Fans of the late novelist E. Lynn Harris can look forward to adaptations of his work finally hitting the big screen. Producers Tracey Edmonds and Proteus Spann have announced a multi-picture deal to develop a number of novels by the New York Times best-selling author into feature films.

The first production of the deal will be the adaptation of Harris’ famed novel Invisible Life. The book has sold over one million copies and is still in print 15 years after its initial publication. Ted Witcher, the writer behind the movie Love Jones, has been tapped to write the screenplay.

Despite his death two years ago, Harris reportedly brokered a movie deal for his creative works.  After closing the deal, Harris died from a heart attack in his hotel room. “E. Lynn Harris entrusted Proteus and myself with his dream of seeing his books translated into film," said Edmonds. "After his tragic passing, we are even more determined to see his dream become a reality. With his first blockbuster novel, Invisible Life, we begin the journey that millions of his fans have travelled.”

Spann added, “My dear friend E. Lynn was a man with an unshakeable spirit and an unbreakable passion to inspire and change lives. He entrusted with me his vision and the responsibility to produce this American coming-of-age love story accurately through the lens of sensitivity in which it was originally created.”

(Photo: Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images for USA Today)