Fiction to Features / March 2024
The female authors issue! Featuring the trauma of war, memory loss, and the pressure of beauty standards
Hello all and happy now April! I am especially excited to share this March issue of Fiction to Features, as all 10 stories this month are written by women authors in honor of Women’s History Month. This was such a fun theme to curate…perhaps even more fun than my spooky edition back in October. The fiction by all these lovely ladies is amazing!!!
On a more personal note, I also wanted to highlight a woman whose writing I have become obsessed with this month: Barbara Kingsolver. I know, I know, very trendsetter of me to suddenly become obsessed with the oeuvre of the latest Pulitzer Prize winner, but I somehow had never read her work until recently…and I am now OBSESSED OFFICIALLY! Her audiobook narration of Animal, Vegetable, Miracle was joyous and hilarious — I found myself laughing out loud several times. And so insightful and packed with amazing information about growing and consuming local foods! I found The Poisonwood Bible to be devastatingly beautiful. The tale of these sisters as they are torn apart by the selfish ways of their father was heartbreaking, yet still filled with the charm and humor that comes from being a young girl with your sisters by your side. And to think I bought my copy of the book for a mere 50 cents at a thrift store! But more importantly I ask, where is my Poisonwood adaptation?! According to Kingsolver’s website, she previously wrote an unproduced screenplay based on the book years ago. But more recently, Amy Adams and her company, Bond, acquired the rights in 2019 to make it a limited series. Where is my Emmy-winning limited series where Amy Adams plays the matriarch of this family of Christian missionaries living in the Congo?! NEED IT ASAP. Although Ruth Ozeki will always have a special place in my heart, Kingsolver may take her place as my favorite author. BARBARA KINGSOLVER I LOVE YOU!!!!
Okay enough of my fangirling and back to the newsletter….
As usual, the rights to all these stories are available. If you wish to inquire further, you can reach out to me at fictiontofeatures@gmail.com.
Happy reading!
THIS MONTH’S READS:
“Eight Bites” by Carmen Maria Machado, found in Gulf Coast
Logline: After receiving bariatric surgery to help her lose weight, a woman begins to see the physical manifestation of her weight loss living in her house.
Why it would work as a feature: I was especially excited to read this story because of its author. Machado is an amazing writer — her memoir In the Dream House was a beautifully unusual and haunting book about an abusive relationship. To read her writing is a pleasure, so I was especially delighted to peruse some of the stories from her collection Her Body and Other Parties. This story deals with body dysmorphia and disordered eating in a respectful and impactful manner. With the right filmmaker, this could be handled well in a feature adaptation. Although there are sadder moments where we see the narrator, her sisters, and her daughter dealing with their unhealthy relationships with their bodies, I think this could play well as a true horror film. The weight loss creature could be haunting the narrator and the daughter in her home, and her sisters may give advice on how they dealt with their creatures once they received their surgeries. Feels like TO THE BONE meets THE BABADOOK. I would love to see this further developed where our narrator has to fight off the spirit of her weight but ultimately lets it continue to live in some iteration, thus proving she can accept that her body is totally normal and acceptable regardless of its weight. Although the rights are technically available for this story, I did want to give the caveat that the rights are currently up for discussion with several parties. But this story was too good to not mention, especially when it is technically available!
“Where You Are Supposed to Be” by Serena Lin, found in Hyphen Magazine
Logline: On a mission to find and capture a doctor who could lead his fellow troops to Saddam Hussein, an Arab American man must detonate a bomb while dealing with his past and inner turmoil.
Why it would work as a feature: This story could be an amazing scene in an Oscar-baity type war film. This was reminiscent of one of the stories featured in my October issue, “The Hive and the Honey” by Paul Yoon, due to its desolate setting, developed inner world of our protagonist, and eerie writing style that draws the reader in. I could see a director coming in with an approach similar to Terrence Malick in THE THIN RED LINE to make this cerebral and otherworldly. The flashbacks to Kobe’s time spent with his mother were a haunting juxtaposition with his struggle to survive both emotionally and physically in the desert. The last few short paragraphs were gripping. I would love to see this as a feature where we follow Kobe as he assimilates into his new life in the military, and the scene depicted in this story could be the film’s ending. Poetic, moving, and real potential for character development, I thought this story was beautiful.
