Q&A.......
What are you currently reading online?
Lately I've been a little behind in reading series on the web due to working on Ocean Drive night and day. However I read All or Nothing, Secret Horizons and About Schuyler Falls. I hope to get into some other series when I have the time.
Is Ocean Drive your first series?
No. I worked behind the scenes on Jay Thompson's Wild Thangs during season one. After season one I had left to pursue my own adventure. Ocean Drive will be my second series on the web however I've worked on about three myself not on the web. One of which will be hopefully coming to the web in 2003. However that all depends on how Ocean Drive goes and if I'll have time.
How did you get into writing and why an online serial?
I'm basically a television junky, I watch everything. I would always get so deep into the characters and storylines whereas if something didn't go the way I liked I'd think of how I'd have it. That's when I decided that I'll write my own story. I just find it fun to create people and do as you please will them but present them truthfully. I found the online serial world about four years ago. I found it to be very interesting how all of these people were creating such unique and new world that I wanted to be apart of it.
What are your hopes for Ocean Drive?
I don't expect immediate success, that's for sure. It'll take time and work. Hopefully I'll start out with a few readers and then it'll grow. But I'm not doing this strictly for them, it's for me too.
Why such a small cast?
The cast is very small for one simple reason. Concentrating. I want to focus on the core characters to the fullest. With a large amount of characters it can get out of hand. I found that to be a problem when I worked on Wild Thangs, there were so many to work with. To be honest I actually wanted a smaller cast then what I have now. I'd like there to be about seven but I'll stick with ten.
What would you say that separates Ocean Drive from other web series?
Ocean Drive doesn't present all the usual topics (who slept with who, who's the father of the baby) type storylines. That's not what we're about. We've seen tons of storylines like that on every single series. Ocean Drive is basically about the Lanford family and them trying to just get along. I don't want the storylines to get so ridiculous that the audience can't take it serious. There will be times like that in the series though but I just don't want it to be the only thing it has to offer.
Is Ocean Drive modeled after anything? What helped you create it?
Ocean Drive is completely original. Nothing else exists. However I used other online series and television shows to help me create the basis of the series. I really enjoyed MTV's Spyder Games a lot, many ideas came from that show. I enjoyed the fact that it was a very small cast and it concentrated mainly on the family. That's part of what Ocean Drive is about. However storyline wise is my own work.
Why are you working alone on this series? Will anyone be joining you in the future?
Well I started out with Wild Thangs working with about three others which was nice. All the work wasn't piled on me, I had others to depend on. I think at this time I just wanted to do something solo and see what I could do. As far as whether or not anyone will be joining me, I'm not sure. It could definately be a possibility. I already have one person who may be joining me later in the run of Ocean Drive.
Lastly, what can readers expect from Ocean Drive, what can they expect to see?
It's a very simple series. It's not outrageous, it's just simple and entertaining. I enjoy writing it. I get so into the characters. You can expect a fast-pace series that keeps you guessing. At the beginning it's all about getting to know who these people are. One thing is for sure that there are many secrets. Ocean Drive is built on secrets. From the very first episode there are secrets. No one is perfect, although some try to be. Don't expect to find every secret out in a second. It'll take time but when they come out it'll be good.
