Jukebox 2016
Dear DJ
I would love fanworks for any of these songs so, so much. I hope you enjoy making one, too! If there's anything you'd like to know, feel free to ask anon. (Edit: ... I thought I had anon switched on. Now it is!)
AO3 account: Sout
Boxing - Ben Folds Five (Song)
Lyrics
Video
Fanart & FanFic
I love the sense this song gives of the end of a personal era - someone who's loved their way of life, even if it's broken him early, but who is far more broken by the fact that he's going to have to leave it behind. Anything based around that is cool.
I'd prefer the narrator to be male, and the fanwork to be gen or M/M, please. The setting can be anywhere, and preferably fairly modern-feeling - say, 1950s to present - unless an alternate universe type setting is involved.
Howard can be anybody - I tend to imagine him as the boxer's manager, but he could be a friend, fellow boxer (opponent or friend, or even someone who's pretty much unknown to him as a person), relative, husband, the poster of his hero that is up on his wall, dog, soul-bonded dragon, etc.
How did the boxer get into this sport, and turn it into a career? Something expanding on the ways boxing was good to him. And was it a short career, considering "the whole time, we knew / in a couple of years I'd be through"?
The boxer as he was before coming to the realisation that he's going to have to leave it all behind. Sure of himself or growing to be, losing sometimes but caught in the rush of winning too. Feeling everything intensely, and mostly that he's on top of the world; he must have got high to feel the comedown so hard in the song. For art, if it could hint at the breakdown that's to come that would be great - maybe a face with a grin but clear evidence of a hard hit, maybe running for training in comfortable worn-out old clothes he's had forever and looking fit but clearly tired, maybe victorious but nonetheless slumped in his corner after a hard match.
H/C scene with Howard getting to respond to the boxer's outpouring. H/C type sex would be good too, maybe with body worship (so long as Howard's not a dog. ...A sentient soul-bonded dragon might be okay, but I'm not sure I have a sufficient size kink.).
The boxer finds something new to do (even if Howard/the general public might be skeptical about it, even if it doesn't always work for him, either): he takes up singing. And pens and sings "Boxing", natch, among others.
In a departure from the angst, the album I have with this song on it depicts the band and Ben Folds is so skinny and also contorting himself into a really awkward-looking position. I'd actually like something humorous with the skinniest, most noodle-limbed boxing champion ever who no one can figure out how he's winning so often. People are cheering, but also confused. But if it's art, I'd prefer it not to actually resemble Folds aside from more or less the same body type.
Like Real People Do - Hozier (Song)
Video
Lyrics
FanFic
Sweet & creepy is one of my fave atmospheres, so bringing that aspect of the song out in fic form would be wonderful. I want anything on Revenant Would-Be Lover, putting thoughts and memories and something like a life back together, and their tentative but persistent affection for Honey. Honey doesn't have to have romantic feelings for them, but I'd prefer Revenant not to go less sweet and increasingly creepy in the case of unrequited love.
Any genders are OK. And uh, you don't have to call the narrator "Revenant" or the other person "Honey", I'm doing that for convenience. The Barn on the Farm version of the song has ruined me slightly and has got me tending to imagine this story playing out in a rural setting. If there's any sex, please make Revenant not be a grody type zombie with bits falling off, though unsettling physiology is okay. For both of them, even, depending on what you decide to do with Honey.
I really like this as a love story, but thinking about it, a gen focus would actually be great too, whether with very background romance or no romance at all (but even without romance, I'd prefer Honey to be around and maybe helping out). The first verse has Revenant being very, very slow to figure out what's real, strange, normal, possible, plausible... I'd love a look at that process.
"Real people" - where did the contrast get a chance to develop? How did Revenant pick this description? Is it possible to ever feel more like a real person?
