I would be lying if I said I had never dreamed of having my first book picked up by Hollywood and made into a blockbuster. So in the spirit of indulging a wildly optimistic imagination, I’ve decided to do the leg work for the casting people and make suggestions for the roles of the characters in my book. By the way, it’s called The Secrets of Hallstead House and it will be out (in book form, not in theaters) in July, 2014, from Kensington Publishing.
The main character (I prefer to think of her as the star!) of the story is Macy Stoddard, a twenty-year-old nurse who moves from Manhattan to one of the Thousand Islands in upstate New York. Her parents have recently been killed in a drunk driving accident and her boyfriend, unable to deal with her emotions following the accident, dumps her shortly thereafter. She needs a change of scenery so she takes a new job. Her new patient is an elderly woman recovering from hip surgery. Macy learns of old secrets on the island that will change her future and that of all the others on the island. As she learns about life on the St. Lawrence River, she also must learn more about her own past.
In my humble opinion, Macy should be played by Zooey Deschanel.
The two main male characters are Will Harper and Pete McHale. Will is about forty and the nephew of Macy’s patient; Pete is in his early thirties and a handyman on the island. Neither man thinks Macy should be on the island, but for different reasons. I won’t say anymore about them.
Except that Will should be played by Edward Norton. And my choice for Pete? Casey Affleck.
Macy’s patient is Alexandria Hallstead. She is seventy-two and runs a family oil company. Determined and strong, Alex harbors a shocking secret that Macy doesn’t see coming.
I wonder what Dame Judi Dench is up to these days? Other than starring in Philomena, of course.
There is an older couple, Valentina and Leland Bryd, that live on the island. Both are miserable and want nothing to do with Macy.
I think Annette O’Toole would be delightful as Vali, and I picture Leland being played by James Cromwell.
There are two other characters in The Secrets of Hallstead House: Brandt Davis and Giselle Smythe. Brandt is in the Coast Guard and Giselle is a television news anchor. I can’t really say too much about these two without giving away spoilers, so you’ll have to read the book to find out more.
For Brandt, I think Orlando Bloom would be great. And Giselle can only be played by the great Naomi Watts.
So for all you casting directors out there, I’ve done the work for you. All you have to do is make a few calls.
Do you have dream characters for your books? I’d love to hear the people you’ve chosen!
Until next week,
Amy
Reade and Write 