Therese Fowler didn’t always count on a career as an author, nor did she lovingly pour over pages of “The Great Gatsby” as a teen. Rather, the subject of her 2013 novel was an unanticipated idea — an idea that later developed into plans for an original Amazon series. “Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald” explores the lesser known — albeit alluring — half of the Fitzgerald couple.
Though not a North Carolina native, Fowler was educated at NC State, initially receiving her bachelor’s in sociology with a specialization in cultural anthropology. Before moving on to her Ph.D., she received positive feedback from her professor regarding a short story she had written. Prompted by his encouragement, she used the period of time she had planned on going to graduate school instead as an opportunity to write her first book. She cites this first manuscript, which was never published, as the experiment that really pushed her into the direction of a writer. Later, she earned a Master of Fine Arts in creative writing at NC State.
After writing several contemporary women’s fiction novels, Fowler decided to shift to a different genre in the wake of lower sales. The idea to focus on Zelda Fitzgerald “fell into her head.”
“What about Zelda Fitzgerald?” Fowler said. “What about Zelda — has anyone written about her? There’s something very perennial about the Fitzgeralds.”
Whether it is a Halloween costume or a prom theme, people are quick to remember the fringe and feathers of the Fitzgeralds and ‘20s culture, but slow to uncover the more brooding reality of the time, something “Z” is not frightened to examine.
“Zelda was the artist … she was the flapper … she was the actress … she was the ballerina,” said Willie Thompson at the F. Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald Museum. “Though priorly apparent, the latter ‘persona’ really was the first major showing of Zelda’s bipolar nature. A series of events furthered her mental decline into the ‘30s. She would enter and leave clinics and hospitals periodically after breakdowns prompted by failed ventures into performing or writing. She was never cured of her mental illness. In a morbid tragedy, she died in a fire in a mental institution in Asheville.”
“Z” is not a novel that deals heavily with the “dark side” of Zelda, though her mental complexities do remain in focus. Though a work of fiction, Zelda Fitzgerald’s lesser recognized, veritable facets are brought to light.
Fowler sought to give Zelda the attention her story begged to receive. About a year after deciding on Zelda as a topic, she began extensive research. What she found was limited, often studded with inaccuracies or constrained to surface detail, diluted by repeated reinterpretation. Though certainly less studied, Zelda was by no means a flat character — she was reputed to be impulsive, bold and wanton.
“[Scott] Fitzgerald needed a partner who was full of ideas,” Thompson said. “[He] felt Zelda exemplified the spirit of an age and allowed him to chronicle — to be the great voice of an entirely new generation.”
Once her story and character were established, it was a question of what to put in and what to leave out. Making the call of what to include from a 20-year span can be difficult, especially when focusing on molding a narrative arc. Fowler met the challenge, and the novel has received extensive attention. Four years after it was published, Fowler was contacted by Amazon about a television adaptation.
“It’s like the dream come true for writers,” Fowler said. “TV is a great medium. Especially now — you’re seeing high-quality, high-budget adaptations being produced.”
A television show gives Fowler’s novel a chance to expand, leaving space for the depth that a movie sometimes fails to fill. If the show is successful, producers have the option of reaching out beyond “Z,” taking advantage of further information that has been recorded concerning the Fitzgeralds’ lives.
Amazon has released a pilot, which is available for free on Amazon Video. Beyond proving to be a fun watch, the show represents a number of accomplishments in itself. After Amazon gave the green light for the show, Fowler said, producers and writers were expected to have the completed episode ready in only about six weeks. Another accomplishment was simply managing to escape the “development hell” — a kind of novel purgatory where future movies or shows slowly perish.
Filming for the show resumes June 16 in Savannah, Georgia, with plans to later move filming to New York City.
