References in 'Bask' - My First Novella

Over the course of four years a lot can change, one thing that didn't was working on a screenplay and turning it into a novella.

I never thought of myself as a writer, I wanted to, but I couldn't yet. It was this task, writing a novella that truly tested me, and maybe that is why it had taken four years to finish it... When I sit down to write a screenplay, the process can take a few weeks at most, something that I can confidently say is faster than most others out there. The story for 'Bask' starts in a place close to home, and by that, I mean my home.

I live in what I've always liked to call "Pennsyl-tucky" a term that most would use as a podunk rural town. Where I live, I wouldn't even consider it a town, just houses spread apart by large thickets of trees. One late night, I walked down my stairs to go to the bathroom. During the journey, I flicked on a couple of lights due to how pitch black it was outside. After doing what I needed to, I had a sudden intrusive thought, "What if, by turning on those lights, it made me prey to a large beast that resides in the woods." I kept going about my night, not being able to shake this horrible imaginary monster.

The monster that would haunt my imagination, a werewolf. I love the classic movie monsters, but none of them pique my curiosity as much as the wolf-man. The themes that derive from these stories are timeless, person vs. nature, person vs. self, and person vs. person, all rolled into one.

After writing the opening scene, (which is what played out in my head when I first thought of this question) I went to work. By work, I mean watching my favorite werewolf films.

Ginger Snaps (1 & 2), The Howling, Dog Soldiers, Van Helsing (I know, guilty pleasure), American Werewolf in London, Late Phases and my favorite werewolf movie of all-time, Silver Bullet (Which started as a novella).

These eight films would have everything I needed to really push my story out. From film school, a saying stuck with me, "Great artists borrow." I never really liked this idea, but regardless it stuck. My only issue with it is this, borrow, but don't forget where it came from. With 'Bask', I wanted to do just that. These are the references that are pulled from those eight films/stories.

Ginger Snaps - The leads are female.

Something that is missing from these werewolf movies is strong female leads. The Howling and Ginger Snaps are not included in this. I wanted two leads from different sides of the same coin, a pregnant woman about to start the rest of her life, and a worn detective who cares too much about her job to start a new life.

The Howling - The Antagonists

In 'The Howling' (Spoiler Warning) The antagonists try to lure people to their island cult of beasts. These villains (That the movie doesn't do too much digging into.) are an important part of what makes 'Bask' what it is.

Dog Soldiers - The Final Showdown

I'm not giving away too much, but the finale of 'Bask' is very close to how the entire runtime goes for 'Dog Soldiers' (if you haven't seen it, please do.)

Van Helsing - The Werewolf itself

Something that can quickly make me turn off a werewolf movie is the actual werewolf. While I compliment 'The Wolf-Man' and understand why they did what they had to, I never liked the half-man, half-beast make-up with no snout or long ears. I think most of us can agree, one thing 'Van Helsing' got right, make the werewolves terrifying.

American Werewolf in London - ...

What can I say, I freaking adore this film. There are many things to take away from a film like this, but the most important and well-known transformation scene. The score is also what I had on in the background while writing certain scenes.

Silver Bullet - The Setting, The Gunsmith, and GARY BUSEY

No, in all seriousness, this film is one of the reasons I went to film school in the first place. The story is simple, the mystery effective, but one thing that was left out of the film but in the novella was how the priest just became a werewolf, with no memory of what he does or how he got there. This is something that I poke at in 'Bask', not making fun, but touching the subject, not fully diving in. The Gunsmith is a character I directly took from 'Silver Bullet' and put into 'Bask', (the scene of him making the bullet is one of my absolute favorites.) The other borrowed concept, isn't even that hard to come by, the small-town setting. I've always loved horror stories that take place where you don't think they would. 'Bask' is happening right in your backyard, that's what I wanted it to feel like.

With all that done, I would like to thank any of you who have kept up with me, messaged me, wished me happy birthdays, etc. I appreciate it more than you know. This is a little update with references since I like writing articles here.