Get ready for it...

I'm reposting a post from a few years ago because I have just finished editing this book, ready for release. 

The Owners Volume 5 - coming soon. 

I have got to stop crying!

I have just written chapter seventeen, where one of my most beloved characters dies and I am heart broken. I didn't want him to die and I even tried to resuscitate him but his death was central to the plot and unavoidable.

And so I am grieving.

Unfortunately  this is not the only time in the past week I have cried. I watched the film District 9 the other night and it had me in floods of tears as well!

So now I have to add that to the list of film I can't watch without having a blubber. Here are my top ten...and in no particular order.

1. King Kong - I LOVE that hairy beast!
2. Truly, madly, deeply - the actors are so real and it gets me every time,
3. Dirty Dancing - I figure that's a kind of odd one here, but I cry!
4. District 9 - obviously!
5. Ghost - there's a definite Patrick Swayze theme here [ahem!]
6. The Lion King - yes I do know it's animation but when the daddy lion holds the cub up....
7. The notebook - oh my God I cried from start to end
8. I am legend - just because he is so alone [and the dog dies]
9. Schindler's list - they almost had to remove me from the cinema
 and finally,
10. Up - another animation which my children did not entirely understand in all its subtleties but I did.

There are of course many, many others, some of which have yet to be written.

But the hardest of all are the ones you write for yourself...

Have a great weekend and do something fun. I sure hope to.

Hear me talk about my books and other projects.

This Sunday at midday you can hear me talk about my most recent books, films and other projects on the Listen with Lee show on Black Country Radio.

http://www.blackcountryradio.co.uk/.../black-country-xtra/

It's also available on demand at https://www.blackcountryradio.co.uk/.../black.../on-demand/

Thanks to Lee Benson for being an amazing interviewer and for inviting me onto his show.

Review of The Crown

 Look out for my review of the TV show, The Crown, coming soon...

The Owners Volume VIII

I'm very excited to announce that I have today started to write the eighth volume of The Owners series. 

I actually intended to write this a few years ago, but I was so busy with films and TV, that I didn't get a moment to get started on it. But today I woke up and it was on my mind. 

I've always known what this volume would be about - it was merely finding the time to commit it to paper that was the issue. Somehow right now is the perfect time. 

If you've read The Owners books, you'll know that there are many core themes running through them - what it means to be human, how humanity can be so easily lost and what belonging really means, to highlight just a few. 

So because of what's going on around the world right now, it seems the perfect time to write this next volume. 

The Owners is all about misplaced intentions and about how sometimes there is no right answer. Sometimes what is wrong, has been wrong for so long, that even once rectified, hatred, anger and resentment still burn for past misdeeds. 

In this volume there is a return to some of the characters you met in Volume I: Alone, such as Sophia, who will one day be leader of her people. And of the tragic Louisa. 

I'll keep you posted with how the unfolding of the story goes. 

In the meantime, why not check out The Owners series. I'm hoping that Volumes IV - VII will soon be released. 

Happy reading! x

Script Sirens

Just a quick post to tell you about something I've got coming up, starting next Monday, 8th June 2020.

#GoingViral was created in response to the lockdown situation. You can read all about it here.

And don't worry if you're not free when we launch - as the videos are online, they will be accessible for some time to come.

If you watch and you like what you see, why not drop us a comment and share our content with your friends and family?


I will have more news for you shortly, I hope, when normal filming can resume around the world.

Until then - keep safe, and happy viewing! x

Oakhill Productions

I am currently working with Oakhill Productions on several exciting new projects, which I hope to have news about very soon. 

Unfortunately, in my line of work, there is often much to tell, and at the same time, a restriction on what I'm actually allowed to say. This can be very frustrating when what you really want to do, is shout things out from the rooftops...

So, in the meantime, why don't you take a look at the Press Release of one of Oakhill's other projects. (And no, I wasn't involved in this one.)

Watch this page for more news, coming shortly...


