I've had several people ask me where I got the concept for the book Life over Death. Well, it grew from a seed planted in my head by the lyrics of the wonderfully talented Holly Williams. As a singer/songwriter, she comes with an amazing pedigree being the daughter of Hank Williams Jr and the granddaughter of Hank Williams Sr. Her song "Without Jesus Here With Me" is a powerful ballad about a tragic event in her (or someone's) life.
I was on my routine, weekly flight from Nashville to Dulles (DC) listening to music while dozing in and out of 'sleep'. The chorus from this song settled into my semiconscious mind and the concept began to sprout. The chorus goes a little like this...
"I gladly would have died that day to save the child that went away, but you can't trade a life like that. I guess it's part of the master plan."
My mind started playing with the "trading a life" part of the lyric and I came up with an idea about the power of giving 10 miracles in exchange for 10 deaths (life over death...like a fraction). Giving that power to an 'ordinary' human led me to think through the struggles associated with making those type of choices. From there, the story blossomed into a painful, yet hopeful journey for Tom Roddin and those affected by his choices.
The song itself has nothing to do with the choices in the book or what I call the 'gift of Hope'. But the lyrics certainly were the seed and water to nourish the concept. It's funny how a single line or two from a well written song can stir an emotion that leads to a thought, then grows into a concept, and eventually tells a complete story. Good songwriting can be an inspiration on many different levels...for me, it helps grow stories.
I was on my routine, weekly flight from Nashville to Dulles (DC) listening to music while dozing in and out of 'sleep'. The chorus from this song settled into my semiconscious mind and the concept began to sprout. The chorus goes a little like this...
"I gladly would have died that day to save the child that went away, but you can't trade a life like that. I guess it's part of the master plan."
My mind started playing with the "trading a life" part of the lyric and I came up with an idea about the power of giving 10 miracles in exchange for 10 deaths (life over death...like a fraction). Giving that power to an 'ordinary' human led me to think through the struggles associated with making those type of choices. From there, the story blossomed into a painful, yet hopeful journey for Tom Roddin and those affected by his choices.
The song itself has nothing to do with the choices in the book or what I call the 'gift of Hope'. But the lyrics certainly were the seed and water to nourish the concept. It's funny how a single line or two from a well written song can stir an emotion that leads to a thought, then grows into a concept, and eventually tells a complete story. Good songwriting can be an inspiration on many different levels...for me, it helps grow stories.
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