Finding Jane

Here’s an odd adventure that ties into our book, "Somewhere in Crime." This story isn't just about the book itself but also about our ongoing and somewhat silly quest to connect with the iconic Jane Seymour and give her a copy of our book.

The Magic of Mackinac Island and "Somewhere in Time"

As a wee lad, I had the incredible chance to witness the making of "Somewhere in Time" during the summer of '79. Jane Seymour and Christopher Reeve were not just filming; they were actively engaging with the island's community. They were everywhere—attending local events, mingling with residents, and leaving an impression on everyone they met. The entire crew rode green Schwinns with yellow signs that said “Somewhere in Time” including the cast, so Jane and Chris (I like to call him Chris) were essentially labeled. It pre-tracking device, but the same basic concept. For a few months, casually stopping into any store that had a green bike with a yellow sign parked on the curb became a hobby. Maybe they were in Friendly’s having a cone. You never knew. Maybe they were playing ski ball. Maybe bowling at the Stonecliffe lane.

The classic green bikes were everywhere that summer.

I believe today's technical term is “stalking,” but what the hell? We were kids.

I was lucky enough to be in the movie theater when the sound went out on “Superman,” and Chris stood up and narrated the film while the kids in the projection booth scrambled to get the sound working again. I wish they hadn’t because it was just about 18,000% more amazing having Chris narrate the film 30 feet to my right. When the sound did come back, everyone good-naturedly booed. They wanted what I wanted: to listen to Clark Kent narrate Superman live to us like it was a bedtime story.

Yes, fab readers, this really happened.

Their presence made that summer magical, and those memories have stayed with me ever since.

Bringing Fiction to Life in "Somewhere in Crime"

Fast-forward to "Somewhere in Crime." In 2022, my co-author Jim and I decided to set our story against the backdrop of the "Somewhere in Time" movie shoot. In our book, we created fictional scenes where our main character, Jack McGuinn (the dockporter from. well, “The Dockporter”), actually interacts with Jane Seymour. In fact, at one moment, he thinks she’s saying, “Is it you” to him (spoiler: she’s not). While these scenes are purely cooked up from pure imagination, we’d like to think they capture the madcap spirit of that summer when anything seemed possible.

The Quest for Jane

Since the launch of "Somewhere in Crime” in 2023, we've been on a mission to share the book with Jane Seymour. Over the past eight or nine months, we’ve sent numerous autographed copies to her publicist and PR team, hoping to get her attention. Despite our best efforts, we haven’t heard anything back yet. We get it. She’s super busy. I also assume she gets inundated with books to read — I’m guessing romance novels? “Somewhere in Time” is the most classic romance since “Gone with the Wind?” Fans love her performance, and writers are inspired by Richard Matheson’s highly original story.

But our book is definitely a very different take on the subject.

Why It Matters

You might wonder why we’re so eager for Jane Seymour to read our book. It’s simple: she’s in it. If she loves it, a positive blurb from her would explode our collective heads. If she doesn’t love it, well, we’ll bawl like twin babies on a long flight, but it’s all part of the creative journey.

Our quest to connect with Jane Seymour is driven by genuine admiration and a desire to see if she enjoys our story as much as we enjoyed writing it. Sure, we made up a few scenarios that never happened — she probably never witnessed an 11-year-old paperboy knock down all the movie lights during the famous portrait scene, or locate the key 1979 penny jammed in his tootsie-pop-filled right pocket. She never had a conversation with Jack because, well, Jack isn’t real.

Part of the excitement of writing these books is the unpredictable journey they take us on. We have no idea if Jane will ever read the book, or if she’ll find our portrayal of her as amusing as we do. Jim and I believe "Somewhere in Crime" is a fantastic tribute to the film and the enchanting summer of 1979.

Here’s to Finding Jane

So, here’s to our ongoing quest to get a copy of “Somewhere in Crime” in the hands of Jane Seymour. We are holding out hope that one day she’ll get a chance to read it and that she’ll appreciate the love and humor we’ve infused into this tribute to a magical time on the island.

Come back to us, Jane!

We’ll even give you a non-traumatizing penny for your thoughts.

Stay tuned, fab readers. Anything is possible.