New York Subway Worker Hits it Big in Hollywood

Reuters

A New York City tollbooth worker in desperate need of a car wrote a crime thriller script titled “Brooklyn’s Finest” last year. Now he finds himself rubbing shoulders with some of Hollywood’s finest, including Richard Gere, Don Cheadle, Ethan Hawke and director Antoine Fuqua.

Living in Brooklyn, Michael Martin had just totaled his car in an accident. While in physical therapy, he entered a screenwriting competition, hoping to win the prize money for his new set of wheels.

“I had never written a screenplay before,” said Martin, who had studied film in college. “I thought, ‘How hard can it be?’ I was more like, ‘If I win this, I can get a new car.”‘

His screenplay came in second but eventually ended up in a far better place: the doorstep of Warner Bros.-based producer who had been looking for a writer with an authentic and gritty voice to write a sequel to the 1991 gangbanger saga “New Jack City,” which was in development at Warner Premiere, the studio’s direct-to-DVD division. Impressed by “Finest,” Mary Viola set out find the writer, who then had no agent.

Martin had moved out to L.A., staying at a downtown hotel, and hooked up with management representatives. He enjoyed a brief stint writing for Showtime’s “Sleeper Cell,” but homesickness overwhelmed him. He returned to New York and wound up back at the Transit Authority.

Meanwhile, in the hands of Viola, “Finest” became red hot, quickly attracting top talent. Gere and Cheadle are now polishing their badges to star in the ensemble police thriller, which Fuqua will direct for indie financier Millennium Films. Hawke is also coming on board to star, a move that will reteam him with Fuqua, who directed him to an Oscar nomination in “Training Day.” Ellen Barkin is also booking a part.

The script almost brought Mel Gibson out of acting seclusion. He took a string of meetings, but things ultimately didn’t work out.

The story, a sort of “Crash” meets “Training Day,” is a dramatic ensemble with three intertwining story lines involving Brooklyn cops. “I worked for a bus company that got indicted by the Feds because of Mob connections,” Martin said. “I could not have written ‘Brooklyn’s Finest’ without that experience.”

The movie is prepping for a May shoot in Brooklyn, in the very locations that inspired Martin to write the script. “Things are moving very fast right now. It’s something I’ve been waiting a long time for,” Martin said.

Fuqua’s last movie was 2007’s “Shooter,” while Gere was last seen in Todd Haynes’ “I’m Not There.” Cheadle was in theaters last year with “Ocean’s Thirteen” and “Talk To Me.”

Martin, a new dad, was recently promoted to construction flagger within the Transit Authority, working inside the subway system. He is writing “New Jack City 2,” often during his breaks in the subway tunnels.

He drives a new car.

Congratulations Michael, and more power to ya!

Arthur C. Clarke Dies at 90

It was barely three months ago I made an entry announcing Mr. Clarke turning 90, now this prolific master of Sci-Fi has retuned to the source from which he came.

This is the obituary, written by Gerald Jonas, as it appeared in the New York Times:

Arthur C. Clarke, a writer whose seamless blend of scientific expertise and poetic imagination helped usher in the space age, died early Wednesday in Colombo, Sri Lanka, where he had lived since 1956. He was 90.

Rohan de Silva, an aide, confirmed the death and said Mr. Clarke had been experiencing breathing problems, The Associated Press reported. He had suffered from post-polio syndrome for the last two decades.

The author of almost 100 books, Mr. Clarke was an ardent promoter of the idea that humanity’s destiny lay beyond the confines of Earth. It was a vision served most vividly by “2001: A Space Odyssey,” the classic 1968 science-fiction film he created with the director Stanley Kubrick and the novel of the same title that he wrote as part of the project.

His work was also prophetic: his detailed forecast of telecommunications satellites in 1945 came more than a decade before the first orbital rocket flight.

Other early advocates of a space program argued that it would pay for itself by jump-starting new technology. Mr. Clarke set his sights higher. Borrowing a phrase from William James, he suggested that exploring the solar system could serve as the “moral equivalent of war,” giving an outlet to energies that might otherwise lead to nuclear holocaust.

Mr. Clarke’s influence on public attitudes toward space was acknowledged by American astronauts and Russian cosmonauts, by scientists like the astronomer Carl Sagan and by movie and television producers. Gene Roddenberry credited Mr. Clarke’s writings with giving him courage to pursue his “Star Trek” project in the face of indifference, even ridicule, from television executives.

In his later years, after settling in Ceylon (now Sri Lanka), Mr. Clarke continued to bask in worldwide acclaim as both a scientific sage and the pre-eminent science fiction writer of the 20th century. In 1998, he was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II.

