Lesson 1: Before the Robots

For me, music is one of the strongest connections I have to the other people in my life. Songs remind me of family members and friends, of things we've said and places we've gone, of important lessons learned and small moments celebrated.

Today's lesson asks you to use song lyrics to characterize an important person in your life.

DIRECT VS. INDIRECT CHARACTERIZATION
Stories are about people, although we normally refer to them as characters when we are discussing fiction. Authors have two ways of developing a character, and we can use those techniques just as easily in our own journaling for our layouts. 

When a writer comes right out and tells you what a character is like, that's called direct characterization. For example, if I say, "Derek is a loyal friend, and he's always willing to help a friend in need," then I've directly revealed aspects of his personality. This is an easy way to describe a person, but it does limit how much we can say about a person.

On the other hand, indirect characterization gives us almost limitless details to use to reveal personality. With indirect characterization, the writer reveals information about a character using words, actions, and thoughts, including the reaction of other characters. In this instance, the author shows you the character's personality.The mnemonic device STEAL can help you to remember the methods of indirect characterization: Speech, Thought, Effect on others, Actions, and Looks.

PLANNING:
There are many ways to go about the next steps -- I'll leave that up to you. But here are the basics: you need to choose a song that describes a special person. Make sure that the song contains plenty of connections -- you want to be able to use specific lyrics and lines from the song to extend and elaborate the ideas in your journaling. Here are some ideas to help you choose:

• select a song that illustrates the role a particular person has played in some stage of your life
• choose a song that captures how you view your relationship with this person
• pick a song that matches or enhances the physical appearance of this person, including how they walk, talk, laugh, etc.

Once you've chosen a song that describes your special person, use the graphic organizer in the file below to link specific lines from the song to specific details about this person. The purpose is to develop journaling for your layout that really delves into the personality of this special person and brings them to life. The key to strong journaling for this layout is to really dig beyond the obvious things you could say about a person and to use their actions, their thoughts, their looks -- all of those specific personal details -- to build a visual representation of WHO this song brings to mind for you each time you hear it.

Download STEAL graphic organizer

WRITING:
As you begin your journaling, look for ways to include specific lyrics to support the details you provide about this person. Consider using these lyrics both as part of your writing and part of your overall design. Here are some additional techniques to consider as you write:

• Use dialogue. Let your reader "hear" the voice of your special person. This can reveal emotion, mood, and character.
• Use sensory language. Don't just show your readers this person. Allow them to experience things through taste, smell, sound, and touch too.
• Use figurative language. Making comparisons is a natural part of speech -- we compare one thing to another in order to point out similarities and differences. These contrasts can help fill out your descriptions.

DESIGN:
This is a perfect opportunity to use the album art as a jumping-off point for your page design. For each lesson, I'll ask you to focus on one component of the album art. Today, we'll be focusing on the TEXT -- perhaps the album art uses a certain font or type treatment, or you are inspired by the placement and size of the text.

credits: Pieces of Me (papers, paint strokes, puzzle pieces, string), Organic (frame), Lovestruck (heart frame) all by Audacious Designs

MY LAYOUT:
I chose the song "Breathless" from the Better than Ezra album, Before the Robots. The song essentially describes one person acting as a refuge for another -- a safe place of love to run to when the world comes "crashing down around your feet." I've always associated this song with my friend because that's the role he played in my life at one point. I used lyrics from the song above the title, and then wove elements around my title, including a small photo. The puzzle pieces symbolize the concept of picking up the pieces of my life, as I discussed, as well as the way one person can fit into a specific place in your life. The brushwork behind my title, which mimics the image found on the album cover, actually has an additional meaning -- it's created from a photo of Chicago, which is where my friend is originally from.

Comments

[Heather H.]

I love your layout. I often associate songs with people also.

[Heather Hopkins]

Read your post this morning. Wonderful!

[amy]

been soooo long since i've listened to Better Than Ezra! need to catch back up!

[Lori Potts]

http://www.myscrapbookart.com/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=250647&cat=512

found this one inspiring!! thanks Audrey!!

[Tania]

I just finished my first page, I decided that I would do a hybrid, thanks so much for the inspiration, I'll be letting you know as I finish these up :)

http://pixelsnglue.wordpress.com/2010/02/24/my-soundtrack-mini-album/