Chuck offered space for writers to pimp each other today. I wanted to share with you what I added. If you're a writer, let's do a reach around, m'kay? Just let me know!
I write smut. Oh hey, that’s also my twitter name when you run it together, iwritesmut. Aren’t I clever? I have a book out. It’s called Messiah of Monsters. Because cannibals are the new black. Because cannibals are vampires with more bite. Cannibals are vampires that don’t sparkle…but I digress.
There’s filth, of the whoring, drug-induced, gay variety. Also, there are circus freaks. Suspensions. A hermaphrodite.
Did I mention cannibalism?
The link for the Kindle ed is here: http://www.amazon.com/Messiah-of-Monsters-ebook/dp/B007E64G9Y/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1333070204&sr=8-1
It’s FREE for Prime members. There is also a fabulous paperback.
In return, I want to pimp three people in lightening hot fashion. One, my cover artist, cause that girl owns: https://m.facebook.com/therealsilhouettestudios?v=info She’s amazing, and very willing to work with writers. Also, she will make your book cover look like a trophy wife instead of a two-bit hooker on crack.
Also, check out this guy: http://www.queeryoungcowboys.com/ – there’s some molten gay smut for you. I just found his link above and have been contemplating it for a little bit now. You know you should, too.
Finally, there’s this lady who runs some fun flash fiction on Tuesday nights. It will only take 15 mins from your schedule and god knows you have plenty of time, you procrastinating writer you. Hell, you read down this list all the way to me. That says something. Go to http://nicolewolverton.com/ any given Tuesday night and rock us with your bad fiction self.
Thursday, March 29, 2012
Tuesday, March 27, 2012
Chasing Zero: preview of a work long in progress
Finally putting the last and finishing chapters into a book that has been on my desk for a decade. It's a story worth telling, but I'm still unsure if I am up to the task of telling it. It's very different than much of my other work, but it's certainly a reflection of my long-time love of cyberpunk and sci-fi. Here's a tiny bit of flavor text from this excersize in madness:
Nora turns over the documents with a wave of dismissal. “I haven’t been feeling well,” she says. Her hand stays on the topmost of the papers, as if expecting a sudden phantom wind to disperse her formal musings. “I’ve never felt secure in putting any of this down, you know. Old habits and all.”
Greene inclines her head, for once attempting to agree. “I can see that,” she says at last.
Monday, March 26, 2012
Sinking in the Sea of the Workshop
A few weeks ago, I had a conversation where I was reminded of one of the pitfalls of writing workshops and college writing programs. I put it out my mind like a bad friend, someone your trusted to help but who failed you in the end. Let's face it: almost anyone who has been told a few times that they write well, or anyone who thinks they write well, despite being told the contrary, has likely tried their hand at one or the other. The problem that I remember with these well-meaning instructors is that they don't so much teach the craft as they expect you to learn from your fellow writers. Trouble is that most of these schmucks are just as clueless as you are. Effectively what they do is throw you to the sharks, sink or swim, each man for himself. Further, most times they strip you of your life boat, which we call genre, and force you to cram all your creative juices into a small dinghy full of nasty people with BO that they call Short Literary Fiction.
In the workshop, we have limited time. I get it. Really I do. But when you are finally asked to swim that mile to the shore and don't know a basic stroke, you're going to drown. So rather than berating me for choosing a genre that sells as opposed to some high hipster shit that would have died out years ago (and rightfully so!) had it not been for you and your fellow English-degreed friends, why don't you spare me the lecture and posturing and teach US HOW TO FUCKING WRITE.
Oh yeah. Maybe it's because no one ever taught you either.
From the beginning, I was fortunate. In high school, I learned shit that even some published (/cry) writers don't know. I learned how to create concrete images, not to mix my metaphors, and by God avoid the evil -ly words which make you look weak and feeble. I had an amazing teacher, Mrs. Morrison, who was as connected as she was gifted with teaching kids and other folks how to write. She knew Raymond Carver before he died, and I met people like Lucien Stryke, Tess Gallagher, and Gwendolyn Brooks. She still enforced the short-fiction-lit-fic crap, but she also taught the fundamental skills of good writing. With almost two years of writing experience under my belt, I taught workshops to middle school students. I was pumped, excited. I was looking forward to continuing my writing education in college (I was into poetry then).
