Now a Major Motion Picture!: Recent Episodes
Joe Meyers
A look at the process of turning novels into movies and TV shows. Interviews with authors about their experiences with filmmakers & also examples of their favorite & least favorite adaptations.
It was such a pleasure to welcome Karen Olson to ‘Now a Major Motion Picture!’ Karen has one of the most interesting and far ranging bodies of work in contemporary crime fiction. She has written very well received mystery series about a Connecticut journalist; a Las Vegas tattoo artist; and an off the grid computer hacker. The new novel ‘An Inconvenient Wife’ moves the story of Henry VIII and his ill fated wives to contemporary America, where the latest wife of Hank Tudor begins to wonder if she might become as Inconvenient as her predecessors. One reviewer put it well when she wrote “Imagine the Tudors set in the world of Succession by way of Jackie Collins.”
Deborah Crombie has been one of America’s finest crime writers for more than 30 years. And she has pulled off the mean feat of creating and sustaining one of the best British mystery series despite her being a Texas native. The 19thvolume in her Duncan Kincaid & Gemma James series “A Killing of Innocents” has just appeared in paperback.We had some audio issues with this episode - the perils of not being in a studio and with the interviewer in Connecticut and the guest in Texas - but Deborah had a lot of interesting things to say. Your patience will be rewarded.
It is such a pleasure to welcome Katherine Hall Page to the podcast I cohost with Ryan Brown. I’ve been readiimg Katherine’s warm and sophisticated mysteries since she launched the Faith Fairchild series in 1991. Over the years we have followed the Manhattan born caterer as she has adjusted to life as the wife of a Massachusetts minister and built a family and friend network that Katherine has followed through 26 novels. Along the way Katherine has won two Agatha Awards and in 2016 she received the lifetime achievement award of the Malice Domestic crime fiction conference.
It is such a pleasure to welcome Katherine Hall Page to the podcast I cohost with Ryan Brown. I’ve been readiimg Katherine’s warm and sophisticated mysteries since she launched the Faith Fairchild series in 1991. Over the years we have followed the Manhattan born caterer as she has adjusted to life as the wife of a Massachusetts minister and built a family and friend network that Katherine has followed through 26 novels. Along the way Katherine has won two Agatha Awards and in 2016 she received the lifetime achievement award of the Malice Domestic crime fiction conference.
It is such a pleasure to welcome Katherine Hall Page to the podcast I cohost with Ryan Brown. I’ve been readiimg Katherine’s warm and sophisticated mysteries since she launched the Faith Fairchild series in 1991. Over the years we have followed the Manhattan born caterer as she has adjusted to life as the wife of a Massachusetts minister and built a family and friend network that Katherine has followed through 26 novels. Along the way Katherine has won two Agatha Awards and in 2016 she received the lifetime achievement award of the Malice Domestic crime fiction conference.
It was great to catch up with Craig Johnson last month on the eve of a month-long book tour for his 19th novel “The Longmire Defense.” Long one of our favorite crime novelists, Johnson has also found success in Hollywood with the wonderful Netflix series, “Longmire,” inspired by his books. Like Michael Connelly and Lee Child, the novelist’s stories and their deeply textured Western settings have been well served by streaming service adaptation. In this interview, Johnson talks about his work as a consultant on the series and the way he has kept his best-selling novels separate from the TV version.
With the second season of ‘Joe Pickett’ ending on Paramount+ recently, this is the perfect time for a chat with C.J. Box who created the Wyoming game warden character in 24 best-selling novels. Box talks with me and co-host Ryan Brown about his input on the series and how he managed to combine two separate genres - the western novel and the crime thriller - into one hugely popular series.
