Taylor Swift and Storytelling

I love to find books that have such lyrical, flowing prose. I'm not talking books told in verse (I don't really like those at all); I mean books whose authors wrote them so fluidly that the words move almost like music or poetry but still in prose.

I love stories. I mean, I'm sure y'all could guess that since I'm addicted to books and I'm a writer. But stories aren't only found in books; they're also found in well-written song. And I'm here today to state that Taylor Swift is a master storyteller.

For starters, the secret messages in the 1989 album lyric book tell a story (one that I actually used in a "telling a story" exercise in my communications class) which says straight off that, if you listen to 1989 the whole way through, you hear a story.

Then there are songs like "Mary's Song (Oh My My My)" and "Starlight" which touch on the love stories of older couples that Taylor has known. The former is about her next door neighbors, and the latter is about Bobby and Ethel Kennedy.

"The Lucky One" tells the story of a starlet who realizes that Hollywood and fame aren't all they're cut out to be. "All Too Well" and "Out Of The Woods" tells pretty much the whole story of two relationships and how they fell apart. "The Moment I Knew" is all about Taylor's 21st birthday when her boyfriend at the time stood her up. "Never Grow Up" and "The Best Day" touch on Taylor's childhood.

There are many other Taylor Swift songs that I feel tell a story (I counted 22 in total), and I think that's part of her appeal for me.