And sank.
There are two main problems with college writing workshops: one, they are designed to teach you by example, the example being the writing of your peers. If your peers suck, however, you learn nothing. You become the teacher yourself, the big fish leading a school of little guys. This happens because, two, most workshop "instructors" don't act like a teacher insomuch as they behave like just another member of the workshop, except that their critique is also probably your grade. Also, because they read about 20 other stories besides yours, no doubt they won't spend time discussing the effectiveness of a certain character or a specific line. They won't tell you why ly and ing endings suck balls.
It wasn't until a transfer to a private college that I found a teacher who was actively teaching writing. By then, I had come to recognize that the "workshop" format was all the rage, and totally useless for honing actual skills. So when I returned to school to finally complete my degrees years later, I knew what to expect. I slogged through it anyway and learned almost nothing. Hell, I think the only thing I took from the classes I endured were the words of fellow student, novelist Robyn Bachar: "Enough with the commas already, woman!" I can say with confidence that Robyn is probably the only person in any of these classes who has gone on to "be" a writer. And I can also say that Robyn walked into the room with both talent and training, which confirms my belief that many of these classes teach you virtually nothing. For all I know, there were other people in the class who had talent, but because they could not write a fucking sentence, Robyn and I found veiled ways to make fun of their arrogant lit-fic bullshit while secretly writing novels like the good little genre whores we are.
So if all classes are backwater cesspools that breed mosquitoes and not writers, where do writers go to perfect their craft? The answer is simple: other writers and the Internet, my dears! Maybe you already know that I am carrying on a not-so-secret intellectual love affair with Chuck, the terrible mind behind terribleminds.com. If you want to understand writing in an easy-to-chew format, check him out. He breaks writing down into easy to parse lists, and much of his advice is invaluable. Though I think I know more than a few things about creative fiction, the man has saved my bacon more times than I can count. He has some great books out, too.
You can also visit the blogs of writers you enjoy and respect. Though they may not teach you much when it comes to the bare bones of the craft, they can at least help you become more genre savvy. Some writers may even be willing to recommend books to you if you're trying to get up on the basics. If you crave the workshop format and want to share your work with other writers, shop around for a writing group where the skills of the others are on par with your own, or even start a workshop group of your own. I did the latter; there is something to be said for sharing my work with people who are on a level similar to mine. Online or in-person, it doesn't matter these days. I am still learning, of course. And I still get a little comma-happy from time to time.
I have some ideas swirling in my head for a set of workshops that delve into the uncharted waters of writing skill. The more I learn, the more I realize that the ironclad dos and don'ts of writing are few, but the few are irrefutable and need to be understood, if not followed. Also, I won't turn people away at the door because they write novels or genre fiction. And I won't ask anyone to learn from the writing of someone they don't respect. That defeats the purpose of taking our work seriously, which is the basic goal of a writing workshop, in my opinion. Hell, where else is it going to happen for most of us?
Thursday, March 22, 2012
Another giveaway starting soon!
Goodreads Book Giveaway
Messiah of Monsters
by R. A. Dunn
Giveaway ends March 27, 2012.
See the giveaway details at Goodreads.
Saturday, March 17, 2012
Myths About Self-Publishing
To quote the guy in the 80s movie, Splash, the one where Darryl Hannah is half-naked and making keening noises (I am pretty sure it was not Ferris Bueller): What a week I'm having. I'm meeting people (digitally), including publishers, reviewers, and ton of fabulous and supportive fellow writers. My calendar is filling up with all sorts of writerly activities, and I'm generating an active interest in my work. People are following me on Twitter and FB, and more people are reading the novel. It's been hectic, but I'm up to the challenge.
Long ago, in a college writing workshop far far away, I was given a very valuable bit of wisdom: you're a writer if you say you are. To that end, I remained reluctant to call myself a writer until I had one completed work of fiction under my belt. Not a few short stories, not a couple of articles, not the dozen or so half-finished manuscripts stuffed in my closet. One novel. That's all it would take. So, I guess I'm a writer now. Thank effing G-d.
