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The Ballad
Ethan Burns
of
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Movie Length Tales featuring:
Action and AdventureComedyDramaHorrorKids and FamilyRomantic ComedyScience Fiction and Fantasy
Thriller and Suspense
Ask for them in any bookstore, or see them all at:
www.AisleSeatBooks.com
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James Balestrieri
A Movie LengthContemporary WesternRomantic Comedy Tale
For Readers13 and up
Lyme, New Hampshire
The Ballad
Ethan Burns
of
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Copyright 2013 James BalestrieriAll rights reserved.
Cover illustration by Jeff Mueller, based on a painting byNick Eggenhofer
ISBN-13: 978-1-935655-71-8ISBN-10: 1-935655-71-X
Library of Congress Control Number: 2013935350
Published by Aisle Seat Books, an imprint ofGrayBooks LLC
1 Main Street
Lyme, New Hampshire 03768
www.Tales2Film.com
www.AisleSeatBooks.com
Softcover Edition
Printed in the Unites States of America on acid-free paper.
DEDICATION:For my excellent wife, Dancy, and my three excellent
children, Ian, Lucia and Vivian
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About Tales2Filmand
Aisle Seat Books
:Read a good movie lately?
Every good movie starts with a script, and everygood script tells a riveting story. Long before the actorsare chosen and the filming starts, a writer sits down,crafts that story, and submits it for consideration bythe producers, directors, and other creative talents inthe film industry. It can take a long time. A script mayspend years making the rounds before getting the elu-sive Hollywood green light. If it ever does. Some ofthe greatest movies ever written are ones that none ofus will ever see on the screen.
Tales2Film finds the best of those not-yet-producedtales and brings them to you as Movie Length Tales
just as the writer envisaged them. Each of the tales inthis series has been converted by the scripts writerfrom the technical shorthand of screenplay format intothe familiar prose format you see here, a process called
novelization.These little books are not novels, or even novellas.Think of them as written movies. Like the screenplaysthey come from, each is presented in real time, writtenin the present tense to allow you to see the moviesscenes in your minds eye as if they were unfolding ona theaters screen before you.
So. Heres a movie. Take your favorite aisle seatand enjoy it.
And when its over, take a look at out Featured Pre-views in the back of this book. Your next Movie LengthTaleis already here...
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Now Showing:
Contemporary WesternRomantic Comedy
Ages 13 and up
The Ballad
Ethan Burns
of
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Theater lights dim.
Fade in:
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9
One sunshaft through unlit neon and the slats of an
inner set of saloon doors is the only indication its mid-
afternoon at Hegartys, a dump of a bar in L.A.
Nine mailmen line the barstools.A planetoid barkeep serves them as they swill beers,
wolf down greasy tacos and bellow at an old television
that sits high in a corner behind the bar.
Standing in the shadows at a small round table, Oc-
tavio Tavi Rivera makes notes on a screenplay. He
glances at the mailmen and the TV.One mountain of a mailman points at the TV, rant-
ing, Ethan Burns! I tell you, his old man must be roll-
ing in his grave!
You think he gives a rats rump? the barkeep ob-
jects. Hes rolling in his old mans dough.
Tavi shoves the script in a backpack, drinks up,squeezes between the mailmen, puts money on the bar.
The barkeep nods.
Tavi leaves.
The mountainous mailman watches Tavi leave,
makes sure hes gone. That kid gives me the jitters.
Always scrutinizing us. Then, whispering, Hes notPostal Police, is he Clyde?
Not that I know of, Clyde the barkeep replies. At
least he doesnt have to blow cobwebs out of his wallet
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when it comes time to pay the bill. Unlike some who
shall not be namedDanaher
The other mailmen roar. Danaher tries to swingtheir mockery back to the TV, gesturing again and
thundering, Look at him grinning. The sad spectacle!
Framed by imitation wood grain and worn knobs
on the battered TV cabinet, relics of a bygone era in
home entertainment, the face of Ethan Burns smiles a
forced smile.Teetering on the knife-edge of 50, Ethan is a fit fel-
low looking a bit yellow in this lurid light. Then the
ancient console disappears, and
THROUGH THE TV:
The set of a daytime cable TV show. Low-budgetglitter. A large chintzy sign reading WHO CAN
TELL? spelled out in light bulbs, hangs above the set.
