I think in general, novels have permission to move more slowly than television shows. I really wanted to respect the strength of the book’s characters while honoring the pitch that the producers had gone to the network with – a delicate balancing act. LS: In the case of “Sea Change,” it was the first time I’d been tasked with adapting a novel for television and it went through a lot of iterations before we landed where we did. It rings very true for the process of writing novels as well. But usually I start with the big picture concept – what am I trying to say with the story? What’s the character’s journey fundamentally about? I’ve found that every time I’ve tried to write a script without understanding the big picture idea, I’ve failed.ĪF: I hear that. Sometimes, I start with a strong central premise, then have to work backwards to populate that story with authentic and interesting characters. Sometimes, I start with strong characters and have to figure out into what crazy situation I want to drop them. LS: Writing any two teleplays (what we call scripts in television) is never the same for me. Liz Sczudlo: Thanks for trusting me with your work! It was such an honor to take your novel and figure out how to adapt it for television without losing any of the elements that made it so compelling.

Can you talk a little bit about what the process of writing a screenplay is like? It was such a thrill to read the screenplay. Check your local listings!Īimee Friedman: Hi Liz! First of all, thank you so much for doing such a fabulous job adapting my novel Sea Change into an amazing screenplay.

Sea Change was released into the world in 2009, and now, television viewers can watch it on Lifetime! Below, the New York Times bestselling author of Sea Change, Aimee Friedman, talks with Liz Sczudlo, one of the writers of the “Sea Change” movie.

A Novel Idea by Aimee Friedman