raspberryhunter (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
raspberryhunter) wrote2016-04-05 09:30 pm
raspberryhunter) wrote2016-04-05 09:30 pm
Entry tags:
Dear Jukebox 2016
Dear Jukebox Operator,
Thanks so much for writing one of my songs! I really love all these songs, as well as have questions about them, and I'm sure I'll love whatever you write! (This letter is geared towards fanfic, as it's what I know most about, but I would adore fanart or podfic treats :) )
General: Things I love (I don't expect these by any means, this is just a random sampling of Things I Like): I love worldbuilding fic and plotty fic because I have a hard time writing it myself, but by the same token I know it is hard to write and I certainly don't expect it. I love character-driven fic that thinks hard about the ramifications of characters' choices. I love for there to be some sort of character arc or characters (and/or the reader) coming to a greater understanding of something or someone during a fic. I love and adore friendship/partnerships, especially platonic ones, of all gender-variety (although in these songs I don't know that it's a thing for any of them). I love it when all the characters are understandable rather than straight-out villainous or malicious, or where expectations of malice are subverted. I am more a fan of gen than anything else, but I'm open to both het and slash.
Things I don't like: gratuitous violence; I'm not a huge fan of anything above PG-13 and will probably skim over anything really explicit unless something about the explicitness itself plays into character or plot development, in which case I'm a fan :) I have a bit of a humiliation squick and don't find it humorous (although as e.g. villain comeuppance it's fine). For "My Brother, My Enemy" I don't want incest. Darkfic is fine for any of these, as is any kind of AU (fantasy, SF, corporate, academia, cyberpunk ...?)
I have some suggestions below, but really, feel free to do whatever idea these songs give you. I picked these songs because they seem to have a lot of stories hidden in them, and if you find a story that's totally different from the ones I see offhand (and have thus provided vague prompts for), then I would be so thrilled to see that additional interpretation of the song. I love seeing how other people think about things. PLEASE feel free to totally ignore anything written below.
My Brother My Enemy - Sassafrass Singers: Online, lyrics (scroll down). WOW. I became aware of this song when it showed up as a question about nominations, and I just really love it. I don't necessarily want a Norse Myth story (although I'm not opposed to one, AU or otherwise); it's the ideas of ambiguity and family/enmity and different perspectives that intrigue me. I love the notes by Ada Palmer about how neither Loki nor Odin are simple, and I think that can be abstracted to whoever your characters are; they don't have to be Loki and Odin. (I DEFINITELY do not want you to think you need to know anything about Norse Myth to write this — if you don't at least know the outlines of the myths, I'd prefer a story that wasn't Norse-mythic.) I would adore a story that is about family (sisters, even?), with the mythic stuff as echoes or resonances rather than explicitly stated, or if you go the mythic route, a fork-in-the-road AU, perhaps? I'd love something that speaks to the counterpoint between the two. I do not ship Odin and Loki and would really rather not have a story that does -- I find the familial links to be much more interesting.
The Hymn of Acxiom - Vienna Teng: Youtube, lyrics. I really think this song is so interesting -- okay, especially because I think the voice-combining is neat, but it also goes well with the song content. One of the promises of, say, Christianity is that God knows and understands us perfectly; but here, it's the advertisers that know us. Do people in this society worship consumerism? Would anyone brought up in this society ever want to leave it? And who are we if not the sum of our wants and our history? And what does it imply that a perfect love can be designed? Is the perfect love a robot? Or some kind of internet dating-ish perfect match? Or some sort of consumer item that obviates the need for a person-ish perfect love? Could the original person itself be replicated by the advertisers?
(Crossovers are great in general; this one seems like it might lend itself very well if you are into that.)
The Sound of Silence - Simon & Garfunkel: Gosh, I have always been fascinated by this song and would love to have it unpacked a little further. Why the silence? This would be so interesting as a magical realism story, or a dystopia, or even a high fantasy story, or???? Is the darkness a character? (A friendly one, apparently?) Related to the silence? Are the words of the prophets hopeful or despairing, and what is their ultimate effect? (I could see it being a grimdark sort of prophesy-is-its-own-doom sort of thing, or a hopeful "hey, here's how you work yourself out of the dystopia" sort of Prophecy.) Do the people want the silence or not? (Oh man, this could crossover really interestingly with Acxiom — which is exactly the opposite scenario, in a way, or maybe the same scenario, depending on how you look at it.)
Seriously, if you wanted to write a story that was just inspired by the imagery in these songs, I would be so up with that. I want you to take one (or more!) of these songs and make something fascinating out of them, however you feel is the best way to do that, so don't let anything I've written here stop you from doing what YOU want to do with any of these songs! And thank you!