Louis Bayard has been a reader favorite for many years for both the variety and high quality of his novels.Bayard’s mix of history and crime is the characteristic of some of his best work. He has also put real historical figures at the center of his stories and in the case of ‘Mr. Timothy’ he used Charles Dickens’ creation Tiny Tim as the inspiration for one of his own best novels. The 2007 novel ‘The Pale Blue Eye’ takes us back to the life of Edgar Allen Poe when he was a cadet at West Point. In the story, Poe becomes the assistant to the detective investigating a gruesome crime at the Academy.Bayard’s latest book ‘Jackie & Me’ shows us Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis through the eyes of John Kennedy’s closeted gay friend Lem Billings.Unlike many of our previous guests who have talked about having their books optioned to death by Hollywood without any films ever being made, last year ‘The Pale Blue Eye’ was made into a major motion picture starring Cristian Bale, Gillian Anderson and Robert Duvall.It’s a real pleasure for me and Ryan to welcome Louis to the podcast.
Paul Levine launched his very successful crime fiction career more than 30 years ago with the publication of his first legal thriller ‘To Speak for the Dead.’ He was part of a wave o lawyers-turned-novelists that included Scott Turow, John Grisham and Lisa Scottoline. Paul has brought the Jake Lassiter series to a close with the recently published ‘Early Grave.’ His Solomon vs. Lord series, which has been optioned for television, recalls the classic Tracy and Hepburn film ‘Adam’s Rib’ with its mix of romantic comedy and legal wrangling. Paul is a perfect guest for this podcast mixing crime fiction and dramatization because he has also worked in television as a writer for ‘JAG’ and was co-creator of the Supreme Court series ‘First Monday.’
Crime novelist Matt Witten has also written for a number of different television series including “House,” “Law and Order” and “Pretty Little Liars.” Witten’s recently published novel “Killer Story” follows a reporter turned podcaster who is coping with the massive changes in modern journalism while trying to investigate the murder of an old friend whose shift to right-wing politics made her a YouTube star.The novel explores the boom in true crime entertainment, the growing political divide between right and left, and new ethical questions resulting from the rise of advocacy journalism. Witten’s protagonist Petra Kovach bends the rules of traditional journalism to create her podcast and “Killer Story” will have readers questioning many of her choices.With his experience in both television and mystery novels, Witten proved to be a perfect guest for “Now a Major Motion Picture!” In this episode the writer talks about the differences between novels and TV & movies, and where old-fashioned journalism might be heading in the age of 24/7 digital reporting.
Robert Ellis is a native Philadelphian who moved to Los Angeles to work as a writer, producer and director in film, television and advertising. But after ghost writing the final draft of ‘Nightmare on Elm Street 4’ he turned to novel writing with ‘Access to Power’ becoming a national bestseller.Since then he has worked on two crime novel series including the detective Matt Jones series which includes Robert’s most recent book ‘City of Stones.’Ellis’ many fans include the best selling novelists Janet Evanovich and Michael Connelly.
Heather Graham is one of the most prolific and most popular authors in the country, with more than 200 novels to her credit.Over the years, Graham has eluded attempts to put her in one genre box, with her work spanning thrillers, mystery, fantasy and romance. The variety of her work keeps her excited about what she does and keeps her fans delighted to be surprised by all of the twists and turns she has made.In this episode, Graham talks about her unresolved relationship with Hollywood - she jokes that she might hold a record for the most film options that have never reached the screen - but is planning to take matters in her owns by exploring screenwriting.We were very happy to get Graham to take some out of her packed schedule to talk about her amazing career.
A terrific episode featuring Daniel Palmer, whose latest novel is ‘The Perfect Daughter.’ He talks about his roundabout journey to becoming one of our best thriller writers. Palmer had a long stint in eCommerce as one of the creators of the early book-selling website BarnesandNoble.com - which at one point was grossing $200-$300 million per quarter - and he also performed with a number of bands. Palmer has continued to put his musical talents to good use with the special material he has created about peers like Lee Child that has delighted attendees at crime writer conferences for many years. Palmer talks about his knack for creating vivid female characters in this era of continuing ‘cultural appropriation’ controversies and calls for writers to ‘stay in their lane.’ He also discusses Hollywood’s relationship with crime fiction and cites several examples of good page-to-screen adaptations.
We have wanted to showcase Sandra Brown on our podcast since it began in 2020, but what better time to have her as a guest than in the wake of the publication of her 74th New York Times bestseller “Overkill”? Millions of readers have come to love her special mixture of romance and suspense over more than four decades. Brown is one of the most reliable storytellers in the business, but one of the keys to her success has been the fact that she always has new surprises up her sleeves.
