Music sets the tone for my writing but I don’t know whether the songs I am listening to will move you or make you feel a thing.
And even if they do, I can’t say whether you’ll hear what I hope you’ll hear, see what I hope you’ll see and feel what I hope you’ll feel.
That’s the trick about this writing game, you never know for certain how your reader will understand your words because our interpretation and understanding is always influenced by our personal experiences.
Who Is Singing These Six Songs
Wichita Lineman- Glen Campbell
Hurt- Johnny Cash
All I Ask of You- Phantom Of The Opera
Something- The Beatles
Golden Slumbers- The Beatles
Carmina Burana ~ O Fortuna-Carl Orff
That subhead isn’t really about who the singer is of each song nor is it about the writer or anyone associated with the performer.
It is another reference to our personal experiences and an acknowledgement of how those influence our responses.
I can’t listen to any of those without a parade of memories and images floating through my head. In some cases they aren’t limited to one thing or one person.
It makes me wonder how soundtracks are developed for movies and what sort of thought process goes into it.
What would Hans Zimmer, John Williams or Danny Elfman have to say about how to use music to paint a picture and or influence an audience?
I imagine there might be an interview or two floating around about this and that if I dug a little bit I might find it.
Hell, if I were to take the same advice I give my children I’d ask old Doc Google to show me what lies beneath the surface. You never know what you’ll learn if you are willing to do a little research.
What Kind Of Blogger Do You Want To Be?
It is a question I never stop asking myself.
Maybe it is because I have a mind that goes a million miles an hour or maybe it is because I am driven in ways that I can’t always express or explain in a way that satisfies me.
Perhaps the best answer I have is that I don’t feel like I have to be just one thing. I am not just a father. I am not just a friend or man, brother or son.
Why do I have to be just one kind of blogger?
I probably shouldn’t put a question mark after something that isn’t really a question.
Sometimes I am a guy who writes stories like Was It Real?
And sometimes I am the man who writes They Call Me Blogger and Did You Listen To Abba?
I don’t know about you but I am the kind of person who can get lost reading quotes.
Doesn’t have to be one particular topic either, I am the kind of person who is curious about many things and a clever way of saying something always catches my eye.
That undying curiosity is something I hope my children never let go of. It is a good family trait.
You might ask yourself why that is so and I’ll answer because I want them to never stop learning.
Undying curiosity fosters that need to learn and  I love learning for multiple reasons, not the least of which is your education can never be taken from you.
Things are temporary, but education is forever.
And that is also why I push them to collect experiences because again, what lies in memory cannot be taken.
These words are like music for me, they spur thought and memory and make me wonder how to come up with something that will make you see and feel too.
Should I tell you about the woman I think of when I read those words or leave it alone and hope that you relate?
In concept I like to let you fill in the blanks because your memory is powerful and if I find a way to tap into that power I can do more with that than with the canvas I paint myself.
Part of what I love about words and writing is you never know where it will take you and what adventures you’ll go upon.
“Well now, everything dies, baby, that’s a fact
But maybe everything that dies someday comes backPut your makeup on, fix your hair up pretty
And meet me tonight in Atlantic City.â€Atlantic City- Bruce Springsteen
To be able to write and sing like The Boss would be something, now wouldn’t it.
I’d like to do that and see what it is like, but in this area I follow the same track I advise my kids to take. I don’t want to be Bruce Springsteen.
I want to be me.
And I want people to respond to the words I write and to the stories I tell.
Is It Better To Have a Million Followers Or Just A Few?
If you are familiar with The Lord of The Rings storyline you know that the most powerful beings didn’t take the One Ring.
They left it for a simple Hobbit to carry.
Most of the time I don’t like to make simple things more complex than they need to be.
It is why I don’t spend much time carving this up to talk about the kind of meaning we should or should not take from this.
But every now and then there are those moments where I ask myself what I would do if I had unlimited power.
Would I be good? Would I be just? Would I be honest?
Or would I use it to do whatever I wanted whenever and wherever.
Sometimes I wonder if writing would be harder or easier if I had a million readers/followers. Would the expectations add too much pressure or make it easier to just write.
Most of the time I say I want a smaller audience who is more committed and engaged but if I am being really honest I have to pose another question.
Am I saying this because I have the smaller audience or because I believe it?
I like to think that smaller is better for another reason too.
The size is less likely to influence me to be anyone other than who I am. On the other hand if you ask me if I really worry about that, well the answer is I don’t.
I am who I am and I don’t change for anyone or anything unless I want to.
Don’t know if this post is of interest or interesting to anyone besides me, but sometimes you have to hit publish regardless because the only way to prove you are your own person is to be him/her.
Janine Huldie says
This is truly such a great and thought provoking post today and I actually once wrote and still hope it applies, but like to think if I had to define myself by a quote from music that it would be that I did it, “My Way” at the very least! 😉
Jack Steiner says
One of my favorite songs. “My Way” is a great anthem, something to always strive for.
Vicky says
I have thought about the process of developing a soundtrack, myself. I imagine in-depth, meaningful discussions between composer and script writer. As you said, trying to convey your feelings to a large audience who will hear it through their own filter is a challenge. I would imagine it also requires asking lots of people lots of questions- discovering what those interpretations are- so you can develop music that will reach across so many perspectives. That’s why the power of music is so beautiful. It can connect people in ways even words can’t.
Brilliant as always, Jack.
Vicky
Jack Steiner says
Hi Vicky,
Your description fits with a big part of my thoughts. I always imagine asking lots of questions to gain a broader and deeper understanding followed by talking to all of the musicians.
Sounds so very easy doesn’t it. 🙂
Music is amazing, a universal language that you can use to communicate so very much.
Gina says
Don’t be surprised if you see your E.D. quote used by me soon. I love quotes! When I start looking at/for them, it’s almost a rabbit hole thing for me. I don’t have any readers, but the pressure I feel about my writing is very much internal. I’ve convinced myself that no one is reading though I still care what I put on the page (usually ;-)).
Jack Steiner says
Thanks to television commercials I can’t abbreviate My Dear Emily’s name without smirking. 🙂
Yeah quotes are a real rabbit hole, I get lost in them and the days just disappear. I have never met a decent writer who didn’t feel internal pressure to manage the quality of their writing.
I am sure one exists somewhere, but I don’t expect to ever meet or understand them.
Susie says
I love Hurt by Johnny Cash (and also the nine inch nails version!) video games by Lana del Ray plus its video, someone like you by Adele…I could go on. On the bright side, imagine having to come up with a killer hit song. Writing music too – eep! Great post as ever!
Jack Steiner says
Hey Susie,
I like both versions as well, always thought it was cool that Cash’s version is a cover. I like Lana Del Rey, I have that album with Video Games on it.
Writing a hit song has to be tough. I imagine it is like writing anything else, you just write and hope for the best.