Dark Shadows as a literary work.

Dark Shadows with all the storylines, dialogue, etc., exactly as depicted on the original TV series, except in a literary setting instead.

the "Penny Dreadful" format would suit DS particularly well -

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Penny_dreadfuls

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Varney_the_Vampire

i think it would do well as a novel series, with each book being a diffrent mystery, but would also continue storylines from each previous book.

so characters and situations would continue to develop as the series progressed.

It would've done well as novels, I think. The drawn out storylines, the different timelines.... It would've made a good novel series.

It would've done well as novels, I think. The drawn out storylines, the different timelines.... It would've made a good novel series.

But, isn't that what the Marilyn Ross novels were?  I only read one, but if I'm not mistaken they were each seperate, but connected.  Weren't they?

The Ross novels were anything but a cohesive series. A few of the early ones had marginal continuity of characters, but as more books came out, the more the stories became incompatible with one another. One book might have been set at Collinwood in 1870 with a particular set of family members. Another book might be set in 1873, and the residents would be completely different. The novels came out in no chronological order; book 10 might be set in 1970, book 11 in 1848, book 12 in 1895, book 13 in 1971. (Note that these are completely hypothetical examples, as I'm at the office and don't have the books to refer to, but you get the gist;  I have, over the years, picked up the complete set, except for two titles I'm still missing.) In addition, none of the books were consistent with events in the show; even the characters frequently varied wildly from their television counterparts, Quentin in particular.

Being an actor, I'm partial to the play format - I once got a directing job by directing a group of high schoolers in a three-page scene from the "Judith announces the will" episode. I transcribed the scenes from my old videos.  PS to TPTB - this was a laboratory scene, no admission was charged!!!  I directed them in filling those rich DS characters in some of the wittier lines in that episode - great fun!

Petofi

I'd like to see Dark Shadows as a newspaper serial, as the novels of Dickens and Trollope originally were.  While a series of books wouldn't be bad, one thing that makes me gnash my teeth in a series of novels is the re-hashing of old plots and the re-descriptions of already-established characters at the beginning of each volume...and then there are the footnotes, e.g.  "See Volume 3, The Secret of the Old Bootstrap, to learn how Egbert met Genevieve."  A newspaper series could pretty much avoid this  -  just as a soap opera does.

I have visions of the newspapers being delivered to the newstands just before dawn, and people rushing out in the half-light to get the latest installment, and weeping together at the news:  "Little Sarah is dead."

I have visions of the newspapers being delivered to the newstands just before dawn, and people rushing out in the half-light to get the latest installment, and weeping together at the news:  "Little Sarah is dead."

I see I'm not the only member around here who's read entirely too much Dickens for one life time.

I see I'm not the only member around here who's read entirely too much Dickens for one life time.

GMTA -- I was just about to respond to Lydia when I saw your answer!  

 

one thing that makes me gnash my teeth in a series of novels is the re-hashing of old plots and the re-descriptions of already-established characters at the beginning of each volume

God!  The Harry Potter books do this and it IRRITATES the hell out of me!!  If you don't know by book 6 that Harry originally lived under the stairs or that the Weasley's have a goblin in their attic then why are you reading book 6!  Sheesh!  Wish JK Rowling would stop doing that but as we're soon to get her last book of the series, I don't hold out much hope.  

I think it would do well as a novel series like the Harry Potter series.

If only there could be a DS novel series as rich and rewarding as the Harry Potter series. But alas, writing of that caliber doesn't come along every day...

On which note, it might be appropriate to mention that Lara's DS novel, The Salem Branch has been released. Haven't picked it up yet, but I can't imagine being without it for very long.