How my Playlist for Total Jane Wreck Saved the Novel

Confession time: Total Jane Wreck did not come easy. Compared to Let Me Count the Ways, which sort of wrote itself, Total Jane Wreck was at first stubborn and awkward. I knew the major plot points and I sort of grasped the character arcs (thanks to my development editor, Erica Saltzman, I went from “sort of” to “lightbulb moments”) but I couldn’t get the feel of the novel. Everything felt forced.

Then I created a Total Jane Wreck playlist, which I listened to while revising. That made all the difference.

There are a few love songs on the playlist, like Taylor Swift’s “I Knew It, I Knew You,” and “Fearless,” The Chicks “Cowboy Take Me Away, and The Magnetic Fields “Book of Love.” More of the songs are about self-discovery, like The Chicks’ “Wide Open Spaces,” Indigo Girls’ “Closer to Fine” and Liz Phair’s “Polyester Bride.”

Then there are the wistful songs of longing, like Gracie Abrams’ “Us,” and Lady Gaga’s “A Million Reasons.”

Finally, I included songs that seem like really, really weird choices to represent a love story with a happy ending. But listening to those songs helped me figure out Jane and Chet’s point-of-view—their insecurities, their longings, and their roads to happiness.

Keep reading for an explanation of a few these choices…

“When I Was a Baby” by The New Pornographers

When I was a baby I looked like a pig

My nose was a snout and my ears were too big

My mother would poke at the holes

At the back of my head where my brain was exposed

I didn’t know it then but never again

Would recapture those wonderful days 

Not only is this song a weird choice for the playlist, it’s just weird in general. But it fits for Jane and Chet, because deep down, the both believe that there’s something fundamentally twisted about themselves. They worry that they don’t deserve love. And yet, they’re also nostalgic for their childhoods, wishing they could revisit a more idealized version of the past.

“Dashboard” by Noah Kahan

Just when you think that the road’s straight ahead

Is when the devil shows up on your dashboard again

Look at you go, crossin’ state lines with your shadow

Tryna run away

Change your zipcode

Turns out that you’re still an asshole

This song is mean. So, how does it fit with Jane’s character? She’s not an asshole, after all. However, she does “cross state lines with her shadow.” She also tries to find herself by running away. Most of all, Jane is hard on herself. I picture her driving from Kentucky to Colorado, belting this song when it comes on the radio, believing that it applies to her—and maybe she’s okay with being an asshole.

“Betty” by Taylor Swift

Betty, I’m here on your doorstep

And I planned it out for weeks now

But it’s finally sinkin’ in

Betty, right now is the last time

I can dream about what happens when

You see my face again 

It’s no secret that I’m a Swiftie. I even did an exhaustive series of posts about my Top Fifty Taylor Swift Songs for Fiction Writers. “Betty” is number two! I gave it such a high spot because it’s written from a male perspective, and it’s a study in telling an unsympathetic character’s story in a compelling way. Plus, it’s just catchy, with the same vibe that I was going for with Total Jane Wreck. Most of all, “Betty” came on while I was writing chapter one, right when I had to name Jane’s favorite horse. Betty-the-horse is both a major character and plot point in the novel!

“You Can’t Always Get What You Want” by The Rolling Stones

You can’t always get what you want

You can’t always get what you want

You can’t always get what you want

But if you try sometimes, well, you just might find

You get what you need 

One of the major themes of Total Jane Wreck is learning to embrace the chaos. Early in the novel (like, the very first line) Jane wrestles with the idea of fate. Later in the story, she embarks on a solo hike along The Colorado Trail, where she’s not sure if she has what it takes to survive. Will the world give her what she wants? Will her own inner-resources give her what she needs?

“Piece of My Heart” by Janice Joplin

Each time I tell myself that I, well I think I’ve had enough

But I’m gonna show you, baby, that a woman can be tough

I want you to come on, come on, come on, come on and take it

Take another little piece of my heart now, baby (whoa, break it)

This song isn’t exactly a depiction of healthy love. But it is, in a way, a declaration of independence. Listening to it helped me find Jane’s strength. She not only learns that “a woman can be tough,” she understands how to save herself, and (spoiler alert) how to save Chet.

 

There are twenty-six songs in my Total Jane Wreck Playlist. In this post I mentioned nine of those songs and explained five. If you’d like to see or listen to the full list, it’s on Spotify. And, if you decide to read Total Jane Wreck while listening, that would make my day. I hope the book and playlist give you all the feels!