I Got Drunk on Gin, Sang Jolene, and Learned a Lesson From Dolly Parton
It was far too late in the evening.
I'd been drinking neat gin with my university friends, James and Linda, in one of our student houses.
And then we put on a song that we sang over and over until our voices were hoarse.
I still remember that night with immense fondness. Especially when I hear that song.
It was Jolene by Dolly Parton.
Which is why I was so sad to learn this week that she had passed away. She seemed like a genuinely good person who spent her wealth helping others.
And so I did what I suspect many people did — I played Jolene again.
At top volume.
And it suddenly occurred to me why it's such a great song.
Never mind that amazing riff at the start or the catchy melody. It's the lyrics.
Dolly could have told us that the woman threatening to steal her man was ‘beautiful’ or ‘gorgeous.’ She could have described her feelings of betrayal towards her.
But instead she painted a picture:
With flaming locks of auburn hair
With ivory skin and eyes of emerald green
Your smile is like a breath of spring
Your voice is soft like summer rain
Oh wow. Can't you just picture this woman in your head?
I can.
Not a vague sketch but specific details we can all imagine.
It's exactly what I try to achieve when I'm writing novels.
A generic detail is instantly forgettable, but if I'm specific it's more likely to resonate.
For example, in my psychological thriller, The Couple in the Lodge, describing a scene in the kitchen, I could have said ‘there was some cheese on the table.’ Instead, what I actually wrote was:
A diminished triangle of smelly Stilton sweating on the wooden board.
You can almost smell it, can't you? And that's the power of specificity.
RIP Dolly. Thank you for the songs and the memories.
The Thriller Couple
Amanda and I spent most of last weekend helping Oliver move back in with us while he and his girlfriend look for a flat ahead of him starting his masters next month.
So in a few weeks, we'll have the privilege of moving him all over again. At least if the writing doesn't work out we can set up as a removals company…
Thomas helped too, which meant a lot of time in a Transit van together. It was when Thomas made an announcement that made me laugh out loud.
All his friends and work colleagues call him Tom. We asked if we should call him Tom too.
‘No, that would be weird,’ he replied. ‘But when I went to university I did have to rebrand myself,’ he said.
Apparently, that was when ‘Thomas’ was ditched and ‘Tom’ was born.
A student style rebrand. Like a character in a thriller deciding which version of himself gets seen by the world…
Anyway, it made me chuckle.
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