Was Honey also brought back from the dead? That could be an explanation for the second verse, and "someone that dug long ago" could be Revenant, having brought Honey back to life years ago. Maybe they're going round in circles of life and death with each other. Or maybe there's some other necromancer running round the joint and bringing back wistful zombies and that's what Revenant's remembering, and they show up in the story too. Or Honey's tried to bring Revenant back before, deemed previous attempts unsatisfactory, and reburied them.
Honey was looking for someone else entirely, but on digging up Revenant couldn't leave them there.
Where DID these two come from that they don't want to speak about? For Revenant's case especially, any depictions of an afterlife are fine, but if it's a punishment-based one please avoid gory details if there was any torture. In this case, I'm more for creepy hints or punishments with a psychological bent (like Sisyphus from Greek myth, for example; the boulder was gruelling work, but the real punishment was the boulder rolling back down to the bottom every time).
Revenant's thought processes changing from "we should just kiss", to would kiss, to could kiss. Pining and weird perceptions of romance would be great.
Work Song - Hozier (Music Video. But with song influences would also be great.)
Video
Lyrics
Fanart & FanFic
F/M or F/F, please. I'd prefer a small town setting. The whole thing makes me think American South, but that's not vital. If it's F/F, I'd prefer little to no focus on homophobia.
While some of my prompts could go in the direction of terrifying or horribly abusive, that's not what I'm after. The narrator sounds ashamed of all that sinning and wrongdoing, and as if they'd at least try and leave doing awful things behind if it's not already well in the past. I have prompts where consent becomes questionable at best, but I'd still prefer minimal or no predation or abuse, and would rather have twisted situations that people try and make the best of. Mostly I'm here for semi-epic, semi-cheesy romance. If you've ever had the urge to do some wildly sappy fanwork with indulgent romance tropes, now could be your time.
I would like either one of two opposite things:
1) The story told in the video/song taken fairly realistically, with focus on a bunch of people or one couple worn down by a hard life but finding deep solace in each other.
- Smut. The worshippy vibe is lovely. And all the clutching each other close that the couples do.
- There's a whole lot of 'we two against the world' going on with multiple couples - do the pairs ever connect with each other?
- An illustration of a person or several people at some kind of physically focused work, and at least implied to be singing this song as they go about the job. This doesn't have to be exactly "realistic" in what it depicts (and definitely not in terms of art style), just not as obviously supernatural as the stuff for the below prompts. I keep imagining the classic image of a bunch of people with their pick-axes upraised and hacking away at rock in time to a song. (Although "Work Song" actually seems a touch slow to be used as that kind of work song.)
- Anything going into detail about the story told in the lyrics.
- So this is the church of hotties aged 20s-30s. Where's the rest of the parish at? I'd be interested in something about the area that might surround this video's imagery, giving a sense of place.
2) Making it all steeped in the supernatural. That church looks like ripe ground for magic-wielding/influenced women to get ordinary Joes in thrall. Or maybe it's symbiotic and both parties need each other in some way. Sweet & creepy could apply here too.
- The song + video combo gives me a light Southern Gothic, But Updated! feel, which appeals. Exaggerating that to make the people even more mod and the setting more high gothic would be cool.
- Dead people (or formerly dead but now legit alive again) brushing the grave dirt off themselves and re-entering the church. Because that body was laid gently in the cold dark earth, and then crawled home to her. Crossover with "Like Real People Do" ensues? Or maybe the whole town's full of people who find death can be optional when it comes to really not feeling like leaving somebody behind just yet. When they say "my boo" there's a whole other level of meaning to it.
- Redhead biting her dude around the "she gives me toothaches just from kissing me" line makes me think vampires, even if they are on holy ground. Hey, maybe it's holy angelic vampires! Like I said, cheesy epic romance time is here if you want it.
- the F/M pairs are important in one supernatural way, but the women are important to each other in a different one that requires them to work closely together. Ritual sex, going on quests, renewing the church grounds' power, training up the siren-song church band? And then some bonds strengthen and poly ensues (doesn't have to be mutual triads, reasonably friendly V-arrangements are good too).
