SYNOPSIS:

Foundation- A female buddy dramady with a supernatural twist it has elements similar to Ghost and Thelma and Louise and is based on an existing mystery book series. Logline – While investigating a new case, Detective Sara Zindel, after learning of her husband’s disappearance and her mother-in-law’s death, finds that in order to solve the crime, she must pair with the ghost of Frances, her mother-in-law. The bickering pair must fight the corruption in Sara’s police department while learning to deal with one another as they solve the case and rescue Sara's husband. Tagline -In life, your mother-in-law was difficult; in death, she's impossible. And Now The Story Begins.. Newly promoted detective, Sara Zindel, discovering Sol's pen at a crime scene then learns that her husband's been in an accident and is missing. Her mother-in-law, Frances, whom Sara never got along with, has died in the crash. Not realizing the "accident" and Sol's kidnapping is a ploy to keep her from investigating the original crime, Sara insists that she must discover how he happened to be at the scene. To her unbelieving horror, she finds she has a new partner in her quest - the ghost of her mother-in-law. Despite their bickering, the two women must solve this together. Characters - Sara Zindel - devoted to her police work, Sara ignores the jibs of her mother-in-law about not keeping a clean enough house or when she's having children. Tolerating the woman, she tries to be pleasant, but it's difficult. Still, she strives to keep peace in the family, while telling her husband to develop a spine. At first, she resists working with the ghost of her mother-in-law, but realizes that she has to put that aside to solve the case and rescue her husband. At stake is not only her life and that of her husband's, but of the girls she finds. She torn to find her department corrupt. Emotionally, she has to learn that Frances only means the best and that they can compromise. Frances Zindel - The mother-in-law everyone wants to avoid. She only wants the best for her "baby boy" and can't seem to let go. As with most mother-in-laws, she doesn't think that Sara is good enough for her Sol and, of course, she wants grandchildren. When her son is kidnapped, Frances returns to help not believing that Sara can do it on her own. At stake is her own immortal soul and the life of her son. Emotionally, she has to learn to accept Sara for who she is and that her son has grown up. Inciting incident - Sara's finding Sol's pen at the scene and hiding it. Act 1 turning - the car crash, Sara's forbidden by her captain from investigating, only to realize that she has a ghostly partner pushing her forward, doing things that an embarrassed Sara has to explain to her partner without letting him know about the ghost. Midpoint - Bickering with Frances, the pair escape from a posh gathering as Sara and Frances realize that human trafficking is involved here. Plot twist - Sara realizes that her partner and captain, both corrupt, are in on the scheme. She enlists the help of another detective. Act 3 - With Frances' help, Sara sneaks aboard the boat holding the captured girls, but she is quickly discovered. Confronting her captain and former partner gives Sara the proof she needs, but it is only working together with Frances that enables her to summon help. At the hospital with Sol, Sara realizes that Sol cannot see his mother. Only she can. Frances decides that solving crime is fun. Besides, she wants to be around for the grandkids. The Heart of The Story -- While pursing the investigation, both Sara and Frances come to realize that "Family is everything " and to find the answers, they need to work with each other. Questions You Might Ask - What can the ghost do? As in Ghost, Frances learns through the story about her new powers as she helps Sara. Where does the comedy come from? The bantering of the two women, who at first dislike each other, and then must come to respect the other. What are the demographics? The book appealed to young women, as well as older ones, who saw that growing old does not mean you are useless. The story has enough adventure that men should enjoy it, as well. Who do I see playing the characters? Sara could be played by Hillary Duff, Sarah Michelle Geller, Jennifer Aniston as possibilities. Fanny might be Bette Midler, Barbara Streisand, Betty White, etc. About the author: Mother-in-Law is based on the Fanny Zindel mystery book series from St. Martin's Press (written by Serita.) Serita Stevens is an established writer of over 34 books, stories, scripts, novelizations, and adaptations. Her recent book, based on her teaching at USC, UCLA, etc, is The Ultimate Writers Workbook for Books and Scripts, is out now. More can be seen about her at www.seritastevens.com She is represented by Italia Gandolfo Management and Monterio Rose Dravis Agency.