Paul is Dead: A Novel
Logline
Under the sway of a charismatic stranger, two friends at an isolated cottage find their idyll unraveling, leaving them trapped in a life-shattering explosion of violence. Forty years later when a body is unearthed from the scene of their revels, they must confront the crime's devastating effects.
Genre
Crime,Drama,Mystery,LGBT,Suspense/Thriller
Short Summary
Dorian brings Paul to Lydia's remote cottage. Both become sexually involved with Paul, but believing they have the cottage to themselves, Dorian and Paul ratchet up their sexual experimentation. But Lydia intrudes at a crucial moment, and Paul dies cruelly. They bury the body.
Forty years later, a destructive storm and fire unearth the remains of a body. A distinctive silver ring among the bones identifies the remains for the property's new owner, Alan––once a friend of Dorian and Lydia's. He lets them know he knows their secret.
Setting
San Francisco, Vancouver, New York, Toronto, Winnipeg, Gimli (yes, Gimli!)
Based on a True Story
No
Plot - Premise
Tragedy
Plot - Other Elements
Coming of Age,Twist
Mature Audience Themes
Nudity
Main Character Details
Name: Dorian Grant
Age: He is late teens/early 20s in some scenes; in his 40s and 50s in other scenes
Gender: Male
Role: Emotional
Key Traits: Aspiring,Complex,Empathetic,Educated,Naive,Sexy,Funny,Secretive
Additional Character Details
Name: Lydia Eadon
Age: She is late teens/early 20s in some scenes; in her 40s and 50s in other scenes
Gender: Female
Role: Logical
Key Traits: Aspiring,Complex,Confident,Decisive,Empathetic,Faithful,Educated,Insecure,Naive,Obedient,Sexy,Secretive
Additional Character Details
Name: Paul
Age: late teens
Gender: Male
Role: tempter
Key Traits: Adventurous,Badass,Aggressive,Charming,Complex,Confident,Criminal,Engaging,Heartthrob,Masculine,Narcisstic,Sexy,Skillful,Secretive,Seductive,Sophisticated,Unapologetic
Additional Character Details
Name: Alan Rayner
Age: He is late teens/early 20s in some scenes; in his 40s and 50s in other scenes
Gender: Male
Role: skeptic
Key Traits: Aspiring,Aggressive,Confident,Decisive,Greedy,Masculine,Blunt,Power Hungry,Skillful,Secretive,Unapologetic
Development Pitch
The devil has the power to assume a pleasing disguise, and so take advantage of weakness and sadness to bring about damnation. (Hamlet, paraphrased) What fun it is to watch a group of young men and women come together to pursue a dream of freedom, and watch that pursuit take a wrong turn, with consequences that haunt them ever after! There’s a little schadenfreude in all of us. A TV series I think.