Shortly following the release of Messiah of Monsters, a few nay-sayers emerged from my sea of friends (you know who you are) to object to my choice to self-publish my first book. They said things like: "well, surely it must be good enough for a regular publisher," "that'll never work," and "don't sell yourself short...you're too impatient." At least the last of these is partly true. Ultimately though, seeing as I had never finished anything, and I found myself on a sudden and unexpected roll, I gave the proverbial finger to all of these people and plunged in. However, I still took time to consider all the options, which I break down a bit for you below.
Vanity Press - you pay a guy who puts your book into print. They do all the work, as little or as much as you pay them for. Sometimes they edit for you, arrange your cover, typeset, and "market" your book. Meanwhile, you sit back and hope you spent that $300- $2000 wisely.
Desktop Publishing - you do this at home, print at home, the whole deal. This is the way many small zines go, and some low-graphic content comics, as well as chapbooks and smaller works. Since you pay for every piece you print and do all of it yourself, it can be time consuming AND expensive in the long run.
Print-on-Demand - this is what Lulu and CreateSpace are. Basically, your book is a file that hangs out until someone thinks it sounds keen and buys it. Then it prints. The printer takes a cut of the final price to cover their sales and make profit, and you get the leavings. You also do most of the work, though the process is (somewhat) simpler than it sounds.
Small Press - these are the little guys. These are the guys who can't afford to offer you big royalties, but they are your first stop on the road to a best seller. They operate in similar fashion to the giant publishing houses, though some aspects remain largely do-it-yourself. They don't have the giant funds to send you on a book tour, or get you a review in the New York Times. You still have to wait around for them to read your work, reject it, request edits, and then send you a contract. It takes time. Also, small presses tend to specialize, which is great for the genre-savvy reader (and writer!), but it leaves some of us outliers in the cold. Show me one publisher that's looking for LGBT erotic horror, and I'll show you a unicorn.
Overall, I am glad I took the path I did. I've learned some very valuable lessons in the last few weeks, a few about people and even more about self-publishing. I'm going to share with you the things I've learned that stand out as those I will take with me into my next project, whether it's self-published or no.
1. Self-publish your book? Who are you paying to do that? Aunt Sue did that once. Remember the 500 copies of "The Dream is Over," which we used for kindling at the old lakehouse?
As I described above, Self-publishing IS NOT the same as Vanity Press. It surprises me that vanity presses still exist...but the reason they continue to exist and rip people off is because somehow, somewhere, someone managed to convince folks that VPs were still superior to self-publishing. This is far from accurate. In case you were born after 1990, the VP concept predates the sophistication of the interwebs and inexpensive print-on-demand/desktop publishing. Hint: most "small presses" that require the author to pay a fee up front as opposed to granting you an advance or at least handing you a contract that details how YOU will be paid are actually VPs.
In this digital day and age, there is no reason in hell that you should be paying someone to publish your book. And if you think that having a name that is not your own appear as the publisher somehow helps you to gain fans, think again. Remember Aunt Sue? That name that published her tripe is associated with her shoddy work as well as your fine masterpiece.
2. Self-published books are badly written, which is why these people can't find a publisher.
Sometimes you don't choose to self-publish. It chooses you. For me, there were multiple factors which played into my decision to self-publish, rather than seeking a traditional publisher for my work. First and foremost, my chosen subject matter was a risky one, especially for a first-time author. The small press route was an unlikely gambit that would just eat up my time and my resolve with rejection letters. More and more people find the process of publishing unappealing, but they can tell a good story just the same. Yes, there's a lot of junk out there - but it's a good bet that some of the small presses create a fair amount of it, too. It's the dark side of this beautiful world we've created....I am a bit of a jerk, so I spend a fair time laughing at some of the atrocious shit out there, while at the same time I have to kick myself for not having picked up the gauntlet as fast as they did. Industrious little bastards.
3. Fame. Glory. Riches. You'll never see these in self-publishing.
And guess what? Most traditionally published writers don't see them either. The Stephen Kings and J.K. Rowlings are few and far between, my friends. The majority of writers get by with day jobs, or leach off a willing and gracious spouse. Some of us are lucky enough to do enough freelancing that our mundane life becomes a minor intrusion on our creative condition.
