Tuesday, March 23, 2010

Two tunes, two bits of Jon & Lobo trivia

When I wrote the first Jon Moore story, "My Sister, My Self," I conceived of it as the opening chapter to a novel. (You'll be able to read this story in Jump Gate Twist, due this summer at bookstores everywhere.) I wrote it to stand alone fairly well--well enough that it sold, but not so well that its real purpose wasn't clear to many.

I had planned to open each chapter with a quote from a song that had influenced my writing during that chapter, so I put a few lines at the start of this story. Those lines cost me $25, the fee Bruce Springsteen/ASCAP charged for using them. Considering I earned something like $150 for the whole story, that was quite a chunk of my earnings. Those lines won't appear with the story in Jump Gate Twist, however, because I don't have the time to secure the rights again.

The next chapter of that book I never wrote was to be called "Benny the Geek." The events of that chapter appear in Children No More, albeit in many chapters and with some changes from my original vision. I'd already outlined most of that chapter before I put aside the book, and I'd already chosen the song lines to use.

I'm not sure if it's fair use to give you the two sets of lyrics here, but I am sure it's okay to link to YouTube videos. So, here's a lovely live version of the song from which I pulled the quote for "My Sister, My Self."



For "Benny the Geek," I used lyrics from this tune. (Warning: This one plays far louder than the first at the same volume level.)



Damn, but the teen me had a thing for Grace Slick based entirely on her voice.

I'm pretty sure I can say yes or no if you guess the correct lyrics, so feel free to do so in comments. Or not; you can always just enjoy the music.

2 comments:

Michelle said...

Aw, that's an easy one..My Sister, My Self quotes, "Is a dream a lie, if it don't come true, or is it something worse?" Bruce Springsteen's The River

A lovely song, a cryptic quote, perfect for the story. Good job selecting it. It was worth the $25.

Mark said...

Technically, that's not quite write, because the lyric at the top of the story read:

“Is a dream a lie if it don’t come true, or is it something worse?”

Still, I think it's close enough to declare one winner.

Any guesses on the other lyric?

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