I've had an article published in this month's issue of Film Score Monthly Online.
It's a "loving retrospective," as I think of it, on Christophe Beck's innovative music in Buffy the Vampire Slayer. What else, right? I've been a fan and reader of FSMO
for about seven years (before it even had the "O" and was still a print
publication), and I had copy edited some articles for a past writer.
So, when my friend Justin asked me if I'd be interested in writing a
Joss Whedon-related article for an upcoming issue, I said, "I most
certainly would be!"
Although the original form of the
article had to be modified due to circumstances beyond anyone's control,
I feel like it came out as a good, well-researched piece. And there
was research! Buffy is seven seasons long and over a hundred
hours of viewing. Musically speaking, little over three of those
seasons were pure Christophe Beck. It's a lot of material! So, I
watched and rewatched several key episodes like "Surprise," "Passion," "Becoming," "Hush," and "Restless," and I also reread many of the essays in Music, Sound, and Silence in Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Insights from writers and musicologists like Janet K. Halfyard were invaluable.
For a while, I wasn't sure how it would come together. I had
been writing and researching on lunch breaks and in that window between
midnight and 2am. Strangely, the bits written late at night before
collapsing into bed were more cohesive than anything I composed during
midday. My husband gave me some very helpful notes, however, that
helped me refine some problem areas — most of which were written at 1pm. Lesson: Don't write during normal hours. Haha!
In the end, the article came out to just shy of 2,000 words and
I'm very proud of what I submitted. The feedback has been very good so
far, so I would call this a win.
Cross-posted to KB, For Now.