Ethan stands next to a woman whose name tag reads
BABS. Her brow furrows, suggests cogitation. A tinny
clock bongs. Ill repeat the question, Ethan says.
Who can tell you about living in hives and makinghoney?
Babs squints. Ah Umm A bumblebee?
Thats it! Ethan cries. Bumblebee is correct! Ten
thousand dollars is yours, Babs!
Music, in unmelodic triumph, kicks in. Babs hugs
Ethan and howls in his ear.Ethan smiles heroically into the camera, signing off.
Join us tomorrow, becauseWho Can Tell?
Canned applause instantly halts. Feet pound for the
exit.
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Over a speaker, someone yawns and says, Thats a
wrap, people. Last one to the bar believes in the saving
power of art.With one voice, the entire crew shout, Art who?
They swarm and swirl around Ethan, wrapping cable,
carrying lights, moving set pieces.
Babs hasnt loosened her grip on Ethan.
I am such a fan of your fathers films, she says.
Why dont they make westerns like that anymore?And you were so cute in the ones you were in.
Maybe the morality is too simple. Maybe were too
cynical. The worlds moved on
But its Babs whos moved on. Ten grand! Wow!
Maybe Ill look you up after I have my makeover. Who
can tell, right? And with a twinkle in her eye, shesettles into her bear hug and squeezes Ethans buns.
A production assistant in a miniskirt arrives and
pries Babs off Ethan.
Ethan turns and nods to his cameraman, an African-
American whose turtleneck and beret ooze cool in the
Shaft, John Shaft way.Ethan asks, Who was I today, J.B.?
Janet Leigh inPsycho. Lit you hot. Came in tight
every time you smiled that grimace-y smile of yours.
Mans got to flex his artistic muscle once in awhile. Use
it or lose it. Otherwiseatrophy death.
The assistant in the miniskirt passes.Thanks, Ethan says.
They always follow the money, the assistant re-
plies, not pausing to chat.
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Whereas I always follow the skirt J.B. croons in
cool hot pursuit.
Lights snap off, leaving Ethan in shadow. TheWHO CAN TELL? sign snaps off.
A voice booms through the darkened set. Another
day, another erotic death grip from a woman named
Babs. Accept your doom, Ethan Burns.
Ah, the voice of fate, Ethan muses, played by my
own agent Lets a man know where he stands.
LATER:
In a dressing room, Ethan removes his pancake
makeup. His visage is green in the mirror. Ethans
agent, a polished older gent, stands behind him. Break-
ing a thick silence, he says, Daytime talk show time.Ethan eyes meet his in the mirror. Again? Ratings
down? We getting the axe?
You sound like you wish they would. He looks at
his watch. Tanning sesh in twenty.
Mirror, mirror on the wall, whos a wallet?
When you look like a wallet, well charge em for alift Uh, Ethan, that surgeon?
You go.
Ive been. Its just a consultation.
What do I need surgery for? To look younger for
Who Can Tell?
Exactly. For who can tell?Why, Bobby Hightower, are you trying to be phil-
osophical, or are we about to break into an Abbott and
Costello routine?
Whats the difference?
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Sometimes Id like to liftyourface. Clean off your
venerable old head.
Chip off the old block.I aint the milkmans boy So, the cheerful morn-
ing drivellers. To what do I owe the honor?
Your fathers hundredth anniversary.
That crept up. One hundred years ago my fa-
ther, Matt Burns, King of the Celluloid Old Westan
American iconwas born. Dot, dot, dot, fill-in-the-blank, blah.
The retrospective has, and I quote, sparked re-
newed interest in the archetypal westerns of Matt
Burns. Five Matt Burns classics directed by Henry
Hyde are coming out in HD. Theres a festival at the
university. Starts tonight. You said youd show, take afew questions
Which film?
West of the Law.
Long time since I saw it on the big screen. Paint-
brush Valley Small screen never does do justice to
that slice of Arizona.
ON A MOVIE SCREEN:
West of the Law plays. Matt Burns walks a dusty
street filmed in the morally austere pastel palette of a
John Ford film. Ethan and Bobby sit in the audience;
the backs of their heads jut into the film.Ethan narrates, whispering, Stetson wide, guns
low, he glares at the fearful burghers through thick si-
lence He leans into Bobby. I loved being on that
set with Dad.