Seek opportunities everywhere, write every day, and write good shit, but don't expect a best seller. It's 99% who you know, so there are probably a million undiscovered Hemingways out there. Get over yourself. I can bet neither one of the authors above expected much from their work, either. Surprise. This part was not too hard for a self-depreciating lunatic to figure out. I'm still shocked at the attention I'm getting now.
4. Don't try this at home, kids.
Get an editor. A real one. Even if you do some editing work yourself like I do, I can't underscore this enough. It still irks me to admit some aspects of my novel are rougher than I would like because I did not follow this rule. Sad to say, I could not afford one. I still can't. I had people read it over before it was released, other writers who admitted that they were not up to the task. At least I knew I had a good story. I spent grueling hours putting it to task myself - the first 15 copies grabbed by friends on the first day illustrate how even thorough proofreading doesn't always make for perfection. However, no matter what distance you can put between yourself and your product, nothing compares to a fresh read-through by a trained eye.
One thing that I benefited from, that enabled me to see my own mistakes more clearly, is seeing the book in it's final print form and then reading it cover-to-cover. Make use of on-demand like CreateSpace, even if you never publicly release the book in a self-published format. I can't tell you the difference it made, seeing those words in a new format, reading it like a reader would. Some things worked, some didn't, some things I could change, some I just had to let go.
5. You self-published because you are nothing. No one will buy your book. Because Penguin didn't put its stamp on the cover, and Simon and Schuster did not give you the time of day, neither will anyone else.
One great reason to self-publish is that it defeats the age old conundrum: you can't get an agent before you publish something and you can't publish something without an agent. I am very happy to report that many formerly self-published authors are now living it up with contracts in nice little homes with small press and the big leagues alike. Heck, I guess one of them even got a movie deal recently. Way to make us all look like slackers...but also, thanks for putting us on the map with norms. It's been a long time coming.
The biggest thing self-publishing has given me is momentum. Drive. A will to live...well, not exactly, but I would say it has given me the will to persevere. And I've proven to myself that I can do it, that I can finish something. For awhile there, I was almost sure my tombstone was going to read: R. A. Dunn, the girl who couldn't call anything done. It feels good enough that I am ready to do it again...and again. This time, surely, with more precision. And maybe an agent or a contract...but I'm not going to be so fast to decide that. I want to know my options first. However, I do know that publishing one book will not sustain me.
After seeing your words in print, it DOES in fact get easier. This is the number one reason to self-publish. As this last week has shown me, I am much further into the game then I expected to be. <deep breaths>
Long ago, in a college writing workshop far far away, I was given a very valuable bit of wisdom: you're a writer if you say you are. To that end, I remained reluctant to call myself a writer until I had one completed work of fiction under my belt. Not a few short stories, not a couple of articles, not the dozen or so half-finished manuscripts stuffed in my closet. One novel. That's all it would take. So, I guess I'm a writer now. Thank effing G-d.
Shortly following the release of Messiah of Monsters, a few nay-sayers emerged from my sea of friends (you know who you are) to object to my choice to self-publish my first book. They said things like: "well, surely it must be good enough for a regular publisher," "that'll never work," and "don't sell yourself short...you're too impatient." At least the last of these is partly true. Ultimately though, seeing as I had never finished anything, and I found myself on a sudden and unexpected roll, I gave the proverbial finger to all of these people and plunged in. However, I still took time to consider all the options, which I break down a bit for you below.
Vanity Press - you pay a guy who puts your book into print. They do all the work, as little or as much as you pay them for. Sometimes they edit for you, arrange your cover, typeset, and "market" your book. Meanwhile, you sit back and hope you spent that $300- $2000 wisely.
Desktop Publishing - you do this at home, print at home, the whole deal. This is the way many small zines go, and some low-graphic content comics, as well as chapbooks and smaller works. Since you pay for every piece you print and do all of it yourself, it can be time consuming AND expensive in the long run.
Print-on-Demand - this is what Lulu and CreateSpace are. Basically, your book is a file that hangs out until someone thinks it sounds keen and buys it. Then it prints. The printer takes a cut of the final price to cover their sales and make profit, and you get the leavings. You also do most of the work, though the process is (somewhat) simpler than it sounds.
