Origin
One of the most popular questions asked of writers seems to be “Where did you get your idea?” Sometimes it’s a hard question to answer, but for this particular story, we have a record of how, exactly, the idea came about.
This is how we got the idea for Song for the Undead: the two of us were chatting one night with our friend Dee, and we had gotten quiet. Somehow, a joke turned into a joke idea, which turned into this story. We saved the chat transcript as a record of our insanity, which you can read below!
July 18, 2008
12:00 a.m. CST
Dee: Is everyone dead?
Julie: yes
Dee: Oh noes! Julie is a ghost!
Julie: I prefer zombie
Dee: But dead people scare me.
Julie: sorry… I can be a friendly zombie?
Dee: That won’t haunt me or eat my brains?
Julie: sure….
Dee: Okay, then I guess we can still be friends.
Dee: We could even sell our friendship to NBC and make bank. Me and my zombie…
Dee: *sings*
Julie: LMAO! My zombie… my zombie… my zombie and me!
Dee: In the show, can you go on the zombie equivalent of the Atkins diet where you no longer eat brains? lol
Julie: can I eat liver instead? It grows back…
Dee: Well, yes, once you go on the Atkins diet. lol
Julie: yay!
Julie: I also like heart; it’s nice and meaty
Dee: Mmmm…. *slurrrp* lol
Dee: Do these have to be people hearts, or can you handle sheep hearts?
Julie: hey Rose… Backstreet Boys, zombies, collab? *hopes to summon Rose back*
Julie: people hearts, preferably people I don’t like
Julie: I like my hearts a little black
[…]
Dee: So are you dead also, then, Rose?
Rose: No lol
Rose: I just speak with the dead
Dee: Perfect.
Dee: Like Julie?
Rose: and we can’t sell Me and My Zombie lol
Rose: cause we wanna sell 00Carter to NBC first
Dee: Why can’t we sell them both? lol
Rose: cause I want 00Carter as a show first lol
Julie: yeah, I agree, 00Carter first
Julie: but after that, we could totally make a zombie show
Rose: LOL
Dee: Are the Backstreet Boys zombies or do they kill the zombies?
Dee: Because I would write that. lol
Rose: maybe instead of zombies can it be undead mummies?
Dee: I want them to kill the zombies. lol
Dee: The could be like top secret branch of the government. lol
Rose: but mummies means Egypt
Rose: and I like Egypt lol
Dee: Me too.
Dee: They could do both. lol
Julie: I like Egypt, but I like zombies because maybe then one of them could get bitten and become a zombie himself! Oh noes!!! We could capitalize on the whole Twilight/vampire craze by doing zombies! They’re almost the same, just less attractive
Julie: and they can’t turn into bats
Rose: poor zombies
Dee: But they could enjoy livers.
Julie: I know. They should be able to turn into rats or something to compensate
Rose: maybe these are a new breed of zombies that turn into roaches
Julie: true. And livers are totally more satisfying than blood
Julie: I was thinking roaches! After I said rats. Roaches are cool, and being a roach would be an added benefit because they can live without heads
Julie: so if someone’s out to decapitate the zombie, he can just turn into a roach! Yay!
Rose: and can survive a nuclear holocaust
Julie: ooh, zombies + nuclear holocaust would be a fun show
Julie: it’d be like Jericho meets Salem’s Lot meets Dawn of the Dead
Dee: Maybe this is after a world nuclear holocaust and the Backstreet Boys are among the sole survivors? lol
Julie: LMAO of course, cause they’re awesome
Rose: LMAO
Dee: And we could design them kickass military uniforms. lmao
Julie: we could make ourselves survivors as well, and we have to work together to repopulate the earth, amid the threat of zombies
Rose: that AJ would customize
Dee: I call Nick!
Julie: I call Brian!
Rose: sorta like Resident Evil only cooler
Rose: hey no callies!
