It’s funny how music makes us think about our past lives. Just this week, my mom posted a video of Mel Carter singing “Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me” on her Facebook page. Now, I was nowhere even a thought of being alive when this song was popular, but it held a great deal of importance for my mom and her sister. So much so, that some time in my middle school years, much to my sister and I’s chagrin they actually belted it out at full blast in the car. How do I remember — the music. Music transcends time and brings you back to a time when you were a different version of you. I’m pretty sure it was in our brown Suburu (I’m talking crap color not that nice champagne color people try to pass off nowadays). I’m pretty sure thankfully I was out of my feathered hair/mullet phase that possessed me during my early middle school years (sorry K for the bad hair advice). Sidebar: Looking back on that haircut, my sister and I may have been attempting to join the band Winger or take David Spade’s job in Joe Dirt — you choose. It was after the deer incident, but before B went to Greece. I know if I listen to that song again I can find all the details I have forgotten and bring it back like it was yesterday. That my friends is the beauty of music. Two days ago, I felt I needed to have the song “American Pie” on my I-Pod. I couldn’t explain why for the moment, but then I remembered back to freshman year in college and a group of friends getting ready for Saturday nights on the town and how perfectly the song worked out that you could sing-a-long and shower in the time allotted. I think since I reconnected with some of those friends that song and memory came back. I can see dorm rooms, Tang, the climb to the fourth floor, and belting that song out at the top of our lungs. Of course, somehow all my friends were part of the chorus at school and well, I’m pretty sure I had flunked out of that a long time ago. Thank goodness they carried my off-tune self. Of course, the funny thing about memories — you can relive them in your mind, but when you try and attempt a shower in the 8:37 that American Pie is with an 11-month-old baby you get as far as “Now for ten years we’ve been on our own…” Not even halfway through the song. Ah, to be young again. Well, here’s to new songs and new memories AND my topic for this year’s NaNoWriMo Project. I will use songs to write about memories and stories from life. 50,000 words — who knows how many songs or memories, but I’m ready. Are you?
Tag Archives: NaNoWriMo
NaNoWriMo
Again, it creeps up on us — the month of November. Lots of great events happen in this month including my sister’s birthday, a childhood friend’s birthday, and my son’s birthday. All that aside, it is also National Novel Writing Month. So, in the insanity that is my life I am actually thinking about doing it. Not because I think I will actually finish a novel (50,000 words) in 30 days but because it will get me back writing. I miss writing. This year, however, I am not going to write fiction. Instead, I think I will work on some non-fiction. Doesn’t matter what you write — as long as you are writing! So, are you up to the challenge?
By Any Other Name…
What’s in a name? that which we call a rose
By any other name would smell as sweet;
As I am working on preparing for NaNoWriMo, I have begun thinking about characters’ names. I think part of this naming preoccupation has to do with the fact that many of my friends and me are having babies so names have been a common topic of conversation, but I think the other part is the fact that characters’ names need to really match who they are as a character. In a movie we saw last night by Ed Burns called Purple Violets, the main character’s name was Patti Petalson. With the alteration and comic book feeling of this name, you had to really believe that it fit. Come to thing of it, Burn’s used Chazz Coleman and Michael Murphy as other names with alteration. The names did fit the characters, but you have to be careful when thinking about using this type of style because sometimes it can come across as forced. I recommend really thinking about names for your characters and not just choosing something because you like it. Characters need names that help define who they are in the story. Think about all the reasons you can’t name your child Jezebel even if you like the name. There are certain associations to names that will make your reader believe that is who they are.
Nicknames are also an important part of a character. Does your character have one? Is it based on their actual name — Dick for Richard, Betsy for Elizabeth, Eddie for Edward? Or do they have names that have nothing to do with their actual name? My mother grew up with a guy whose nickname was Fast Eddie (probably for good reason). Over the years, my mom has met a lot of Eddies and she swears that each Eddie she meets could be nicknamed Fast Eddie. These Eddies can be sixty year old men or five year old boys. Each of them seem to demonstrate an attribute of that first Fast Eddie. In fact, she is sure that all of us have met a Fast Eddie in our day.