Mr. Clarke played down his success in foretelling a globe-spanning network of communications satellites. “No one can predict the future,” he always maintained. But as a science fiction writer he couldn’t resist drawing up timelines for what he called “possible futures.” Far from displaying uncanny prescience, these conjectures mainly demonstrated his lifelong, and often disappointed, optimism about the peaceful uses of technology — from his calculation in 1945 that atomic-fueled rockets could be no more than 20 years away to his conviction in 1999 that “clean, safe power” from “cold fusion” would be commercially available in the first years of the new millennium.

Popularizer of Science

Mr. Clarke was well aware of the importance of his role as science spokesman to the general population: “Most technological achievements were preceded by people writing and imagining them,” he noted. “I’m sure we would not have had men on the Moon,” he added, if it had not been for H. G. Wells and Jules Verne. “I’m rather proud of the fact that I know several astronauts who became astronauts through reading my books.”

Christian Novelist Reaches Beyond Stereotype

By Rick Moore
For The Tennessean

When Eric Wilson’s first novel, Dark to Mortal Eyes, was published in 2004, he was hoping it would lead to a career as a successful writer of Christian fiction. But not even he could have imagined the winding road his life has taken since.

Since that first book hit the shelves, Wilson has authored three other Christian fiction novels: Expiration Date, The Best of Evil and A Shred of Truth, which all contain elements of suspense, supernatural intrigue and Biblical references and settings.

In addition, he has written novelizations of the faith-based films Facing the Giants and Flywheel for Thomas Nelson Publishers.

Wilson’s first four novels were published through WaterBrook Press, a division of Random House. He recently signed a three-book contract with Thomas Nelson’s fiction division to develop his upcoming “Jerusalem Undead” supernatural suspense trilogy, featuring characters that can almost be likened to modern-day vampires, a concept that Wilson knows many Christian readers may consider to be decidedly non-Christian.

Author broadens reach to readers

Wilson is hesitant to label his characters traditional vampires, but he knows that the comparison will be drawn between the bloodsuckers of movie lore and his characters, called “collectors,” from the first book of the series, titled Field of Blood. The book draws its name from the Akeldama, the field near Jerusalem purchased with the money Judas received for betraying Christ in the New Testament.

“I’m not as concerned with writing for the Christian mainstream as I am with writing for people who might not ordinarily read a novel written by a Christian author,” said Wilson, who traveled to Israel and the Akeldama for research.

“I want to reach out beyond the stereotype of what a so-called Christian author is supposed to be.”

Jars of Clay producer is author of thriller conspiracy

Katie Shroder is the publicist for the fiction division of Thomas Nelson, and was, coincidentally, a publicist for Wilson’s books when he was with WaterBrook.

“This is the type of thing that’s not out there yet, but we think it’s something the market is asking for,” she said of Wilson’s Jerusalem Undead trilogy. “Our view is that we’re not looking for traditional, formulaic Christian fiction. We’re simply looking for the best writers who are definitely Christians who have the best stories to tell, but who aren’t trying to fit into some box about what Christian fiction should or shouldn’t be.”

Music producer and author Matt Bronleewe, who was a founding member of contemporary Christian rock band Jars of Clay, is the author of Illuminated, a thriller conspiracy novel published by Thomas Nelson. He said he believes that Wilson will soon be a force to be reckoned among American novelists.

“I’d love to see Eric end up all over the place,” Bronleewe said. “We met through my agent, who was a big fan of Eric’s and said he thought that Eric was brilliant and would be huge. I think the new series he’s putting together is going to be fantastic.”

Second novel optioned as film

Wilson, who at various times has made a living as everything from a barista to a headstone engraver, lives in Antioch with his singer/songwriter wife, Carolyn Rose, and their two teenage daughters.

An Oregon native, Wilson is a former youth pastor who grew up in a family that smuggled Bibles into Communist countries. His second novel, Expiration Date, the story of a character who can foresee people’s deaths, has been optioned for a motion picture and is in pre-production.

Wilson said he isn’t concerned with negative opinions or controversy about what people think a Christian fiction writer should or should not be, and that he feels blessed to have the opportunity to write for a living.

“I’m just being myself, using the talents God gave me to do what I believe I’m supposed to be doing,” he said. “If my work makes people think and talk, that’s a good thing.”

Amazon Novel Writing Contest – Needs Reviewers

By CANDICE CHOI
AP BUSINESS WRITER

Think you have the next big novel? So do the hundreds of writers vying in a contest at Amazon.com.

