Letters From War and Paper Angels weren't the first books I wrote that were inspired by songs.
Actually, the first one was the very first novel I had published, The Promise Remains.
At the end of 1997, I saw Titanic along with the rest of the world. I was very moved by it, to be honest. I'm a sucker for a love story set to an amazing soundtrack (and yeah, amazing special effects too).
I bought the soundtrack by James Horner. On it is a crucial track that plays during a very crucial moment.
That track: "A Promise Kept".
In January, 1998, I began writing a love story I'd been wanting to write for a while. But I discovered my hook through this song.
This story was very straightforward and simple. As I wrote it, I knew I was going to pitch it to the publisher I worked for. I also knew they had a well-selling title called A Promise Kept, so I decided to change the name of my novel to The Promise Remains.
I didn't have a clue that the eighth novel I'd write and finish would actually be my first one published. I hoped, just like I hope for twenty more. But I didn't expect it to really happen.
I've come to realize that music and movies have impacted my writing in major ways. And I write this as I near the finish line on a very important novelization for a very important movie coming this fall called Home Run.
Pretty cool.
Labels: Home Run, Inspirations, James Horner, The Promise Remains, Titanic, top 100 songs
