Linda M James

Wednesday 8 July 2015

ADAPTATION









I've been very busy adapting the first of my WWII books into a 5 part TV series during the last few months . Hard work but fascinating.

The reason being: in a short story or novel you can enter into the mind of your character and tell the reader what s/he is thinking; you can linger over the description of a stunning sunset or a magical forest for pages. In contrast, a film is a visual medium, so when you write a screenplay you need to think in pictures; pictures that tell a story through images that linger in the mind; through the use of credible dialogue and concise, creative description. So the lingering [perhaps beautifully written descriptions ] in your novel or short story have to be edited into a few lines, but those lines can be even more powerful than in your story or novel if remember to think visually.

You can also show what the character is feeling through his body language and actions without using any dialogue. And then, if  you're famous enough you can ask the marvellous actor Eddie Redmayne to act in your screenplay and he can show his feelings merely through his eyes.

I can but dream... I'll keep you posted.