The online retailer and some of its most prolific reviewers have picked 836 semifinalists from 5,000 entries to compete for a coveted book deal with Penguin Group, including a $25,000 advance.

Now, Amazon hopes readers will download excerpts of the semifinalist entries and help rate and review them. Penguin editors will consider the comments when picking 10 finalists by March 3. A winner will be announced April 7.

In a secondary raffle, anyone who reviews at least 25 semifinalist excerpts is entered in a contest for an Amazon Kindle, a $2,000 Amazon gift certificate and prizes from Hewlett-Packard Corp.

The contests come just months after Amazon.com launched its on-demand book publishing unit, CreateSpace.

Depending on the success of the winning book, Amazon.com will decide whether to make the contest annual, said Aaron Martin, director of print on demand for Amazon.com.

Amazon.com would not disclose the financial terms of the contest partnership with Penguin, a unit of London-based media giant Pearson PLC. Penguin also does not disclose royalty arrangements.

Amazon.com said company officials and “top reviewers” - customers selected by the company who write a lot of reviews - winnowed down the initial submissions together.

To get started as a reviewer go to this Amazon Link

Novelist already working on her third book at 18

By LEAH DUMOUCHEL
Ann Arbor News

Cassandra Carter is one to make you think, “Hmm . . . what the heck was I doing with my teenage years?”

The 18-year-old’s own reply involves a nationally published book and two more in the works.

Her debut novel, “Fast Life,” was published in July as part of the “Tru” series from Kimani Press, a division of Harlequin that focuses on African-American young-adult fiction.

Carter started the book when she was just 14, after getting the idea from, of all places, a dream.

“I woke up and - I hate telling people this because it makes me sound crazy - but I heard a voice . . . saying, ‘Cassandra, you should write a book about that.’ So I created this character. It was about this girl and she’s . . . got to go and move real quick, and everything else just kind of came.”

There’s a lot of “everything else,” since the move is over in the first 50 pages. What follows is a fast- talking, high-rolling rumble following Kyra Jones between Chicago and an island in the Bahamas, complete with gorgeous guys, sniping girls, friendships gone horribly bad, scandalous wealth, the illegal drug industry and a few more page-turners.

Carter worked on it all through the summer she was 15, and when it was done she mentioned it to her grandmother, Sandee Grassi.

“I wasn’t at all surprised,” Grassi said. “Cassandra has always impressed me with her dream of and enthusiasm for writing.”

Grassi encouraged her to get it published, but Carter balked: “She was afraid it would change (the family’s) opinion about her or that people might think the book was about her life. But hey, it’s a book and it’s fiction - now, someone’s got to read it, right?”

Grassi talked her into at least taking it to an uncle in the book business, though Carter was still nervous.

“He’s a blunt person, and I thought, ‘Oh, my God, what is he going to think?’ ” she said.

He thought it was a darn fine book. He passed it along to a friend who was a literary agent who ended up taking Carter on as a client.

She’s still taken a little aback by the book’s success. The online reviews at both Amazon.com and Barnes and Noble’s Web site have been overwhelmingly positive, and the comments on her MySpace page are fairly bursting with praise.

“This is so surreal almost, sometimes, like going online to look myself up, and having people contact me telling me they like my art and my book,” she said.

She’s finished her second book, “16 Isn’t Always Sweet,” which is due for publication in March, and is working on a sequel to “Fast Life.”

“I’m excited to work on it. I’ve even thought about carrying (Kyra Jones) on through a series. . . . I’ve started planning things that happen to her in, like, volume 5. Trust me, I have a million ideas. I just need the time to sit there and get ‘em out, that’s all.”

And it’s time that she’s taking. Even though she graduated from Huron High a semester early with honors in January, she’s decided to put off college for a while and give this dream some hot pursuit.

“I know it’s such a risk putting school off the way I am, and it weighs on me. . . . They say that people who are successful at creative ventures like this are the ones who’ve been doing it since they were born, and that’s me right there, so I’m willing to take the risk.”

Self-Published Author Hits $2 Million Payday

From: The Boston Globe
By: David Mehegan

With a draft of her novel completed, Brunonia Barry of Salem wanted to find an audience. But instead of chasing after publishers - often a discouraging task for any new author - she and her husband took a different tack. They published “The Lace Reader” on their own.

Then something amazing happened: Buzz exploded around the book, both online and in stores, and mainstream publishers came calling. In October, a literary auction was held, and Barry sold the book, and a future one, for more than $2 million.

