Developing Your Literary Trademark & A Creative Process
Lesson 1 - “A Sharp Pen, a Thin Skin, An Open Heart” Lessons from Taylor Swift's Creative Process (And How to Build Your Own).
Welcome back to the Forever Workshop! If you just found us, here’s the crack:
Each month, a different writing instructor takes over this Substack account to teach a workshop to our subscribers.
In March, Erin Karbuczky will guide us on a literary soul-search through her workshop “A Sharp Pen, a Thin Skin, An Open Heart” Lessons from Taylor Swift's Creative Process (And How to Build Your Own).
You’ll find her first lesson below:
Hi! My name is Erin and I am so excited to talk with you about two of my most favorite things: Small Indie Recording Artist Taylor Swift, and Writing. Specifically, we are going to use Taylor as a vehicle to talk about Process, Practice, and Toolkits.
But first, who am I, and why do we care about studying Taylor’s process?
I have a master’s degree in English and I’m a writer, public speaker, and workshop facilitator. I live in Portland, Oregon. I have been a fan of Taylor Swift since 2008, and have studied her creative process ever since, because I actually enjoy sausage more if I know how it gets made.
I think what really draws me to her creative process is that despite the fact that we are all unique, and of various backgrounds and socio-economic statuses, and results will vary, it’s actually a process we can all do.
And to be honest, even if you loathe hearing her very name, you can’t deny that she is doing SOMETHING right to have a grip on the world.
So I implore you, haters especially, to stick around and see if you can do one of my other favorite things: take what you need and leave the rest 🙂.
Before we get started, here is a small rundown of each week:
Week One: We will discuss the five pillars of Taylor’s creative process, using the help of a book by Tiago Forte called Building a Second Brain, which I encourage ALL writers to check out.
Week Two: We will discuss creating, modifying, or revamping your own creative process, practice, and toolkit, so you can create more effortlessly and efficiently.
Week Three: We will dig deep into craft using some of Taylor’s work and talk about why her work is so compelling to a wide audience, and how she uses various elements of storytelling such as point of view and specificity, that we can apply to our own work.
Week Four: We will talk about how to build a body of work using elements such as theme, repetition, and intertextuality, rather than a bunch of individual pieces that don’t speak to each other and talk a little more about intertextuality.
There will be applicable prompts at the end of each lesson so you can go beyond the confines of this workshop and become a process maven.
So let’s get started! I’m so happy to have you here with me.
There is a reason Taylor Swift is being studied and canonized in real time, with multiple books published about her this year alone, as well as the backlog of think pieces and podcasts (both episodes of, and entire series). And that reason is what I call the Five Pillars of Taylor Swift’s Creative Process.
The Five Pillars of Taylor Swift’s Creative Process are:
Journaling, or recording, her feelings, thoughts, and ideas in real time.
Constantly bettering her craft.
Keeping her ideas, fragments, and work organized so she can go back to any idea at any time and never lose a potential diamond.
Making use of intertextuality (and other elements mentioned above) to create easter eggs, callbacks, frames of reference, and layered point of view in her work.
Striving for creative freedom and ownership so she can make what is in her heart, and follow her creative arrow, as well as control the work that uses her voice, intellectual property, and image.
Feelings/Thoughts/Ideas
Taylor keeps a journal religiously where she records events in her life and how she feels about them in real time. The purpose of the journal is to process her thoughts and feelings in the present, and to recall the details of an event or feeling later on if she wants to write about it in a song.
Here is a video she made about that in support of the Lover album (she starts the journal talk at about 4m15s).
My personal belief, and I think Taylor shares this belief, is that a journal is essential for writers (and I would go so far as to say EVERYONE should keep a journal regardless of vocation). You don’t have to journal everyday to see results, either.
First, there is the practical: writing by hand is incredible for our brains and encourages better recall. You can also make mind maps, drawings, braindumps, lists, paste photos and “junk” collected throughout the day or week... it’s your journal, you can do whatever you want!
Then, the emotional: Journaling helps us process emotion, and figure out and achieve our goals. When it comes to writing lyrics or fiction, recalling feelings as if they are physical is imperative if you want to inspire those feelings in someone else. Writing thrives on vulnerability, and journaling is an incredibly vulnerable process. Taylor’s songs thrive on her experiences making her relatable, so that you can listen to her music, and feel seen, like she has read your diary. Your work thrives on the same - making your reader feel immersed in the story or poem through the narrators’ feelings and experiences.