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Its coming, Bobby says. The shot of you listen-
ing to your fathers big speech.
Ethan smiles, younger in the projected light of thefilm. He lip syncs his fathers words at first, then his
voice seems to rises above his fathers. Its a power-
ful growling drawl, even in a whisper: When choices
shake your teeth until they rattle in your head, the
measure of a man is in the next thing he doeswhether
he fights back, and why, and how. Thats the measureof a man. The only measure.
On screen, young Ethan, in West of the Law, beams
with pride.
Bobby breaks in: That shot of you made Matt
prouder than anything else in the whole picture.
Corny stuff, these days, Ethan says.Credits of West of the Lawroll. Buttes and stone fin-
gers rise. The score swells as the film ends.
LATER:
Ethan stands at a podium in the university audito-
rium. Bobby and several faculty members sit behindhim. Ethan scans the audience for signs of life. A stu-
dent in John Lennon glasses raises her hand.
Yes, Ethan acknowledges.
What do you think of the bill in Congress that
would reopen Paintbrush Valley to development and
resource exploitation, particularly the uranium minesthat were abandoned after the Cold War?
Frankly, this is the first Ive heard of it, but Id sup-
port any effort to prevent the passage of such a short-
sighted bill.
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Even if it meant going up against some of your Re-
publican oilmen friends?
My father had friends in the energy business. ButTeddy Roosevelt was a Republican. And a trust buster
and an environmentalist. As for oil, how did you get
here tonight?
Respectfully, sir, Teddy Roosevelt might be a
Democrat today. She starts to sit, then jumps up again
and adds, And I walked.A light giggle runs through the audience.
Ethan waits for it to die down, and counters, Old
Teddy might say Bully, Bully! But, to answer your
questionwould I go up against my friends? When
we were on location with West of the Law, one night
Dad and I were sitting near a fire, looking up at that bigsky, and he said, Ethan, plenty of things in this world
need changing, but some things should be left as God
made them. Like Paintbrush Valley. So I would go up
against anybody. Republican, Democrat. Anybody. Ev-
erybody.
Light applause rises from the audience.A student in a torn army jacket raises his hand.
Ethan points.
Yes, sir.
How does it feel to know that screen magic isnt
hereditary?
I dont know about screen magic, Ethan says.But rudeness, whether hereditary or not, needs its ass
whipped.
Is that cornpone from a Matt Burns movie?
Nope, Ethan says, leaping from the stage.
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Cellphones, tablets and video cameras roll.
In flight, over his shoulder, Army Jacket taunts, I
thought this was supposed to be a critical appraisal, notMe and Pa anecdotes from some wannabe!
Ethan chases Army Jacket out a door.
Moonlight breaks through trees in a shaded area be-
side the auditorium. Ethan catches his breath, noticessomeone in the shadows. He prepares to spring. The
figure moves. Ethan jumps. They scuffle.
Got another question, you kook?
The figure, Tavi, fights back. He protestsbut qui-
etly.
Mr. Burns! Wait! Wait!Ethan realizes his mistake and helps Tavi up. They
brush off.
Im sorry. I thought you were
I didnt mean to be sneaky. Boldness becomes a
vaquero who doesnt want to end up as a carpet for a
horseso my father says.Fathers always have something to say.
Im a writer
Tabloid? No comment. See my agent.
No, Mr. Burns. Im a screenwriter. Im a grad stu-
dent here. In the Masters in Fine Arts program.
Ethan studies Tavi. Funny, you dont have thatNobody understands my art, mac and cheese seven
nights a week look. So are you a Matt Burns fan or a
Matt Burns hater?
Fan. Student. Ive written a screenplay.
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Cant help you. I dont know anybody worth know-
ing anymore. And nobody worth knowing knows me.
Republican or Democrat.Would you read it? Its a western.
Let me guess. A Matt Burns picture. If you want an
opinion, ask your teachers. Thats what your dad pays
the big bucks for.
I pay my own way. My teachersthe other stu-
dents, toosay that its dated, archaic, naive, that Ishould make it a postmodern slash revisionist indie.
Ethan laughs. Postmodern slash revisionist
Watch those slashes, kid. Those slashesll kill you.
