Musical Inspiration for My Latest Novel: The songs That Shaped My Story

“The truth is, Hank Vansandt was no angel, and he was no demon. He was a rock...an island, and that made me a castaway.” This line from the opening chapter of my novel, Charles Manson and the Onion Factory, represents the first time I thought about writing a novel whose chapters would be based on the music that shaped my life. I didn’t set out to write a line reflecting Simon and Garfunkel’s hit “I Am a Rock”, but I had–a completely unconscious act. Music is ingrained in me, in my protagonist, Bo, and in so many of my readers. It is indeed the soundtrack to our lives. I had only intended to describe a character who lived a life of isolation and who had spread that toxic routine to his son. In doing so, I had changed the direction of my novel. I titled that opening chapter “I am a Rock”, and each subsequent chapter took on the name of another song–another story set to music. The following 27 songs are those stories. They are the soundtrack to Bo’s story…and a pretty dang good Spotify playlist: