Backstory
(from the author)
(from the author)
In brief, American Odyssey: A Teenage Runaway's Memoir weaves a cautionary coming-of-age tale centering on three troubled teenage boys who run away to The Black Hills of South Dakota, where they find their lives forever changed by an unplanned murder and fated connections with an older, charismatic woman and a girl on the run. It offers astute commentary on social stratification and is torn from the today's headlines of kids in trouble and committing any number of crimes. And it offers insight into the potential motives behind such crimes, as it is told from the viewpoint of one those troubled kids.
As a writer, it is my desire, in part, to pen true-to-life stories that are relevant to today's teenagers and which touch upon some of what they might be going through in their own lives and might also resonate with adults as they recall their own teenage experiences. It is also a goal of mine to create a variety of stories with media cross-over potential and which can find success on multiple levels, such as in print as well as in movie format.
In that regard, I self-published American Odyssey in 2006 and, in 2008, an independent movie producer – Amy Green of One Eye Open Films and ARC49 Entertainment – who is based in Hollywood and with a presence in Toronto, discovered the novel via Amazon and optioned the movie rights. The option expired in May 2013. During the time it was optioned, the novel was circulated among many movie industry professionals (producers, screenwriters and others) and it generated a fair amount of interest. While names can't be named, some of those who either were approached or expressed interest have been involved in some of Hollywood's biggest successes, including Stand By Me, Running on Empty, Mr. Holland's Opus, Ladder 49, The Shawshank Redemption and The Green Mile, as well as AMC's The Walking Dead, among others.
Also during the option period, a script based on the novel was developed and written by myself, co-script writer Ken Benoit, and Ms. Green and her co-writer, Nick Bradford, an independent film editor and Writers Guild of America member. That script was marketed extensively during the option period by Ms. Green, and has continued to be marketed since by Ken and me, with the support of the other two writers.
I have also previously generated interest on the part of several literary agencies with regard to the novel and the seeking of a traditional publishing deal.
There is no option on the script at this time, and I have yet to secure the traditional publishing deal I am hoping for. I strongly believe, however, the interest shown in the novel during the option period, recent interest in the script following the expiration of the option, and the request by agencies to review the manuscript prove the commercial potential of both the novel and the script. In fact, as noted elsewhere on this site the two have been compared to other classic coming-of-age tales such as S.E. Hinton's The Outsiders and Rumblefish, Stephen King's novella The Body (Stand By Me) and Jon Krakauer's Into the Wild, as well as Rebel Without A Cause.
I presently have two other young adult novels in the works, while working as a full-time reporter for the Athol Daily News, a local regional newspaper based in my hometown of Athol, Massachusetts. In addition, I hold degrees from Mt. Wachusett Community College (Gardner, Mass.), and was enrolled in the professional writing program at Fitchburg State College (Fitchburg, Mass.), now Fitchburg State University. While at FSC, I won the Louis P. Shephard Award in Creative Writing.
I thank all who take the time to visit this site, and look forward to any feedback from readers and fans at [email protected] (click the email icon at the top of the page).
Literary agents with an interest in representing me as an author for this and other works, and movie industry professionals interested in possible development of the script into a film, can email at the same address. Please forward credentials and put either "AO Literary" or "AO Movie" in the subject line.
As a writer, it is my desire, in part, to pen true-to-life stories that are relevant to today's teenagers and which touch upon some of what they might be going through in their own lives and might also resonate with adults as they recall their own teenage experiences. It is also a goal of mine to create a variety of stories with media cross-over potential and which can find success on multiple levels, such as in print as well as in movie format.
In that regard, I self-published American Odyssey in 2006 and, in 2008, an independent movie producer – Amy Green of One Eye Open Films and ARC49 Entertainment – who is based in Hollywood and with a presence in Toronto, discovered the novel via Amazon and optioned the movie rights. The option expired in May 2013. During the time it was optioned, the novel was circulated among many movie industry professionals (producers, screenwriters and others) and it generated a fair amount of interest. While names can't be named, some of those who either were approached or expressed interest have been involved in some of Hollywood's biggest successes, including Stand By Me, Running on Empty, Mr. Holland's Opus, Ladder 49, The Shawshank Redemption and The Green Mile, as well as AMC's The Walking Dead, among others.
Also during the option period, a script based on the novel was developed and written by myself, co-script writer Ken Benoit, and Ms. Green and her co-writer, Nick Bradford, an independent film editor and Writers Guild of America member. That script was marketed extensively during the option period by Ms. Green, and has continued to be marketed since by Ken and me, with the support of the other two writers.
I have also previously generated interest on the part of several literary agencies with regard to the novel and the seeking of a traditional publishing deal.
There is no option on the script at this time, and I have yet to secure the traditional publishing deal I am hoping for. I strongly believe, however, the interest shown in the novel during the option period, recent interest in the script following the expiration of the option, and the request by agencies to review the manuscript prove the commercial potential of both the novel and the script. In fact, as noted elsewhere on this site the two have been compared to other classic coming-of-age tales such as S.E. Hinton's The Outsiders and Rumblefish, Stephen King's novella The Body (Stand By Me) and Jon Krakauer's Into the Wild, as well as Rebel Without A Cause.
I presently have two other young adult novels in the works, while working as a full-time reporter for the Athol Daily News, a local regional newspaper based in my hometown of Athol, Massachusetts. In addition, I hold degrees from Mt. Wachusett Community College (Gardner, Mass.), and was enrolled in the professional writing program at Fitchburg State College (Fitchburg, Mass.), now Fitchburg State University. While at FSC, I won the Louis P. Shephard Award in Creative Writing.
I thank all who take the time to visit this site, and look forward to any feedback from readers and fans at [email protected] (click the email icon at the top of the page).
Literary agents with an interest in representing me as an author for this and other works, and movie industry professionals interested in possible development of the script into a film, can email at the same address. Please forward credentials and put either "AO Literary" or "AO Movie" in the subject line.