A Chestermere author is putting a new spin on the superhero universe, with his sixth novel and screenplay, Rehabilitation.
Although Marius Pintea has loved the superhero universe since he was a teenager, he wanted to change the cliché storyline fans expect from superhero stories.
In Rehabilitation, characters are born with superhuman abilities, such as super strength, or super speed.
However, some people’s abilities are dangerous and difficult to control, and they are tasked with learning how to control their abilities, adapt to the normal world, and live regular lives.
“Every emotion has its own physical body, it can be whatever it wants, and it tears apart from the host. One of the characters must maintain a sense of peace all the time, he has to learn how to be emotionally in control, and take medication,” Pintea said.
The inspiration behind Rehabilitation first started when Pintea was 14 and underwent a long stint at a hospital recovering from surgery.
“While I was in the hospital, I was with a bunch of other people who had similar medical issues, and we got along really well, and understood each other while healing,” Pintea said.
During that time, Pintea was also watching Superhumans, and the Unbreakable trilogy, and reading a lot of comic books to pass the time in the hospital, which fueled his inspiration.
“Superheroes are everywhere now. I thought a way that it could be different was people with superhuman abilities that are just seen as normal and have a government organization helping people when they need help,” Pintea said.
When writing Rehabilitation, Pintea ran into writer’s block when developing one of the four main characters.
After Pintea had developed the setting of the story, he needed to figure out each character individually, and what their bizarre power was.
“The main issue from a storytelling point of view was figuring out the main characters and having them all feel unique,” Pintea said. I kept getting stuck in terms of what happens next. I didn’t want it to come across as cliché, I wanted something unique.”
When writing his previous novels, Pintea would write drafts of the entire project, then revise it.
“For this book, instead of writing drafts I wrote a chapter at a time, then wrote it over and over until I felt like it was right,” Pintea said. “That way I wasn’t thinking too much about what was going to happen in the book, I was more concerned about the best way I could write that chapter in particular.”
Although writing began as a way for Pintea to pass the time, it’s developed into more than a hobby.
“The more I’ve written, the more I’ve held onto it, it’s one of those things that I never stopped enjoying it,” Pintea said. “I developed a really great passion for it, I really enjoyed it.”
Going forward, Pintea is now working on a live-action short film, and an animated film, while continuing to write.
“This book is written in screenplay form, it’s a script that I’m hoping to turn into a film one day,” Pintea said. “The arts in general, is something I would like to do for the rest of my life, and it’s the only thing I can see myself doing for the long term.”
Rehabilitation and Pintea’s previous projects are available on Amazon.