“Presence” by Gina Chung, found on Electric Literature
Logline: In an attempt to vanish a “presence” that follows her around, a disgraced scientist who left a faulty memory loss tech company visits a spa while reflecting on her past.
Why it would work as a feature: As echoed by the introduction to this story on Electric Literature’s webpage, the speculative aspects are where Chung’s writing really shines. The flashbacks to Amy’s life as she and Leo were developing this technology were particularly effective — really reminded me of ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND with the nonlinear storyline as well as the memory loss technology. This would work so well as a feature. We have amazing character development as Amy learns to cope with her past (the death of her mother from Alzheimer’s, the demise of her relationship with Leo), and the spa makes for a wonderful setting for introspection. A sharp, grounded sci-fi that discusses trauma and how we choose to deal with it. Also to note, this story is featured in Chung’s short story collection Green Frog, and the rest of the stories in that book are currently available as well.
“Median” by Kelly Robson, found in Reactor Mag
Logline: After a caregiver’s car breaks down on a busy and dangerous highway, she begins to receive distressing phone calls as she tries to seek out help herself.
Why it would work as a feature: This is a great contained horror story. The stakes grow infinitely higher as the story proceeds — no cell service, then Carla finds a fatal car accident, then a three-headed dog?! This would all be amazing in a feature! I also immensely enjoyed the metaphors at play here. Carla is a professional caregiver and is always trying to solve problems for other people, even when she receives these distressing 911 calls on her personal cell. But when she finally accepts closure and just comforts the final man with dementia at the end of the story, we see her character development truly shine. This could be great for a more auteur filmmaker, or a more conventional horror filmmaker who is looking to make a smaller film. Well-written and thoughtful piece of genre fiction.
“The Last Unmapped Places” by Rebecca Turkewitz, found on Electric Literature
Logline: After an encounter with a webbed-armed man as a child, a woman recounts how he followed her throughout her life and ultimately led to the death of her twin sister.
Why it would work as a feature: Perhaps I am biased in my admiration for this story, as it centers on the unbreakable bond between two sisters, and my relationship with my sister is the most important one in my life (hi Erin). But I enjoyed the character development here as we see Hannah and Rachael embark on very different lives, with Hannah thriving more as a teenager and Rachael eventually coming into her own and feeling more grounded as an adult. This webbed-armed man is a looming and disturbing presence that could be amplified in a feature, especially as he leads to Hannah’s untimely end. There is some metaphor in Hannah’s death, as she and Rachael seem to each have grown up in their own ways. We could speed through their childhood and the college years in a feature, and instead show how different Hannah and Rachael act as adults as Rachael tries to ward off this monstrous presence. This might help to make it a bit more commercial and streamlined.
"Exotics” by Dantiel W. Moniz, found on Oprah Daily
Logline: A group of waiters serve a supper club that consumes increasingly exotic foods, until their final meal consists of something dark and disturbing.
Why it would work as a feature: Flash fiction that could make for a CRAZY feature! This is one of the stories featured in Moniz’s collection MILK BLOOD HEAT, which I have heard nothing but praise for. Now the whole book is officially added to my TBR! I love the excuse that these waiters were just doing their job, as I think it creates real potential for conflict. If we were to see a feature where we get properly introduced to several of the waiters, we might understand their motivations and how some of them could adhere to that logic, while others might try to make a difference and put a stop to it. There is plenty of material to build upon here! The ending is deranged and shocking, but it is built up nicely and it really succeeds to make such a short story stand out. EYES WIDE SHUT if it were to center on an elite supper club.