Julie: you can have AJ
Julie: call him before we get more collaborators
Rose: but I don’t want AJ lol
Julie: Howie?
Dee: Kevin?
Rose: bleh to you both lol
Dee: You know this story would be popular too. lol
Rose: you know we’d end up centering on Nick
Julie: it’s okay, Nick would want to make as many babies as possible to help the human race survive, so everyone could have him!
Dee: Well, yeah. lol
Rose: lol okay then, we share Nick and I’m peachy lol
Julie: yeah, there used to be a lot of vampire Bsb fics, but not so many zombie ones. In fact, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a zombie one. Vampires… ghosts, yes… zombies, no.
Dee: I’m sure he wouldn’t mind. lol
Rose: LOL Are we seriously talking about a new story
Dee: See? So once again we would be ahead of the curve.
Dee: lol
Julie: seriously? No. But I do like zombies.
Rose: don’t get me excited
Dee: I’d write it. lol
Julie: LMAO I knew you’d come back if I said collab
Rose: you two know better lol
Dee: You know, Rose…
Rose: lol actually it was the zombies
Dee: This is how 00Carter went. lol
Julie: well, if the Indy fic doesn’t pan out after 00Carter, this is always a possibility
Rose: yes it is
Dee: You got excited about it, then I agreed to do it, then Julie signed on. lol
Rose: ya know, I think this would mesh better
Rose: we’d have a lot more random opportunities
Julie: than the Indy fic?
Rose: like how 00Carter is, the Indy one is limiting
Dee: More research involved.
Julie: yeah, we could make more up with the zombies
Dee: And it being set in the future. lol
Julie: cause who knows what a post-nuclear holocaust world would be like
Rose: Plus think of Nick with a bad ass weapon, shredded army garb on
Julie: mmmm
Dee: ^That’s what I was saying! lmao
Rose: you know you want to lol
Rose: or even Brian
Julie: Brian for sure!! Those arms…
Rose: hehe see, and…hmm what about a good title
Dee: And Kev’s arms with badass army gear.
Rose: ooh mm
Rose: Nick, Kevin and Brian would definitely look the best
Julie: AJ too
Julie: title… Brains for Breakfast?
Rose: Ya know if we did this, I think the three of us should just do it probably. Look how well we work together lol
Rose: It wouldn’t be as involved as 00Carter
Rose: Apocalypse Central? lol
Rose: don’t run away when I get collaby! lol
Rose: lonely…I’m mr. lonely…
Julie: LOL
Rose: Yay! undead life! lol
Julie: yeah, I agree, if it ever panned out into a story, it would probably be best with just us
Julie: or maybe us and Kelly
Rose: where’s Dee lol
Julie: I dunno. You disappeared for awhile too. She’ll come back
Rose: I was thinking Kelly but she has a lotta projects so I was iffy on if she’d say yes lol
Julie: true… and I dunno if she’d like the whole zombie thing? It’s not exactly fluffy LOL
Rose: I was surfing and didn’t see it light up lol
Rose: neither is Fan Friction, or Supernatural lol
Julie: true
Rose: I think she’d dig the concept, I think it’d be motivation
Rose: that would be stopping her
Rose: and you say if it ever pans out like it won’t
Rose: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zombies_in_popular_culture
Julie: LMAO
Rose: yes I wikid lol
Rose: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Zombie_Survival_Guide
Rose: You know we could just name it Survival
Julie: too vague
Rose: lol Brains for Breakfast is too cheesy
Rose: I want a dark twisted title lol
Julie: it’s a play on Oreos LOL
Rose: I know lol besides it should be Liver for Lunch lol
Julie: Song for the Undead
Julie: that could be the sequel!
Rose: hey I like that
Rose: lmao
Rose: Song For The Undead is a nice play off of Unloved lol
Julie: I know! LOL
Rose: and we can a lyric even “This is a prayer that tomorrow will help us leave the past behind” as the first line of the summary
Julie: I totally wanna write a couple of children’s books about zombies called Brains for Breakfast and Liver for Lunch now LMAO. They totally remind me of those Bailey School Kids books… like Leprechauns Don’t Play Basketball and all of those
Julie: ooh!
