A CINEMATIC ADVENTURE

My first attempt to venture into cinematic stories seemed hopeful.

I entered the contest with cinebooks.com and won more than the 1000 votes required to make the first series in my five-series sci-fi thriller Zeeka Chronicles into a Cinebook.

Things were going fine until it was time to sign the contract. I was told that because Trinidad and Tobago was not a member of the European Union they could not proceed.

I heard nothing further from them, but my book is still listed as one of their projects.

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In August 2022, I decided to get a screenplay written for my five-series sci-fi thriller. I arranged with a screenwriter from Stage 32, but he got into an accident and could not do it. I then asked the daughter of a close friend but she got a new job and could not find the time. I did a crash course and wrote the screenplay myself.

I submitted pitches for both the pilot and series.

Here are both the positive and negative responses.

POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE FEEDBACK FOR PITCHES FOR SCI-FI THRILLER – SEPT. 2024

 

ZEEKA AND THE ZOMBIES – SERIES ONE - PILOT PITCH

CATALINA RAMIREZ;

POSITIVE: I like how the story keeps you interested and makes you want to keep reading it. I also like how you combine futuristic technology with elements of zombie horror.

NEGATIVE:  clarity is required with high-tech settings and Zeeka’s motivation.

 

JODIE PLATT

POSITIVE: Hi, thank you for sharing this pitch with me. I like that the theme is good triumphing over evil after an event that happened 20 years before. The setting in South America, with the backdrop of Carnival, could make this visually attractive. It is also interesting that this is based on reality with the Zika virus as the inciting incident.

NEGATIVE: Clarity is required with set- up of the series and clarity with Steven Sharpe and Grady.

 

JONNY GUTMAN

 ZEEKA CHRONICLES – Five-series sci-fi thriller

 POSITIVE: This was definitely one of the most unique pitches I've ever read! I love that the inspiration came from a real-life crisis and that Brenda has taken it in such an imaginative direction.  Like I said, this was one of the most imaginative pitches I've ever seen, but I think it's a little too ambitious for me! I wish Brenda good luck with it though because I think it would make an incredibly entertaining series!"

NEGATIVE: Too ambitious. Unclear as to how Janet and Mandy relate to the rest of the story or what were their motivations.

I am re-writing and not giving up.

Here is the blurb for the book:

 GOOD TRIUMPHS OVER EVIL

When 51 programmable zombies unleash chaos and death on spectators at a Carnival event on the tourist haven of Gosh Island, local police, detectives, and a man kidnapped as a boy by their Master, must hunt down Master Zeeka before he kills again.
The fictional series is set in 2036 on an imaginary island, off the coast of South America, well-known for fabulous beaches, resorts, and annual Carnival celebrations.
This science-fiction thriller with lingering themes of human flaws, evil, and good, is purely the author's imagination, inspired by the zika virus in 2016.
Reviewers have compared this futuristic sci-fi thriller five-book series to Frankenstein, Twilight Zone, and Shakespeare’s plays, and some have said it is movie material.
Zombies and robots take center stage.
The mind-blowing episodes begin in Zeeka and the Zombies Series 1 and continue in Zeeka’s Child Series 2, Zeeka Returns Series 3, Zeeka’s Ghost Series 4, and Resurrection Series 5.
The excitement builds with each series as the detectives unearth more clues, and the author succeeds in pulling the various strands together to offer a breath-taking conclusion, where good triumphs over evil.
This futuristic thriller was an award winner in the Category -Young Adult Thriller in Reader's Favorite International Awards 2018, winner in Science Fiction in SIBA Awards 2017, winner of the gold award in the category Science Fiction in Connections Emagazine Readers' Choice Awards 2018, and winner in the top ten finalists for science-fiction in the Author Academy Global Awards 2018.
The International Chamber of Writers and Artists in Spain gave the book an award in April 2023, on the occasion of World Book Day.
Reader's Favorite International gave it a five-star review.
Here is an extract of that review::
"Zeeka Chronicles is a thoughtful series and would delight fans of the genre.
Brenda Mohammed is an author brimming with original ideas, and definitely an author to follow."

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ZEEKA CHRONICLES WRITTEN BY BRENDA MOHAMMED TOO AMBITIOUS

 

I submitted my written pitch for a screenplay for Zeeka Chronicles: Revenge of Zeeka, a five-series sci-fi thriller to a producer.

