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Imagine a movie that reunites the McLeod’s Daughters cast!

I have! A girl can dream, can’t she?

Dreaming was what Liane Moriarty did when struggling to conceptualise the right character for her Little Big Lies #2. (More on that later.)

I also had a huge, impossible dream to be published and in 2013 House for all Seasons was #5 top-selling debut novel. So it’s fitting to have my BOOK #5 released on the same day as my debut. TODAY – March 1. (The ebook of my 5th novel, A Place to Remember, is ready to read.)

So, the message is…“Imagine and it will come.”

That’s my motto and with ‘producer Posie’s’ blessing, I’m going to share my movie version starring the McLeod’s cast. (See Posie’s note below.)

Here comes HOUSE FOR ALL SEASONS – THE MOVIE, starring…

I’m not sure why I didn’t think about this before now, unless it’s because, lately, I’ve been bingeing on my favourite TV series and wondering where the cast members of McLeod’s Daughters are these days, or maybe because I just watched Aaron Jeffery’s portrayal of Chopper Reed (creepy, but a Logie contender, for sure) and wished I could watch more TV shows with ex-McLeod’s cast members. (I think I spotted Brett Tucker in a US TV show the other day.)

So, I Googled the McLeod’s cast and when I saw how they’d aged – beautifully (haven’t we all?) – I thought . . .

Hang on a minute! Those actors are at the perfect age to play my four characters out of House for all Seasons – a story about . . .

Four women,
Four lives unravelled.
And the truth that binds them forever.

Bequeathed a century-old house, four estranged friends return to their hometown, Calingarry Crossing, where each must stay for a season at the Dandelion House to fulfil the wishes of their benefactor, Gypsy. But coming home to the country stirs shameful memories of the past, including the tragic end-of-school muck up day accident twenty years earlier.

At the Dandelion House, the women all discover something about themselves and a secret that ties all four to each other and to the house – forever.
***

Now, forgive me for saying so, but with House for all Seasons having a reunion theme, the idea of reuniting old cast members from a much-loved show is a bit of a no-brainer.

What do you think?

Can you imagine an ensemble cast that might play the four characters?

I have . . . (and feel free to give me your thoughts in a comment).

Bridie Carter or Jess Napier can play Sara – a breast cancer survivor afraid to fall in love; (Aaron Jeffery MUST play Will, ex-footy hero and love interest! Must, must, must!)

Zoe Naylor or Jess Napier would make a great Poppy – a tough, ambitious journo still craving her father’s approval;

Rachel Carpani would be great as Amber – a spoilt socialite addicted to painkillers and cosmetic procedures;

But I think Lisa Chappell is the only person who could play Caitlin. She’s perfect to play a doctor frustrated by a controlling family and her flat-lining life. (And the character who is, helped by hunky vet, played by Myles Pollard or Brett Tucker, who solves the mystery).

(and let’s not forget Sonya Todd (Meg), who would be a great ‘Cheryl’.

***

Of course, I’m dreaming, right?  As if that will ever happen! But it’s what we writers do. We use our imaginations all the time, in different ways, includes picturing our stories on the big screen. More recently, I fantasised about The Thorn Birds cast reunion as I wrote A Place to Remember. And I’ll let you in on a secret:  Rachel Ward and Matilda Brown inspired my characters as I wrote Ava, and her daughter Nina. Imagine THAT? Rachel, Bryan and Matilda Brown all playing together in the movie version.

Ah, yes, a girl can dream.

But you know what?

Publishing a book was a dream once, so I know they do come true.

And about Liane Moriarty stryggling to conceptualise a character

It was Liane’s sister, Jaclyn, who suggested she try imagining an actress in the role to help her get inside the character’s head. Liane imagined Meryl Streep and, yep, you guessed it, Meryl heard about it and signed on for the role!

So keep dreaming, people (and keep hoping these amazing actors come back to our screens one way or another.

***

*GIVEAWAY CLOSED – WINNER ADVISED* – More books to win coming soon for newsletter subscribers.

To celebrate the anniversary of House for all Seasons, I’m giving the ENTIRE SEASONS COLLECTION away to anyone who signs-up to my newsletter BEFORE 4/3/18. 

(Those already signed up will automatically go into thE draw.)

(*Aust. postal addresses only, sorry*)

And no…

Sadly there will be no more discussions re a McLeod’s Daughters return. A message from Posie, herself (via Facebook Fan Page.)

P.S. Posie, thank you for letting me have a little McLeod’s fun. 

Meeting you in 2012 was a dream come true, too!

Respectfully yours, Jenn J McLeod (The Lost McLeod Daughter!!)

A Place to Remember – set on a central QLD cattle station over three decades is now available – in ebook. See my Book Room for where to get it.

“The author encapsulates both the Australian way of life and landscape perfectly, crafting an authentic, heartwarming, and rugged saga (that is) reminiscent of master storyteller, Judy Nunn.”  AusRom Today

CLICK for various BUY links
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I’m having a house party!

house party

 

My first-born has just turned three — three years out there in the big book-loving world so I’m giving a copy away this week.

I had Monica Mc’s The House of Memories and The Island House by Posie Graeme-Evans as ‘house guests’ back in 2013, so it made sense to again have a house party to celebrate. (Although I dare say, if Monica, Posie and I were actually in a room celebrating there would not be tea!)

So…

 

Happy 3RD Birthday HFAS

To enter the draw: leave a comment, share & tag, or CLICK to Tweet: [Tweet “Look who’s turned 3! @simonschusterAU #Australia #fiction #giveaway http://wp.me/p1zse7-1ZU “]

Four women.

Four lives unravelled.

The truth will bind them forever.

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Jenn’s Tips – Writing a Submission for your Story

Let’s get straight to the point.

