As I more forward in building the narrative, I discover that I need to remove or replace events, people and places to achieve the goals the characters have. Some are easy, like building a fictional school (like Forest Hills west of the city) and explaining how it got a massive stone stadium in a small already possessing a 11,000 seat arena attached to a college.
Others are far harder, like trying to integrate fictional musicans into the musical landscape. Unlike adding a building, this, very much, is a finite landscape without only a few spots at the top. So for every Jackson Maine and Staton-House band someone real has to vanish or be diminished. Plus, sirens are the most common mermaid, and people know that immediately so you must have a female singer.
The world I structured has Emmett Cetus controlling at least 40% of all music in 1960 to almost 80% by 2019. He is not a nice individual even though the only view you all see is through his grand nieces. He is as ruthless as anyother person who gets near immortality and unfettered knowledge of events to come. This being said certain events don’t happen the same they do here. Certain people don’t become famous either.
So if you find the absence of a particular event or person distressing or racist even, rememeber three things:
- I personally don’t hate anyone. In fact, certain ones I have mad respect for because of what they do. However, be they musicians or other pioneers, there are in the way of the Cetus Brothers (or other Politicos) success. Most members of the Assembly, at best, display apathy at suface successes.
- Someone else is taking their place or some other event integral to the series happens. Especially true if the event or person is in or born in NYC. Alot are fictional but some are real.
- Its across the board. Yes, NWA is gone but several musicans replace them. Rock makes into the late 90s and shares the spotlight with R&B. Yes, Lennon got assassinated ten years earlier. I explained earlier why. On the flip side, SZA is a gymnast and Oceanographer, not a musican in 2019 and Malcolm X wasn’t assassinated in 1965. Elijah Muhammad was.
- Not all the edits are remove things. Some simply adjust things. Like the fact that Jeremiah Dupri works for Siren Song Recording under Emmett himself and since he hired Scooter Braun, he is tied into Siren Song Recording as well. Charity Hospital survives Katrina.
I can’t do too may edits as each creates ripple effects that change the way the world works. So I am surgical in my decisions.
So where am I now in writing? Just about to do the shooting itself. Heartbeat Song will end with Tom carrying Lorelei out of the school. It should top out at 50k or just a little over. It covers the wrap up of the Shae storyline, the introduction of Aria, Chelsey’s origin and parentage and sets the frame for the rest of the series.
There are several matching things with Song of Betrayal, like the parking lot of Taft, what the atrium looks like when the school was open and how the tool bag and crowbar got there. ‘Well, that’s not significant.’ Actually, it is. Making sure the two books mesh is important. Also, there is a specific scene that gives Tyrion a voice too.
As for the rest of the story from the school to Antarctica and how this all happens. Thats in the next book since there isnt enough space for the events. There is too much to actually include. It has to be split.
Finally, there will be more and more shout outs to shows and inclusions of characters from other shows. You can figure out who they are, but my goal is to make them seemless.
As always thanks for reading this. Thanks for your time.
Our Song 