I was amazed at the nice things he said about it, but he passed on it as he was unclear how two characters related to the rest of the story. 

I did say that Janet married Dr. Raynor Sharpe, the protagonist's brother, Dr. Steven Sharpe. 

I also said that Mandy was the wife of Steven Sharpe, the protagonist.

Here is what he wrote:

Pitch Feedback:

"This was definitely one of the most unique pitches I've ever read! I love that the inspiration came from a real-life crisis and that Brenda has taken it in such an imaginative direction. I have to admit I found the episode summary a little difficult to follow. There were a few characters who appeared in the episodes who hadn't been described before (Janet, Mandy) and I was unclear how they were related to the rest of the story or what their motivations were. Like I said, this was one of the most imaginative pitches I've ever seen, but I think it's a little too ambitious for me! I wish Brenda good luck with it though because I think it would make an incredibly entertaining series!"

A pitch must not exceed two pages, and to expand on the pitch will take more than two pages.

TITLE: ZEEKA CHRONICLES: REVENGE OF ZEEKA

CREATED    BY:     Brenda Mohammed

FORMAT: One Hour          [serialized]    TV      Sci-Fi Thriller,          Dark          Fantasy

LOGLINE:    When 51 programmable zombies unleash chaos and death on spectators at a Carnival event on the tourist haven of Gosh Island, local police, detectives, and a doctor kidnapped by Zeeka as a child, must hunt down Master Zeeka before he kills again.                

COMPARISON:      Twilight Zone, Frankenstein, Shakespeare’s Plays.

WHY  THIS  STORY: The fictional futuristic sci-fi thriller is set in 2036 on an imaginary island, off the coast of South America, well-known for fabulous beaches, resorts, and annual Carnival celebrations. The story is purely the author’s imagination, inspired by the zika virus in 2016. Zombies and robots take centre stage and good triumphs over evil. 

SERIES        REGULARS:

Chief of Police Bill Grady [Master Zeeka]– Antagonist

Bill Grady is the Chief of Police on the island of Gosh.  Grady kidnapped Dr. Steven Sharpe when he was seven, changed his name, threatened to kill his family if he tried to escape, sent him to medical school, and used him to create a vaccine for pregnant women infected with the zika virus. Grady used the vaccine to create zombies in a revenge plot against the hospital because his wife was infected with the virus, died in childbirth, and his son was born with a brain deformity.

Dr. Jason Stephens a.k.a Dr. Steven Sharpe – Protagonist 

Dr. Jason Stephens is Dr. Steven Sharpe and the brother of Dr. Raynor Sharpe. He is a scientist who created a vaccine to prevent microcephaly from affecting the unborn babies in pregnant women infected with the zika virus, but was used for evil purposes by Grady who kidnapped him when he was seven years old, changed his name, and put him through medical school.  Police suspect Jason of being Master Zeeka, and he seeks to prove his innocence and true identity.

Dr. Raynor Sharpe – Lead Character

Raynor Sharpe is a gynaecologist at Gosh Hospital. He saw an army of zombies marching outside his beach-front home but no one took him seriously until the massacre at the carnival event. Raynor is the brother of Dr. Steven Sharpe but neither one knows it yet.

THE SERIES

Zeeka and the Zombies is series one in the five-series sci-fi thriller.  Dr. Raynor Sharpe sees zombies marching outside his beachfront home and they suddenly disappear. A zombie named Number Nine goes to Gosh Hospital to warn Dr. Brown about an impending massacre by his Master Zeeka. In February 2036, 51 programmable killer zombies disguised as a sailor band, unleash weapons at a Carnival event. One hundred and twenty-five people die, seventy-five are maimed for life, and all zombies disintegrate into ash. Police are not clear if Number Nine died in the shoot-out. A manhunt begins for Master Zeeka. Intertwined in this episode is a love story between Dr. Raynor Sharpe and Dr. Janet Jones who marry.

 Zeeka's Child is the second series in the five-series sci-fi thriller. While police are searching for Dr. Jason Stephens, Detective Jack Wildy discovers a flash drive revealing the face of the real perpetrator, Chief of Police Bill Grady. Dr. Jason Stephens gives another flash drive to Janet to deliver to Dr, Raynor Sharpe, confirming Wildy’s discovery, and about the child Master Zeeka [ Grady] kidnapped forty years ago. Raynor and Steven reunite as brothers. Police find evidence of nine flesh-eating zombies in Grady’s basement and start a manhunt for him and the nine zombies.

