a thread that has no end

[musesfool]

Shockingly, Word was actually useful in making sure I didn't lose any of the edits on my harlequin - the compare documents tool works almost like track changes, except that you're comparing one version of a doc to another and accepting or rejecting changes based on that comparison. I had never used that particular tool before, mostly because I don'

Comments

[slartibartfast]

When I do fanmixes I do songs that suit the person/show/pairing. Songs that remind me of them, or have lines that describe them/their situation perfectly. *nods*

[musesfool]

*nod*

That's mostly what I do. But when I'm aware of a character's preferences, it makes it stickier sometimes to put something on that I know s/he wouldn't like.

[slartibartfast]

That does make sense. It's never occurred to me, actually. I'll be thinking about that next time :)

[musesfool]

Well, I think years of the whole songfic debate have made me very aware of how I use music in my stories.

[dorrie6]

That's a question - when you do a mix, which is it? Is it songs you think the characters (would) like, or songs that remind you of them, or songs that inspire you to write, or what?

When I make a mix, it is generally songs that remind me of the characters, though often in ways that other people might not understand. I tend to not be very literal about lyrics, or there will sometimes be just one sentence that makes the whole song belong to a character, even if the rest of the lyrics are completely wrong. Overall feel/tone are more important to me than specifics. I have only twice (I think) shared my character mixes with other people, because I usually don't think they'd make sense to anyone but me.

Interestingly, I have never made a mix of songs I think a character would listen to. My mixes are always what brings them to mind for me.

[musesfool]

Yeah, sometimes it's hard to explain why a song makes a connection to a character in your head - I mean, I generally can? But sometimes I can't, it's just a gut response.

[glitterdemon]

I absolutely pick songs that simply remind me of the characters, or I would be severely limited in my playlist choices. That said, I'm not going to pick a Britney Spears song for a Dean playlist, because by dint of it being Britney Spears it becomes less descriptive to me of the character, you know? The tone of the music has to suit the character(s), at least, even if it's not necessarily something I'd think they would listen to.

[musesfool]

That said, I'm not going to pick a Britney Spears song for a Dean playlist, because by dint of it being Britney Spears it becomes less descriptive to me of the character, you know?

heh. Yes.

Though given that I've now got songs like "So Much Mine" and "Daughter" associated with Dean in my head, because of what they're about, not what they sound like, I probably skirt closer to the line than most people.

[elke_tanzer]

as a writer wondering why I don't get recced.

This is gonna sound dumb, but I know there are at least a couple folks on my flist I think of as reccers, and I have no idea if they write. Unless there's a "go here for my own writing/art/vids/other creative efforts" link somewhere obvious on a recs page, it doesn't always dawn on me to seek out a reccer's fic section of their website, or a tag of "my-fic" on their LJ or whatever. And the way RSS feeds are taking over the world, some folks may not ever get to the reccers main recs page, and just read the newer recs as they fly by on a feed.

Life is complex.

*sigh*

[musesfool]

That's totally possible.

[melayneseahawk]

That's a question - when you do a mix, which is it? Is it songs you think the characters (would) like, or songs that remind you of them, or songs that inspire you to write, or what?

I'm not really conscious of what my characters would listen to (I'm most active in the Stargate fandom these days, and there isn't much canon evidence for music interest for anyone except Jack's apparent interest in opera), so I just go with what reminds me of certain characters/relationships as I perceive them/episodes and events/etc., both for mixing and musical inspiration when writing. There are certain songs I know Jack or Daniel would never listen to, but beyond that I just go with the lyrics.

[musesfool]

so I just go with what reminds me of certain characters/relationships as I perceive them/episodes and events/etc., both for mixing and musical inspiration when writing.

*nod nod*

SPN is the first time a character I write about a lot has a canon music preference (I don't write much about Oz or Giles, though knowing their musical tastes certainly informs my thoughts about their characters), and there's a lot of "I was inspired by [X] song, which I know Dean would rather kill himself than listen to," etc. So I am finding it interesting to negotiate my musical taste v. Dean's.