Tuesday, February 23, 2010

Stepped on a Pop Tart

For most of my adult life, I thought the line in Jimmy Buffet's song Margaritaville, I blew out my flip flop, stepped on a pop top, was actually ...stepped on a Pop Tart. Someone kindly pointed it out to me while I energetically sang along at a concert (OK, maybe not so kindly. It was more like, you dork!). I also thought that in U2's Where the Streets Have No Name, our love turns to rust, was actually our love tends to rush. I went to see them when they toured for the Joshua Tree, like, seven times but didn't discover my mistake until last year. A week ago, while listening to the radio on my way to work, Carol King's song Jasmine came on. I like to sing in the car. Loudly. I cranked it up and realized, OMG, she's singing Jazz Man. This song is clearly about a jazz musician, but I probably warped the other lyrics because I reaaaally like the smell of jasmine. Go ahead, say it...dork.

I thought maybe my hearing was bad. But then I realized, I heard what I felt was right. And now, even though I know the proper lyrics, it takes everything I have to hear them the right way.

For the past few weeks I've been working on a tough revision project. My friend Alexa called it a reimagining, which is probably more accurate. I just stared at my original draft on Day 1, thinking, how in the heck am I going to do this? Then I realized I shouldn't be looking at my earlier draft at all. In my head it was a finished product, and, like with the song lyrics, it was excruciatingly hard to train my brain to hear it differently. I opened a new doc and typed Chapter 1.

It made a world of difference.

So, to all my writer friends out there tackling revision projects: my thoughts are with you. Just don't ask me about the lyrics to Poker Face (You don't want to know what I thought...)

10 comments:

  1. My husband's full of interesting lyrics.

    Best concert ever was U2's LoveTown tour while I was an exchange student in Australia. Lovely, lovely.

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  2. Yes, Loretta, and the worst part is when you actually WATCH someone singing, and you STILL cannot figure out what they are saying! I used to read liner notes, but now I google the lyrics.

    Hey, great advice, girl, about revisions. A new Chapter 1. Good luck with your reimagining! Hope you write some GREAT new lyrics, er, chapters!

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  3. You could also think of your revision as an alternate timeline à la Lost, right?

    Oh, and I still proudly sing "wrapped up like a douche" instead of "revved up like a deuce" when I hear "Blinded By The Light."

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  4. Ha! I love Alexa's suggestion about the alternate timeline. Perfect comparison.

    And I can't believe how brave you were to start with a blank document. The very idea of it gives me heart palpitations.

    I'm terrible with lyrics. I thought Marky Mark and The Funky Bunch's "Good Vibrations" was actually "Good Sensations." Yeah.

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  5. I totally agree with LiLa on the 'the very idea of it gives me heart palpitations.' You are a WARRIOR!

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  6. Carolyn--U2 in Australia sounds lovely indeed.

    Linda! Thanks! And, oh, how I miss liner notes.

    Alexa--You mean it's not "douche"? What???? And we need to get together soon to talk about LOST.

    LiLa--Good Sensations sounds better to me. But the, it also sounds like a body wash.

    Amy--It's not so bad. Really (She says as her heart gives out).

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  7. Thank you for the advice about revisions--I had to do the same thing with a chapter for my non-fiction book proposal. Started completely from scratch and it went more quickly than if I had messed around with the original. And it's a lot better than the first draft! (At least I hope so.) :)

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  8. What, I just saw Buffet Live this summer--he doesn't say "stepped on a lap top"? I thought he was ahead of his time...

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  9. Oh, Jo, you know I'm going to start singing "lap top" now. Oh, man...

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  10. And, Jenny, you are wonderful writer. I'm sure it's great. Can't wait to read it!

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