the dangers of making a wip playlist
ba duba dop ba mmmbop
so…i might have started writing a novel, but it’s not any of the novels i meant to start writing, so this needs to be our secret, okay? okay.
the problem is mmmbop. yes, the pop song. the thing is, i can’t stop listening to it. one day i listened to every version i could find by hanson. another day i listened to covers until i understood why isaac hanson has said that no cover gets it right (they haven’t, although a few are good enough for me, a non-musical person).
i’ve been saying for years that it’s the perfect pop song, and the thing is, i’m right. it’s not the only perfect pop song, but it is the one i reach for when i want to talk about pop music. it’s so damn catchy! it has every element a good pop song needs! please do not ask me what they are, as i am not good at talking about music! isaac’s issue with the covers is no one syncopates the chorus right. do you know how long it took me to understand what that means? it was a long time! i am still shaky on it, at that place where i understand it but i could not explain it.
so anyway. in the last few weeks i have listened to mmmbop a thousand times (conservative estimate) and i started thinking about a fictional band who had a song with mmmbop-type popularity and before i knew it i was jotting down ideas and trying to name three brothers and making a playlist of songs that are not solely mmmbop, i swear. two of them are, but that’s it—the original radio version and my favorite live performance (yes i have a favorite live performance, women are allowed to have a hobby).
anyway. now i’ve written about 12,000 words of this novel, not counting the thousands of words of notes and the synopsis/outline. hahaha oops. this probably wouldn’t have happened if i had not made the playlist. the books i meant to write don’t have playlists.
making a playlist: it’s a trap!
but also, making a playlist: it’s necessary!
oh well. i’m sure this is fine. i sent the first thirty pages to amanda, who has read my last four novels a chapter or two at a time as i write them, and if she loves this one i will keep going. if she’s not enthusiastic, i will write the other book. or not. who knows! i don’t like being told what to do, so i honestly am not sure what i’d do if amanda was like “eh, this one isn’t it.” but i also don’t think that will happen, so.
(i can’t remember if amanda reads this newsletter, so uh. hi, maybe? no pressure.)
annika out!