Holly Menino's "A Distance to Death," the movie

Featured at My Book, The Movie: A Distance to Death by Holly Menino.

The entry begins:

A movie? Based on my book? How fun is that?

But really a movie is not such a far-fetched idea. A Distance to Death is about a horse race over pretty scary terrain. A hundred miles of it—when, remember, the horse playing Seabiscuit, was supposed to run only a mile and three-sixteenths. So, plenty of time and room for action and two murders.

The plot's a done deal. The images come naturally. But casting the film is going to be trickier. The characters in my mysteries come to me as infusions from people I know, all blended together. Sometimes it takes four or five friends to create a character, and none of my friends are movie stars or any other kind of public figure. They're real. I hope that's what gives life to my characters, but I know it's also what makes it difficult for me to imagine a celebrity "doing" one of my characters. That mental block aside, I suppose any actor worth his or her salt should be able to play Tink or Charlie or any of the characters who are essential to the plot. I also suppose that physical resemblance should be a consideration.

So let's start with Tink, who's in the race only to prove she can finish it, that is, until the race gets really dirty. I would find Helen Mirren, in her blonde no-makeup phase, pretty believable. She's got the height, the legs, the right number of years. And she's played women with plenty of grit.

Now, what about Charlie, her third husband after four marriages...[read on]

Visit Holly Menino's website.

Writers Read: Holly Menino.

The Page 69 Test: A Distance to Death.

My Book, The Movie: A Distance to Death.

--Marshal Zeringue