Small Press - these are the little guys. These are the guys who can't afford to offer you big royalties, but they are your first stop on the road to a best seller. They operate in similar fashion to the giant publishing houses, though some aspects remain largely do-it-yourself. They don't have the giant funds to send you on a book tour, or get you a review in the New York Times. You still have to wait around for them to read your work, reject it, request edits, and then send you a contract. It takes time. Also, small presses tend to specialize, which is great for the genre-savvy reader (and writer!), but it leaves some of us outliers in the cold. Show me one publisher that's looking for LGBT erotic horror, and I'll show you a unicorn.
Overall, I am glad I took the path I did. I've learned some very valuable lessons in the last few weeks, a few about people and even more about self-publishing. I'm going to share with you the things I've learned that stand out as those I will take with me into my next project, whether it's self-published or no.
1. Self-publish your book? Who are you paying to do that? Aunt Sue did that once. Remember the 500 copies of "The Dream is Over," which we used for kindling at the old lakehouse?
As I described above, Self-publishing IS NOT the same as Vanity Press. It surprises me that vanity presses still exist...but the reason they continue to exist and rip people off is because somehow, somewhere, someone managed to convince folks that VPs were still superior to self-publishing. This is far from accurate. In case you were born after 1990, the VP concept predates the sophistication of the interwebs and inexpensive print-on-demand/desktop publishing. Hint: most "small presses" that require the author to pay a fee up front as opposed to granting you an advance or at least handing you a contract that details how YOU will be paid are actually VPs.
In this digital day and age, there is no reason in hell that you should be paying someone to publish your book. And if you think that having a name that is not your own appear as the publisher somehow helps you to gain fans, think again. Remember Aunt Sue? That name that published her tripe is associated with her shoddy work as well as your fine masterpiece.
2. Self-published books are badly written, which is why these people can't find a publisher.
Sometimes you don't choose to self-publish. It chooses you. For me, there were multiple factors which played into my decision to self-publish, rather than seeking a traditional publisher for my work. First and foremost, my chosen subject matter was a risky one, especially for a first-time author. The small press route was an unlikely gambit that would just eat up my time and my resolve with rejection letters. More and more people find the process of publishing unappealing, but they can tell a good story just the same. Yes, there's a lot of junk out there - but it's a good bet that some of the small presses create a fair amount of it, too. It's the dark side of this beautiful world we've created....I am a bit of a jerk, so I spend a fair time laughing at some of the atrocious shit out there, while at the same time I have to kick myself for not having picked up the gauntlet as fast as they did. Industrious little bastards.
3. Fame. Glory. Riches. You'll never see these in self-publishing.
And guess what? Most traditionally published writers don't see them either. The Stephen Kings and J.K. Rowlings are few and far between, my friends. The majority of writers get by with day jobs, or leach off a willing and gracious spouse. Some of us are lucky enough to do enough freelancing that our mundane life becomes a minor intrusion on our creative condition.
Seek opportunities everywhere, write every day, and write good shit, but don't expect a best seller. It's 99% who you know, so there are probably a million undiscovered Hemingways out there. Get over yourself. I can bet neither one of the authors above expected much from their work, either. Surprise. This part was not too hard for a self-depreciating lunatic to figure out. I'm still shocked at the attention I'm getting now.
4. Don't try this at home, kids.
Get an editor. A real one. Even if you do some editing work yourself like I do, I can't underscore this enough. It still irks me to admit some aspects of my novel are rougher than I would like because I did not follow this rule. Sad to say, I could not afford one. I still can't. I had people read it over before it was released, other writers who admitted that they were not up to the task. At least I knew I had a good story. I spent grueling hours putting it to task myself - the first 15 copies grabbed by friends on the first day illustrate how even thorough proofreading doesn't always make for perfection. However, no matter what distance you can put between yourself and your product, nothing compares to a fresh read-through by a trained eye.
One thing that I benefited from, that enabled me to see my own mistakes more clearly, is seeing the book in it's final print form and then reading it cover-to-cover. Make use of on-demand like CreateSpace, even if you never publicly release the book in a self-published format. I can't tell you the difference it made, seeing those words in a new format, reading it like a reader would. Some things worked, some didn't, some things I could change, some I just had to let go.