Rose: how perfect is the lyric! lmao
Julie: it’s good!
Julie: we would make this AU, right?
Rose: I dunno, we could go either way
Julie: I think it would be less cheesy as AU
Rose: agreed
Julie: cause what are the chances of the Backstreet Boys being among the last survivors? LMAO
Rose: plus Brian’s not married lol
Julie: it would probably be better if they didn’t even know each other at the start… they meet because they are the only survivors
Julie: then they can all have a different back story
Julie: yeah, no wives… or dead wives, whichever LOL
Rose: And then the summary can go into like “This is the tale we leave behind in hopes someone will reach tomorrow. The world was different once, filled with life with promise of tomorrow. Now there is none. Now there is darkness, horror and death as a guarantee. Read this, and learn. Perhaps we may survive to tell you the tale in person one day”
Rose: or something twisted like that lol
Rose: and they can be part of a small band of survivors
Julie: LOL I like
Rose: lol knew you would
Rose: Dee needs to come back now that I’m slowly convincing you lol
Rose: I’m inviting Kelly in the room
Julie: LOL okay
Yahoo! Messenger with Voice: Kelly has joined the conference.
Rose: yes we lol
Kelly: I see. haha
Rose: Dee needs to come back, but yay
Kelly: I didn’t when I typed that
Rose: So…lol how hard would it be for me to convince you into another project Kelly?
Julie: hey Kelly!
Kelly: lmao you whore! what kind of project???
Kelly: hi Julie!
Rose: hey you love me!
Julie: another project that was a joke until like 5 minutes ago LOL
Rose: Plus this was Julie’s idea!
Julie: it’s my fault this time
Rose: well that was how 00Carter started lol
Kelly: lol those always last long
Rose: sometimes joke ideas work
Rose: So basically what we have is a post nuclear holocaust world, where zombies are the dominant species
Rose: and we’re following the tale of a small group of survivors (featuring the boys obviously)
Kelly: ooh, this sounds fun
Kelly: zombies are cool
Rose: we’re thinking it’s just you, me, Julie, and Dee writing this
Rose: cause it won’t be as involved as 00Carter, promise lol
Julie: and this came from Rose disappearing and Dee going “Is everyone dead?” and I was like “Yes,” and she was like “Oh noes! Julie’s a ghost!” and I was like “I prefer zombie.”
Kelly: even better. I’m excited that I get to be part of your elite-ness
Kelly: LMAFO! That’s how you know it’s truly inspired
Julie: only the coolest can write the Backstreet Boys fighting zombies… LMAO
Julie: we’re calling it Song for the Undead
Kelly: LMAO
Julie: after my suggestion of Brains for Breakfast was shot down LMAO
Kelly: Perfect!!!!!
Rose: LOL I love how our best ideas come from one random line
Rose: LOL
Kelly: ok, I’m in.
Rose: I was telling Julie how the summary go start with “This is a prayer that tomorrow will help us leave the past behind” cause I loved the title
Julie: … and the joke turns into a project. Curse you, Rose LOL
Rose: lmao you started it
Rose: you said zombies and collab
Rose: your fault
Julie: I know, but I started it as a joke
Rose: so did 00Carter LOL
Julie: only to summon you back
Kelly: I know. Curse you! I still have half a part to write on your last random online chat turned huge project.
Julie: *sigh* I know…
Rose: you both love me
Rose: is it my fault that around me random jokes turn into new stories?
Julie: yes
And that’s how this project began! This site was launched exactly one week later, July 25, 2008. Sadly, Kelly ended up not writing with us because her computer got stolen a couple days after this conversation, and she didn’t feel like starting a new story after that. Dee did start writing with us, but decided not to continue with the story.