The crime writing community lost one of its smartest and funniest members when Jessica Speart died in late winter. The former actress turned to journalism and then crime fiction, creating the memorable environmentalist sleuth Rachel Porter in a series of witty, fact based novels. Her non-fiction account of the very lucrative and illegal rare butterfly trade “Winged Obsession” has been optioned for a film adaptation.
Ever since we started the ‘Now a Major Motion Picture!’ podcastme and co-host Ryan Brown have wanted David Morrell to be a guest. Who better to talk about the connection between books and movies than the man whose novel ‘First Blood’ launched the hugely successful Rambo franchise? Morrell talks about the decade long journey of his novel to the screen and the major political shift in Hollywood during that time. The author discusses his relationship with the star of the series - Sylvester Stallone - as well as his thoughts on which novels have lent themselves to good screen adaptations.
Ever since we started the ‘Now a Major Motion Picture!’ podcast, me and co-host Ryan Brown have wanted David Morrell to be a guest. Who better to talk about the connection between books and movies than the man whose novel ‘First Blood’ launched the hugely successful Rambo franchise? Morrell talks about the decade long journey of his novel to the screen and the major political shift in Hollywood during that time. The author also discusses his relationship with the star of the series - Sylvester Stallone - as well as his thoughts on which novels have lent themselves to good screen adaptations.
Ever since we started the ‘Now a Major Motion Picture!’ podcast me and co-host Ryan Brown have wanted David Morrell to be a guest. Who better to talk about the connection between books and movies than the man whose novel ‘First Blood’ launched the hugely successful Rambo franchise? Morrell talks about the decade long journey of his novel to the screen and the major political shift in Hollywood during that time. The author discusses his relationship with the star of the series - Sylvester Stallone - as well as his thoughts on which novels have lent themselves to good screen adaptations.
John Searles has written another hard to describe but wonderful novel. There is suspense to be sure, and thriller elements as well, as we watch the collision of three very different characters who end up at a rundown drive-in theater for a genuinely unsettling finale. But the book’s real power comes from the characters Searles introduces to us - a retired nurse who is going blind, a failed novelist, and an unhappily married woman who still holds a torch for a guy she loved years before when they both worked at DisneyWorld in Florida. Searles keeps shifting his points of view - and includes many flashbacks - but he never loses control of his plot or the steadily mounting suspense. Searles is not one of our most prolific authors - Her Last Affair is only his fourth book - but the wait between novels is always worth it. In this episode, John talks about his creative process, the role his work as an editor and critic has played in his fiction, and what it was like to see an earlier novel made into a movie.
With “Her Last Affair” John Searles has written another hard to describe but wonderful novel. There is suspense to be sure, and thriller elements as well, as we watch the collision of three very different characters who end up at a rundown drive-in theater for a genuinely unsettling finale. But the book’s real power comes from the characters Searles introduces to us - a retired nurse who is going blind, a failed novelist, and an unhappily married woman who still holds a torch for a guy she loved years before when they both worked at DisneyWorld in Florida. Searles keeps shifting his points of view - and includes many flashbacks - but he never loses control of his plot or the steadily mounting suspense. Searles is not one of our most prolific authors - “Her Last Affair” is only his fourth book - but the wait between novels is always worth it. In this episode John talks about his process of creation, the way his work as an editor and critic aided his fiction, and what it was like to see one of his novels turned into a movie.
You might rethink preconceived notions of film acting after reading “There Are No Small Parts,” critic and film historian John DiLeo’s book about the high quality work that can be found in even the briefest movie roles. Focusing on parts that took up 10 minutes or less in screen time, DiLeo takes us through a wide array of brilliant work starting with Elsa Lanchester in “Bride of Frankenstein” and ending with Al Pacino in “Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood.”
‘From Hollywood with Love’ looks at the rise and fall and rise again of romantic comedies over the past 30 years. Scott Meslow is a senior editor at The Week magazine and a writer and critic for publications including GQ, New York magazine, and The Atlantic.
