The Man from Toronto

Greetings. For those of you in the US, I hope you had a chance to enjoy time with family and friends. Maybe see some fireworks. When I was little, my dad used to make the annual run to the nearest Red Devil stand so that later his boys could enjoy shooting off Roman candles and twirling sparklers. These days, fireworks are illegal in many towns in California because of the fire danger. Yep, droughts are a bitch.

Screenwriting News

Well, I did it—I entered not one but three screenplay competitions. Last August, I mentioned I was taking a break from writing novels to return to screenwriting. As I’ve mentioned before somewhere, screenwriting is the hardest writing you’ll ever do. It’s rigid and unforgiving. In fiction, the standard advice is to kill your darlings. When writing a screenplay, you pretty much need to take out the whole family.

I went through lots of drafts and finally ended up with 100 pages of what I hope is pure thriller fun. We’ll see. I should have some news toward the end of the year, so stay tuned. Oh, and wish me luck.

Recommended Reading

I just finished reading a sci-fi thriller that’s pretty wild. Imagine you start suffering from occasional blackouts, only you haven’t been drinking. Then, you discover other women are experiencing similar symptoms. That’s the premise behind Blackout by Erin Flanagan. You can read my review here. Also, check out my other book reviews.

Book Description

In this unforgettable psychological thriller, the dark is a terrifying mystery for a woman on the edge.

Seven hard-won months into her sobriety, sociology professor Maris Heilman has her first blackout. She chalks it up to exhaustion, though she fears that her husband and daughter will suspect she’s drinking again. Whatever their cause, the glitches start becoming more frequent. Sometimes minutes, sometimes longer, but always leaving Maris with the same disorienting question: Where have I been?

Then another blackout lands Maris in the ER, where she makes an alarming discovery. A network of women is battling the same inexplicable malady. Is it a bizarre coincidence or something more sinister? What do all the women have in common besides missing time? Or is it who they have in common?

In a desperate search for answers, Maris has no idea what’s coming next—just the escalating paranoia that her memories may be beyond her control, and that everything she knows could disappear in the blink of an eye.

Where to Buy

Amazon
Barnes & Noble
Books-A-Million

Books to Enjoy

Dawn is a student at the mysterious Simya Academy. Something about her starts changing, and she realizes that not all is as it seems. Simya Academy by Tanya Lisle.

As a young child, Kora failed to rid herself of the physical and haunting presence of the bad man, Mr. Red Eyes. Then, he revealed himself to be Evil personified. Stained Torment by Colin Morom.

Recommended Viewing

If you’re a Netflix subscriber and looking for some big laughs—who isn’t?—you should check out the new Kevin Hart-Woody Harrelson flick, ‘The Man from Toronto.’ It’s the classic mistaken identity trope taken to the max. I can hear my wife now after I screw up again. “You Teddy’d it.†Watch the movie, and you’ll know what I’m talking about.

Logline. The world’s deadliest assassin and New York’s biggest screw-up are mistaken for each other at an Airbnb rental.

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Okay, that’s a wrap. See you next month when I try to figure out how to celebrate National Lighthouse Day while living on the West Coast. Peace and love.