I saw a movie and wrote a book

Well, not exactly.

What I mean is that when I sat down and started to write War Remains in September 2009, I saw or envisioned the story as a movie. I knew how the book would begin and how it would end, and I saw these two scenes as scenes in a movie, kind of like bookends. Having never written a novel before, seeing the book as a movie made it easier to write.

Other than a few short stories and some feature articles for the Korea Times, I had never attempted anything quite as ambitious, so seeing the novel as a movie helped me in terms of how I would move the story along, especially with some of the flashbacks.

Maybe those two semesters of film classes at SIU (Southern Illinois University) finally paid off, as well as being a film buff my whole life.

Oh, one more thing: I thought about writing a screenplay of the story while I was writing the novel.

You know, I can see a Steven Spielberg/Tom Hanks Korean War movie collaboration once they finish WWII. The Second Infantry Division and 38th Infantry Regiment would be very good units and subject matter for Spielberg and Hanks to cover.