Scott is a long-standing fan of romantic comedies and enjoys watching them with his wife, their daughter, and a rescue dog they named after Mads Mikkelsen.
‘From Hollywood with Love’ is Scott’s first book.
When James Benn launched his Billy Boyle World War II crime novel series in 2007, Lee Child raved - “This book has got it all - an instant classic.” Since then Benn has maintained the high quality of the series through 16 novels that have taken his military investigator Billy Boyle all over a war torn world.
When James Benn launched his Billy Boyle World War II crime novel series in 2007, Lee Child raved - “This book has got it all - an instant classic.” Since then Benn has maintained the high quality of the series through 16 novels that have followed military investigator all over the globe.
Jon Land is one of the most prolific and versatile writers in the crime fiction field. He’s written novels, true crime books, and screenplays. He is also a regular reviewer of crime books.
In this episode we talked with Jon about some of his biggest challenges, including writing a popular series of novels from the point of view of female Texas Ranger Caitlin Strong, and becoming one of the writers for hire who has kept the ‘Murder She Wrote’ character Jessica Fletcher alive in a series of novels that have followed the popular TV series.
As usual, we also asked Jon to talk about some of his favorite movie adaptations.
In addition to his writing, Jon was one of the founders of the International Thriller Writers organization
Jon Land is one of the most prolific and versatile writers in the crime fiction field. He’s written novels, true crime books, and screenplays. He is also a regular reviewer of crime books.
In this episode we talked with Jon about some of his biggest challenges, including writing a popular series of novels from the point of view of female Texas Ranger Caitlin Strong, and becoming one of the writers for hire who has kept the ‘Murder She Wrote’ character Jessica Fletcher alive in a series of novels that have followed the popular TV series.
As usual, we also asked Jon to talk about some of his favorite movie adaptations.
In addition to his writing, Jon was one of the founders of the International Thriller Writers organization
The terrific crime writer with a special interest in pop culture and social media talks about the role her background in entertainment journalism plays in her fiction. Alison also talks about Hollywood interest in her work and some of her favorite movie adaptations of books. The writer’s November 2021 novel ‘The Collective’ should be much discussed because of its portrait of the dangers of social media.
The best-selling novelist talks about her latest book ‘Dream Girl’ as well as her thoughts on TV and movie adaptations of her stories. She also mentions some favorite movies derived from novels.
Crime novels are just one aspect of Max Allan Collins’ long multimedia career. In addition to many books, Collins’ career has included making movies, creating graphic novels and working on several of the most successful comic books.
Collins also became a friend of the legendary crime novelist Mickey Spillane and worked on some of that writer’s unfinished novels when he died in 2006.
Recently Max returned to his popular Nolan series which he moved away from for several decades.
He joined us for a far-ranging conversation about books and movies.
Crime novels are just one aspect of Max Allan Collins’ long multimedia career. In addition to many books, Collins’ career has included making movies, creating graphic novels and working on several of the most successful comic books.
Collins also became a friend of the legendary crime novelist Mickey Spillane and worked on some of that writer’s unfinished novels when he died in 2006.
Recently Max returned to his popular Nolan series which he moved away from for several decades.
He joined us for a far-ranging conversation about books and movies.
The veteran novelist and TV and film writer talks about his experiences working in Hollywood and his recent novel ‘The Mirrored Palace’ about the art of spying.
Ryan Brown and Joe Meyers talk with best-selling crime writer and humorist Lisa Scottoline about her writing career, her adventures in Hollywood and why she keeps going back to ‘The Godfather’ again and again
Ryan Brown and Joe Meyers talk with best-selling crime writer and humorist Lisa Scottoline about her work, her adventures with Hollywood and why she keeps going back to ‘The Godfather’ again and again.
Ryan Brown and Joe Meyers talk with the crime novelist and screenwriter David Handler about his wonderful Edgar Award-winning Stewart Hoag novels drawn from his adventures as a journalist and TV writer in Hollywood and New York. Handler also discusses his mentor, the great William Goldman, and other TV, movie and book matters.