Song Stories: The Fictions Publication November Writing Challenge

Mix your words with some music

In the classic (yes, I said classic) 1983 film Eddie and the Cruisers, singer Eddie Wilson tells band manager Doc Robbins that their new keyboard player Frank Ridgeway has something they need. When Doc asks what that is, Eddie replies: “Words and music, Doc. Words and music.” Eddie was, of course, talking about lyrics, but for the Fictions November Writing Challenge we’re adding a twist that I’ve had some fun with in the past.

A few years ago, Michael Whalen started a prompt called “song stories,” with the goal being to write a story using as many song titles from one band as possible. There are two advantages to using the titles of songs in this exercise: titles are typically recognizable, and you don’t run into the copyright issues you would if you were using song lyrics. Also, to give full credit for how I found out about this glorious prompt, it was first introduced to me by Aimée Brown Gramblin.

If you wonder why I would call the prompt “glorious,” the answer is simple: it enabled me to write fictional tales using song titles from three of my favorite artists: Judas Priest, the Smiths, and Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band. For the Springsteen story, I not only managed to include 50 song titles but also used it to create a backstory for one of the main characters in my The Last Word novel series. You can read that story below for an example of what we’re looking for.

One advantage to this challenge is that unlike our October prompt, which confined the stories to the horror genre, your song story can be any genre you choose. You could write a tale of lost love using George Strait titles, a summer story using the Beach Boys, or even a truly scary piece incorporating the songs of Celine Dion (the horror). The options are endless.

Maybe the best thing about this prompt is that you’re using something you already love: the music of your favorite artists. The memories associated with those songs will naturally surface, consciously or subconsciously, helping drive the story in directions you might never have considered without the music jogging your memories. It’s also a little like solving a puzzle, figuring out how to fit those titles into the story in a way that flows rather than feeling forced. If you do it right, most people won’t even realize that there are 30 song titles in your story unless you tell them (or unless they are huge fans of that band).

If you decide to take this challenge (and I hope you do), send your story to the Fictions publication using the tag “song stories challenge.” That should keep them separated from the excellent but quite different Song Stories publication. You might also want to use “music” as a tag to draw in those who might otherwise not read fiction. And always use “fiction” as one of your tags. Be sure to include the band and the number of titles you used in a note at the end.

It’s been a couple of years since this prompt first made the rounds on this site, but if I’m not mistaken several writer friends have done this one before and should again (and if you haven’t, you need to): Alex Markham, Buddy Gott, Terry Barr, Arpad Nagy, Simon Dillon, Eric Pierce, Mark Holburn, Sarah Paris, Rui Alves, Kevin Alexander, Patrick Metzger, Lark Morrigan, and Jillian Spiridon.

Now I’m off to find 50 more Springsteen titles. Keep on writing, and may Hemingway be with you.

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