Ive seen Who Can Tell?
Brave soul.
I was sitting in Hegartys bar. When its hot, I sitthere and nurse a beer and write Anyway, one day its
just me and nine mailmen
Nine mailmen?
A record, I think. Anyway, the bartenders channel
surfing and mailman number three, the biggest one,
says, Hey, thats Matt Burnss kid. So they watchedAnd laughed their asses off. My dreams are haunted
by the laughter of nine mailmen.
Ive also seen your movies. Your own movies.
Ah, yes. Such classics as The Barbarian and the Ama-
zon Queen? I wonder How will the critics reappraise
myopus on my hundredth birthday?Sword and sorcerys not your genre. Besides, today
youd be swaddled in CGI. Theyd throw in some er-
satz Joseph Campbell to give the illusion of philosophi-
cal depth and no one would think twice about acting
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or script.The critics would still kill you but the foreign
market would eat it up and youd be laughing all the
way to the bank.Just who are you, anyway?
My name is Octavio Rivera. Tavi I think youd
be right for it My script.
I told you, Im fresh out of connections. Thats
what being the host of Who Can Tell?means. Nobody
knows me. Nobody wants to.I have nothing, Mr. Burns. No contract, no agent.
Just a pile of student loans and a hundred twenty pages
of words. Will you read it?
I havent seen a script in years Send it
I have a copy right here.
Tavi takes a screenplay from his backpack, hands itto Ethan.
A writer after allMan of the West Sorry, Tavi,
that titles taken.
I know. Gary Cooper. Julie London. Lee J. Cobb.
1958. Anthony Mann directed. Im bad at titles. The
rest is all mine.Well, at least you steal from the best. Maybe onell
come to me You know that kid who heckled me in
there?
A student. Hates westerns. Probably did it on a
dare.
Who dared him?Who can tell?
Youre not helping yourself.
Point taken.
Ill get back to you.
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My numbers on every page.
THE NEXT MORNING:Poolside at Matt Burnss home, an old Hollywood
Hills estate in the Spanish Colonial style complete with
terracotta roof, arched arcades and meticulous gardens
and fountains.
Ethan stands and paces in front of a sinuous woman
in a one-piece bathing suit elongating on a chaise, turn-ing slowly to tan evenly.
Must you stand in my sun? she says. What is that
grinding noise? Darling, are you thinking?
Ethan pauses. Who Can Tell? might go under
and
and may it rest in peace. Now you can help man-age the estate slash assets. Larry was wondering that
just the other day.
Good ol Lar. Lar, whose dream is to see me stand-
ing guard over Matt Burnss sacred memory as if it
were the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier
For my sake, be a good Unknown Soldier. Dontyou hear our friends snickering?
I hear the horselaugh of nine mailmen.
Youre babbling, Ethan.
Who wouldnt babble around here? And when you
say our friends, what you mean is your friends, and
theyd snicker at an old lady falling down a flight ofstairs if she werent wearing this seasons shoes. And if
she were wearing this seasons shoes, theyd steal em
right off her feet. Pretty soon, Susan, Im gonna start
on the bourbon and then
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If Matt Burns were alive, hed say
Hed say, A mans got to live his life.
In a second floor bedroom in the hacienda, a fiery
raven-haired beauty in her early 20s wakes to the
sound of Ethan and Susan arguing. She goes to the
window to listen in.
Below, Susan continues. No, Ethan. That was
the movie Matt Burns, the cowboy who preached
about honor slash duty slash all those other American
Dreams. The real Matt Burns knew that was just dia-
logue. The real Matt Burns exploited his talent to sup-port his family. And he never disgraced them. Thats
what he would tell you.
Maybe Im the child of the cowboy.
Then youre the child of fantasy.
What if the guy you married is a child of fantasy?
Last night, at the festival, I got to thinkingThinking? According to the news, you didnt get
past screaming slash fighting. And congratulations.
You made YouTube.
Ethan ignores her. I want to give acting another
shot. Hook up with an indie, maybe. See how that
goesWhy? Does someone want to do a sequel toAtomic
Beasts of Bikini Island? Ethan, youre just not an actor.
Youre a celebrity, like the Kardashians and the cast of
Friends.
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Fit for game shows and charity golf tournaments.
