I’m on a Mission

After realizing that screenwriting is not a field I wish to pursue, I have turned my creative focus to developing not one, but two manuscripts over the next couple of years in the hopes of becoming a published author. This post will explore what stories I wish to tell, along with what has inspired me to do so.

Growing up in America in the 1990s, some of my favorite films are Titanic (my all time fav), Braveheart, Saving Private Ryan, We Were Soldiers and Forest Gump. Other classics I love include All the Presidents Men, Full Metal Jacket, and Barry Lyndon. My favorite TV show of all time? That would be Mad Men. Some of the books I most enjoyed in the last ten years, All the Light We Cannot See, and The Nightingale. What do all of these stories, shows and movies have in common? They are all examples of historical fiction, many also inspired by or set amid real events.

When I sit down to watch Netflix, my queue is filled with historical fiction and documentaries encompassing a variety of subjects. I love the escapism the genre offers, since we cannot just get into a time machine and travel to these places in the past. The closest thing we have to that is the ability to become immersed in period stories.With that also comes the ability to explore various issues and themes through the past, which so often informs our present.

In 2013 I wrote a feature length screenplay, Liberation. The story, set during World War Two, is about two young lovers who are torn apart by the invasion of Paris by the Nazis. They each fight their own battles (some literally) in the slim hope that they may one day be together again. Needless to say a period drama with battles inspired by actual events would require a monstrous theatrical budget, and so the script never went anywhere. The script was also an early effort plagued by dialog issues and verbosity. The one area it did receive high marks on was characterization and story. Most who read it were very complementary of the story, and some even said “this would be a great novel.”

So today in 2025, with a story already written, I have a piece I still adore and can re-develop and outline for manuscript. My goal is to have a manuscript completed by the end of this year. After I settle some matters in my personal life, I hope to sublet a close friend’s place in Paris for a few months in 2026 to work on a more polished manuscript under the consultation of an historical fiction editor and book coach. I am fortunate enough to have the finances at last to take a writing career seriously, but in the direction I want it to go.

It took a lot of soul searching and self actualization to realize that Hollywood is not a world I want any part of. A recent teleplay I wrote got significant attention and if I wanted to, I could have pursued a lit-manager and gone out for staffing. This didn’t sit well with me, because of the financial anxiety it represented at an uncertain time in the industry. With novel writing, I am in control and I can also maintain a lucrative career to be able to invest in my creative endeavors including the ability to travel to Paris to write a book, something I never would have imagined possible in my life. None of this would be possible if I pursued writing for the screen. Who knows, if all goes well and my novels reach a wider audience and Hollywood comes knocking, I would be grateful to option any of my stories for the screen. But I would not wish to be part of that process beyond a role as a consulting producer with story credit.

So begins a wonderful new journey and on a path I feel is right for me. I look forward to sharing my journey here along with the research I will be undertaking to make my stories compelling. Hopefully I’ll get the chance next year to share some photos and anecdotes while living in France as well. In the interim, feel free to check out my home page for the projects I have in some state of active development.

Thanks for reading, and happy writing to all those who dare to dream.

MK