Bettering Her Craft
Taylor Swift was told from a young age that if she wanted to write and play music, she had to work hard, and she took that to heart. From the first publishing deal she signed with Sony at about fourteen years old, to her most recent musical effort, she has always tried to strike a balance between her artistic intentions and their delivery and reception. Throughout her career, Taylor has taken the criticism of herself and others to heart, and used it to propel her forward. For example, after Fearless, people were openly critical of her vocals. So rather than give up singing, Taylor, already a famous artist, decided to take vocal lessons. That had to be humbling!
In addition, while Taylor has always been a skilled songwriter, she has worked with many cowriters and producers throughout the years in order to learn from them while elevating her songs. From her early collaborations with Liz Rose, to mid-career collaborations with Ryan Tedder of OneRepublic, to her current longstanding partnerships with Jack Antonoff of Bleachers and Aaron Dessner of The National, Taylor has taken her songwriting to levels many artists will never reach, simply because she is always wanting to take risks and outdo herself. Along the way, she has learned to mix fantasies and what-ifs with autobiographical elements, which has deepened her pool of topics and scenarios to write about.
She is also a MAJOR reader and cinephile and takes inspiration from it all - talk about filling your cup! As some of us know, Fairy and Folk tales are the basis of many modern stories. According to Guierlmo del Toro, Taylor’s “interest in fable and myth and the origins of fairytale is quite deep. I gave her a few books that I thought would be interesting for her—among them, very importantly, a book that was useful for me in creating Pan’s Labyrinth called The Science of Fairy Tales, which codifies and talks about fairy tale lore.” Taylor is working on writing and directing her own film. Will it be based on a Fairy Tale?
And while she is reading, Taylor takes note of her favorite words and turns of phrase, so that she has a well to draw from.
From an interview with Sir Paul McCartney in Rolling Stone (in support of her eighth album folklore):
McCartney: [What were] you reading?
Swift: I was reading, you know, books like Rebecca, by Daphne du Maurier, which I highly recommend, and books that dealt with times past, a world that doesn’t exist anymore. I was also using words I always wanted to use — kind of bigger, flowerier, prettier words, like “epiphany,” in songs. I always thought, “Well, that’ll never track on pop radio,” but when I was making this record, I thought, “What tracks? Nothing makes sense anymore. If there’s chaos everywhere, why don’t I just use the damn word I want to use in the song?”
McCartney: Exactly. So you’d see the word in a book and think, “I love that word”?
Swift: Yeah, I have favorite words, like “elegies” and “epiphany” and “divorcée,” and just words that I think sound beautiful, and I have lists and lists of them.
McCartney: How about “marzipan”?
Swift: Love “marzipan.”
McCartney: The other day, I was remembering when we wrote “Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds”: “kaleidoscope.”
Swift: “Kaleidoscope” is one of mine! I have a song on 1989, a song called “Welcome to New York,” that I put the word “kaleidoscope” in just because I’m obsessed with the word.
And finally, she is highly skilled at revision and copyediting, which helps her get the song out at the mercy of the muse, while the inspiration is hot, and then go back in and make sure all the words sparkle and shimmer like only a Taylor Swift song can. To do this, she uses placeholders when needed and writes multiple drafts of lyrics just like all writers do. Check out the original lyrics to cardigan from folklore here.
Ultimately, Taylor’s dedication to her craft is possibly the most major part of what has kept her career going. Her skills are insane because her work ethic is insane, and as long as she is open to learning and experimenting, there will be an audience.
Organization & Keeping Track of Ideas
Taylor has a lot of ideas and inspirations, and she never lets one slip away, simply hoping to remember it later. Instead she keeps detailed, organized notes with lists of words, phrases, song titles, and lyrics. Having ideas is one thing - but when you have a deluge of potential pieces and projects, fragments and ideas, how do you keep it all organized so you can come back to them when you’re ready?
That is where a system dubbed “Building a Second Brain” comes in - and because of this system she is able to work non-linearly, and on multiple projects simultaneously, as well as keep track of various themes throughout her discography like invisible strings.
Building a Second Brain is about creating or utilizing an existing digital system to record notes for everything you read and have ideas about, so you never have to use your memory to recall important information or sift through notebooks to find notes you took ages ago. With the system you create or use, you will be able to find notes instantly. It is great for researchers and writers.
The following comes from the book Building a Second Brain by Tiago Forte (please note this book was published before we knew about Midnights and The Tortured Poets Department). From Pages 54-56 Hardcover Edition of Building a Second Brain:
Taylor Swift is an icon of modern pop and country music and one of the best-selling music artists in history. Her nine chart-topping albums have sold over two hundred million copies worldwide and earned her a long list of awards, including eleven Grammy Awards.
Not only does she appear in lists of the greatest singer-songwriters of all time, her influence has transcended music and placed her on such lists as the Time 100 and Forbes Celebrity 100.
Over the course of her career, Swift has released five documentary films revealing her creative songwriting process. In all of them, she can be found with her head buried in her phone. As she says: "I disappear into my phone because my phone is where I keep my notes and my phone is where I'm editing." In her notes she can write down (and reread, edit, and riff off) any snippet of lyrics or melodic hooks that flickers through her mind. She can take her notes everywhere, access them from anywhere, and send them within seconds to a wide network of producers and collaborators using the same device. Any feedback they send back can go right into her notes as well.
In an interview about how she wrote the smash hit "Blank Space," Swift says, "'ll be going about my daily life and I'II think, 'Wow, so we only have two real options in relationships—it's going to be forever or it's going to go down in flames,' so I'll jot that down in my notes ... I'll come up with a line that I think is clever like ‘Darling I'm a nightmare dressed like a daydream' and I just pick them and put them where they fit and construct the bridge out of more lines that come up within the last couple of years ... Blank Space' was the culmination of all my best ones one after the other."
For Swift, writing songs is not a discrete activity that she can do only at certain times and in certain places. It is a side effect of the way her mind works, spinning off new metaphors and turns of phrase at the most unexpected times: "I'm inspired to write songs at any time of day, when I'm going through something or when the dust has settled and I'm over it. It can be anything. I'll just be doing dishes or some-thing, or in the middle of an interview, and I could get an idea in my head that just kind of sticks out as, "That could be a hook, that could be a pre-chorus, that's a first line.?" She goes on to explain why it's so important to her to capture those fleeting thoughts right as they appear:
I kind of have to capitalize on the excitement of me getting that idea and see it all the way through or else I leave it behind and assume it wasn't good enough."
Even after all her success, even Taylor Swift needs a system to carry her ideas from inception all the way to completion. By integrating her notetaking with her daily life, she's able to use language and analogies that are rooted in everyday feelings and experiences, forging a powerful connection with her fans who call themselves "Swifties." Listening to her albums is like following Swift on a journey of self-discovery, each album chronicling what she was experiencing and who she was becoming in each chapter of her life.
This story sheds light on how even the world's most successful and prolific creatives need support systems to pursue their craft. It's not a matter of having enough raw talent. Talent needs to be channeled and developed in order to become something more than a momentary spark.
This book by Tiago Forte is absolutely incredible and although I believe it was written for businesspeople, entrepreneurs, and non-artists, I think it is an essential read for writers and artists, that will elevate your practice, process, and toolkit (which we will get to in the next few weeks). I highly recommend checking the book out from the library or purchasing a copy.
Intertextuality
Intertextuality is a relationship between texts - this can apply to works by the same author, or by various authors. It can also apply to anything that is literary in the broad sense of the word - books, other writings, movies, music, and more. Taylor Swift dabbles in intertextuality in most of her projects, especially in the second half of her career. For example, after ending one of the deluxe versions of her 10th album Midnights, which references past “eras,” with the lyrics:
“I heard your key turn in the door down the hallway
Is that your key in the door? Is it okay?
Is it you?
Or have they come to take me away?”
Taylor Swift starts out her 11th album, TTPD, with the lines, “I was supposed to be sent away, but they forgot to come and get me.”
This is just one of the many references to previous works on TTPD, a tapestry of references to both previous works and new ideas. Those of us who have been following Taylor closely for her 18-year long career are unsurprised to find that her work is not linear, but circular, almost kaleidoscopic. For me, that is something I love about Swift, and relate to as a writer - how many of our favorite authors revisit similar themes throughout their body of work? It is what we do - ask and answer questions about the world, over and over in vain attempts to understand.
