Casting Call: Picture This

Another long overdue Casting Call! These characters have been swimming in my head too long. Time to let them out. :)

First up is Sydney Welles. Her names implies she's old money, suffered a coming out at a debutante ball. But Sydney couldn't be more down to earth. She's sincere, hard-working, lovable, if a bit goofy sometimes. Why can't she get a decent date? Probably because she can't stop reliving the kiss that knocked her socks off a year earlier. A kiss that haunts her through every bad date. In fact, that kiss apparently kicked off a yearlong stretch of Bad Date Hell for Sydney. Oh yeah, she's got it bad. Too bad the guy lives in Philly, and she in Harrisburg. 

Mary Louise Parker is Sydney Welles.

Ben Taylor was a bit of a mystery to readers in the previous version.

No more. During revision, Ben spilled his secrets to me. Oh yeah, and I think you're going to like it. :)

Ben's conflicted. After his grandparents pass away, he moves from Philly to the sticks of central Pennsylvania. He's forced to leap at a job opening at the Harrisburg News, which needs a new photographer. Ben hopes like hell Sydney Welles doesn't hold a grudge. A year ago when he kissed her, his life went to hell. So he's more than reticent about seeing her again, let alone getting close to her.

You might recognize Ben's deep brown eyes, so expressive they make you want to melt. Or his little boy innocence. Or his playfulness.

Yep, he was always Robert Downey Jr. 

I have to post two pics because that's how strong Robert came through as Ben. And yeah, he's easy on the eyes. :)

I've mentioned before that Claudia, the editor, is named for my sister Claudia. But in my head, she's actually Gina Gershon. Gina's a bit young for the part, but I imagine she'll be one of those women who ages so well you want to hate her. Like Claudia. She's such a great friend and unfailing supporter, even providing a little slap to bring you back to reality when needed. Tough love, baby. Oh, and she's a wiz in the kitchen. (True to my sister, who received all the cooking genes in the family.)

Mayor Reeves is a complex guy. A politician, so he's not above being slimy. But he's fairly young, and very attractive. 

Jon Hamm can play that seedy-suave combo with ease.

Louann's a boisterous sports writer. Not feminine, but fun to be around, someone who can hang as easily with the guys as with the girls.

Rosie O'Donnell's a perfect Louann. 

Thanks for checking out this Casting Call!

 

Release day for Picture This!

Eternal Press releases Picture This today!
This story went through many revisions before acceptance. Not until I imagined Robert Downey Jr. as the hero did the story finally come together. So thanks, Robert. And if you're looking for a new project, you'd be perfect for this role. :) With Rachel Weisz as your leading lady (she starred in the version in my head, anyway).



Here's an excerpt:
Sydney didn’t like the look in Claudia’s eye. Like she was about to fire her. “Uh oh. What’s going on?”
Claudia took off her reading glasses, always a precursor to a delicate conversation. Never a good sign. “Do you remember Ben Taylor?”
Sydney released the breath she held. “Is that a trick question? We only have a conversation about him once a week or so.”
She hadn’t seen him in almost a year, a night that began with excitement and promise, continued blissfully for hours, and ended like a train wreck, with Ben dragged from the wreckage by another woman. Possibly his fiancé. Sydney could never quite learn the true story, but that fateful night stood out in her memory as a marker. The beginning of the end. After that, all her dates ended on a sour note. Ben Taylor had opened the flood gates of Bad Date Hell. From those gates streamed a neverending lineup of ill-suited matches, men who she should never have wasted her time on, but who each looked so tempting, she couldn’t resist trying. That was the thing about Hell, though, wasn’t it? People ended up there because the sin always seemed like a good idea at the time.
Claudia pursed her lips. “Yes, I know. The thing is… how do I put this?”
Sydney tensed. Claudia was not one to dance around a topic. Her style was more blunt – the resulting blunt force trauma notwithstanding. Something must be wrong. Terribly wrong.
She blanched. “Is he… “ Her voice trailed off. She couldn’t finish. Ben must be dead. Why else would her editor – her friend, her confidant, her mentor – be looking at her with such pity?
“He’s here.” Claudia watched her as if ready to catch her woozy body.
Those two short words snapped Sydney to attention. “Here?”