Look, Im not asking you.
Whats wrong with game shows and golf? You getsome fame without having to do any work. And you
dont have to face the critics.
The bastards.
Exactly. The mere rumor of you acting would have
Siskel and Ebert working overtime milking snakes to
fill their poison pens.Siskels dead. Eberts not well.
Bit their tails and died of their own venom.
Yes, and if you bit your tongue. Look, this isnt
my idea. I was approached.
Fine. Say you were approached. Does Bobby
know?Youve never supported me.
It wouldnt matter if I did. Ethan, you wont get
one foot in the door.
Fine. To hell with you. Who needs you?
Who needs you? Sounds like the name of a game
show. Another real winner.Ethan looks the house over. The young woman
ducks away from the window.
Susan warns him. Ethan, I hear your wheels grind-
ing. You will not mortgage our future on a pipe dream.
Ill do everything in my power to block you.
Im blocked already. Future? What future? All wehave is a past and even that belongs to my father.
Youre not Matt Burnss son. Matt Burns was a
gentleman. Wipe that look off your face. We never did
anything. I wouldnt have stolen him from my sister.
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Well, I would have, if I hadnt already married you.
Lord, I shouldve taken the door prizes and run, the
way she did. No, I had to fall in love. Youth is fool-ish But if I could do it again, youd be calling me
Stepmom and begging me for your allowance slash
pocket money.
Say slash again and Ill slash my wrists!
Dont bleed on the tile. Its Portuguese. Though I
do look good in black.Susan, you are a true swine. Im going for a ride.
Then Ive got some things to do.
As if she hadnt overheard him, the young woman in
the window calls down, You going riding, Dad? Want
some company?
No. No thanks, Maddie, Ethan says as he walksaway.
Susan looks up at Maddie. Your mother would like
some company.
Ive got a book I want to finish, Maddie says.
Maddie moves down the second floor hallway into
Ethans studya suffocating shrine to a lucrative myth
stuffed with relics of Matt Burnss life and career: pho-
tos with stars and presidents; framed letters, props, cos-
tumes, posters. Maddie sees Tavis script on the desk
and begins to read:
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FADE IN
EXT. PAINTBRUSH VALLEY. DAY.
A solitary gure, RICHARD LO-
RENZ, 45, rides a silken palomi-
no through a high mountain pass.
Below, he sees a tiny town in a
wild, rugged valley. He takes a
sketchbook and charcoal from his
saddlebag, sketches the unfoldingpanorama. The sound of the wind
distracts him, calls to him and
he abandons his drawing, encour-
aging his mount to race down into
the valley.
Out the window, above the script Maddie reads,Ethan, on a fine mount of his own, races down a high
desert draw, urging his steed to greater speed. In the
distance, Hollywood sprawls out.
LATER:
In an office with a view of the city, Ethan sits acrossa desk from a professional man in a rumpled gray suit.
Look, Ethan, the rumpled man says, the old man
was a national treasure. He set up his legacy like a mu-
seum, held in trust. Income stays in unless theres a
crisis: earthquake, illness, etc. In that event, Susan and
I go to the board andEthan jumps to his feet. Im going postal! Does
that count, Larry? The mental health of the caretaker?
And why would Susan have anything to say about it?
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Shes handled the money for years, Larry says.
You never showed any interest. Making a film comes
under the rubric of venture capital slash risk. Youdnever get board approval.
Venture capital slash risk Whos on this board,
Lar? Besides you and Susan?
Subsidiaries. DVD manufacturers, digital provid-
ers, lobby poster printers. Matt Burns, Inc. is a little
gold mine.Why so wary, Larry? You covet my wife?
I could have you up for slander.
I could serve you up on a silver salver, and have you
for lunch, Lar. But Ive got other fish to fry. Ill take
my story to the people. The people will hear me out.
Ethan storms out.Susan enters from an adjacent door.
You heard? Larry asks.
Yes, Susan sneers. Hes been watching Frank
Capra movies again.
What if he goes to the board? Most of the Burns es-
tate is tied up in the Paintbrush Valley Development.Ethan couldnt find the board with a buzz saw.
Hes got blinders on right now.
Say he finds backing and gets the film made. Any
distributors going to demand a partnership with Matt
Burns, Inc.
