From Icarus to Euphiction…

When considering euphiction, it’s important to note that the stories themselves don’t have to be about music, nor do they have to work like a song. The emphasis here is that the song has inspired you to create a story, whether the song works as a kind of soundtrack or you’re playing off of the song’s theme. And while this kind of writing is hardly new, the term euphiction is. Stephen King has talked about how the Ramones influenced his writing (and vice-versa), and it can be argued that specific passages where the Ramone’s have a direct influence in King’s writing are euphonious.

The key word here is influence. Borrowing an idea from Thomas C. Foster’s How to Read Literature Like a Professor, we can look at euphiction this way.

Let’s take the myth of Icarus. Needing to escape from Crete, his father creates a set of wings from feathers and wax for him, with specific instructions not to fly too close to the sun. However, once Icarus is flying, he’s overcome with excitement. Enjoying his flight, Icarus ignores his father’s warning and naturally flies too high, until the sun melts the wax holding his wings together. Icarus eventually falls to his death.

Now let’s flash forward nearly 2000 years later. Renaissance painter Pieter Bruegel, inspired by the myth, creates Landscape with the Fall of Icarus.

Read the rest at the Cover Stories website.