Jay Fingers, Screenwriter/Author/Youtuber: That's actually something that my father
told me before I went to college. He was just like “You should write the book
and then once the book is published you should write the screenplay.”
Film Courage: How many books have you written?
Jay: I’ve written four books, the three that I brought with me today and a fourth one which
is a much smaller story. It's called Kisses For Tati, it's a family drama about a young woman who
just lives under the thumb of her older, domineering sister and she ends up meeting a guy
and she hopes that this guy can be the beginning of something (a relationship or something) that
can just kind of get her out of this rut that she's in kind of free her almost. It's a very
small story, very short story. I don't even think it's a hundred pages but that's the fourth book.
It's also my most polarizing people either love it or hate it because of the ending.
Film Courage: Is it a Whatever Happened to Baby Jane type ending?
Has anyone approached you on wanting to turn one of these books into a film?
Jay: No one has but I have heard some people describe a couple of them as cinematic. For me
that makes sense considering that a couple of them were began life as screenplays that I adapted into
novel form but no one has approached me as of yet but we shall see I always to tell managers when I
talk to them that I do come with ip I've got it so if you're looking to adapt something I've got some
projects for you we've been hearing a lot lately that aspiring screenwriters should possibly write
a book before they write a screenplay what are your thoughts on that I think that's a good idea
that's actually something that my father told me before I went to college he was just you
should you should write the book and then once the book is published you should write the screenplay
and I resisted that I don't I don't know why I don't know why I felt that
writing the screenplay instead of writing the book first and then adapting it I don't
know why I felt that that was more authentic or pure but that's where my head was at then
but now I would absolutely say yeah sure write the book
write the book if it does well that's great get some name recognition writing and publishing a
book it certainly establishes you as a writer that's something that you can carry with you
people are certainly just you they're still asking when's the next book coming out
even though I've said time and time again I'm actually focusing on screenwriting right now
the next book who knows but I think it's definitely a good move I look at nowadays authors
are doing that authors are writing the novels and then they are adapting the novels as opposed to
another writer I looked at someone Gillian Flynn she did that with Gone Girl and now she's actually
writing screenplays not yeah adaptations but her own so I think that that's great so yeah
it's definitely a good a good move do you think novel writing is easier than screenplays because
of the format no no it's just different it's just a different discipline writing itself is difficult
coming up with the story and and and the characters developing the characters and
everything it's all hard work and I really don't think that one is easier than the other
perhaps screenwriting might take a little less time simply because
the format is the format you know what you have to create and you have these parameters
please don't try to go above 110 pages or 120 pages what have you
whereas with the novel you can expound and you can embellish and you can write as much as you want
but they're they're just different disciplines I don't yeah I don't think one is
more difficult than the other jay you just mentioned ip you come with ip and you can
tell that to a manager or agent how important is that for a screenwriter well and when I said it I
kind of said it jokingly but also a little serious but I do think that it's helpful we're living in
an era where everyone wants to turn everything into a franchise which I guess can be cool but I
feel that if you come to a manager or a producer or someone and you say that I've got something
that's already established right it's already in a way been vetted it's got a fan base of some sort
that may make it a bit easier for you you've come with something that has a track record of success
it's okay this this book has sold relatively well or this comic book is critically acclaimed you
created that oh okay so I think that that can help a writer in a lot of respects so
if you've got the ip if you've got whatever it is whether it's a book comic book if you're
coming with I don't know the stage play or or maybe if you've created a small line of toys
that you can craft a story around anything that yeah I certainly think that that helps
have you thought about crafting an original trilogy to any of your works whether screenplay
novels all right I haven't and it's it's because I'm i'm really not a big fan of sequels
there are exceptions to everything of course I love the marvel
movies I love the marvel cinematic universe I love that kind of serial storytelling because
it reminds me of the comic books I was into the comic books but I don't think that everything
necessarily needs a sequel or or needs to be created turned into a trilogy
having said that because of the popularity of franchises series things of that nature I have
been toying with the idea of maybe writing a sequel to orange mound my novel orange mound
I do have a little idea rattling around in my head for a sequel idea and
if I decide to work on it and it comes out well then perhaps I might create a third that's the one
kind of property so to speak that I have that I've created that I've given a little thought
thought to about turning into a trilogy or whatever
is that because there are so many characters involved this is a neighborhood of people no
because actually orange mound is a small story it's got a small cast of characters
it's it's set in the neighborhood but it doesn't it's not about the neighborhood if that
makes sense but I do see that as kind of a hook because we explored different places that would
be familiar to people who were in memphis but yeah it's it's not it's it would just be another
story in kind of a familiar neighborhood but not because of number of characters or anything no
jay let's emphasize the fact that you said previously that you don't sequels
maybe even hate sequels but let's say I'm a producer and I come to you and I say I want
to make a trilogy of your novel orange mound which is sort of loosely based on Memphis or Nashville?
Memphis Memphis I'm sorry okay and and this beauty shop and there's different nefarious characters
in there and some good some bad and I’d to take that property and turn it into a trilogy trust me
of course I trust you we can certainly have that talk I look I want I want to
make movies I want to tell stories and whereas I don't believe that every story needs a sequel
sure it we can we can do this I'm in it for the art but I'm also in it for the commerce I want
to make some money and I understand that this is a business show business and if if sequels are put
on the table and said hey let's let's discuss this I can at least have the discussion and
if I feel that there is a story that can be told with these characters that
deserves to be expanded into into future installments then sure why not
I the reason why I have this disdain for sequels is because I feel that a lot of stories
are told they're they're these contained entities right you tell the story and and it's
done most stories are not crafted to be sequalized and so with the sequel you're you're almost
trying to force it and and that's where the problem comes in for me there's a sequel that
came out this year and I not gonna name it it wasn't bad I actually had fun with it
but for me it ruined the legacy of the original because that story was told so beautifully and
it's such a classic story such a classic film that a sequel is unnecessary and I don't think
that the sequel added anything and people to this day are still talking about the original
I feel the sequel came and went and I don't I don't it doesn't feel it has the lasting power
of the original so it's better sometimes to just let great work stand on its own
don't try to belabor it and then it ends up ruining absolutely yeah absolutely.