Until then - happy reading!

Men In Sheds and other news.

Hello everyone!

Well we're still in January... doesn't it go on? Cold, dark drizzly days almost without end.

So we all need a bit of cheering up, right? Luckily I've got lots of news!

As you know, I've always got lots of different projects on at once, so to save me typing a long list, and you trudging your way through it, I'll update you only on the things that are moving more swiftly.

I have an eight part podcast coming shortly with brilliant co-writer Alexandra Taylor. Beneath The Waves is based on a true and current situation and is set in Wales. It's a drama but has humour there too and just the tiniest possibility of a blooming romance... you're gonna love it.

I have also been asked to write a TV/Netflix series set in the 80s so I'm currently researching this (and yes, I was around then, thank you, but not in the location the series is set in).

My BFI Network supported film is currently with the director and I hope things will soon be moving on that, and yesterday I signed a collaborative agreement with the very lovely and visionary Michele Lammas, in order to turn her children's book into a screenplay.

On top of that I have another big project with director Ben Bloore which is coming along really well.

As well as the zillions of other TV/film/animations I have ongoing...

But what I really wanted to mention in this post, is men. Older men. Things have changed a lot since I was a child, and now there are as many men as women who take and collect kids from school, make dinners, load washing machines.

But for the 60 plus generation, this wasn't something that came naturally. Consequently, these men, once their working lives are over, often feel misplaced in society, redundant - useless. Women, the lynchpin of most families, continue generally to do what they always did - care for children, emotionally support the family... but their men folk are being left behind.

That's why The Shed is such a great concept. Providing a place for men to meet, share expertise and help each other over a cuppa, it gives men not just somewhere to go, but a support group to turn to.

As a woman myself, I've seen what happened when my own parents retired from work. My mother found numerous new hobbies (and indeed a new husband along the way, but that's a different story entirely)  while my dad became isolated and lonely.

So take a look at the clip below. And if either yourself or a loved one fancies popping along to see what it's all about, I'm sure they'd be very welcome.

Until then - happy reading! x

Men In Sheds - Bromsgrove

Big news, medium news.

I'm aware I haven't told you my big news... my latest film is being supported by BFI NETWORK. If you're not sure what that means, here is the logo, which I'm sure you'll have seen elsewhere.

I'm obviously thrilled about this development and can't wait for you to see it. But there's a lot of hard work to do in the meantime. 

In addition to this, I have several other films in development, as well as a couple of TV series, but since it's all hush-hush, I can't disclose any more than that. 

So what can I tell you? I can tell you that the BFI NETWORK only fund and support films they truly believe in, so to have them behind one of my films is incredible. And thrilling.

I've also been involved in top-notch discussions regarding a new TV series. I even had to sign a non-disclosure agreement in front of a witness. 

Although cloak and dagger stuff is fairly commonplace within this industry, which is worth billions in viewing figures, I've never had a situation which was so tightly sewn up. Let's just say MI5 has nothing on this lot!

I'm aware too that you've all been waiting patiently for a new book... well there are several on the way, but I'm sorry to say the wait will be a little longer. And hey, it's not like I've been sitting around doing nothing. I'm working flat-out!

In the meantime, if you want to catch up with me for a chat, I will be at the Space Day at The Hive in Worcester on October 5th. It's something I've been involved with for the past six or seven years, as a writer of science-fiction as well as thrillers, psychological and otherwise. 

So until I can actually reveal more, happy reading and have a great summer. x

Review of The Owners: Alone and The Owners: Storm Clouds by the esteemed Gary Longden.

With grateful thanks to the esteemed Gary Longden, Staffordshire Poet Laureate 2014-15.

Volume VII: Hunter's Moon

This weekend I finished the seventh volume of the Owners series. I am both sad and elated.


