A woman recalls her close relationship with her famous novelist father while struggling to overcome her fear of emotional involvement with her first real boyfriend.

On the plus side, it is refreshingly different that this daughter does NOT have any negative unresolved issues with her father. Top marks for that much. On the minus side, the logline emphases the wrong aspects of the father for the purposes of presenting a warm human story. The fact that he is a “famous novelist” is irrelevant. In fact, it jars against any suggestion that he might be unusually caring or understanding of his daughter. (Fame and success tends to suggest a more aloof dad.)

Instead of famous or successful, the father would be more convincing and interesting as a man who is occupationally humble but rich in maturity and emotional integration. For added pathos, he should no longer be accessible to the daughter (perhaps in deep dementia in a nursing home). Which adds poignancy and importance (and perhaps urgency?) to her having to find a a quality male soulmate.

From a dramatic point of view, having a now-inaccessible father works hand in hand with her fear of emotional involvement with a new man. It also makes this new relationship less “optional” for her.

Finally, I would advise the writer of this to have a read of the novel “Contact” by Carl Sagan for added inspiration. In it an intelligent and independent professional woman (a scientist) had a particularly good and supportive father who has now passed away. And, just like the woman here, this scientist finds all her male lovers fall short of her image/concept of her dad. I am not advocating copying this relationship dynamic outright, just that you would benefit from looking at it.

Steven Fernandez (Judge)