Sara Collins’ debut novel just hit shelves, but a TV adaptation is already in the works. Drama Republic (“Black Earth Rising”) snagged rights to “The Confessions of Frannie Langton” following a “heated auction,” according to Deadline. The British production company is planning to use the book as source material for a miniseries, and Collins is on board to pen the project.
Set in early 19th century London, “The Confessions of Frannie Langton” tells the story of Frannie, “a slave-turned-servant who travels with her owner from a Jamaican plantation to … London, where she finds herself accused of the brutal murder of her master and mistress.”
“As a black woman, I was reluctant to write a novel about a woman who had been a slave,” Collins has revealed. “Part of the reason was that slavery is one of those topics people expect to be written about in a certain way. Historically, slave narratives were written with an agenda: to inform white readers about the terrible suffering endured by slaves, and thereby persuade them to the abolitionist cause. It’s the kind of writing that tells you what happened to a person, but not much about who they were. One of history’s many failings is that those early black chroniclers were required to spend all their energy addressing the emergencies that had been made of their lives, instead of leaving behind a proper record of themselves. Yet unless we’re careful in the way we write about slavery now, we risk getting stuck in the same mode as those early chroniclers, reducing our characters to stereotypes from whom no one expects anything other than suffering,” the former lawyer observed. “Historical fiction is full of as many blind spots as history when it comes to black characters, but unless our characters reflect humanity in all its forms, good as well as bad, we risk dehumanizing them all over again.”
In a statement about the acquisition, Collins said, “Drama Republic has been producing innovative and exceptional projects. I am delighted to be working with them to bring Frannie to life.”
“Sara has crafted a brutally honest and feverishly entertaining story which boldly raises questions about prejudice and ‘otherness’ that are as relevant today as they were in the 1800s,”said Greg Brenman, who heads Drama Republic alongside Roanna Benn. “Drama Republic is honored and excited to be partnering with her on her adaptation of this extraordinary debut novel.”
“The Confessions of Frannie Langton” is now available in the UK. The book will be released in the U.S. May 21.