“Monster of the Month Club” by Marissa Lingen, found in Haven Speculative
Logline: A woman receives the birthday present of her life from her cousin: a subscription to a monster of the month club, forcing her to fight off a monster each month to protect herself and her dog from harm’s way.
Why it would work as a feature: This may be a Fiction to Features first, but I could see this short story being adapted as a pilot for a fun television show. Similar to how shows like THE X FILES have monster of the week episodes, “Monster of the Month Club” could easily follow a similar format. The story ends perfectly with Rae deciding to go on this journey to become a freelance monster of some kind herself, as she has become a “formidable opponent” against the monsters she’s battling each week. Zany, fun, and with a lovely female protagonist, this short story sets itself up nicely to be developed further in a longer adaptation that could carry on across multiple episodes and multiple seasons. Good character development and an opportunity to make things darker, or more lighthearted and adventurous.
“A Splinter” by Elizabeth McCracken, found on Oprah Daily
Logline: When a teenage boy begins working on a boat headed to England, he falls in love and moves in with an older woman who works on the vessel as a ventriloquist.
Why it would work as a feature: A HAROLD AND MAUDE tale with some WATER FOR ELEPHANTS mixed in, I thought this story could make for an enchanting adaptation. I love that we, at one point, hear from our protagonist, Lenny, as a much older man. Perhaps a feature could tell this as a frame tale from that perspective? Further, this could be developed much further to show how Lenny begins to crush on Lottie on the boat and what draws her to him initially. From there, we could dive into exploring their dynamic and how Lottie can help Lenny escape his drab life in the US. I don’t love that Lenny is a teenager in a relationship with an older woman, so I think a feature adaptation could age him up several years to being just out of college. In this case, he may have been completely single and still going through puberty while in college, so Lottie could be the first woman he’s ever been with. A slightly whimsical yet sad tone that I really enjoyed, and the ventriloquism adds a special touch.
“Shedding Her Own Skin” by Silivia Moreno-Garcia, found in Fantasy Magazine
Logline: In war-ridden Mexico, teenage Teresa tries to survive against the corrupt soldiers in her town while beginning an illicit relationship with a nahul, a shapeshifting mythological creature.
Why it would work as a feature: I adored this story. It reminded me of PAN’S LABYRINTH as this dark fairy tale set in a war-ridden period in history. Additionally, I also felt some similarities to the recent horror film IT LIVES INSIDE due to its use of cultural mythology. The setting is interesting and I especially loved Teresa’s interactions with this nahul. He teaches her about her loyalty to her family, which provides great character development against the irritation she often felt towards them at the beginning of the story. The scene towards the end where he warns Teresa about the soldiers coming and offers to run away with her, but she instead runs in the direction of her home, was powerful. This has a great climax and follows strong feature beats. A unique story that would serve a filmmaker who is experienced in fantastical visuals well.
“Beautiful White Bodies” by Alice Sola Kim, found in Strange Horizons
Logline: After returning to her hometown due to unemployment, a 27-year-old woman befriends a teenage girl who uncovers a bizarre string of her classmates developing an illness that causes them to conform to Eurocentric beauty standards.
Why it would work as a feature: The commentary in this story, the themes! If an Asian woman with a voice similar to Diablo Cody wrote the feature adaptation of this, it would be absolutely incredible! Justine goes through a great arc by being forced back into her childhood home and having a sort of quarter life crisis. There are also such clear opportunities for feature beats here — either Justine’s hookup with Greg or the CDC intervention could make for great midpoints. Pearl and Justine’s relationship helps to center this story, and Pearl’s insecurity is dynamic and palpable, especially as she watches her classmates’ appearances mutate. This reminded me of the work of Mona Awad, specifically if Bunny and Rouge combined to form a short story that takes place in high school.
That’s it for this issue! I loved reading all these women authors for this month. And I especially loved reading the work of the fantastic Barbara Kingsolver! Thank you for bearing with me during my long ode to her and apologies again for exposing my true inner fangirl.
See you all again on May 3rd for the April issue.
Meghan x