Zeeka Returns is the third series in the five-series sci-fi thriller. Zeeka [ Grady] abandons his zombies in the forest and goes to the home of Dr. Raynor Sharpe to look for Steven Sharpe. Janet’s helper, Miranda, a beautiful robot, uses her taekwondo skills to capture Zeeka when she sees him holding a gun. The police shrink zombies and demolish them with high-tech weapons found in Grady’s bag. They slap Grady with more than 200 charges to which he confesses. He asks to see Steven and tells him why he committed the crimes. He begs Steven for forgiveness for kidnapping him as a child, and Steven refuses. When Steven leaves, Grady commits suicide.

Zeeka's Ghost is the fourth series in the five-series sci-fi thriller. A strong wind throws down Zeeka’s urn. it falls and breaks into pieces, his ashes scatter in Steven’s study, and Zeeka’s ghost appears to Steven. The ghost begs Steven for forgiveness and he again refuses. However, the ghost saves Mandy, Steven’s wife, from dangerous kidnappers and Steven forgives him. Zeeka leaves the world in peace.

Resurrection is the fifth series in the five-series sci-fi thriller.  Number Nine, the zombie, who police thought was dead in the massacre at the Carnival event in February 2036 is alive. Mandy's robot helper, Eve, encounters him in the backyard, records the conversation on her security device, and plays it for Steven. Number Nine collapses in the backyard with an epileptic fit, and Eve alerts the Gosh hospital. Tests and records confirm he is Number Nine, he is not a zombie and is the biological son of Bill Grady – Master Zeeka, who made him grow up with zombies because he was misdiagnosed with microcephaly- a disease associated with the zika virus that infected his mother who died in childbirth 22 years ago.  Raynor helps Number Nine choose Nieman Grady as his legal name, and Steven cures him of his brain ailment, Craniosynostosis, with his new invention CrainX.  Steven is the new hero in Gosh because his miracle cures and inventions replace Carnival Tourism with Medical Tourism.      

I am at a loss as to what I should do to get an agent to ask for my script to read it.

Zeeka Chronicles: Revenge of Zeeka is a futuristic sci-fi thriller set in  2036, and time is running out before it is no longer futuristic.

Dear readers, please comment.

READ AN AI GENERATED REVIEW FROM AMAZON ON SCI FI THRILLER ZEEKA CHRONICLES

 

I am thrilled that Amazon has started to give an analysis of reviews on my Amazon Author Page. Here is what Amazon found about ZEEKA CHRONICLES with its AI-generated tools.

Customers say

Customers find the book fun to read with plenty of action. They also describe the storyline as imaginative, with scary or endearing characters. Readers also find the writing engaging.

ENTERTAINMENT VALUE

6 customers mention "Entertainment value"

6 positive

0 negative

Customers find the book entertaining, with plenty of action. They also say it's a fun read that should appeal to the YA audience.

"...It’s capably written in straightforward pros and should appeal to the YA audience."

"...Nice mixture of sci-fi, supernatural, and dystopian genres… interesting read."

"...Futuristic technology, zombies, ghosts, and plenty of action made it a fun read. Check this one out if zombies are your thing!"

"...Solid entertainment. A five-star experience."

STORY

6 customers mention "Story"

6 positive

0 negative

Customers find the storyline imaginative, with a nice mixture of sci-fi, supernatural, and dystopian genres. They also appreciate the touch of romance and plenty of action.

"...Zeeka Chronicles” is a highly compelling mixture of sci-fi, supernatural, and dystopian genres, which make it an even more interesting read...."

"...The identity of number 9 is a revelation in itself. Nice mixture of sci-fi, supernatural, and dystopian genres… interesting read."

"...Futuristic technology, zombies, ghosts, and plenty of action made it a fun read. Check this one out if zombies are your thing!"

"...The story is original, something I enjoy, and it is complete, something that most readers will appreciate. Solid entertainment."

IMAGINATION

3 customers mention "Imagination"

3 positive

0 negative

Customers find the book extremely creative and engaging. They also say the imagination is scary and endearing.

"...It’s capably written in straightforward pros and should appeal to the YA audience."

"...imaginative, the characters sufficiently scary or endearing, the writing engaging."

"..."enjoy" isn't the word I would use for this book, it was extremely creative and that is rare nowadays.

THANK YOU AMAZON.

CHECK OUT THE BOOK ON AMAZON.