knows nothing about him. All that richness has to be expressed in some other way.

Screenplays on the other hand are all forward motion. It’s a very linear method of story telling. There’s no time for remembrances of things past. Your characters aren’t there to watch sugar crystals melt into coffee cups. They are there to do something. Action is character, character is story. The writer here is also part of a team. Directors, DP’s, editors, and production designers are all responsible for creating the mood and setting. Stunt people and FX wizards are there to provide the magic and the adrenaline. Your main job as a screenplay writer is to give the actors something to do. And that means more than just good dialogue (although that helps immensely.) It means creating and maintaining believable character motivations from the beginning of the script to the end.

The problem with converting books to screenplays is often you have to cut a lot of material. The problem with converting screenplays to novels is you have to add. What’s easier, cutting or adding? That depends on the story and the writer.

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Author Bio

Michael Lee is a script consultant, judge and entertainment blogger for The Wrap.com and has lived in Detroit, Connecticut, Ohio and Los Angeles.

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My Frankenstein
March 3, 2011

In a small village in early 19th Century young Eva is enthralled by the new young baron, Viktor Frankenstein. Viktor promises to transform the traditional little town into a beacon of science and gives the book loving Eva access to his fantastic library. Eva becomes his student and assists him in a secret experiment, though she is kept in the dark about its ultimate aim. Soon after that Viktor introduces Eva to his “cousin” Adam. Adam is horribly disfigured with stitches running across his face. Viktor claims he is mute and simpleminded, but Eva takes pity on him and sets out to teach him to speak.…

What follows is a combination of tragic romance and classic horror as Eva is pulled between Viktor, who grows jealous and takes murderous steps to ensure his secret, and Adam, who possess tremendous strength and rage yet deep inside is innocent and vulnerable.

In his debut fantasy novel, Michael J. Lee retells the classic story by Mary Shelley as a dark romance with steampunk overtones.

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Find Michael and his books

Website 

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Winner will receive
- One Kindle Copy of My Frankenstein

 RULES
1)  Leave a message for Michael =)
2) Must leave an email address so I can contact you.

Giveaway Ends 4/21/2011 at 10pm EST

Winner will have 48 Hours to reply to my email or I will pick another

Winner chosen randomly with the help of random.org

Guest Post: Deborah Cooke

UFI welcomes Deborah Cooke Author of Flying Blind. Thanks for Joining us!!

I was the kid who got in trouble for reading…
By Deborah Cooke

I read a lot when I was a kid. In fact, I read pretty much all the time. I loved reading. I loved visiting other worlds and being other people and having great adventures. My mom always said that no one could be bored if he or she had a book to read, and I was never bored. I read even when I wasn’ t supposed to read. I read in bed, under the covers with a flashlight. I read early in the morning, before everyone else was up. I read during class. I read in the car. I read when I was walking – and sometimes collided with the wall.

The earliest stories I remember reading were fairy tales. I just loved them and I hunted down collections of them. I read the Brothers Grimm, Hans Christian Anderson, the colour-coded collections of fairy tales by Andrew Lang, and collections made by country. There was a good library in my school and a better public library within walking distance, and I don’ t remember anyone telling me that I couldn’ t read a particular book. I still read fairy tales. Later, I discovered retellings of my favourite fairy tales – by Angela Carter, Neil Gaiman, Jane Yolen – and gobbled them up as well. I particularly enjoy twists on familiar tales and suspect that my love of this genre of fiction is the reason I so like happy endings.

It seemed only natural to me that I moved from fairy tales to fantasy fiction. The dragons and demons of fairy tales lived on in this part of the library, but were much more interesting and multi-dimensional characters. I read Tolkien, Michael Moorcock, Ursula K. LeGuin, Marion Zimmer Bradley, and the work of so many other wonderful writers when I was a teenager. This was where I met medieval stories, like the Arthurian cycle, which were thick with romance and gorgeous imagery.

I also read the usual books that kids were expected to read. Between my two best friends and I, we had ALL of the Nancy Drew books, and swapped them constantly. My mother also had some books that she had collected with her friends, called The Beverly Gray mysteries. These were much more dramatic than the Nancy Drew books and I loved them for their over-the-top action. Maybe these books gave me my ideas about intrepid heroines – women who get things done and don’ t need to be saved, thank you very much.

Finally, I used to raid my mom’ s book stash when she wasn’ t looking. My mom has always read mysteries, so it was on her bookshelves that I first discovered the work of Phyllis A. Whitney, Agatha Christie and Victoria Holt. I particularly enjoyed the more gothic of these books, and the mingling of romance and mystery. I suspect these are the books that ultimately led me to writing historical romances, because I wanted to tell the same kinds of stories but tell them my way.

