Susan Mac Nicol: Author, editor and screenwriter in London, England.

Based on your experience and talents, would it be possible to turn your screenplay into a book? I hear many writers take this path if their pitches to production companies fail.

An industry acquaintance recently asked me whether the screenplay I had just completed had also been written as a novel. It hadn't. Yet. The person felt that in today's market it might be a good idea to reverse engineer it into a book to ultimately increase the screenplay's marketability. Thoughts? Smart idea? Waste of time? Better to just work on the next screenplay?

Hi, Susan, thank you for connecting!!

I'm a published author, still getting there but I've built a great following and a loyal readership over the past two years since I started. I have five best-selling novels, and am constantly writing and publishing new books. I started out wanting to write a screen play for a romance story I was working on, so taught myself Celtx and got cracking. I found it was a little hard to write a screenplay from scratch so thought,' Hmm, maybe I should write the story first, then adapt it.' So I did. Of course, when I'd written the story, I thought 'I might as well see if I can get it published.' I submitted it to a publisher, the first one on my list, and they said they wanted it! Since then I've never looked back. Of course the reason my first story was started was because I have a huge crush on Benedict Cumberbatch. Yeah, I know, I'm one of them. A Cumberbitch. I thought if I wrote a story with him as the inspiration for my lead character, Bennett Saville, a sophisticated London actor of stage and film, one day it might be made into a TV series and I'd get to work with him when he agreed to take the role on. Snorts I know. I'm bloody insane. Anyhoo, the fact I’d based the book on him got me a lot of leverage and I was both in the newspapers and on the radio about my first book, ‘Cassandra by Starlight’, a contemporary romance thriller. I heard a few months ago that Benedict was looking for a meaty romance role. So, never one to rest on my laurels, I actually submitted the first episode screen play to Benedict’s agent a few months ago, together with the book and the fact that I thought Benedict would make a great Bennett (obviously as he was based on him). His agent Nick actually came back to me and said if I ever got the green light to produce the TV series/film, he’d consult Benedict to see if he wanted to take the role on! They obviously liked the idea. Of course, that’s easier said than done, but it’s a start  So if there’s anyone out there willing to take a chance on a penniless, struggling writer still in the garret, with the possibility of a real star taking on the role of one of my characters - just let me know.

Hi Susan. I'm RB, Founder and CEO of Stage 32. As an actor, screenwriter, and filmmaker, I know first-hand the challenges all creatives face finding work and attracting attention to their projects. That's why we created Stage 32. Since our launch in September of 2011, the community has grown to 250,000+ members strong representing every country on the planet making Stage 32 the social network uniquely populated with the most creative people on Earth. This is a network for you, built by you. Like most things in life, the more you participate, the greater the rewards. We ask all new members pay it forward and invite at least 5 fellow creatives and to spread the word of Stage 32 through other social media sites such as Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter. You can also invite fellow creatives through the site by using the "Send Stage 32 Invites..." button on the upper right side of your profile. The more creatives, the stronger the network. The stronger the network, the more opportunities. Thanks for joining the movement and for being a part of this most talented and inspiring community. PS - Please take a moment to like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter at @Stage32online.

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