Mmm. You have your freshly brewed brown water. Creamer and sugar just right. You crank up your electronic device to enjoy the morning before the chaos that is life starts. You see that red dot notifying you of a notification. You check said notifications and find one of your stories has an update so you giddily click on it. You're reading along and BAM!
Song lyrics.
The entire chapter.
Mendokusei! Shyza! Mierda!
Hear me out. There is nothing wrong with interjecting lyrics into a story. Just not the ENTIRE freaking song. If it's a real song, tell the reader the band name and the song. Post a link. Let them listen to it on their own, crikey. Lyrics in a story are most effective to setting the tone when it's one or two SIGNIFICANT verses. I've seen two authors do this. The rest post the entire song.
One author (forgive me, I forgot their name) did something I thought was creative. They bolded the song title and band and told the reader to listen to the song while they read the next part. It was HIGHLY effective. Other authors put a link to the song that shows up at the top of the chapter giving readers the option to listen so they understand the mood/feeling for the chapter.
Posting the lyrics to a song in a chapter sort of feels like cheating to me. Since the author really only has to write a third to half of the chapter while filling it up with someone else's work.
YOU ARE READING
How to Irk a Reader as a Writer
HumorJust random thoughts about things that writers do that irk me as a reader. Fueled by caffeine, lack of sleep, or reaction to something I've read. Take none of this serious! Be offended at your own risk.