In addition to the references to her own work, Taylor references many well-known and lesser known movies, books, and songs to create an intimate relationship with her work and the cultural zeitgeist. In the Tortured Poets Department, she makes references to Frankenstein (the music video for Fortnite), Alice in Wonderland and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (forget him pills), Virginia Woolf, Women Who Run with the Wolves, the Little Mermaid, the Great Gatsby, the song “Downtown Lights” by the Blue Nile, Stevie Nicks, Clara Bow, Peter Pan, Patti Smith, Dylan Thomas and more.
With The Tortured Poets Department and Anthology, as well as her first ten albums, she proves she is building a body of work and interconnected stories, weaving fact, fiction, and fantasy, in which she references literary texts and historical figures to place herself in a cultural context, culminating in the song “The Manuscript,” which references the events that led to the song All too Well and creating the short film of the same name with the release of Red Taylor’s Version, ending with “the story isn’t mine anymore.”
Ownership & Creative Freedom
None of this would matter if Taylor didn’t feel creatively free and in the driver’s seat.
Taylor takes extreme pride in her work. She meets herself where she is in maturity and talent/skill level. While her “beginner” music is awesome (and honestly has aged very well and it continues to pull me in), it is also very indicative of where she was in the moment. As she has grown, her work has also matured and grown. Nonetheless, she meets her older projects where they are as much as she meets her newer work where it is. All artists grow over time with practice, and even Taytay had to start somewhere.
Additionally, she does not stand for others taking credit for her hard work, or attempting to control her work without her consent. Taylor’s work is her voice, and she works hard to retain control over her own work, even if that means rerecording every album and song to keep them under her own name. While she is a collaborator and always gives credit where it is due, she is also not ashamed to stand up for herself as an artist and person.
In her interview for Time Magazine’s Person of the Year 2023, she talks about how her old label was creatively stifling and that led to restriction on her artistry. “The molecular chemistry of that old label was that every creative choice I wanted to make was second-guessed,” she says. “I was really overthinking these albums.” Regarding her new label, she said, “[They] basically said to me, ‘Whatever you turn in, we will be proud to put out. We give you 100% creative freedom and trust.’It was exactly what she needed to hear most when the chips were down…This is the proudest and happiest I’ve ever felt, and the most creatively fulfilled and free I’ve ever been.”
If you would like access to the rest of Erin’s lessons this month:
Needs Assessment
Over the next month, we'll explore and develop your unique creative practice. Together, we'll build your personal toolkit, refine your process, and draw inspiration from Taylor's work and methodologies. To tailor this experience to you, I'd like to start with a few questions:
What is your current artistic process?
How do you currently organize your ideas?
Are you a pen and paper person, digital all the way, or somewhere in between?
How do you keep track of your ideas when they strike in the middle of walks, chores, or the workday?
Where are you letting your brilliant ideas slip through the cracks?
Do you need to devise a system to save/remember things for later?
How do you find your ideas or research notes that you write down with the intention of coming back to? For example, if you have an idea for a short story, novel, or nonfiction piece, but you’re in the midst of another project and can’t commit at the moment, how do you find it when it’s time to explore it for real?
Do you have a cataloging system or a super organized document somewhere? Or is it all just jumbled across notes apps, google docs, journals, notebooks, etc?
Do you work on one project at a time, or multiple?
Do you ever repurpose old work or scrapped lines into new WIPs? Or would you if you could find them?
Writers are often told to write to market. But if the market is not where your heart is, then your heart will not be in your work.
What are the projects you’ve worked on that have brought you immense joy?
What projects feel like a slog through the mud, and not in a good way?
Are you working on any of these projects because someone insisted you should/external obligation/worry that you won’t “make it” by writing with your heart?
This is a great analysis and creative thought thread. I’m very scattered right now writing in multiple genres and feeling like I’m not accomplishing a thing.
Hi, what a nice and informative article you have here! Thank you. As for your first question, I maintain a poetry journal/notebook where I jot down points regarding a particular poem that I have to write so that I know what to include in it. I also write down a list of words that I could use in the poem. While I write the actual poem in Google Docs. My notebook shows what goes into the making of a poem. As for your second question, I mostly write down ideas and metaphors when they strike me. Because otherwise I forget them. Sometimes, I write those ideas in my notebook and sometimes in Google Docs, where I type my poems. I also note important writing prompts whenever I come across any. If I am occupied in a project and I get an idea or a great prompt for another poem, I just write it down for later use. And I generally work on one project at a time. I also sometimes take up older, not up-to-the-mark poems and revamp them based on feedback from peers.