I also read the dictionary in grade six. It was issued to us as one of our textbooks, and I used to read it when the class was boring. I started to read the dictionary out of desperation, but I found the origin of words and their meanings really interesting. Maybe that dictionary is the reason I’ m a writer, because I do love language and I am still fascinated with words. The funny thing is that when I got in trouble for reading - instead of paying attention to the 748th explanation of how to solve this particular kind of math problem - and the teacher realized it was the dictionary I was reading, I’ m not sure he knew what to do about it.

I still pull down the dictionary every once in a while – I have a much bigger one now – and let it fall open on my desk. Then I read every entry on that double page spread – and I laugh when I remember the look on my teacher’ s face when he discovered what I was reading that day.

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Author Bio:

Deborah Cooke has always been fascinated with dragons, although she has never understood why they have to be the bad guys. She has an honours degree in history, with a focus on medieval studies. She is an avid reader of medieval vernacular literature, fairy tales and fantasy novels, and has written over forty romance novels and novellas. 

She has also been published under the names Claire Cross and Claire Delacroix. 

Deborah makes her home in Canada with her husband. When she isn't writing, she can be found knitting, sewing or hunting for vintage patterns.

In October and November 2009, Deborah was the writer in residence for the Toronto Public Library, the first time that the library has hosted a residency focussed on the romance genre. The blog that Deborah created for the residency can be found HERE.

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Flying Blind
The Dragon Diaries #1
June 7, 2011

Zoë is the Wyvern of the Pyr – the one female dragon shape shifter with special powers.  But Zoë is at the bottom of the class when it comes to being Pyr, and her powers are AWOL. Worse, there’s no reference book to consult, and the last Wyvern is dead…. 

Everything changes when Zoë’s best friend is bullied and Zoë reacts. Before she can blink twice, her inner dragon is loose, and she’s suspended from school and headed to a shape shifter boot camp with guys she’s known all her life. But soon she’s doubting her powers – and even some of her friendships. 

Zoë quickly realizes she has to master her powers yesterday – there’s danger ahead and boot camp is a trap. A secretive group, the Mages, want to eliminate all shifters and the Pyr are next in line – unless Zoë and her friends can solve the riddle and work together to save their own kind…

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Find Theresa and her books

Website / Facebook / Email

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Follow the Flying Blind Book Tour

Review: Hell Fire by Ann Aguirre

Hell Fire
Author:Ann Aguirre
Release Date: April 6, 2010
Publisher: Roc
Corine Solomon Book #2
ISBN:    0451463242
ISBN13: 9780451463241
Genre: Urban Fantasy

As a handler, Corine Solomon can touch any object and know its history. It's too bad she can't seem to forget her own. With her ex-boyfriend Chance in tow-lending his own supernatural brand of luck-Corine journeys back home to Kilmer, Georgia, in order to discover the truth behind her mother's death and the origins of "gift".

But while trying to uncover the secrets in her past, Corine and Chance find that something is rotten in the state of Georgia. Inside Kilmer's borders there are signs of a dark curse affecting the town and all its residents-and it can only be satisfied with death...

HELL FIRE picks up right were BLUE DIABLO left off. Chance is sticking to his word and turning his luck to find the people responsible for Corine's mothers murder. Corine is thrust back into her home town of Kilmer and right away she knows the town has serious issues. We learn a bit about Corine growing up and a little about her mother. There is definitely tons of danger, action and mystery's to solve in HELL FIRE. Corine is still stuck between Chance and Jesse and still doesn't know what or who she wants to be with or if she wants to be with either of them.  Shannon is introduced into the mix and brings a great gift along with her. Butch is still the most kick butt dog around and I seriously cant wait for the mystery of him to be revealed. Ive really enjoyed the world Ann has created for her characters and I'm excited to continue the series with SHADY LADY.


I gave it 4/5 stars

New Releases April 10-16

Tue April 12

After the Golden Age by Carrie Vaughn

Enclave (Razorland #1) by Ann Aguirre

The Gathering (Darkness Rising #1) by Kelley Armstrong

If you see a mistake or know of another release that is not listed let me know!! Happy Reading

Review: How to Flirt with a Naked Werewolf by Molly Harper

How to Flirt with a Naked Werewolf
Author:Molly Harper
Release Date: February 22, 2011
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Naked Werewold Book #1
ISBN:   1439195862
ISBN13: 9781439195864
Genre: Urban Fantasy/Paranormal Romance

Even in Grundy, Alaska, it’s unusual to find a naked guy with a bear trap clamped to his ankle on your porch. But when said guy turns into a wolf, recent southern transplant Mo Wenstein has no difficulty identifying the problem. Her surly neighbor Cooper Graham—who has been openly critical of Mo’s ability to adapt to life in Alaska—has trouble of his own. Werewolf trouble.

For Cooper, an Alpha in self-imposed exile from his dysfunctional pack, it’s love at first sniff when it comes to Mo. But Cooper has an even more pressing concern on his mind. Several people around Grundy have been the victims of wolf attacks, and since Cooper has no memory of what he gets up to while in werewolf form, he’s worried that he might be the violent canine in question.

