George R.R. Martin has captured a lot of following with his books series "A Song of Ice and Fire" and its TV adaptation on HBO "Game of Thrones," which have left fans sinking their teeth in every page or episode. Now, the writing prowess of Martin will again be adapted into the small screen, and, this time, it's about werewolves.
One might think that the subject of werewolves has already been done in the past with young adult TV shows such as "The Vampire Diaries" and "Teen Wolf." However, CNet notes that Martin's new tale thrives on the boundaries of werewolf noir genre, which tackles werewolf detective stories. On his blog, Martin announced this weekend that "The Skin Trade," a short story he wrote in the 1980s has been commissioned by Cinemax, HBO's sister company.
"The Skin Trade," according to Martin, is a “werewolf noir” novella, which he originally wrote for the fifth volume of an annual horror anthology titled "Night Vision" published via Dark Harvest. The short story won the World Fantasy Award that year. It has also been published together with stories from well-known horror writers such as Dan Simmons and Stephen King. Over the years, the story has also been reprinted, including an illustrated edition from Capclave.
On his blog, the "Game of Thrones" author expressed his excitement regarding the news. He said, "I have always thought there was a TV series (or maybe a feature film) in Willie Flambeaux and Randi Wade. Those of you who know the story of 'Doorways,' my ill-fated ABC pilot from the early 90s, may even recall that it was 'Skin Trade' that I was actually trying to sell back in 1991, when I flew out to LA for a round of pitch meetings. So we're a few decades late..."
Martin also shared that even though he would love the idea of writing the script, it was never really included in the plan as he is currently finishing the sixth installment for "A Song of Ice and Fire" titled "The Winds of Winter." However, Martin shared that he and Cinemax underwent a grueling process to pick the perfect writer for "The Skin Trade.”
In the end, Martin and the Cinemax team decided on choosing Kalinda Vasquez ("Prison Break" and "Once Upon a Time") among the different TV writers who were vying for the post.
“That was not an easy choice,” Martin shared. “Kalinda's take on the story and the characters blew me away. She loves the story and the world, and really seems to get Willie and Randi, and her pitch to Cinemax was one of the most polished and professional I've ever heard. I love her enthusiasm, and look forward to working with her."
