Well, it’s time for another check in regarding my slow progression in my Mythology and Taylor Swift project. Despite what feels like, sometimes, to be a snail’s pace, I have to remember that I did only pull the trigger in October, so it’s only been four months.
Research is slow going. Which is always a little frustrating sometimes - I wish I could leave a day’s worth of work and have more than just a page of notes on something I may not even end up writing about in the end product. Research is always pages and pages of notes, for what will end up being just one or two citations in the final.
But anyway, let’s update you on exactly where we’re at with everything.
Survey
The survey is still going. I won’t be taking it down for the time being - I don’t really have an end date on it. I probably won’t take it down until I have an actual deadline for the final book, which won’t happen for some time. So why take it down?
I’m sitting at just under 150 responses, which is pretty good. I was worried that the survey would only reach a small handful and wouldn't be a very good representation of the vast community of people who listen to Taylor Swift’s music. But I think 150 is a good start.
I still have a few more places I’ll be promoting it in. As always, please feel free to share it yourselves to people you know. Also, if you have suggestions of places online to share it, that’d be great.
But some of the responses have been lovely. There’s a great breadth of locations I’m getting responses from the UK, USA, Spain, France, Uzbekistan, New Zealand, the Philippines, and so much more. Maybe I should make a little map where I plot all the places people live to show just how broad this is.
So thanks for filling this out for me!
Interviews
I have started doing 1-2-1 interviews. I’m reaching out to those who said on the survey they’d be open to it in batches. My first batch has been resolved, and we’ll be moving on to the next one. So keep an eye out on your emails for the information on how to do this.
I say this in the email, but if you have changed your mind on your involvement from a yes to a no, that’s absolutely fine. Just ignore me when it pops up - I won’t chase you.
I only have two interviews completed, and a third in the midst of being scheduled. But for only the first batch of send-outs, it’s really not a bad number. To give context, in a previous study of cosplayers I did, I reached out to probably about 50 people, and ended with 15. So my first batch of send outs was only to the first 13 who said yes, and got 3 out of it, so not a bad showing.
I was going to write up some of the themes coming up, but with only two it seems a bit premature, so I’ll probably discuss some of the themes and discussions had in these interviews in my next little update newsletter - gives me more time to gather some more examples and nice little quotes.
Some Themes
That being said, I will give a little glimpse on some of the topics I’ve been doing a little bit of reading, research, and thinking on as they come up in both the survey and the interviews.
Girlhood
Taylor’s songs really paint this picture so well, even for people growing up in different parts of the world. However, there are a lot of other interconnected discussions around girlhood that keep coming up. Such as: discussions of misogyny, treatment of things girls like, and the internalisation of this misogyny from the women and girls I’ve been chatting to.
Authenticity
Taylor is often known as the “authentic” pop star. But what I find interesting isn’t necessarily how she portrays herself in this way, but rather how the authenticity is seen and understood by fans. I’ve gotten a lot of conversations about authenticity in relation to how it’s reflected and harnessed by fans themselves. It’s therefore less about how Taylor is authentic, and more about how she brings that authenticity out in her fans.
Conspiracy Theories
Y’all must have known this was coming. I think Taylor’s Easter Egg hunting allows for conspiracy theories about her and her productions to really flourish. And, of course, there’s the gaylors. How can I not talk about that?! But there’s a joy, I think, in it that I want to make sure I capture. There’s a love of the clowning, and even when things are wrong, there’s a joy in the silliness when looking back.
Ownership
So, this can cover all sorts of different facets. Obviously, there’s the idea of Taylor’s own ownership over her music, a lack of which casted a shadow over much of the history of fan listening in the last several years. The letting go of this means there’s an interesting lack of discussion of the variants in my chats than I was expecting.
There’s another discussion of ownership - and that’s the ever-present question of fan consumption. This was voiced as a concern a lot online, and even by some fans in the surveys. And yet, I personally haven’t witnessed it as much. Some fans want to own every album, but are less fussed about every variant of every vinyl. Some don’t care about owning every album, and most of my respondents on the survey actually said they only stream the music, rather than listening on physical media.
And then there’s the less physical ownership - the ownership over interpretation and emotion. This is something Taylor herself mentions in her song “The Manuscript” - the story wasn’t mine anymore. She also calls for a change in emotion at the beginning of the Eras Tour. Ownership of attention, love, interpretation, authenticity, and understanding of the actual songs themselves being given over to the fans.
Some Writing
In case you missed it, I’ve been writing a bit about some of the extra bits of information, thoughts, and research I’ve been doing about Taylor. The topics range, as its fully based on just what I’m thinking about as I sort through all this stuff.
Anyway, that’s all from me for now. Just trying to show you signs of life. There’s work happening, I promise! Hope all is still well with all of you, and hope to be chatting to personally very soon!
