Thursday, October 08, 2009

Theme Thursday - Collections




I know. I know. The photo on the left isn't what you would expect from a post about collections. But as it happens, I had forgotten that it was Thursday. My dear friend Angel May reminded me by sending me an e-mail that said something like "So. Are you going to do a Theme Thursday post today?"

Originally, I was going to post something called "Serendipity." That will have to wait. It's Theme Thursday! Meanwhile, I've been invited to Willow's Manor Ball, and I'm very, very excited about that. Not only do I get to go to the ball, I also get to show off my collection. (You thought I'd never get to the point, didn't you?)

What do I collect? Actors.

Yes, actors. I haven't been collecting actors for a long time -- just since I started working on my preparations for NaNoWriMo. I am trying to remember who first suggested that one way to get a handle on your characters was to cast a well-known actor to play each of them. Perhaps it was Willow herself. (Whoever it was, if you read this, please please let me know in the comments section, so that I can properly credit you!) So. I will choose an actor from my collection (I think I know already who my date will be!) to accompany me to the Manor. The rest of my collection of actors will ride in our wake, singing loudly, poking their heads out through the roofs of their limousines, disturbing the peace -- except for the ones that do their celebrating at my own super-hip satellite location, waiting to meet the revelers when they arrive for the after-ball.

Would you like to see a few of the actors in my collection? I'd be delighted to show you.


This lovely lady is Nicole Kidman. (By the way, who is that man that's ogling her?) She will be playing Bridget Connelly, my MC. Nicole would be shocked to know how much de-glamourizing she will have to do for this part. Bridget is not a movie star.

Nicole was actually the first actor I collected. Long before I considered casting her in Fly Away Home, I snagged this photo of Nicole so that I would have something to show to hairdressers. Beth, who cuts my hair when I'm at home, can't be expected to accompany me on all my travels, so I needed a cheat sheet to show the substitute hairdressers just what I wanted to look like. "A foot taller, forty pounds lighter, thirty years younger -- and oh yeah, with hair like this." So Nicole takes up residence on my laptop -- as my wallpaper, in fact -- whenever I travel.

Then came NaNoWriMo and that marvelous suggestion. The first character I thought up was Billy Mitchell. I had no idea who he was. I knew only his name. As I thought about him, though, he began to take shape. This is the shape he took. Not bad, eh?


Yep. The delightful Matthew McConaughey. Shimmering in the sunlight. Oh, dear. I must say, he was wearing clothes when I collected him. Won't he make a beautiful Billy Mitchell, though? Once I had a face for Billy, his character was a lot easier to map out. I think I thought of Matthew right away because my baby sister actually knows him. What's that? Two degrees of separation?



The only actor (so far) who has failed to fit right into the collection is John Cusack, who will play Hugh Beachley. This is not to say that John isn't a lovely man. He is. That's the problem. He's a little lovelier than Hugh -- or a little lovelier than Hugh started out to be. The upshot of that is that Hugh is changing. In fact, a lot of things about the story are changing. Half of me wanted to put John back on the shelf and find another actor, but the other half just adores John Cusack. If he wants a script change, who am I to argue?

I just went to check. There are thirteen actors in my collection, and I have bids in on a couple more. Wouldn't it be great to have shelves full of actors (I think that's called a stable, actually) to call on when you need faces for your characters? I'll save the rest of my collection for the night of the ball, and I won't tell you which one will be escorting me. All I'll say is Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooh.

Meanwhile, you can find more Theme Thursday posts here. This week's theme is hosted by Alan. Thank you, Alan.

11 comments:

Brian Miller said...

lol. this one gave me a few smiles along the way...13 in your collection...i wonder will it be growing by the ball...hope you have a great tt!

Tess Kincaid said...

Oh, wow, I do hope you will be bringing the luscious Danny Huston to the ball. I may have to swoon when I dance with him, so he'll have to catch me. Sigh.

California Girl said...

I don't kno what to think about this as I am unfamiliar with the ball so I guess I'll mosey over to Willow's place and read all about it.

Tom said...

i think i would like a collection of Charlize Therons. 3 or 4 will do--sorry won't be making it to the ball.

RLM Cooper said...

Hey girl! Billy Mitchell got court martialed by the US military for flying an airplane into a swimming pool - or something. ;o) (I saw it in a movie years ago so it must be true.)

Wings1295 said...

Interesting idea! And cool to know you are doing NaNoWriMo, too! This will be my 3rd year participating. Have NO story in mind yet.... EEK!

:)

Sandra Leigh said...

Brian, my collection will be growing a bit - not too much, though, as I have limited shelf space.

Willow, is that the man who's ogling Nicole? I'll have my people get hold of his people, and we'll see what happens. He won't be my date, though. Maybe he'll bring Nicole. ;>)

California Girl - I hope you did find out about the ball. I look forward to seeing you there.

Tom - with your having three or four Charlizes to tend to, I'm not surprised!

Nope, Angel May, this is an entirely different Billy Mitchell.

Wings, I'll be looking for you at NaNoWriMo. I have to do lots of prep, because I'm a newbie. If I didn't, I'd not just be saying EEK! I'd be having full-blown panic attacks.

Baino said...

I love that you live in a place called Nanaimo . . sounds very fantasmagorical. Aww our Nicole . .now what can I say . .she was much nicer before the botox lips. Mattie . . oh yeah who cares whether he can act or not, he always get his shirt off and is a regular visitor to Aus. Cusack . .delightful . . definitely one of my all time crushes along with Edward Norton . . .

Thanks for the heads up on Willow's thingy. I can't sing, can't dance but man I always wanted to be Deborah Kerr in the King and I!

Anonymous said...

Now that's something different! Can you get me Nicole's autograph? Pleeeeeeease!?!

Dreamhaven said...

what in th world is NaNoWriMo?
That's a wonderful collection
I have a scrapbook from the 1930"s that has nearly all the film stars (and some that aren't) from that era.

Sandra Leigh said...

Baino, I think they were all better looking before they discovered Botox. Pretty well all actresses now look as if somebody punched them in the mouth. As for dancing, I rejoice in the possibility of doing it virtually. Much less frightening than the real thing.

Dreamhaven, NaNoWriMo is National Novel Writing Month. I've sent you an e-mail about it.

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