Are song recommendations allowed within stories?

[PennyThompson]

Not an out-of-character aside intruding on the reader's reading progress. That isn't storytelling.

Oh I don't think that's fair at all, plenty of writers intrude on the reader in different ways!

Footnotes are intrusions. Narrator digressions like in Lemony Snicket or Terry Pratchett books are intrusions. Nick Bantock's Griffin & Sabine intruded by making you physically open an envelope and pull out a postcard to continue with the narrative

They're sometimes gimmicky, they aren't always successful, but that doesn't mean they aren't storytelling.

 

[Britva415]

I don't think that's fair at all, plenty of writers intrude on the reader in different ways!

I'm only talking specifically about what this writer, the starter of this thread, was talking about.

 

[NuclearFairy]

It can work. There is a manga (is it still manga if it's not japanese?) I read that breaks the fourth wall at various points. It has cues to play certain songs while reading to set the mood/scene.

It's only a manga if it's Japanese. Otherwise it's graphic novel or comic if it's from an English speaking country, or a manhwa if south Korean, manhua if Chinese, other than that I dunno.

 

[PennyThompson]

I'm only talking specifically about what this writer, the starter of this thread, was talking about.

Sure, but you said out-of-character asides weren't storytelling, and I think they definitely are

Doesn't mean it will be good or not, it might be bad, but that doesn't mean it isn't a narrative choice!

 

[alohadave]

Footnotes are intrusions.

House of Leaves has a whole sub-story (and what I'd consider the actual main character of the story) told entirely through footnotes (and some appendices), and it works really well.

 

[Bramblethorn]

That's not something the author can control. If it doesn't resonate with some readers, so be it.

You can't write for every single reader without removing all traces of personality from the story.

I'm not suggesting authors should. But doing the work to evoke a mood/character in your own words is going to work for more readers than attempting to evoke it by reference.

There's a reason Dolly sang about "flaming locks of auburn hair, with ivory skin and eyes of emerald green", and not "like a younger version of Julianne Moore".

(And it's not just that Julianne Moore was 13 years old when Dolly wrote that one.)

 

[PennyThompson]

House of Leaves has a whole sub-story (and what I'd consider the actual main character of the story) told entirely through footnotes (and some appendices), and it works really well.

One of my very favorite books, Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, had some delightful short stories and asides written as footnotes

 

[SinclairGroupLLP]

One of my very favorite books, Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, had some delightful short stories and asides written as footnotes

What a great book that was!

 

[Lifestyle66]

Three of my stories last year introduced the theme with song lyrics in a prologue. My favorite was "The Maneater" by Hall & Oates, a first-person story in which the main female character describes her thoughts and actions as she calculatingly uses her sex appeal to manipulate the men around her.

Some of the lyrics at the beginning have Hall & Oates sing "She's deadly man and she could really rip your world apart"

So, at the end of the story after the long story demonstrating her control, she warns
"I'm more like a real-world version of Batman's Catwoman. Beware of my claws! If you get in my way, I'll rip your world apart!"

EDIT: I wrote that for last year's Pink Orchid author's challenge, as my version of an empowered woman.

 

[SinclairGroupLLP]

I have been toying around with writing a few stories based exclusively on songs. Every time I hear "Lyin' Eyes" by the Eagles, I start writing in my head a story about the woman in the song.

Same with "Wouldn't It Be Nice" by the Beach Boys, and a lot of other songs.

Maybe when I get done with these series I'm doing, I'll start seeing if I can make this happen. This would be an interesting contest idea.

 

[Lifestyle66]

I have been toying around with writing a few stories based exclusively on songs. Every time I hear "Lyin' Eyes" by the Eagles, I start writing in my head a story about the woman in the song.

Same with "Wouldn't It Be Nice" by the Beach Boys, and a lot of other songs.

Maybe when I get done with these series I'm doing, I'll start seeing if I can make this happen. This would be an interesting contest idea.

As I said above, Maneater was based on a song by Hall & Oates. And I have two others, like "Abuse Addict" based on the Bill Withers song "Use Me." The song gives me the general idea. Then I try writing and piecing a part of the story to track with the song lyrics. I credit the song and artist in the Prologue when I include the pertinent lyrics.

The stories don't need to be exclusively about the lyrics. Mine include my favorite characters or usual sexual preferences. The song just guides that particular episode of the character's life.

 

[Britva415]

you said out-of-character asides weren't storytelling, and I think they definitely are

What I said was that this specific out-of-character aside - "go listen to this song" - isn't storytelling.

And it's not. It's the absolute opposite of storytelling, it's literally an instruction to stop reading.

 

[PennyThompson]

What I said was that this specific out-of-character aside - "go listen to this song" - isn't storytelling.

And it's not. It's the absolute opposite of storytelling, it's literally an instruction to stop reading.

Agree to disagree, I guess? Could be that I just have a more liberal definition of narrative and storytelling

I used to love reading those Choose Your Own Adventure books, those instructed you to stop reading when you made the wrong branching choice and got to a section where your MC dies.

I would again reference Griffin & Sabine, which is a story told via physical postcards that you have to physically take out of little envelopes in the book in order to read. That definitely stops the narrative for a moment, and it makes you savor that pause as you open the envelope to see what happens next

I've read/played narrative journaling games that encourage you to stop the narrative "when it feels right," rather than read to the end.

Heck, there's a journaling game -- the name escapes me, but I remember reading about it -- that instructs you to rip out one of the pages of the book and bury it in your yard before continuing with the story

 

[Britva415]

Could be that I just have a more liberal definition of narrative and storytelling

Well, here's hoping that all of OP's readers do too.

 

[ElectricBlue]

One of my very favorite books, Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, had some delightful short stories and asides written as footnotes

What a great book that was!

That's one of the few books that started off with a promise that I gave up on. For some reason, it didn't click with me. It's not often that happens.

Same with Amor Towles' The Lincoln Highway, which I quit after fifty pages. Yet I loved his A Gentleman in Moscow. Go figure!

 

[PennyThompson]

That's one of the few books that started off with a promise that I gave up on. For some reason, it didn't click with me. It's not often that happens.

As much as I love it, it does take its time getting into a good rhythm, and the Mr. Norrell character starts off pretty unlikable for several chapters. So I can totally understand why someone wouldn't connect with it!

 

[SawyerElle]

Just a postscript to this conversation for anyone who is curious:

I ended up putting a comment note at the bottom of Chapter 6 of PERION regarding the song. In the end, I respected the commenters who noted that many people may not share the same musical taste, and I also didn't want an author's note above the story to effectively act as a spoiler for the events of the chapter.

At the same time, I wanted to give anyone interested a chance, via a second read, to experience the moment in their minds as I do myself.

Thank you again to all of you for all your help!
-Sawyer Elle

 

[M_K_Babalon]

I have been toying around with writing a few stories based exclusively on songs. Every time I hear "Lyin' Eyes" by the Eagles, I start writing in my head a story about the woman in the song.

Same with "Wouldn't It Be Nice" by the Beach Boys, and a lot of other songs.

Maybe when I get done with these series I'm doing, I'll start seeing if I can make this happen. This would be an interesting contest idea.

I've done two on Wattpad, took Drops Of Jupiter, and Found Out About You, and used the lyrics for dialog.

 

[M_K_Babalon]

Ah dunno... sounds kinda Wattpaddish to have somebody listen to a song. I don't even listen to the songs embeded in Webtoon comics.