Brainstorming exercise

The book I am reading now on writing had some interesting ideas for brainstorming. I haven't had too much of a problem with finding ideas and words to write down but I thought there was an interesting concept that the book mentioned. It suggested that when you are in the process of writing your outline and thinking about your scenes, to come up with a soundtrack for your story. I thought...a soundtrack for my story!?! Who are you kidding? You have no idea how I could turn that into some kind of...some kind of...yeah. Crazy idea. This person was trying to be helpful. They don’t have any idea about me and my music.

Um, hmm. They don't know me and my music. I listen to such a mish-mash of different artists and genre's that my story would be all over the place. The alternative is that I would put so much time and energy into getting the perfect songs that I wouldn't have any time to write.

One day a while back I decided to put together a playlist for myself that had bluesy horns, good vocals, acoustic guitars and keyboards. I picked a song and moved it over into my playlist. I found another and another until I had about ten songs that I knew I liked. Great! Or so I thought. I liked the playlist but the first time I listened to my finished product I realized I had chosen the songs from a musical perspective and had not paid much mind to the songs lyrics. Every song I chose was about a relationship gone wrong and they were possibly some of the saddest songs I probably owned. I had created a Lost Love Suicide Playlist. I didn't dare let anyone who was coming out of a recent relationship listen to it for fear of finding out they had done themselves in with only a tear stained, blurry note left behind.

But maybe a soundtrack could prove to be interesting for writing. I have been known to listen to certain albums when working on a certain writing piece for inspiration. I've used music before to help get ideas when I run. Then there is the fact that thirty years ago when I started doing theatre, my first job was to handle sound. I picked opening themes along with the effects needed during the show.

Wow - I hadn't thought about that in such a long time. What I'm realizing now is that a song lyric is what gave me the initial idea for the current project I am getting started on. But I think to put together a soundtrack right now would be a bit much. (How could I work in Norah Jones with Buckcherry or Lilly Allen with John Mayer, ELO, Manhattan Transfer or Radiohead with Eric Clapton or Jay-Z or Annie Lennox, BB King...)?

So maybe the soundtrack brainstorming idea isn't something I'll be doing anytime soon to help with my story. But I know music will always be an important part for me and my thoughts. And I'm remembering now how important it always has been.

TT