Ray Petrolino

Author and Screenwriter

Cary, North Carolina

Member Since:
February 2021

Last online:
> 2 weeks ago

Invites sent:
0

About Ray

Ray Petrolino didn't start writing until his dog told him to (who then immediately instructed the slow-witted man not to end a sentence with a preposition). Up to that point, Ray had just been a guy walking around for some odd number of years with a lot of ideas in his head (some rather strange, admittedly).

But one day when he was teaching his bichon a new trick, the animal became rather bored with the affair and began speaking. His first words were that his human was an "abject failure" and followed that up with "anyone can walk around and claim to have good ideas" (the quadruped then went on to explain that he himself had wonderful storylines and that it was only because he lacked opposable thumbs that he had not already put them to paper.)

And so the dog struck up a partnership with his previously inert owner: the dog dictated and the man wrote.

The results have been surprisingly positive, with both the fantasy/family feature screenplay "A Leap into Darkness" and the horror/comedy TV pilot "A Zombie in the Attic" both placing in several screenwriting competitions.

A follow-up novel "A Leap into Darkness" is in the works (not surprisingly, the hero of the story is a talking dog). The dog insisted that the book be released in no more than four months. The man balked, the dog bit the hand that feeds it, and the two finally compromised on four dog-months instead.

Gender:
Male

Badges

Photos

Ray and Jake (learn more about them at raypetrolino.com)

2022 recipient for the novel A Leap into Darkness.

Loglines

A Leap into Darkness Fantasy ⋄ Family Surrounded by reawakening magic, a talking dog rescued by royalty must confront ghosts from his past, join forces with his enlightened furry friends, and forge an alliance with a mysterious Shaman to defeat the Sorcerer and the Raven and save the kingdom.
Zombie in the Attic Horror ⋄ Comedy A lonely accountant and a surprisingly intelligent, empathetic zombie are forced to navigate together through the living and the dead while evading the zombie's conniving ex-girlfriend.

Awards

Readers' Favorite 5-star recipient for the novel A Leap into Darkness
(2022)
Table Read My Screenplay Top 100 Action/Adventure
(2021)
Semi-Finalist,14th Annual StoryPros Awards Screenplay Contest
(2021)
Qtr-Finalist, ScreenCraft Sci-Fi & Fantasy Screenwriting Competition
(2021)
Qtr-Finalist, Stage32 2nd Annual New Voices in Animation Screenwriting Contest
(2021)
Quarter-Finalist, ISA Comedy Genre Busting Screenplay Competition
(2021)
Semi-Finalist, Table Read My Screenplay Genre Screenplay Competition, Comedy Pilot
(2021)
Quarterfinalist, Creative Screenwriting Animation Screenplay Competition
(2021)
Quarterfinalist, Creative Screenwriting Animation Screenplay Competition
(2021)
The Los Angeles International Screenplay Awards Summer Competition
(2021)
Qtr-Finalist, Emerging Screenwriters Genre Screenplay Competition
(2020)
Semi-Finalist, Vail Screenplay Competition
(2019)
Finalist, Austin Revolution Film Festival
(2018)