5. You self-published because you are nothing. No one will buy your book. Because Penguin didn't put its stamp on the cover, and Simon and Schuster did not give you the time of day, neither will anyone else.
One great reason to self-publish is that it defeats the age old conundrum: you can't get an agent before you publish something and you can't publish something without an agent. I am very happy to report that many formerly self-published authors are now living it up with contracts in nice little homes with small press and the big leagues alike. Heck, I guess one of them even got a movie deal recently. Way to make us all look like slackers...but also, thanks for putting us on the map with norms. It's been a long time coming.
The biggest thing self-publishing has given me is momentum. Drive. A will to live...well, not exactly, but I would say it has given me the will to persevere. And I've proven to myself that I can do it, that I can finish something. For awhile there, I was almost sure my tombstone was going to read: R. A. Dunn, the girl who couldn't call anything done. It feels good enough that I am ready to do it again...and again. This time, surely, with more precision. And maybe an agent or a contract...but I'm not going to be so fast to decide that. I want to know my options first. However, I do know that publishing one book will not sustain me.
After seeing your words in print, it DOES in fact get easier. This is the number one reason to self-publish. As this last week has shown me, I am much further into the game then I expected to be. <deep breaths>
Thursday, March 15, 2012
Free Giveaway on GoodReads!
Goodreads Book Giveaway
Messiah of Monsters
by R. A. Dunn
Giveaway ends March 17, 2012.
See the giveaway details at Goodreads.
Sunday, March 4, 2012
Creating a Soundtrack for Creativity: Messiah of Monsters
Over the next two weeks, I want to spend some time exploring the songs and images that drove the creative process behind my first novel, Messiah of Monsters. When I speak about soundtracks, I am talking about the music I find myself listening to as I work on a piece. More often than not, I use music to help me work through character motivations and rough spots, to brainstorm new ideas, and remind me of the story when I'm not actively writing it. It's a great way to keep things fresh in my mind when I'm not able to get to a computer or pen fast enough.
If my first novel had end credits, it would probably start with them. Messiah is a wraparound story, starting near the end and ending with an epilogue. In this style, I started thinking about what songs might fit that feeling of closure. Early in the novel, Sam goes into the local diner. It's a familiar place to him, a place he feels at home in. He's been coming here for as long as he can recall; it's where his friends hang out, and the same place where his parents met. There's a jukebox, and pies, and the smells of burned coffee and gravy. We all know places like this. It made sense to me that the music that he's heard for nearly two decades should suddenly take on a more sinister tone, given he knows what will transpire and how the story will end.
So what was playing on the jukebox when Sam entered the diner that one final time? I had to think about this for quite awhile. I needed a song with lyrics that could be read both deeply and not at all. Moreover, I wanted one that was also familiar, but one that could be downright creepy if seen in a new light. At first, I was stuck on Leonard Cohen, but anything that was approaching dark or moody would be too obscure for a jukebox. Hallelujah is lovely song, and there were a couple of others, but after thinking about them for months, I found that they simply did not fit with the story, even if the image they conjured in my head still gave me some inspiration.
I arrived at the decsion that I also needed at least one song on my playlist that was timeless. It's one of my huge issues with including music as an active part in a story, and it's why I rarely do so. Often the writer loses sight of what an audience will think of their work in just five or ten years. Choosing something contemporary has a tendancy to date a story. My general rule is that if a band has been going strong over ten years, then they are likely safe to mention in passing. Only one band gets that treatment in the story, but that's a story for another post. So again, I went back to trying to imagine what would be playing on that jukebox.
The song I finally chose was The Ronnettes', Be My Baby. For many of you, this likely evokes thoughts of the movie, Dirty Dancing, but I didn't have that association. What I looked at were some of the more interesting lyrics. In the song, the singer appears to be pleading with the love interest to continue their relationship. What intrigued me most were the odd ways that the lyrics approached this, acknowleging right from the start that the relationship was unbalanced (for every kiss you give me/I'll give you three), also implicating the lover also has some sort of parental or mentor role (I'll make you so proud of me). I felt this paired very well with how Sam felt about Brande, and how he pursued their relationship partly as a learning experience. Finally, there comes a line that we often think of as flipant in most songs, the line about loving someone "for eternity," but this takes on interesting connotations in terms of what Brande claims to be and what Sam believes is real.
