Jeri Smith-Ready

ABC Family options SHADE!

I was planning to launch my new Fact Check Friday blog feature today, in which I discuss random tidbits of information I've discovered while researching my books. Things like the (super sweet) interior of a Mini Cooper, and how big an envelope one would need to hold $12,000 in small bills (it's for a character, not me--jeez, I wish!).

But this came up in this morning's Publisher's Marketplace:

TV: Jeri Smith-Ready's SHADE, to ABC Family with Andrew Gunn Films producing, by Holly Frederick at Curtis Brown, on behalf of Ginger Clark at Curtis Brown.

So what does this mean? It means that film producer Andrew Gunn (who according to his IMDB profile has almost the same birthday as me, so how perfect is that?) read Shade last year and got ABC Family to "option" the book for a television series.

So what's an option? In practical terms, it means a stated time period (usually a year) during which the studio (in the case of films) or network (with TV) can explore the possibility of turning the material into a movie or TV show. During that period, no other studio or network can do the same.

That's all it means, practically speaking. It doesn't mean that a TV show will ever get made. It just means that as long as that option is in effect, no one but ABC Family can develop Shade. The vast majority (and when I say "vast" I don't mean 51%--I mean much higher) of books optioned for film/TV never get made.

So the chances of Shade become a TV show are pretty small. I want to be clear about that.

I also don't really know much about the progress of Shade through the development process. I have absolutely no input into who would be cast, if a cast ever even exists (which it probably won't). Most authors don't.

THAT BEING SAID...it doesn't mean we can't have fun. It's not every day this happens, right?

If you've read Shade, hop on over to Storycasting.com and tell me who you think should play the main characters. I'm setting up an author account, which has to be verified by a retinal scan or something, so I'll put up my own ideas soon. But I want to see your thoughts first! If you don't feel like setting up a user account on Storycasting.com, just tell me in the comments.

(NOTE: Storycasting.com seems to be having a little trouble keeping their site up today, so if you have no luck, try again later.)

Have a question about the TV deal or film/TV options in general? Ask me in the comments and I'll do my best to answer if I can. If I don't know the answer, I'll ask my lovely agent and get back to you.

Everyone who comments will be entered to win a signed copy of the UK version of Shade, something you cannot buy in US bookstores and won't even be able to buy in the UK until September 2. You can see a comparison of the two covers at this fun Wondrous Reads blog post.

Deadline: Thursday, June 17, 11:59pm eastern.
International entries: Yes!

Happy Friday!

Labels: Contests, SHADE series, television

• posted by Jeri @ 10:40 AM
• 77 comments