Thanks so much for writing one of my songs! I really love all these songs, as well as have questions about them, and I'm sure I'll love whatever you write! (This letter is geared towards fanfic, as it's what I know most about, but I would adore fanart or podfic treats :) )
General: Things I love (I don't expect these by any means, this is just a random sampling of Things I Like): I love worldbuilding fic and plotty fic because I have a hard time writing it myself, but by the same token I know it is hard to write and I certainly don't expect it. I love character-driven fic that thinks hard about the ramifications of characters' choices. I love for there to be some sort of character arc or characters (and/or the reader) coming to a greater understanding of something or someone during a fic. I love and adore friendship/partnerships, especially platonic ones, of all gender-variety (although in these songs I don't know that it's a thing for any of them). I love it when all the characters are understandable rather than straight-out villainous or malicious, or where expectations of malice are subverted. I am more a fan of gen than anything else, but I'm open to both het and slash.
Things I don't like: gratuitous violence; I'm not a huge fan of anything above PG-13 and will probably skim over anything really explicit unless something about the explicitness itself plays into character or plot development, in which case I'm a fan :) I have a bit of a humiliation squick and don't find it humorous (although as e.g. villain comeuppance it's fine). For "My Brother, My Enemy" I don't want incest. Darkfic is fine for any of these, as is any kind of AU (fantasy, SF, corporate, academia, cyberpunk ...?)
I have some suggestions below, but really, feel free to do whatever idea these songs give you. I picked these songs because they seem to have a lot of stories hidden in them, and if you find a story that's totally different from the ones I see offhand (and have thus provided vague prompts for), then I would be so thrilled to see that additional interpretation of the song. I love seeing how other people think about things. PLEASE feel free to totally ignore anything written below.
My Brother My Enemy - Sassafrass Singers: Online, lyrics (scroll down). WOW. I became aware of this song when it showed up as a question about nominations, and I just really love it. I don't necessarily want a Norse Myth story (although I'm not opposed to one, AU or otherwise); it's the ideas of ambiguity and family/enmity and different perspectives that intrigue me. I love the notes by Ada Palmer about how neither Loki nor Odin are simple, and I think that can be abstracted to whoever your characters are; they don't have to be Loki and Odin. (I DEFINITELY do not want you to think you need to know anything about Norse Myth to write this — if you don't at least know the outlines of the myths, I'd prefer a story that wasn't Norse-mythic.) I would adore a story that is about family (sisters, even?), with the mythic stuff as echoes or resonances rather than explicitly stated, or if you go the mythic route, a fork-in-the-road AU, perhaps? I'd love something that speaks to the counterpoint between the two. I do not ship Odin and Loki and would really rather not have a story that does -- I find the familial links to be much more interesting.
The Hymn of Acxiom - Vienna Teng: Youtube, lyrics. I really think this song is so interesting -- okay, especially because I think the voice-combining is neat, but it also goes well with the song content. One of the promises of, say, Christianity is that God knows and understands us perfectly; but here, it's the advertisers that know us. Do people in this society worship consumerism? Would anyone brought up in this society ever want to leave it? And who are we if not the sum of our wants and our history? And what does it imply that a perfect love can be designed? Is the perfect love a robot? Or some kind of internet dating-ish perfect match? Or some sort of consumer item that obviates the need for a person-ish perfect love? Could the original person itself be replicated by the advertisers?
(Crossovers are great in general; this one seems like it might lend itself very well if you are into that.)
The Sound of Silence - Simon & Garfunkel: Gosh, I have always been fascinated by this song and would love to have it unpacked a little further. Why the silence? This would be so interesting as a magical realism story, or a dystopia, or even a high fantasy story, or???? Is the darkness a character? (A friendly one, apparently?) Related to the silence? Are the words of the prophets hopeful or despairing, and what is their ultimate effect? (I could see it being a grimdark sort of prophesy-is-its-own-doom sort of thing, or a hopeful "hey, here's how you work yourself out of the dystopia" sort of Prophecy.) Do the people want the silence or not? (Oh man, this could crossover really interestingly with Acxiom — which is exactly the opposite scenario, in a way, or maybe the same scenario, depending on how you look at it.)
Seriously, if you wanted to write a story that was just inspired by the imagery in these songs, I would be so up with that. I want you to take one (or more!) of these songs and make something fascinating out of them, however you feel is the best way to do that, so don't let anything I've written here stop you from doing what YOU want to do with any of these songs! And thank you!