It is one of the biggest deals ever for a previously self-published first novel and a vivid example of how old publishing norms have changed. Self-publishing was once a consolation prize for a pipe-dreamer. But today it’s possible for writers such as Christopher Paolini, author of the fantasy blockbuster “Eragon,” Richard Paul Evans, author of the bestseller “The Christmas Box,” and Zane, whose first three novels were self-published, to bypass publishers, then score lucrative contracts with them once their books are proved.

As a novelist, Barry, 47, is a late bloomer. Raised in Marblehead, she spent years working with theater companies in Maine and Chicago. In the mid-1980s, she went to Hollywood to have a crack at screenwriting. For 10 years she worked on other writers’ scripts but never sold one of her own. In 1995 she and husband, Gary Ward, moved back to Massachusetts, settling in Salem, where they started a successful game and puzzle software company called SmartGames.

Read the full article HERE

Pulp Fiction Writer Arrested for Deadly Crash

Associated Press

Oscar-winning screenwriter Roger Avary has been arrested on suspicion of manslaughter and driving under the influence after a Ventura County car crash that killed a man and injured Avary’s wife, authorities said.

Avary, 42, was the driver in the single-car collision shortly after midnight Sunday in Ojai, said Capt. Ross Bonfiglio of the Ventura County Sheriff’s Department.

Killed in the accident was Andreas Zini, 34, a resident of Italy who was apparently visiting the couple. Firefighters cut Zini from the car with Jaws of Life, and he died several hours later at Ventura County Medical Center.

Avary’s wife Gretchen, 40, was ejected from the car and found in the road by deputies, Bonfiglio said. She was hospitalized in stable condition.
Avary was booked but later released on $50,000 bail, Bonfiglio said. He did not know whether Avary has hired an attorney.

Avary won an Academy Award along with Quentin Tarantino for writing “Pulp Fiction,” and was also a co-writer of the recent epic “Beowulf.” He and his wife live in Ojai, a popular artists’ colony and tourist destination 14 miles north of Ventura.

Rowling Hints at Eighth Potter Book

Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling has strongly hinted for the first time that she could write an eighth book in the series.

Rowling, 42, admits she has ‘weak moments’ when she feels she will pen another novel about the boy wizard.

One of her biggest fans – her 14-year-old daughter Jessica – has already put pressure on her to revisit the character.

And her younger children – David, four, and Mackenzie, two – are likely to join the clamor for another novel as they discover the Potter books.

However, if an eighth novel were to be written, Rowling concedes it is unlikely that Harry would be the central character.

She finished the seventh book in the series – Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows – last January.

At the time she thought she was ending a 17-year association with the boy wizard.
But in an interview with Time magazine, which put Rowling at No 3 in its Person Of The Year list, she said: “There have been times since finishing, weak moments, when I’ve said ‘Yeah, all right’ to the eighth novel.

“If - and it’s a big if - I ever write an eighth book, I doubt that Harry would be the central character. I feel I’ve already told his story.

“But these are big ifs. Let’s give it ten years.”

In the meantime, Rowling is working on two writing projects – an adult novel and a “political fairy tale” – and is involved in charity work.

Alice Walker Places Literary Papers at Emory

By DORIE TURNER, Associated Press

ATLANTA - Pulitzer Prize winning author Alice Walker is placing her literary archive at Emory University’s library.

The author of the 1983 Pulitzer Prize-winning “The Color Purple,” “By the Light of My Father’s Smile” and other works visits Emory every couple of years for readings and meetings with faculty members. That relationship was key in her decision to place her archive at the institution, university officials said Tuesday.

“I can imagine in years to come that my papers and memorabilia, my journals and letters, will find themselves always in the company of people who care about many of the things I do: culture, community, spirituality, scholarship and the blessings of ancestors who want each of us to find joy and happiness in this life, by doing the very best we can to be worthy of it,” Walker said in a statement.

Arthur C. Clarke Turns 90!

British sci-fi author Arthur C. Clarke turns 90 on Dec. 16.

Clarke penned the novel 2001: A Space Odyssey, which was adapted into Stanley Kubrick’s big-screen sci-fi favorite.

Clarke is also the last surviving member of the “Big Three” of science fiction authors (the other two members of the geeky coterie were Isaac Asimov and Robert Heinlein).

The command center of the Apollo 13 craft was named “2001″ after the movie, Clarke also had an asteroid AND a new species of dinosaur Serendipaceratops arthurcclarkei named after him.

Clarke’s three laws (to writing speculative science fiction):

1. “When a distinguished but elderly scientist states that something is possible, he is almost certainly right. When he states that something is impossible, he is very probably wrong.”
2. “The only way of discovering the limits of the possible is to venture a little way past them into the impossible.”
3. “Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.”

You can find a comprehensive collection of Athur C. Clarke’s works at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database