I love epigraphs, or those quotes found at the beginning of a novel. They’re usually excerpts of song lyrics or poems or a sentence or two from another novel.

Written by someone other than the novel’s author, an epigraph hints at themes that will be developed in the novel. They also tell you something about the author, providing a glimpse into what they value, insights into their sensibilities.

I began thinking about epigraphs for Kid America five months ago, knowing I would need the creator’s approval to include their words at the beginning of my novel. 

I figured getting approval would be a long shot. So, one of my happiest moments of the publishing process was getting permission to use lyrics from Allison Russell’s song, Requiem.

If you don’t know who Allison Russell is, you should. If you never heard Requiem, you can: https://youtu.be/gXbgyu9traw?si=v2tLqI6QZQ-MG19R

Take a guess which stanza is my epigraph. I can’t tell you. Come November 3, the world will know though. I owe a big debt of gratitude to Allison Russell Maxedon, Jeremy Lindsay, and Andrew Lindsay, the song writers, and to ©Concord Music Publishing. Thank you.

Kid America: A novel of Inheritance and Survival is on its way, with the epigraph of my dreams. Presales begin this Thursday, July 30. Orders can be placed on Amazon or Bookshop.org. The novel’s release date is November 3. 

Over the next few days, I’ll let you know why presales or preorders are important to a novel’s success. They are very important, to say the least.

Now, take a listen to Requiem.