So yeah, this song gets quite the rotation when I am thinking about the novel. It has an almost a Stephen King-esque quality to it, a "small town puppy love" feel that makes it both safe and dangerous at the same time. It's the same kind of homey, not-quite-right feeling that Sam eventually finds in his relationship with Brande.
Something to note: in general, there can be concern about copyright when quoting lyrics in published works. One good article on the subject appears here. I rarely do it myself, but I did decide to add two very short snippets to the finished work. Since it gave me a bit of a headache debating it, I don't know that I will do so again, but I figured that in this case, it was very unlikely to be of issue, considering the fair use clause, and the negligible length. However, I stress that you should use caution if you choose to do so yourself.
Further Reading...
Check out the full lyrics here.
Be My Baby on Youtube
If my first novel had end credits, it would probably start with them. Messiah is a wraparound story, starting near the end and ending with an epilogue. In this style, I started thinking about what songs might fit that feeling of closure. Early in the novel, Sam goes into the local diner. It's a familiar place to him, a place he feels at home in. He's been coming here for as long as he can recall; it's where his friends hang out, and the same place where his parents met. There's a jukebox, and pies, and the smells of burned coffee and gravy. We all know places like this. It made sense to me that the music that he's heard for nearly two decades should suddenly take on a more sinister tone, given he knows what will transpire and how the story will end.
So what was playing on the jukebox when Sam entered the diner that one final time? I had to think about this for quite awhile. I needed a song with lyrics that could be read both deeply and not at all. Moreover, I wanted one that was also familiar, but one that could be downright creepy if seen in a new light. At first, I was stuck on Leonard Cohen, but anything that was approaching dark or moody would be too obscure for a jukebox. Hallelujah is lovely song, and there were a couple of others, but after thinking about them for months, I found that they simply did not fit with the story, even if the image they conjured in my head still gave me some inspiration.
I arrived at the decsion that I also needed at least one song on my playlist that was timeless. It's one of my huge issues with including music as an active part in a story, and it's why I rarely do so. Often the writer loses sight of what an audience will think of their work in just five or ten years. Choosing something contemporary has a tendancy to date a story. My general rule is that if a band has been going strong over ten years, then they are likely safe to mention in passing. Only one band gets that treatment in the story, but that's a story for another post. So again, I went back to trying to imagine what would be playing on that jukebox.
The song I finally chose was The Ronnettes', Be My Baby. For many of you, this likely evokes thoughts of the movie, Dirty Dancing, but I didn't have that association. What I looked at were some of the more interesting lyrics. In the song, the singer appears to be pleading with the love interest to continue their relationship. What intrigued me most were the odd ways that the lyrics approached this, acknowleging right from the start that the relationship was unbalanced (for every kiss you give me/I'll give you three), also implicating the lover also has some sort of parental or mentor role (I'll make you so proud of me). I felt this paired very well with how Sam felt about Brande, and how he pursued their relationship partly as a learning experience. Finally, there comes a line that we often think of as flipant in most songs, the line about loving someone "for eternity," but this takes on interesting connotations in terms of what Brande claims to be and what Sam believes is real.
So yeah, this song gets quite the rotation when I am thinking about the novel. It has an almost a Stephen King-esque quality to it, a "small town puppy love" feel that makes it both safe and dangerous at the same time. It's the same kind of homey, not-quite-right feeling that Sam eventually finds in his relationship with Brande.
Something to note: in general, there can be concern about copyright when quoting lyrics in published works. One good article on the subject appears here. I rarely do it myself, but I did decide to add two very short snippets to the finished work. Since it gave me a bit of a headache debating it, I don't know that I will do so again, but I figured that in this case, it was very unlikely to be of issue, considering the fair use clause, and the negligible length. However, I stress that you should use caution if you choose to do so yourself.
Further Reading...
Check out the full lyrics here.
Be My Baby on Youtube
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