Life has its ups and downs...

It's been a funny old week. There have been good things happening, and not so good things, especially when it comes to my writing life.

Firstly, the not so good.

It started off well. I was filled with hope and enthusiasm when I learned the screenplay for one of my all-time favourite films, Casablanca, had entered the public domain. I have, for the longest time, wanted to adapt the film for the stage. I know there is a musical based on the film, but I really wanted a straight adaptation for amateur and community groups. Now the screenplay was out of copyright, I could do it.

I knuckled down and wrote it. I was, originally, a playwright, and I find script writing a lot quicker than novel writing, so within a short time, I had a script I was happy with. My beta readers (some of whom knew the film, while others did not) loved it. We were ready to go.

Which was when I discovered that, although the screenplay IS out of copyright in the USA and Canada, it is NOT out of copyright in the UK, and won't be until 2071. Our copyright laws are slightly different to those in North America.

Oh well. It's written. So if any group in North America decides to put it on, they can do so. UK groups can ask my great, great grandchildren about it.

However, this disappointment couldn't dim my happiness at the thought that January 29th sees the release of my third Regency Romance for The Wild Rose Press.

The Smuggler's Daughter is a sequel to Viscount in Hiding. The hero, Adam Robinson, has been tasked with finding the traitor leading a smuggling gang. Evidence implicates Walter Ashton, whose daughter, Catherine, jilted Adam two years ago. Now, he holds her fate, and the fates of her entire family, in his hands.

Also this week, I got confirmation that my second pocket novel has been accepted and will be published later this year.

So, more ups than downs. I can't really complain about that, can I?

*Casablanca picture courtesy of Rotten Tomatoes.