If you are an aspiring writer you will want to secure a publisher or a literary agent and to do this you will need to compose a book submission (sometimes called a book proposal) and I’ve got one here to show you. There is only one rule (as far as I am concerned) and that is to be as concise and as clear as possible and hook the reader – whoever it is. (In other words “get straight to the point”!!)

Rather than telling you how I did it, I’m showing you the actual letter I wrote — the one that prompted Clare Forster to telephone me the next day and ask: “Are you sitting down?” (True story.)

So here it is, folks. Use the format to suit your own submission and good luck.

(Addressed business-like to your preferred agent/publisher)

________________________________

A HOUSE FOR ALL SEASONS (book title)

Going home might just be the magic they need (my original tagline)

 Jenn J McLeod (if a pen name use your real name with “w/a” , which means “writing as”.)

Word count – 85,000 (ah, note final word count of published book was 140,000! That is how much depth I added to the characters and plot during the re-write period.)

Women’s fiction (genre – include sub-genres eg suspense, sci-fi, rural, etc)

Dear Clare, (NB: I launch straight into the pitch. Don’t start telling them about you. Tell them about the story.)

Returning home to Calingarry Crossing twenty years after a tragic end-of-school accident, four estranged friends –Poppy, an ambitions journo craving her father’s approval; Sara, a breast cancer survivor afraid to fall in love; Amber, a spoilt socialite addicted to painkillers and cosmetic procedures; and Caitlin, a doctor frustrated by a controlling family and her flat-lining love life – discover a secret at the century-old Dandelion House that will bind them forever.

In the style of The Alphabet Sisters (Monica McInerney), What Kate Did Next (Lisa Heidke) and Roustabout (Rachael Treasure), A House For All Seasons is four stories in one – Tall Poppy, Surviving Summer, Amber Leaves and Wynter’s Way – about going home and about living, loving and embracing a second chance. (Comparisons are okay as long as they are genuine and you are not comparing yourself to a writer, but rather to the style of book/writing/audience.)

Jenn J McLeod

Romancing the possibilities – in life, love & second chances. (My brand at the time.)

“A Penny for Your Thoughts” , Little Gems Short Story Anthology 2010 (My writing resume. Huge, huh? But did it matter? No. Submit anyway.)

(Insert your address and email AND phone number  – and have a chair nearby for the next few days!!)

_______________________________________

 (I also included a synopsis that provided more detail.)    

A HOUSE FOR ALL SEASONS

Four school friends meet after twenty years to claim an unexpected inheritance in the century-old estate – The Dandelion House.

Estranged since a fatal end-of-school accident, in which a friend died, the women must return home to Calingarry Crossing, in country NSW, and each stay a designated season in the house. A potential quarter-share means all four must also agree on its fate; not as simple as it sounds given the mix of emotions that going home triggers. They didn’t agree much at school and they agree on only one thing now – why them?

TALL POPPY: Dedicated newswoman, Poppy Hamilton, has done more than nudge the glass ceiling; she’s obliterated it. But nothing seems to impress her estranged and reclusive Vietnam-vet father who nicknames his daughter Poppy-ganda. Poppy knew her father as the damaged man who drifted in and out of her life, especially after the house fire that killed her mother and baby brother – and for which she blamed herself. She deals with the hurt by pretending not to need anyone – not ardent, long-suffering media network boss, Max, and especially not her father. While spending spring in Calingarry Crossing Poppy has to make a decision; produce a report the network wants, or one that will stir pride in her father before it’s too late.

SURVIVING SUMMER: Breast cancer survivor, Sara Hamilton, has her own reasons for going back to Calingarry Crossing – unrequited love. Will Travelli, ex-NRL football pro and hunky school heart throb, has returned home a widower, a paraplegic, and a father of two toddlers. But confronting the subject of her teenage crush is soon complicated by a battle with Will’s mother; a woman not only fiercely protecting her son from further hurt, but her own place as the only mother Will’s children have known. Sara didn’t expect to find love and she’s torn; they aren’t teenagers anymore. She knows her prognosis is uncertain and Will and his children have already lost so much. She refuses to bring more grief or become a burden like her parents had been before they died. Sara has to make the decision that’s right for them all. That means finding the courage to stand up to Will’s mother and start living bravely.

AMBER LEAVES: At thirty-six Amber Bailey is spoilt and unfulfilled, her addiction to cosmetic procedures and painkillers keeping her sufficiently numbed – a reluctant socialite, an artificial wife, an embittered daughter, a prized possession. Come autumn, and without explanation to her husband or her domineering father, Amber leaves her life behind to return home to Calingarry Crossing where she’s reunited with her mother – now a sober, scone making, CWA member (and survivor of an abusive husband). When Amber learns the extent of her father’s ruthless ambition, she starts to question what’s real in her life and rediscovers the girl behind the perfect façade.

WYNTER’S WAY: Class of ’89 goody-two-shoes, Caitlin Wynter, was the perfect student and daughter. Now thirty-eight she’s the perfect doctor, even though medicine wasn’t her choice. The family expected it, and Caitlin always did what was expected. Taking up a locum position in her father’s old Calingarry practice for the winter seems like the perfect plan until she meets the local vet and the good doctor’s flat-lining love life develops a delightfully unexpected blip and Caitlin decides it’s time to live her life her way.

Going back home ends up being just the magic each woman needs when they discover a secret, buried for over thirty years, which binds all four friends forever and finally answers the question – why them?

 A House For All Seasons is a mystical story about going home,
about living, loving and embracing a second chance. 
(This is my elevator pitch – ie a short, snappy, sales pitch. You should be able to tell the basic premise of your story in 15 words.)

Well, I hope this helps. Please let me know if it does.

Good luck and keep dreaming the dream.

Jenn J

four books