I would love fanworks for any of these songs so, so much. I hope you enjoy making one, too! If there's anything you'd like to know, feel free to ask anon. (Edit: ... I thought I had anon switched on. Now it is!)
AO3 account: Sout
Boxing - Ben Folds Five (Song)
Lyrics
Video
Fanart & FanFic
I love the sense this song gives of the end of a personal era - someone who's loved their way of life, even if it's broken him early, but who is far more broken by the fact that he's going to have to leave it behind. Anything based around that is cool.
I'd prefer the narrator to be male, and the fanwork to be gen or M/M, please. The setting can be anywhere, and preferably fairly modern-feeling - say, 1950s to present - unless an alternate universe type setting is involved.
Howard can be anybody - I tend to imagine him as the boxer's manager, but he could be a friend, fellow boxer (opponent or friend, or even someone who's pretty much unknown to him as a person), relative, husband, the poster of his hero that is up on his wall, dog, soul-bonded dragon, etc.
How did the boxer get into this sport, and turn it into a career? Something expanding on the ways boxing was good to him. And was it a short career, considering "the whole time, we knew / in a couple of years I'd be through"?
The boxer as he was before coming to the realisation that he's going to have to leave it all behind. Sure of himself or growing to be, losing sometimes but caught in the rush of winning too. Feeling everything intensely, and mostly that he's on top of the world; he must have got high to feel the comedown so hard in the song. For art, if it could hint at the breakdown that's to come that would be great - maybe a face with a grin but clear evidence of a hard hit, maybe running for training in comfortable worn-out old clothes he's had forever and looking fit but clearly tired, maybe victorious but nonetheless slumped in his corner after a hard match.
H/C scene with Howard getting to respond to the boxer's outpouring. H/C type sex would be good too, maybe with body worship (so long as Howard's not a dog. ...A sentient soul-bonded dragon might be okay, but I'm not sure I have a sufficient size kink.).
The boxer finds something new to do (even if Howard/the general public might be skeptical about it, even if it doesn't always work for him, either): he takes up singing. And pens and sings "Boxing", natch, among others.
In a departure from the angst, the album I have with this song on it depicts the band and Ben Folds is so skinny and also contorting himself into a really awkward-looking position. I'd actually like something humorous with the skinniest, most noodle-limbed boxing champion ever who no one can figure out how he's winning so often. People are cheering, but also confused. But if it's art, I'd prefer it not to actually resemble Folds aside from more or less the same body type.
Like Real People Do - Hozier (Song)
Video
Lyrics
FanFic
Sweet & creepy is one of my fave atmospheres, so bringing that aspect of the song out in fic form would be wonderful. I want anything on Revenant Would-Be Lover, putting thoughts and memories and something like a life back together, and their tentative but persistent affection for Honey. Honey doesn't have to have romantic feelings for them, but I'd prefer Revenant not to go less sweet and increasingly creepy in the case of unrequited love.
Any genders are OK. And uh, you don't have to call the narrator "Revenant" or the other person "Honey", I'm doing that for convenience. The Barn on the Farm version of the song has ruined me slightly and has got me tending to imagine this story playing out in a rural setting. If there's any sex, please make Revenant not be a grody type zombie with bits falling off, though unsettling physiology is okay. For both of them, even, depending on what you decide to do with Honey.
I really like this as a love story, but thinking about it, a gen focus would actually be great too, whether with very background romance or no romance at all (but even without romance, I'd prefer Honey to be around and maybe helping out). The first verse has Revenant being very, very slow to figure out what's real, strange, normal, possible, plausible... I'd love a look at that process.
"Real people" - where did the contrast get a chance to develop? How did Revenant pick this description? Is it possible to ever feel more like a real person?
