: Re: Should fiction mention song names and iPods? In my novel, the protagonist is depressed. In the story which is in my mind... The autumn leaves were falling as I was sitting alone and

@Sims2267584

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But I've read that it's lazy writing to express the state of mind or event by just mentioning third part scene. I mean I can also elaborately mention her state of mind by showing all the other things that are happening.

That's absolutely true, as a lot of other answerers have pointed out. Referencing a famous song like Mad World is not enough to portray depression, after all. Imagine someone reading your story on a crowded bus, or in a public park filled with the voices of playing chidrens, or waiting at the dentist office ... Even knowing the song by heart, it would be difficult to recall the music (and those precise feelings) in one's heart in such a situation.

What you can do is using the song as a launching pad.

I can also elaborately mention her state of mind by showing all the other things that are happening.

Absolutely, do this. It's not being "elaborate", it's doing a good job. Instead of relying on a famous song to describe those feelings, paint a picture of your character being in a dark mood as autumn leaves fall down. You can even describe the music itself:

The autumn leaves were falling as I was sitting alone and Gary Jules' "Mad World" was ringing in my iPod. His low, resigned voice filled my ears; words speaked with a melancholic pace as the notes followed. I turned up the volume, to the point that it almost ached, insulating myself from everything else. I was alone.

I you want a reference, Murakami often describes a lot of music in his novels (mostly because he worked for years in a jazz pub, so he must be pretty knowledgeable). Whenever he talks about a piece, he speaks about the notes, the tones, the emotions it provokes, and his characters reaction. The final result is that you don't actually need to know the music he's talking about to see what effect it has on the story, or what kind of atmosphere it builds.

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