Q&A : Is the book written on a timeline?

Is the book written on a timeline?
The short answer is no.
I made a list of all the stories that I wanted to tell.
There were about 50. That would have made the book too long.
I trimmed it back to 39, but included short versions of other stories as tangents within the larger stories. That way, everything I wanted to tell, got told but I was able to keep the word limit around 100,000. (A 100,000 word count is the sweet spot for a memoir - so "they" tell me).

Then, I just started writing the stories. I didn't worry about the age of the characters, or the chronology of the stories. I didn't worry about seasons of the year or current events. All of that, to me, was unnecessary clutter.

I did bind the stories together with props.
For example, in Chapter 8, "The Green Bike," I introduced my new bicycle, which was then a prop I could use in future stories, like Chapter 25, "The Crossroads." In several stories, I reach back into previous stories for a prop or an event or a person. So, while not written chronologically or on a timeline, there are threads that make it a complete work and not simply a collection of random tales.

How did you choose the name Acorn for your hometown of Cumming?
Because I had already made the decision to change many of the names around, including my own, I wanted to carry that theme all the way through.

The reference to Acorn is in the first few paragraphs of the book's Prologue. I didn't labor a lot on creating the name. The book had placed me in a very nostalgic and reflective place, emotionally. I had thought through all those stories, which led me to think about the men and women who influenced my life - all of my life. And, I thought about all of my classmates, who have gone to do such great things with their lives. One of my best friends is a full-time missionary in Africa. Another is a tenured professor at Auburn University. Others are lawyers, doctors, veterinarians, teachers, principals, preachers, nurses - and certainly good dads, moms and meaningful contributors to society. You know, you take this little town north of Atlanta and look what greatness has come from it. And, greatness is certainly more than careers. I think the greatest life lived is the man or woman who loves the Lord, leads their family, has friends in faith, and lives God's plan for their lives. If you and I accomplish that we can have preached at our funerals that we "finished well."

As an acorn is to a great oak tree, I just thought 'there's been a lot of greatness that's come out of this small town - my hometown." So, I went with Acorn.