When a Book is Like a Song by Beverly Varnado

One recent evening I attended a concert of the Georgia Children’s Chorus, where they presented a piece by lyricist, Bob Benson, and composer Andrea Ramsey, “There Has to be A Song.”

Oh, yes. There does have to be a song. This lilting piece about the power of a song to take us through difficult times resonated with me so much reminding me of Psalm 42:8, “By day the Lord directs his love, at night his song is with me . . .”

One of the reasons I write is to give readers a song in the night.

Years ago during a difficult two-year period in my life when a friend took her own life and I was diagnosed with cancer, I found that song through another author’s work. Since that time, I have aimed to do the same thing for others.

Musicals and Operas are stories set to music, and though novelists may not have a score for our books, we may use our words to lift. Hope is a valuable commodity and as a writer, anytime I can offer it to someone who’s trying to navigate a dark place, I believe I have accomplished my purpose.

Some are dealing with enough grief and heartache for three lifetimes. For them, it can seem at times the pain will never end. But as writers, we can give them stories that offer an outcome that may introduce wonder back into their world.

Much has been written about the power of wonder and its ability to heal. Art, whether through writing or visual mediums or music is a powerful vehicle to accomplish this. Though a difficult circumstance may remain, experiencing wonder can take us out of ourselves and help us focus on the One who is bigger than anything we face.

My prayer is that readers find a song in the night when they read A Key to Everything.

I continue to write with the hope that the song continues.

rendition of “There Has to be a Song”:

There Has To Be a Song

About Beverly Varnado:

Beverly Varnado is an award winning author, screenwriter, blogger and artist who lives in North Georgia with her husband, Jerry. In addition to The Key to Everything, she has written two novels,and a nonfiction book, Faith in the Fashion District. She has a screenplay optioned for a film.