There are more direct ways to discourage would-be artistes. Larry, youre trembling.
I dont know who scares me more, Ethan or you.
Thats easy, Susan says as she begins to undress
him. Lets go with the grizzly bear and the settlers
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daughter today. You roar, Larry. Ill pretend Im scared
just before I pull the trigger.
Larrys mouth opens to roar, but no sound comesout.
Larrys mouth becomes Ethans mouth, open wide
as he yawns then tries to stifle the yawn by sipping cof-
fee. His mug reads Koffee With Kathy Anne. He sitson a sofa on a soundstage. A very attractive, very put
together woman sits next to him.
She looks into a camera. Were here klatsching
with Ethan Burns. Ethan, its been years since you did
a movie. What inner voice told you it was comeback
time?Well, Kathy Anne, Ethan begins, then sips his
coffee. Wonderful coffeewith a capital K, by the
waywell, it wasnt an inner voice at all. It was the
voice of the people, their loving response to the reissue
of my fathers films. Then, working the studio audi-
ence, Youre all Matt Burns fans, arent you?The audience applauds wildly.
Ethan continues. Then, the other day, this wonder-
ful contestant on the show, BabsHi, Babs!says to
me, Why dont they make westerns like that anymore?
And then, that night, this wonderful young writer ap-
proaches me. My fathers spirit moved through me,told me to make this picture.
Whats the name of the picture?
Ethan stumbles now, fumbling for it. Paintbrush
Valley!
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This is the end of this sample.
Want to see how it turns out?
Find out here:
http://graybooks.net/aisleseatbooks/the-ballad-of-ethan-burns
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126
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
James Balestrieris first play, Scissors, Paper, Stonewas
performed in an abandoned brewery in the seaside college
town of Aberystwyth, Wales. He was hooked. Subsequently,
two of his short plays,Forbidding Mourningand Terrapin,
were performed in New York and in 2008, his solo play,Extraordinary Rendition, selected for the New York Fringe
Festival, was named a Pick of the Week in Time Out.
In 2011, Jamess adaptation ofRip Van Winkleenthralled
young audiences in Sleepy Hollow country at Halloween. A
Milwaukee native, James received his B.A. from Columbia
University and his M.A. from Marquette University. Hewas a Screenwriting Fellow at the American Film Institute
and earned his M.F.A. in Playwriting at Carnegie-Mellon
University. He has taught at Marquette and at the University
College of Wales at Aberystwyth. Director of J. N. Bartfield
Galleries in New York City by day, James writes on the train
as he commutes to Tarrytown, New York where he resideswith a tolerant wife and three excellent children who, if he
has anything to say about it, will make their living in finance
or the sciences, though they are already taking an unhealthy
interest in the arts.
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Action and Adventure17 and older
ISBN: 978-1-935655-40-4http://bit.ly/HQYKc8
A young girl is raised and trained by the assassins whokilled her family. When she comes of age, she becomestheir next target. And they become hers.
Action and Adventure13 and older
ISBN: 978-1-935655-44-2http://bit.ly/134dU7l
by Kenan Brack
by Lee A. Matthias
In a near-future world shattered by an alien invasion, alone Special Forces soldier stumbles on a group of dis-abled military vets holding their abandoned VA hospitalas the invaders lay siege.
Science Fiction13 and older
ISBN: 978-1-935655-52-7http://bit.ly/1551muQ
by Marty Weiss
A New York crime reporter, the son of a former PoliceCommissioner, pursues a serial killer until he has tochoose between identifying the killer and unmasking asecret his father meant to take to his grave
Thriller and Suspense
17 and olderISBN: 978-1-935655-50-3
http://bit.ly/UHzFWQ
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all releases
by Antony Davies
When a highly-dedicated CIA operative returns to subur-bia to raise his two daughters, an old enemy and a smallarmy of fanatics follows him, forcing him to fight for hisfamily while protecting the new life he is trying to build.
Action and Adventure13 and older
ISBN: 978-1-935655-64-0http://bit.ly/JPDG7j
by Rick Cramer
After a nuclear war destroys the Earth, seven passengerstrapped in the worlds first space elevator must put aside
personal and cultural differences to try to reach a fledglingcolony on Mars.
