Films rarely capture the same feeling of small town life that novels do. While written words can completely transplant the reader’s mind into the setting being developed, a film can only show your eyes what it’s like to be there. But that doesn’t mean films won’t keep trying.
The hometown friendships that guide the emotional journey through Nickolas Butler’s upcoming debut novel Shotgun Lovesongs may one day appear on the big screen, as Deadline reports the novel’s rights have been acquired by Fox Searchlight, while Sherryl Clark’s company Busted Shark will produce. No director has been named, but the screenwriter tapped to adapt the novel is Brad Desch, whose first script Fathers and Daughters was a 2012 Black List entry, and Clark is also in negotiations to produce that script.
The novel follows four men in their 30s – a musician, a family man, an ex-rodeo star and a trader – who all live near the same Wisconsin town where they grew up. Though some have stayed put while others have gone and come back, the men are reunited for each of their weddings, and are forced to come into their own as husbands, fathers, and adults in general. The title of the book is taken from the name of the musician character Leland’s breakout album.
The book is set to be released in spring 2014 through Picador, an imprint of Macmillan Publishing. Part of author Butler’s inspiration for his musical character, beyond the Midwest vibe in general, was that he was a high school mate of Justin Vernon, the frontman for the popular indie band Bon Iver, who took home the 2012 Grammy for Best New Artist.