Was Honey also brought back from the dead? That could be an explanation for the second verse, and "someone that dug long ago" could be Revenant, having brought Honey back to life years ago. Maybe they're going round in circles of life and death with each other. Or maybe there's some other necromancer running round the joint and bringing back wistful zombies and that's what Revenant's remembering, and they show up in the story too. Or Honey's tried to bring Revenant back before, deemed previous attempts unsatisfactory, and reburied them.
Honey was looking for someone else entirely, but on digging up Revenant couldn't leave them there.
Where DID these two come from that they don't want to speak about? For Revenant's case especially, any depictions of an afterlife are fine, but if it's a punishment-based one please avoid gory details if there was any torture. In this case, I'm more for creepy hints or punishments with a psychological bent (like Sisyphus from Greek myth, for example; the boulder was gruelling work, but the real punishment was the boulder rolling back down to the bottom every time).
Revenant's thought processes changing from "we should just kiss", to would kiss, to could kiss. Pining and weird perceptions of romance would be great.
Work Song - Hozier (Music Video. But with song influences would also be great.)
Video
Lyrics
Fanart & FanFic
F/M or F/F, please. I'd prefer a small town setting. The whole thing makes me think American South, but that's not vital. If it's F/F, I'd prefer little to no focus on homophobia.
While some of my prompts could go in the direction of terrifying or horribly abusive, that's not what I'm after. The narrator sounds ashamed of all that sinning and wrongdoing, and as if they'd at least try and leave doing awful things behind if it's not already well in the past. I have prompts where consent becomes questionable at best, but I'd still prefer minimal or no predation or abuse, and would rather have twisted situations that people try and make the best of. Mostly I'm here for semi-epic, semi-cheesy romance. If you've ever had the urge to do some wildly sappy fanwork with indulgent romance tropes, now could be your time.
I would like either one of two opposite things:
1) The story told in the video/song taken fairly realistically, with focus on a bunch of people or one couple worn down by a hard life but finding deep solace in each other.
- Smut. The worshippy vibe is lovely. And all the clutching each other close that the couples do.
- There's a whole lot of 'we two against the world' going on with multiple couples - do the pairs ever connect with each other?
- An illustration of a person or several people at some kind of physically focused work, and at least implied to be singing this song as they go about the job. This doesn't have to be exactly "realistic" in what it depicts (and definitely not in terms of art style), just not as obviously supernatural as the stuff for the below prompts. I keep imagining the classic image of a bunch of people with their pick-axes upraised and hacking away at rock in time to a song. (Although "Work Song" actually seems a touch slow to be used as that kind of work song.)
- Anything going into detail about the story told in the lyrics.
- So this is the church of hotties aged 20s-30s. Where's the rest of the parish at? I'd be interested in something about the area that might surround this video's imagery, giving a sense of place.
2) Making it all steeped in the supernatural. That church looks like ripe ground for magic-wielding/influenced women to get ordinary Joes in thrall. Or maybe it's symbiotic and both parties need each other in some way. Sweet & creepy could apply here too.
- The song + video combo gives me a light Southern Gothic, But Updated! feel, which appeals. Exaggerating that to make the people even more mod and the setting more high gothic would be cool.
- Dead people (or formerly dead but now legit alive again) brushing the grave dirt off themselves and re-entering the church. Because that body was laid gently in the cold dark earth, and then crawled home to her. Crossover with "Like Real People Do" ensues? Or maybe the whole town's full of people who find death can be optional when it comes to really not feeling like leaving somebody behind just yet. When they say "my boo" there's a whole other level of meaning to it.
- Redhead biting her dude around the "she gives me toothaches just from kissing me" line makes me think vampires, even if they are on holy ground. Hey, maybe it's holy angelic vampires! Like I said, cheesy epic romance time is here if you want it.
- the F/M pairs are important in one supernatural way, but the women are important to each other in a different one that requires them to work closely together. Ritual sex, going on quests, renewing the church grounds' power, training up the siren-song church band? And then some bonds strengthen and poly ensues (doesn't have to be mutual triads, reasonably friendly V-arrangements are good too).