Charlaine Harris on True Blood

The road from novels to movies isn’t always smooth but some authors are pleased with the transistion their books have made to the screen.

Charlaine Harris’ Sookie Stackhouse novels about a vampires and a waitress who can read minds have been made into the HBO series True Blood.

The series stars Oscar-winner Anna Paquin; executive producer is Alan Ball (Six Feet Under, American Beauty).

Paquin just won the Golden Globe for best actress in a TV drama series. True Blood also was nominated for a Golden Globe.

Alan and I have a deal,” said Harris during Bouchercon. “He doesn’t help me write my books and I don’t help him make the series.”

And she’s more than pleased with the arrangement.

From the beginning, “I was convinced that Alan understood the books and where I was coming from.” The series is “funny, violent and bloody,” just like the books, she said.

Harris has visited the set and one of her first Hollywood experiences was meeting a star of the series.

“The first actor I met was the dog that plays Sam.”

And the second actor?

The cat.

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