Next Stop Hollywood
by Steve Cohen, Editor
Published by St. Martin's Griffin
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Reviewed by Cerri Ellis
The Hustler, It Happened One Night, High Noon, Minority Report and All About Eve. Quite an impressive list, but what do these movies all have in common? Give up? They all started as a short story.
Next Stop Hollywood is the brainchild of Steve Cohen and Jonathan Davis. Each year they partner with St. Martin’s Press to publish original short stories that are judged by a panel of Hollywood insiders via an international contest, with winning entries compiled into the anthology. Their criteria? Finding stories that would make a great movie or TV project. More than 600 entries were submitted and narrowed down to a mere 15.
Using the same judging criteria, I chose three stories from Next Stop Hollywood to highlight.
Perry Glasser’s “An Age of Marvels and Wonders,” tells the story of a lonely old man slowly going blind and the young woman who comes into his life. Raylene is a walking hard luck story—with two kids, no money and an abusive ex-husband. Is it any wonder she’s skeptical of an offer of help? Bob may slowly be going blind, but he sees far more than mere eyesight allows.
“Gone to Mum’s” by Barry Simiana is a richly detailed and poignant story of missed chances, stolen moments, heartbreak and redemption. Simiana’s narrator takes readers along on his journey of self-discovery amid the rugged backdrop of Australia. The author paints emotion on his canvas, stunning the reader with the simplicity and honesty of his prose.
“The Good Kid” by Brian Richmond, is a clever tale of deception. Marty is a bank robber on the run with nowhere to go. The kid is more than willing to help. But is he helping himself or Marty? O. Henry would have approved.
With Hollywood scrambling for fresh ideas, it’s nice to know that the art of the short story is not completely forgotten.
Armchair Interviews says: Kudos to Cohen and Davis for their part in reviving an endangered genre.
Author’s Web site: http://www.nextstophollywood.org