Hi, everybody. It's been a while since I've participated in one of these, though I've been a Stage 32 member for years now. Because screenwriting isn't really my focus, I'm not here as often or as active as I should be.
What I am is a multi-genre, multi-media writer, having published around 70 books (mostly novels, mostly from the "Big 5" houses), short fiction, and comics and graphic novels since breaking into print back in 1988. I've published horror, mystery/crime, western, sword & sorcery fantasy, and science fiction in pretty much all of those media formats, along with some true crime and other nonfiction, and have worked with major IPs including Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel, Star Trek, Tarzan, CSI, NCIS, Narcos, Conan, and many more.
I've been a winner or finalist for awards in multiple genres as well, including the Bram Stoker and International Horror Guild awards for horror, the Spur, Peacemaker, and Wild Bunch Film Festival awards for westerns, the Scribe awards for licensed fiction, and the prestigious Inkpot Award from the San Diego Comic-Con. I've also worked in comics publishing at Image, DC Comics, and IDW Publishing and have managed and owned bookstores. So in the world of print, I've done almost everything, but despite having a degree in radio/TV/film, have never worked directly in those fields.
I'd love to find a literary manager who could take out some of my many (many many) original properties. I've only had two options over my long career, one with the late Mace Neufeld and one for a low-budget film based on a short story, which never got financed.
Currently--in keeping with my all-over-the-place career--I'm about to close a deal to revive a horror/western comic book series I launched in 1997 and which ran for 10 years; I'm about to submit a mystery short story to a magazine; I'm working up a plot for a licensed novel based on an Edgar Rice Burroughs property, and I'm kicking around ideas for a sword & sorcery novella. Oh, and I have a horror novel and a dark thriller novel releasing this year from two different publishers. I just got the cover for the thriller, coming in August, so I'll tack it on here.
As always, it's great to hear about everybody's accomplishments, hopes, and dreams!
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Hi, Jeffrey J. Mariotte! Great to see you at Introduce Yourself Weekend again. Congratulations on all your accomplishments! I've been getting jobs, script requests, learning more about screenwriting and other areas of the industry, etc. on Stage 32.
I suggest reaching out to the Success Team at success@stage32.com. Geoff and his team can help you connect with managers.
Hope you close the deal and the magazine accepts your Mystery short story! Speaking of Mystery, did you see The 'Burbs TV show?
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Maurice Vaughan, I've seen the ads for it and it looks really entertaining, but I haven't watched the show yet. Do you recommend it?
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Definitely, Jeffrey J. Mariotte! The movie and show.
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Incredible background and creative range, Jeffrey J. Mariotte, motivating and inspiring to see someone exploring so many corners of storytelling. Happy IYW, and I’m curious how you personally keep your originality sharp while moving across so many genres and formats?
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Thanks, Dwayne Williams 2. I haven't examined that question in depth, but I think it's a matter of conceiving a story I want to tell or an idea I want to get across, then deciding which genre and/or format makes the most sense for that story. So in most cases, it's not like, "well, I've got to write a Western; what am I gonna write about?" Instead it's, "I want to talk about this problem; how can I best tell that story?"