Jukebox Letter 2020
Apr. 12th, 2020 01:40 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
withinadreamThank you for writing or drawing for me! I’m within_a_dream on AO3, and I have a tag of previous letters if you’d like to scope out things I’ve requested previously.
I've requested fic and art for all songs/canons. I've tried to give fic-suitable prompts and art-suitable prompts, but I am not an artist so art prompts are a little harder for me. If the fic prompts grab you as an artist (or the art prompts grab you as a fic-writer), go wild!
This year, I don't have any DNWs, and I really do mean that.
Please feel free to include literally anything in your work! I will enjoy any ratings from General to Explicit, any genders of characters (don't feel you have to stick to the genders in the song, although of course you can) and any gender combinations in ships (including polyships). Fluff is great, angst is great, smut is great, any of the archive warnings (graphic violence, noncon, underage, major character death) are great! Pick your favorite genre, and feel free to use unconventional narrative forms (interactive fiction, first or second person, nonlinear narratives, etc) in writing and any style in art. My favorite thing about Jukebox is how unique every gift I've received has been!
I wanted to get my letter up along with my signup today, but I'll be coming back in the next few days to edit in links to music and lyrics (expect links to be in by the end of the day Tuesday April 14).
If & When - Doomtree (Song)
There is so much of a story here and I would really love to see it explored. I feel like this song would be especially suited to a historical setting, but don't feel bound to that! I'm using she for the narrator and he/husband for her partner, but you can feel free to change up the genders.
I love the visual of the narrator burning everything she owns as a beacon to bring her husband home, and I especially love these lines:
I'll leave the light on in your window
If I have to burn the whole thing down.
I would love to see something exploring this hope and destruction
They found a man you know
A drifter in the barn last year
While I was sleeping
Must have made it to the house–
They found him frozen in your clothing, dear
The last verse suggests that her husband has been dead all along. Is he really? Does anything ever break through her denial? This could make an interesting ghost story, especially given the line about the narrator hearing his voice in the night.
Or maybe it really was a drifter! Perhaps the husband faked his own death, or he went missing for Reasons soon after he passed on some of his clothing to a man in need.
The Chaconne - Dessa (Song)
A lot of the lyrics made me picture the events of the song in a historical or fantasy setting, especially the sickly childhood of the violinist and the reference to "between the wars". So I'd especially love a historical or historical fantasy setting (although go where your heart takes you! ) My first thought is in the 1920s, between the two World Wars. This song also feels like it would lend itself well to Gothic horror, if you want to run with that!
For fic, I would love to hear about the narrator following the violinist from concert to concert, their affair, and when she realized the violinist cared more about his instrument and career than he ever did her. (Or does he? He certainly seems to be carrying a torch after the narrator breaks things off, given the detail about his wife's resemblance to her.) Or something about the wife, who's an intriguing character--it must be miserable to live with someone who spends his time locked away practicing, and who you don't trust to take care of your child. I would also be very into shipping the wife and the narrator together.
For art, something showing a concert with the narrator in the audience or showing the narrator consumed with his practicing are the first places my mind goes. (And given the line about nosebleeds, this is a good place to mention I love the aesthetics of blood in art). Or again, the wife--i picture her alone and isolated, or holding the baby, in a cold and atmospheric mansion, with her husband locked away practicing
NB: I'm not attached to any of the genders in these prompts, I'm fine with a male narrator, a husband in place of a wife, a female violinist , and/or nonbinary characters.
Paris Is Burning - St. Vincent (Song)
I believe this was written with World War II in mind, but I am happy with any setting. I love the way the lyrics poke holes in the romanticized ideal of war heroism, and the dark and eerie melody and lyrics. I would love to hear more about the person narrating this. I can just see them watching a city burning as they write their final letter to their family.
Have they actually died? I could also see them taking advantage of the chaos of the immediate aftermath of the war to fake their death and slip away into a new identity. Either way, in addition to or instead of their perspective, I'd love to see something from the point of view of their mother. The image of the last photograph of a soldier in uniform hanging on the refrigerator is so haunting.
Piano Man - Billy Joel (Song)
What spurred me to request this song was this post on Tumblr, positing that the Piano Man has no idea that he's playing at a gay bar. I'd love to see a take on the song through this lens. I'm especially fond of the last screenshotted tag on that post: " 'now john at the bar is a friend of mine who gets me my drinks for free' dude he has a crush on you". I want to see the slowburn story where the piano man gradually realizes John is in love with him and he's in love with John too!
But I also just love all of the stories in the lyrics as they stand. I'd love to see the story of one or more of the audience members/bar attendees in the lyrics, or someone new you invent, and what the piano man's playing is helping them to forget or to remember.
Sheath and Knife - Ellie Bryan (Song)
This is my absolute favorite rendition of this song, and I was so excited to see it in the tagset! I would especially love a work that stylistically mimics the simplicity and/or repetition of the folk song. I love the tragic love story between the siblings, and the brother killing his sister and then mourning her death, and especially him only being able to express his grief to his father in veiled metaphors. I would be interested in either consensual sibling incest or noncon here, wherever the story takes you!
Rattlin' Bones - Kasey Chambers & Shane Nicholson (Song)
I would especially love a Western or Weird West take on this song!
I was originally introduced to Rattlin' Bones by another Jukebox request a few years ago, and I love it so much! The lyrics sketch out a very sparse story, and I would love to see it fleshed out. What made the narrator leave home? What's the purpose of the bag of stones they're dragging? Why are they being tempted by the devil? I'd be especially interested in the narrator setting out to get revenge or track down some evil they know of.
I've requested fic and art for all songs/canons. I've tried to give fic-suitable prompts and art-suitable prompts, but I am not an artist so art prompts are a little harder for me. If the fic prompts grab you as an artist (or the art prompts grab you as a fic-writer), go wild!
