5/31/11

The Influence of T-Swizzle

Ever since I started blogging - and even before, because I would read author's acknowledgements - I've felt left out. Because my book had no song. It had no playlist. It was boring and unadorned, without fanfare. Kinda like this:

(If you can't view the above video, it's the official music video for Taylor Swift's "Our Song".)

 I look around, turn the radio down
He says, "Baby is something wrong?"
I say, "Nothing, I was just thinking that
We don't have a song."


I wondered. I lamented. I kept writing. And I kept reading all these lovely blog posts about songs and books and playlists and why, oh, why, doesn't my book have a song?! What's wrong with my characters? They don't have songs either!!

But over the course of this newest MS, which is much more character-driven than the other, I have started playing songs with lyrics instead of just movie soundtracks when I write. The songs with lyrics all relate to the story. I could choose any one of them to be the main song of the book. But yesterday I discovered what will probably remain the book's theme song (though it was close):

(If you can't view the above video, it's the recording of Taylor Swift's "Innocent".)

There's some things you can't speak of
But tonight you'll live it all again

I loved "Innocent" when I watched her perform it at some awards ceremony, but it wasn't until yesterday that I put two and two together. The above two lines go with my book, but the whole song applies. I have a song!
"Innocent," by Taylor Swift

Does your book have a song? What is it? Or are you as I was, without one? Don't lose heart! The songs will come!

I have no idea how Taylor Swift (T-Swizzle) got two videos in this post. It just fit.

2 comments:

Faith E. Hough said...

I know what you mean....
My book doesn't have a specific song yet, just a lot of certain genre/era songs from the 1940's that have the feel I want. I'll have to think about the lyrics a little more before I know!
Good luck with your story!

Keaghan said...

For a while, I didn't have a song for my WIP. Now I have more than one: "The Journey" by Steven Curtis Chapman and "Crown Without a Cross" by Lester & Holly are the primary ones.

(I'm not a big Taylor Swift fan, but I have to admit--I love her song "Enchanted.")

Way to go on finding a theme song! :D