I am not like some writers,
including Steven King, who can write with music playing softly in the
background or even blasting away. However, I think there are a number of similarities
between fiction writers and songwriters. In some ways writing fiction and
writing music are quite similar tasks. Writing mysteries is like writing jazz — there are general expectations but a
there is also great deal of freedom within the general parameters.
The author and the songwriter both
have only a brief time to grab the audience’s attention. Songs like Don’t Get Around Much Anymore start with
a quick burst of sound. The up tempo bouncy tune might lead the audience to
expect a happy song. The lyrics,
however, express heartbreak, and the contrast is striking. Both a
hook early in the work and a touch of surprise are elements in the
popularity of songs and mysteries.
Pacing is another similarity in
creating songs or mysteries. Stardust, was moderately successful in
its original jazzy tempo and presentation. With lyrics and a slower, more somber tempo, Stardust became very popular and now is
regarded as a classic. It’s doubtful that a novel today could successfully
contain whole paragraphs devoted to describing the protagonist’s appearance
like Dashiell Hammet’s The Maltese Falcon
did.
Songs can be witty, ironic or
playful like those written by Cole Porter. They can comment on social issue like, Strange Fruit, a poem by Langston Hughes, memorably turned into
lyrics and sung by Billie Holiday.
Well-written stories have tone and voice. They can comment on social mores as Charles Dickens did in
his best-known books.
As a storyteller, I enjoy songs that
follow the story arc, i.e., they have a beginning, a middle and an end including
many folk and popular tunes including Black
Velvet Band, John Henry and Taylor Swift’s You Belong With Me.
What books remind you of songs? What songs remind you of music?
I was a Harry Chapin fan. His songs were stories.
ReplyDeleteI can and do write to nonverbal music. If I hear lyrics, I start singing along, which severely inhibits my writing or editing.
~ Jim
I was a Harry Chapin fan too.
ReplyDeleteI was a big fan of folk music in the 60's, especially Peter, Paul, and Mary. Most of their songs told a story.
ReplyDeleteWarren, I love the music you're describing. I was a Harry Chapin fan, too, and still love folk music because of the stories told. I don't know if you know John McCutcheon, or not, but his songs always tell a story. I go to a lot of folk music concerts. We're lucky here in NE Ohio to have a strong following of folk music and a local radio station that features folk music every weekend evening. I don't usually write to music, but I can. I do listen to music in the evenings when I'm reading - usually classical or folk music. It's background for me, but when something particularly grabs me, I stop reading and listen. If it's classical, I may just conduct the music with my hands as the orchestra plays.
ReplyDeleteFolk music commonly tells a good story--going back to Scottish border ballads like "Barbara Allen" that also have an American version. A lot of current pop singers are writing autobiographical music these days as well. Country music is full of interesting stories. Anyone of them could inspire a novel.
ReplyDeleteI'm with you, Warren. I love music, but can't write to music that has lyrics in any language I understand. (If it's a language I don't know, it might as well be instrumental, as far as being able to write to it goes.)
ReplyDeleteMany, many years ago (when I was a mere babe), I was a blues/jazz singer professionally (had trained for opera). Still love opera, blues, and jazz--and 60s /70s rock. The singing experience and training came in handy when learning to give public readings, though.
I've been listening to and reading about writers who set up soundtracks for their WIP and always play them to get in the right imaginative place for that book. Am considering trying this. What do you all think on that topic?
I've always wondered about the differences in song writing and story writing. Often the composer and the lyricist are different. It's almost as if the composer writes the setting and tone, the lyricist writes the POV and plot.
ReplyDeleteI'm a rock fan, but my daughter loves country, and I have to admit that country songs tell stories, more so than rock. They're fun.
Ld, I saw PP&M in concert once. They were great.
ReplyDeleteBob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, Neil Young, and Paul Simon are all marvelous story-tellers. But let's not forget Ira Gershwin's or Cole Porter's brilliant lyrics from generations ago. I'm like Jim in that I can write to instumental music, but lyrics interfere with the voices in my head. If I'm really stuck, I'll try to play music that matches the mood of the scene I think I'm trying to write.
ReplyDeleteI recently started listening to country music and many songs tell a good story. One of my favorites is Blown Away by Carrie Underwood.
ReplyDeleteI have often wondered if lyrics in older songs were written as poems then set to music.
Warren, I was interested in your analysis of the connections between writing songs and writing stories. I also like songs that tell a story, which is one reason I love bluegrass and blues.
ReplyDeleteHi Warren, enjoyed your post (via crime scene writer link). I don't write songs, but I was a professional musician in the Boston area for many years. Now I kill people. Fictionally, of course. Am working on my 4th Frank Renzi mystery series. You can check out the series, (and my solo tpt CD) at
ReplyDeletehttp://susanfleet.com/
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