This year, I don't have any DNWs, and I really do mean that.
Please feel free to include literally anything in your work! I will enjoy any ratings from General to Explicit, any genders of characters (don't feel you have to stick to the genders in the song, although of course you can) and any gender combinations in ships (including polyships). Fluff is great, angst is great, smut is great, any of the archive warnings (graphic violence, noncon, underage, major character death) are great! Pick your favorite genre, and feel free to use unconventional narrative forms (interactive fiction, first or second person, nonlinear narratives, etc) in writing and any style in art. My favorite thing about Jukebox is how unique every gift I've received has been!
I wanted to get my letter up along with my signup today, but I'll be coming back in the next few days to edit in links to music and lyrics (expect links to be in by the end of the day Tuesday April 14).
Fic Likes
- My favorite genres are Westerns, fantasy, horror, and historical fiction
- Supernatural elements (especially ghosts, fairies, or changelings)
- Any POV and tense, especially unconventional ones
- The Comes Back Wrong trope
- Unreliable narrators
- Kidfic (especially characters formally or informally adopting older children)
Art likes
- My favorite genres are Westerns, fantasy, horror, and historical
- Fancy clothes and costumes
- Injuries, blood, bruises
- Ghosts or other supernatural creatures that don’t look quite human
- Any art styles or mediums
If & When - Doomtree (Song)
There is so much of a story here and I would really love to see it explored. I feel like this song would be especially suited to a historical setting, but don't feel bound to that! I'm using she for the narrator and he/husband for her partner, but you can feel free to change up the genders.
I love the visual of the narrator burning everything she owns as a beacon to bring her husband home, and I especially love these lines:
I'll leave the light on in your window
If I have to burn the whole thing down.
I would love to see something exploring this hope and destruction
They found a man you know
A drifter in the barn last year
While I was sleeping
Must have made it to the house–
They found him frozen in your clothing, dear
The last verse suggests that her husband has been dead all along. Is he really? Does anything ever break through her denial? This could make an interesting ghost story, especially given the line about the narrator hearing his voice in the night.
Or maybe it really was a drifter! Perhaps the husband faked his own death, or he went missing for Reasons soon after he passed on some of his clothing to a man in need.
The Chaconne - Dessa (Song)
A lot of the lyrics made me picture the events of the song in a historical or fantasy setting, especially the sickly childhood of the violinist and the reference to "between the wars". So I'd especially love a historical or historical fantasy setting (although go where your heart takes you! ) My first thought is in the 1920s, between the two World Wars. This song also feels like it would lend itself well to Gothic horror, if you want to run with that!
For fic, I would love to hear about the narrator following the violinist from concert to concert, their affair, and when she realized the violinist cared more about his instrument and career than he ever did her. (Or does he? He certainly seems to be carrying a torch after the narrator breaks things off, given the detail about his wife's resemblance to her.) Or something about the wife, who's an intriguing character--it must be miserable to live with someone who spends his time locked away practicing, and who you don't trust to take care of your child. I would also be very into shipping the wife and the narrator together.
For art, something showing a concert with the narrator in the audience or showing the narrator consumed with his practicing are the first places my mind goes. (And given the line about nosebleeds, this is a good place to mention I love the aesthetics of blood in art). Or again, the wife--i picture her alone and isolated, or holding the baby, in a cold and atmospheric mansion, with her husband locked away practicing
NB: I'm not attached to any of the genders in these prompts, I'm fine with a male narrator, a husband in place of a wife, a female violinist , and/or nonbinary characters.
Paris Is Burning - St. Vincent (Song)
I believe this was written with World War II in mind, but I am happy with any setting. I love the way the lyrics poke holes in the romanticized ideal of war heroism, and the dark and eerie melody and lyrics. I would love to hear more about the person narrating this. I can just see them watching a city burning as they write their final letter to their family.
Have they actually died? I could also see them taking advantage of the chaos of the immediate aftermath of the war to fake their death and slip away into a new identity. Either way, in addition to or instead of their perspective, I'd love to see something from the point of view of their mother. The image of the last photograph of a soldier in uniform hanging on the refrigerator is so haunting.
Piano Man - Billy Joel (Song)
What spurred me to request this song was this post on Tumblr, positing that the Piano Man has no idea that he's playing at a gay bar. I'd love to see a take on the song through this lens. I'm especially fond of the last screenshotted tag on that post: " 'now john at the bar is a friend of mine who gets me my drinks for free' dude he has a crush on you". I want to see the slowburn story where the piano man gradually realizes John is in love with him and he's in love with John too!
But I also just love all of the stories in the lyrics as they stand. I'd love to see the story of one or more of the audience members/bar attendees in the lyrics, or someone new you invent, and what the piano man's playing is helping them to forget or to remember.
Sheath and Knife - Ellie Bryan (Song)
This is my absolute favorite rendition of this song, and I was so excited to see it in the tagset! I would especially love a work that stylistically mimics the simplicity and/or repetition of the folk song. I love the tragic love story between the siblings, and the brother killing his sister and then mourning her death, and especially him only being able to express his grief to his father in veiled metaphors. I would be interested in either consensual sibling incest or noncon here, wherever the story takes you!
Rattlin' Bones - Kasey Chambers & Shane Nicholson (Song)
I would especially love a Western or Weird West take on this song!
I was originally introduced to Rattlin' Bones by another Jukebox request a few years ago, and I love it so much! The lyrics sketch out a very sparse story, and I would love to see it fleshed out. What made the narrator leave home? What's the purpose of the bag of stones they're dragging? Why are they being tempted by the devil? I'd be especially interested in the narrator setting out to get revenge or track down some evil they know of.