For a very long time I have suspected that it was not going to  be a particularly good ending for some of the main characters and I was right. In real life sometimes there are events which change everything or which alter how things are perceived...so it is with my characters and books. Regardless of how badly I wanted them to be ok, writing in an all-encompassing happy ending would have been both unrealistic and tacky. And they deserve better treatment than that.


Like all of my characters I will miss them dearly but they will remain in my heart. However with the finishing of this volume comes a little joy, for Volume VIII will see the story returning to one of the very first characters to show how things became how they were. It will be lovely to deal with already known and loved characters - its rather like meeting up with an old friend in a warm pub on a stormy night - exciting, long-anticpated and more than a little curious. Are you wondering which character? Well I'm afraid I won't be revealing that just yet, so hunker down for the wait.

In the meantime, there are lots of other things happening. I have been working hard on my editing job and am very busy attending functions on the magazine's behalf. I have also been busy organising the launch of Split Decision which will be out next month [date to be announced].

Meanwhile my new house is coming along nicely and I have now chosen a new fire to go where the old one was. It's a super, duper thing! In fact I think the whole house will look quite good when its finished [courtesy of my fab builder - details to follow on how to book him later].

So if you see a smiling but frantic looking woman buzzing around in an old battered light blue Citroen Berlingo,  not knowing where she is going or what she is doing, give her a wave, 'cos it will be me!


Happy Reading!

Unbearable excitement!

I am sitting bolt upright, laptop open on my knees...

Chapter 16 awaits and it is a high adrenaline point in the book. Here is where I left off at the end of the previous chapter and therefore my starting point for this new one:-

A lone owl hooted, its tone melancholy and cautionary, giving a solitary answer to his inner thoughts. Taylor shivered in apprehension.

In the distance the unsearched forest waited. Taylor stepped forward.

 

My fingers are eager to get on with the tale.

 

For the first few books in the series, follow the link to Amazon on the right.

 

Happy Reading!

 

Carmen.

 

Frenzied excitement!

My heart is beating so hard and fast, I almost can't breathe!

What is the cause of this near hysteria? I shall tell you.

I have spent a whole year away from my beloved Owners series. There were other projects to do, other books which needed to be written, so I put aside the Owners for just a little while. It gave me time to recharge my batteries and to reflect on how I didn't want to be defined by this one series.

But now I have finished these other books, it's time to turn my attention back to where it all began.

The Owners, Volume VII : Hunter's Moon is about to begin. Hold on to your hats!

Happy Reading!

This Twitter comment made me smile :-


Sajid Javid MP ‏@sajidjavid 8h8 hours ago

Enjoyed this Valentines's Day short story by #Bromsgrove author @carmencapuano http://www.bromsgrovestandard.co.uk/2015/02/14/entertainment-Valentines-Day-story-127005.html … @BromStandard

Details

2015

Have you had a merry Christmas and New Year readers? Have you eaten and drunk your fill, kissed your loved ones and revelled in the warmth around you? I hope so. Because the alternative is not good!

Don't worry, I'm not going to get all dark and brooding with you. Well ok, maybe just a little then. This is a difficult time of year for many people, a time when they feel lost or afraid, without comfort or solace in their lives. Believe me, I have known this from first hand experience, although I have always been lucky enough to have had more than a glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel.

Recently, however, I was faced with someone who struck me as such an individual. Crippled by a severe mental condition and fed a diet of prescription drugs, he should have been a spaced out zombie but instead I found him to be articulate with a quiet grace. He radiated an ease and serenity that most people could never achieve with a lifetime's trying. In fact, he reminded me somewhat of Bubba's character from The Green Mile [heart-breaking film].

We are a strange species us humans and I think that had I not ended up being an author, I would have been well suited to anthropology, as watching people's reactions to things fascinates me. To understand what makes people tick, what motivates and defines their actions would be a fine thing indeed, although I suspect that the study would be infinite in its course.

Do not concern yourself unduly, for I am sliding into this frame of mind as I prepare to restart my latest novel from where it left off before Christmas. A dark, supernatural type fantasy, it delves into the human psyche deeper than even I thought it would.

