Dream Cast for the Big Screen

In today's fun post the authors of Dark Matter: Artificial weigh in on who they would cast to play their characters on the big screen! Which actors and actresses do they envision as perfect for each role? Read on and see if you agree!

Stephanie Espinoza Villamor - Bryan in Artificial

I often write characters inspired by the people and communities around me, so I'm always picturing a diverse cast! Lina is Hispanic, like so many of my family members. And even though Bryan is an AI, I kept thinking of my own husband, who happens to be Filipino. So I would cast a Filipino actor like Paolo Montalban, who I remember best as the prince in the 1997 Cinderella movie I watched as a kid.

Kim Mannix - Aunt Faye in Rift 

If I had a chance to cast Aunt Faye in a film version of my story, I would like her to be played by Frances Conroy, because she is very similar to the mental picture I had of Faye when I wrote the story. I also love Frances Conroy's work on the American Horror Story series, and just about everything else I've ever seen her in, and I think she could capture the free-spirited and eccentric nature of the character well.

Steph Wolmarans - Namiu in The Utten Mission

Jasai Chase-Owens. I loved him in The Expanse. He is not afraid to take on a role in science fiction, and he did a fantastic job of showing the internal struggle of his character to meet others' expectations while still fighting for what he believes in.

Tara Tyler - Absi and Grav in Sentient

In a film, I would choose David Tennant (for Absi) and Michael Sheen (for Grav). They starred in the hilarious series Good Omens playing an angel and a demon who had to work together to save the earth.

Deniz Bevan - Maja in One to Another

Isn’t it funny, I have faces for all the characters from my novels and novellas, but none selected for my short stories! I’m going to go with Maja, the main character. I’d love to cast Natalie Portman in the role!

Charles Kowalski - Mauvil Khaztaru in Resident Alien

As I was writing "Resident Alien," I couldn't help seeing F. Murray Abraham as Mauvil Khaztaru. The smug, supercilious manner he demonstrated so well in Finding Forrester would be perfect for the role. As for the young protagonists, I'd be delighted if they became the vehicle for hitherto unknown up-and-comers to get their big break.

Olga Godim - Alexa in Nano Pursuit

I would cast Emma Watson into the role of Alexa. But Emma Watson as an adult, not a child.

Elizabeth Mueller - Zarynah in Resurgence

Since Zarynah isn't the point of view character, I'm spotlighting her! I would cast Karen Gillan to play her.

Mark Alpert - Vera in Vera’s Last Voyage

I don't really know who would be the best actress to play Vera Rubin, the late astronomer who was the real-life model for the main character of my short story "Vera's Last Voyage." Playing the role of a scientist is tricky, but a few performers have managed the feat well; for example, I think Eddie Redmayne did a terrific job of portraying the physicist Stephen Hawking in the movie The Theory of Everything. I love Cate Blanchett, and she has incredible range, so perhaps she would be a good candidate for the Vera Rubin role.

You can find all these characters in their stories from Dark Matter: Artificial, available on Amazon, Kobo, and Barnes and Noble!

In our next post on Wednesday, September 1 . . . it's the Insecure Writer's Support Group annual anthology contest DEADLINE! The authors will recap what it was like to write a story for an IWSG contest deadline. Don't forget to finish up and send off your story entries by then if you haven't already!

Character interviews - Part 2!

The authors of Dark Matter: Artificial continue their responses from last post as we get to learn a little more about the rest of their characters!

The Prompt: Choose one character from your story in the anthology and have them answer these interview questions: What do you hope to accomplish in your story? What is your biggest dream? And...do you have a favorite ice cream flavor?

Kim Mannix: 

I'm picking the character of Aunt Faye from my story to interview. Though she's not the main character, she's very interesting to me! 

What do you hope to accomplish in your story?  In this story, I am both a comfort and a hope to my niece, Lindy, after she's suffered some devastating losses. My goal is to open her up to the idea of something beyond our known world, and to teach her that she can and should take action to find happiness.

What is your biggest dream? My biggest dream is to have humans become more open-minded about life, not just the one we experience here, but perhaps after we die, or on other planes of existence. I feel that we would all be kinder to one another if we weren't so focused on narrow possibilities about ourselves and our place in the world.

Do you have a favorite ice cream flavor? Yes! I love rocky road because of all the sweet and salty surprises it contains. 

Mark Alpert: 

The main character of my short story "Vera's Last Voyage" is based on Vera Rubin, the late astronomer who discovered the best evidence for dark matter. The real-life Vera Rubin was very interested in science education, and part of the goal of my short story was to explain to readers what dark matter is and why it's important. What makes this goal a little tricky is that astronomers themselves still don't know what dark matter is; although the researchers can observe dark matter's gravitational effects, they can't detect the particles directly because they neither emit nor absorb light. But there are several intriguing theories about the true nature of dark matter, and in the near future a few upcoming experiments may be able to provide some clues to the answer.

You can find all these characters in their stories from Dark Matter: Artificial, available on Amazon, Kobo, and Barnes and Noble!

In our next exciting post on Wednesday, August 18 . . . who would our authors cast to play their characters on the big screen? Find out the actors and actresses they envision as perfect for each role!