As you are brainstorming your characters for your piece, be sure to research names that will fit the time period as well. The name Trixie probably isn’t going to show up in a period piece about the Renaissance just as much as the name Josephine is going to show up in modern times without some type of nickname attached. Use resources to help figure out names. Read baby books or look at online resources (I’ve listed a couple below). Begin to collect these names so that your character can become real to your reader as your story grows.
Naming Your Characters
Resources for Naming Characters
Tips for Writers
Prepping for the Big Day
In some ways, the big day for me is twofold. The first big day is the birth of my child, which should happen some time in the next couple weeks. After yesterday’s appointment, I’ve been told continued bed rest and not a lot of movement. This, of course, means that the couch and I are becoming even closer friends and my dogs are wondering if I will ever leave. The other big day is the start of NaNoWriMo on November 1st. At this point, I am thinking the baby will come before the start of this event, but you never can tell. I have begun to think about my novel mostly with characters and setting. I figure the conflict and plot will come after I find some great characters to get the story out there. My friend Hev is using the “Snowflake Method” to help outline her novel (http://flymom.wordpress.com/). In my life, I have never really been a planner so that seems almost too structured for me. Instead, I am using exercises from a book I really like to help plant seeds before I attempt to grow the tree. John Dufresne wrote the book The Lie That Tells A Truth: A Guide to Writing Fiction. It has great chapters, as well as exercises to help you write fiction. I used a kernel from his book to do a little writing today. He mentions that Anthony Burgess (A Clockwork Orange) had a style where he would choose ten words at random from a dictionary. These words would then guide his novel. According to Dufresne, this practice is called aleatory (from the Latin aleatorius, from aleator, gambler, from alea, game of chance, die). I didn’t dive in with choosing ten words, but today I went to The American Heritage Dictionary (4th Edition) to find one word to spark my creativity. By chance, my word was devious. From this word, I wrote the start to a possible character in my novel. I only wrote for twenty minutes or so, but I am hoping this start will spark something worth continuing in November. Many recommend using The Oxford English Dictionary, but I don’t have $300 to spend on a dictionary at this moment. However, Dufresne recommends using a dictionary that has the etymologies of the words. After today’s writing exercise, I am feeling more confident about my ability to actually write a novel during the month of November. Equally, I am overly excited to meet my son in the upcoming weeks as well!
Music, Memories, and the Time Warp
“It’s just a step to the left…”
The Rocky Horror Picture Show
Driving into town today on the day after peak foliage weekend, I found myself listening to the radio station in our state that plays an eclectic mix of tunes. As I turned the radio up, I found myself singing along to the song “She’s a Beauty” by The Tubes. Initially, I giggled to myself because during a tour of the state last spring a group of us found ourselves desperately calling all around to find someone to tell us who sang it. However, as I thought beyond that moment in time I remembered a different memory associated with that song. It was the end of winter 1995 when I visited my friend Hev in Boston (or maybe it was summer 1994). We had found out that a theater in Cambridge that had midnight showings of The Rocky Horror Picture Show. Since Hev had played Magenta and I had played Columbia during our school’s Senior Showcase, it seemed most appropriate that we go. Prior to the start of the show, all of the folks who would be playing the characters came out on stage and danced to “She’s a Beauty.” I can still remember walking down the cobblestone alley searching for the entrance to the theater while brimming with excitement that we would finally get to see the show in action.
Music can play such a role in the writing we do. It can inspire essays, novels, short stories, etc. Below are a couple different writings that have music either as a basis for the writing or as an inspiration, as well as a writing exercise to get you moving. You never know, maybe something with music might help inspire your piece for NaNoWriMo or other works.
“Greasy Lake” by T.C. Boyle
Love is a Mixed Tape by Rob Shetfield
Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan
Songbook by Nick Hornby
Writing Exercise: Pick out an old mix that someone made you and listen to it. Start writing while listening and see what transpires. If you don’t have a mix, choose a radio station and write to the first song you hear that inspires you or put your iPod on shuffle and write. Use the music to either find memories for you or for that character you are hoping to create.