As an author it is easy to become so immersed in your work that real life seems almost wishy-washy in comparison. Colours are never so bright as when they are described in minutiae on a pristine page, emotions never so heightened than when dissected by a pen. That's why this has been such a good break for me. But now it is almost time to begin to turn my mind back to the tales which jostle in my head, the characters who fight for my attention...

So one last thought before I let my mind be devoured by the darkness... 2015 is here already. It will only come once in your life, so make the most of every day, of every minute, to make those around you know how much you care.

Have a happy and joyous 2015 readers.

Carmen.

I continue to be surprised by the content and the characters in The Owners books. Even though it is I myself who writes them, there are elements of surprise in every twist and turn.

Do you remember me telling you about one of the characters who I had only just realised was a dangerously bad man? Well it turned out today that he met his match in a character who up until now was not a main player but rather a supporting one. Seems she was just biding her time, I guess.

And that's one of the things I love most about this series - every volume picks out the people it needs to tell that part of the story, so that in effect, we get to meet all of the characters at different stages in their lives.

I guess it is a bit like looking at our own lives, slicing out little periods discrete in time and examining who was important in our lives then and why. If like me, you have changed jobs several times, moved home, been married and divorced, you will see that your world was inhabited not with one set of friends or family but a multitude of different ones who all played their own parts.

If like many of my friends, you are fortunate enough to have been in a long-term stable relationship, perhaps you will be able to see how the dynamics of this has changed over time...

'Cos that's life - there is always change, even if you can't see it clearly at the time.


Happy Reading!

Here is a little bit of my latest novel, currently entitled The Plan.


It is intended for adult consumption so not much of it will be pasted here, as I am aware that children and preteens also view this blog, following other books or series of books that I have written or which are currently underway. So relish the little bits that I can post!


Suzie regarded her companion with wide eyes. None of her friends spoke like this, it was not the type of conversation she was used to having but she liked the honesty of it, the cut and dried truthfulness.


Now to other news. As you are aware, Volume IV of The Owners has been recently released. Volume V and VI will follow shortly as both have been written. Split Decisions is awaiting an agent and The Trouble with Mellillia, Ascension and The Boy Who Saved Pigeons are currently on hold until The Plan is finished.


Early next year I will begin work on The Owners once more and hope to fire off Volumes VII and VIII.
I'll let you know if there are any changes to this plan!


[Oh and in between times I will be trying to fit in a life!]


Happy reading!

A snippet from my latest book The decision.


This book is very different to The Owners series both in content and in writing style. In particular it will appeal to fans of Stephenie Meyer, as it has a strong love interest theme which blends and interacts with the plotline. Here is a little taster:-


“Oh!” I was unaccountably sad, as though he was leaving me already. I had no hold over him, no right to ask him to stay and yet I felt crushed at the thought that he was prepared to leave me at some future date.  


Funnily enough, I started this book years ago but had to abandon it to pursue something else. Only now that I have come back to it can I see so much more clearly where the story is going. It is hard hitting and reflects the world we live in today...not an easy thing to do in many ways.


I will keep you posted as to how it's getting on.


In the meantime I hope that The Owners Volume IV will be out in less than two weeks! Exciting times!

Did I actually tell you what my books were like? Somehow in all the madness, I'm not sure I ever really did. So here it is:-

The Owners series is a blend of Avatar and 2012 ... where dystopia meets utopia, with a tiny fraction of The Waking Dead thrown in for good measure.

Of course it's not really like any of the above in their entirety but it does have elements of them all. It is set in a world where the relationships between the characters are similar to those in Avatar - there is a mutual bond of love and respect, there is a life/world changing event which creates mayhem and upheaval as in 2012 and then there is the struggle for life after this event, hence The Walking Dead.

If you can't picture the blend of these three things, read The Owners...it will set your imagination on fire!


You are in for a real treat.