If a wolf cries wolf, it makes sense to listen, yet Mo is convinced that Cooper is not the culprit. Except if he’s not responsible, then who is? And when a werewolf falls head over haunches in love with you, what are you supposed to do anyway? The rules of dating just got a whole lot more complicated. . . .

I originally wasn't going to read this as the cover didn't really catch my eye, but It was in my reader and I was out and decided what the heck If I dont like the first chapter I will just pick something else. Well I didn't need to pick something else. I read the whole book pretty quickly and enjoyed it from front to back. How to Flirt with a Naked Werewolf was a great light, funny read filled with a great little town with a bunch of great characters and werewolf's to boot. Both Mo and Cooper have family issues which brought them to Grundy in the first place and turn out to be a great match, but they are both stubborn and fight the attraction in the beginning which brings a lot of funny yet frustrating moments.  The mystery of the killings had me guessing who it was until the chapter the killer was revealed in. I really enjoyed Molly's writing style and I will definitely be checking out THE ART OF SEDUCING A NAKED WEREWOLF.


I gave it 4/5 stars

Week in Review 4/3-4/9

Books Ive Bought/received

* Luminous by Dawn Metcalf- ARC- Librarything early review program

* Hexed by Kevin Hearne- Bound proofs- From publisher for review

* Hammered by Kevin Hearne- Bound proofs- From Publisher for review

* Unnatural by Michael Griffo- From Publisher for blog tour 

* Forbidden by Tabitha Suzuma- ARC- Goodreads First-Reads win

* Magic on the Hunt by Devon Monk- Bought from Borders

* Shady Lady by Ann Aguirre- Bought from Borders.com


Books I read

Deadworld by J.N. Duncan
Tangled Threads by Jennifer Estep
Magic on the Hunt by Devon Monk
Shady Lady by Ann Aguirre
Unnatural by Micheal Griffo
Ascension by Sable Grace

Reviews posted

Hunting Human by Amanda E. Alvarez
Blue Diablo by Ann Aguirre
Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia, Margaret Stohl
Banished by Sophie Littlefield

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* New Releases for the week.

* UFI participated in Moira Roger's Wilders Mate Kindle Contest the winners have been posted. 

* The winner of the e-copy of Glimmer by Vivi Anna has been posted. 

* Larissa from Larissa's Bookish Life was awesome enough to help me get Block quotes so my blog looked cooler. She ROCKS Thanks Larissa =)

* Amanda Alvarez was here on Thursday with an Interview. She is also giving away a gift card to one lucky commenter on her tour.

* Tracey O'Hara joined us with a guest post on Friday.

Review: Banished by Sophie Littlefield

Banished
Author:Sophie Littlefield
Release Date: October 12, 2010
Publisher: Delacorte Books
Banished Book #1
ISBN:  0385738528
ISBN13: 9780385738521
Genre: Young Adult

There isn’t much worth living for in Gypsum, Missouri—or Trashtown, as the rich kids call the run-down neighborhood where sixteen-year-old Hailey Tarbell lives. Hailey figures she’ll never belong—not with the popular kids at school, not with the rejects, not even with her cruel, sickly grandmother, who deals drugs out of their basement. Hailey never knew her dead mother, and she has no idea who her father was, but at least she has her four-year-old foster brother, Chub. Once she turns eighteen, Hailey plans to take Chub far from Gypsum and start a new life where no one can find them.

But when a classmate is injured in gym class, Hailey discovers a gift for healing that she never knew she possessed—and that she cannot ignore. Not only can she heal, she can bring the dying back to life. Confused by her powers, Hailey searches for answers but finds only more questions, until a mysterious visitor shows up at Gram’s house, claiming to be Hailey’s aunt Prairie.

There are people who will stop at nothing to keep Hailey in Trashtown, living out a legacy of despair and suffering. But when Prairie saves both Hailey and Chub from armed attackers who invade Gram’s house in the middle of the night, Hailey must decide where to place her trust. Will Prairie’s past, and the long-buried secret that caused her to leave Gypsum years earlier, ruin them all? Because as Hailey will soon find out, their power to heal is just the beginning.

This gripping novel from thriller writer Sophie Littlefield blazes a trail from small-town Missouri to the big city as Hailey battles an evil greater than she ever imagined, while discovering strengths she never knew she had.

I was introduced to Sophie Littlefield by reading her Adult novel AFTERTIME. I absolutely loved it and decided to give her YA a try. The writing was great, I loved the family mythology, and I enjoyed the characters. The narrator Hailey was like-able and had a great head on her shoulders. BUT I had a hard time getting into the story. It seemed to have a hard time getting going and once it did I found myself a bit confused at times about what was going on. The ending was a bit more fast paced and action filled but I thought the ending was a bit abrupt with a big cliffhanger added on. I think the series does have great potential and I will most likely pick up book 2 UNFORSAKEN.

I gave it 3/5 stars