This is a not-exact transcript.
I got a great question from a reader and wanted to address it in a quick video.
The question was “Why did I give Doug Bolling Alzheimer’s disease?”
I’m hard at work on Resolute, the third book in the Foundations series, and if you’ve read any of the previews, you know that book opens with Doug getting the diagnosis. So why would I do that? Especially to him!
The truth is bad things make for better stories. While we like for things to click along in real life, we’d rather read about someone else’s dire troubles. Also, I like to stories where the characters’ faith and ideas about God are challenged. Alzheimer’s presents a unique opportunity to do that not only with Doug but with the members of his family.
Second, Alzheimer’s is a terrible disease and the incidence is on the rise in this country. I wanted to raise awareness by dealing with it in a book.
Third, why Doug? I love Doug. Honestly, he’s my favorite character. So by using a character we already know and love, one we already have some history with, it heightens the emotional impact of the story.
If you have questions feel free to email me and I’ll do my best to answer them in a future video.
Paula Wiseman says
Alzheimer’s runs in Jon’s family, too. I understand your fears. It’s a terrible disease. It’s been challenging to write – moreso than Precedent, even. Hopefully, we handle it with dignity.
Cindy says
This book is going to be a hard one for me to read. My grandmother (my dad’s mother), one of her brothers, and one of her sisters had Alzheimer’s, and right now my dad’s sister is struggling with it. We aren’t sure if dad was showing signs of Alzheimer’s or if it was the chemo meds that were causing it, but dad was having Alzheimer’s symptoms for a couple of months before he passed away. I try not to think too much about it, but the possibility of me getting the disease scares me. I am looking forward to reading this book, just like I have all of your other books, but I think this one will be he hardest one for me to read.