I've been looking for a way to incorporate writing into this blog without seeming too heavy handed, and I think this may be the right way to do it. Once a month I'm aiming to have a list of songs available for you to choose from. The song with the most votes will be song that I will then write a 200-500 word drabble around. I take liberties with song interpretations, so though the link may not be blatantly obvious it will be there, and when I post the drabble I will explain in a sentence or two how the piece came about.
The songs will not always be in English, they will not always have lyrics - but just choose the one that speaks to you the most.
For the inaugural post, I've chosen to use the following parameters:
Time period: 2000-2005
Male musicians
Acoustic performance
To get to the YouTube links, add "www.youtube.com/watch?v=" before the code in the poll.
Incidentally, I've either seen all of these musicians live, worked for them on tour, or both. They are fantastic. I hope you enjoy and thanks for participating!
A question to my fellow bloggers who are also writers or perhaps vice versa:
How do you feel about posting snippets or passages of your writing on your blog for public consumption? It's something I've struggled with recently, with all of the usual (I'm presuming) fears. I like it, but can others? Does it make sense? Do you (as a reader) want to read more? And, for me, the most pressing - will putting it out there change my perspective on it? Can I finish writing when I'm already receiving input? Will I be intimidated and not finish?
It's a big jumble of fear.
I suppose an issue for me is that I don't write sequentially, though I know now most of the gaps that I need to fill in and have a decent enough mental draft of how things will go. My brain will fill in the character progression in between; I reckon it's fairly decent at doing that job.
That's the funny thing about writing, I guess. The more you want to share it with people, the more you're afraid it could all just fall apart. Tenuous at times, isn't it?
(And, have no fear, there will be a review up this weekend for Fever after I finish writing my midterms; they end Friday.)
These two things are basically the core of my heart. Sure, I could live life without the ability to listen to music or to immerse myself into a story - but I wouldn't want to. That'd be something akin to personal mental torture for me. I always have music on: when doing homework, when writing, when in the car, on the subway, sometimes even when reading. My bf and I played a game one day (and a few times since) where he was playing a song, so amazed by how not only did I know every vocal cadence of the song, but he paused it numerous times for about 10 seconds or so each time, and when the song resumed the vocalist and I were in the exact same place. I can also name any Dave Matthews Band song just by hearing .05 seconds of the first note. (But that's my musical favoritism speaking.)
That's how music is. Music is itself a story, and the lyrics are the harmony to it.
Both remind me of characters: of their emotions and particular moments; they are representative of a struggle the character can't state but is feeling quite deeply; of a place or a conversation. Even in the tiniest way, I can relate music to my writing and to that of other characters (not solely limited to book characters, TV characters are very much included here).
I started writing my NaNo story, which continues to be my WIP, by hearing this song:
"Sigh No More," Mumford & Sons
I listened to the opening chords, the subsequent bars and had such a feeling of hope and change and a sense that things were going well for someone, despite everything. And I started writing, producing a chapter in the middle of my story.
"She Wears Green," Bobby Long
I'd heard this song many a time before, but when I saw Bobby live I was struck with an image of someone quiet, waiting, but with the overall feeling that scene was indicative of a switch being turned.
"What The Water Gave Me," Florence + The Machine
No caption for this one. It's too integral. Sharing too much feels like giving myself away.
What about you? Do an author's playlist of songs for a book or a character help you understand what's going on within the story? Or perhaps they interfere too much with your perception of what's happening. Do you listen to music while writing? Is it a necessity, or just a sometimes thing? For me, it's just the way my brain works. I see music. Just some food for thought!