Science Fiction13 and older
ISBN: 978-1-935655-54-1http://bit.ly/uqysPh
While still young professors at Oxford, J.R.R. Tolkien andC.S. Lewis discover a portal to a mythological world and
journey on an adventure that will inspire their master-pieces of fantasy.
Fantasy13 and older
ISBN: 978-1-935655-48-0http://bit.ly/UHyZAO
by Gregg Ostrin
by Scott Mullen
A woman tries to protect the ghost of a little boy from theangry spirit of his undead father.
Thriller and Suspense
13 and olderISBN: 978-1-935655-73-2
http://bit.ly/148GLcj
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When the gun-runners suspected in an unsolved murderstart dying one by one, a renegade ATF agent fears that
the crimes only witness - a young survivor hes trying toprotect - might be their killer. As the combatants close inon each other, he has no choice but to step between them.
Thriller and Suspense17 and older
ISBN: 978-1-935655-69-5http://bit.ly/VvFzJO
by Brent Carpenter
by Juan Rodriguez-Briso
The illegitimate brother of the Spanish king spends hislife in an epic quest for acceptance, fighting great battlesabroad and struggling against his resentful half brotherat home, until, with his goal almost in reach, he is at lastforced to choose between love and glory.
Action and Adventure17 and older
ISBN: 978-1-935655-46-6http://bit.ly/11UY7bK
When a peaceful community with magical powers escapesfrom the Salem witch trials, a young man learns that someof his group have broken off and become blood-thirsty pi-rates, taking his beloved with them. Now he must use hisown magic to rescue her and defeat his former comrades.
Fantasy Adventure13 and older
ISBN: 978-1-935655-58-9http://bit.ly/zrUP4V
by Lyle Weldon
by Stephan Marlow & Ken White
A hardball TV sports reporter learns the gambling scandalthat drove her potential Hall of Fame father from majorleague baseball was a setup. Teaming with an idealisticsportscasterher fathers former teammate and her girl-
hood heartthrobshe sets out to clear her fathers name.
Thriller and Suspense
13 and olderISBN: 978-1-935655-67-1
http://bit.ly/O096dE
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by Lyle Weldon
An unhappy elderly woman on the verge of death is given
the opportunity to go back to when she was twenty yearsold and live her life over again. Is she destined to make thesame choices or will she wind up happier than her firsttime through?
Romantic ComedyAll ages
ISBN: 978-1-935655-62-6http://bit.ly/xiEDMy
When a former Delta Force soldier reluctantly agrees totake on one last job for the CIA, he should have knownthat stealing from al Qaeda wouldnt be easy.
Thriller and Suspense13 and older
ISBN: 978-1-935655-60-2http://bit.ly/z0W4ft
by Michael Penhallow
by James BalestrieriThe stymied son of a Western movie icon risks Hollywoodsridicule when he assembles an unlikely crew to produce an epichorse opera of his own. As he trips over his fathers long shadow,a beautiful director, two feuding Native American tribes, andnine very angry mailmen, he finally learns that he might not behis own worst enemy. Now he must find out who is.
Contemporary WesternRomantic Comedy
13 and olderISBN: 978-1-935655-71-8
http://bit.ly/16KCDNh
by Lee A. Matthias
A riveting prequel to the Dracula story. After his bridedisappears on their European honeymoon, a man tracesher to a castle ruin in the Carpathian mountains, and con-fronts its undead inhabitants, determined to restore herto life and bring her home. An apocalyptic war of Good
versus Evil.
Classical Horror13 and older
ISBN: 978-1-935655-56-5http://bit.ly/HHyXxZ
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by Shelli Wright
Its true, you cant choose your family. But you can choose to pre-tend theyre all dead... like Joe does until a canceled flight forceshim to reunite with the dysfunctional family hes kept secret fromhis very pregnant wife. Now all he wants is to get out of there asfast as he can and leave his past behind. But the past has other
plans.
Comedy13 and olderISBN: 978-1-935655-75-6
http://bit.ly/10qffjN
by Lawna Hurl
Im With
the Band?
A fast-rising young publicist with a preference for alterna-tive music that she shares with her serious musician boy-
friend gets sent on a world tour with the hottest boy bandon the planet. What could go wrong?
Romantic Comedy13 and older
ISBN: 978-1-935655-77-0http://bit.ly/13MvyIh
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