Jukebox Letter 2015

My username on AO3 is within_a_dream

Hello, and thank you for writing for me! I’ll start off with a list of general things I like:

            -Fantasy, sci-fi, and historical settings (Although I like all other settings and genres, too)

            -Unreliable narrators

            -Prose that tends towards the poetic (e.g. unusual turns of phrase, unconventional structure, etc)

            -Any and all points of view and perspectives (e.g. first person present, second person, etc)

            -Any (or no!) relationship configurations. Slash, femslash, het, poly relationships--they're all fine by me!

I’m fine with any level of violence or sexual explicitness. My only squick is graphic descriptions of pregnancy and (especially) childbirth. Brief mentions of pregnancy/childbirth, pregnant characters, etc, are fine, as long as the story doesn’t go into a lot of detail.
 

I tend to assume that the gender of the narrator is the gender of the singer, and that’s how I’ve written my prompts, but feel free to mix that up if you want. I don’t have strong opinions about the gender of any of the characters, unless I specifically mentioned it in the prompt.





Broken Crown- Mumford and Sons
What’s the narrator’s story? Who’s offering him the crown, and why is he refusing? I’d love for the narrator to be some sort of supernatural creature, but if you’d rather go for a historical or contemporary interpretation I’d also enjoy it!

If you’re an artist, I’d love something with Christian imagery (saints and such), or something supernatural and/or folktale inspired.

Sleeping Dead- Emily Jane White
I love the image of ravens stealing the narrator’s wife. Was it a dream, an omen, or a real event? The lyrics imply that the wife died—how did that happen? I would love something fairytale-esque, fleshing out more of what happened. (I have this idea that maybe the wife is believed to be dead, but the narrator knows she’s still alive and has to go on an epic quest to save her—but if you’d rather use another plot entirely that’s fine by me!)

Some scenes that stick with me as being good for a piece of art are the ravens stealing the wife, or the narrator’s desire to be buried with her wife.

In Another Life- Vienna Teng
This one is a reprompt from last year.

I’d love to hear more about any of the three past lives mentioned in the song, either a story about the deaths as detailed in the lyrics or just a day in the life of the narrator and her love. (I’m not at all picky about historical accuracy.) Alternatively, I’d love a story about the narrator and her love in the present day. I love the way the last verse describes the way the memories of past lives creep into the narrator’s thoughts, and I’d like to hear more about that—does she remember everything about her past lives, or does she just have vague flashes of forgotten memories? Does her love remember anything of their past as well?

Artwise, something that incorporates parts of several different lives (the ones mentioned in the song, or historical periods of your choice) of the narrator and her love would be neat.

Human of the Year- Regina Spektor
I’ve wanted to know more about the story since behind these lyrics since I first heard the song. Why is Karl being named “Human of the Year”, and what does that mean? Who’s bestowing the title on him? A new Human of the Year is named every year—does Karl ever meet the previous winners?

I love the image of Karl “shaking in the pews” as the icons whisper to him (and again, if you’re going with art, I love religious imagery).

Travellin’ Soldier- The Dixie Chicks
I would love an epistolary fic telling some more details about the girl, the soldier, both of their lives, and their relationship. Alternatively, I’d love to see the aftermath of the soldier’s death on the girl.

There’s a lot of strong imagery in the song, and I’d love to see art of any of the scenes, especially the first time they meet, or the girl crying under the bleachers after the soldier’s death is announced.

Til The Water’s All Long Gone- The Decemberists
What’s the fountain in the song? The Fountain of Youth? Something else? Why did the group mentioned in the song leave the fountain, and what happened to them because of it? Why is the narrator so determined not to betray his daughter, who would he be betraying her to, and how?

Artwise, I’d love to see your interpretation of the daughter, or the fountain, or both.

Only The Good Die Young- Melissa Etheridge

I’m fascinated by how different the meaning of this song is when it’s sung by a woman. I’d love to hear or see the story of Virginia meeting the narrator and reevaluating her sexuality/her religious views. Just how much does Virginia’s mother know about the nature of her relationship with the narrator, and if she does find out the full truth, what happens?

I like religious imagery in art, and/or something playing off of the differences between Virginia and the narrator.

(I’d prefer something that ends mostly happily, although angst during the course of the story is more than fine, and also, I’d like for both the characters in this one to remain women.)