First and foremost, I want to give credit where credit is due. One of my very dear friends on AO3, Lee ( Scully_SattlerEnergy), did a spin on this for Jurassic Park. It's brilliant and wicked good, and I'll have the link for that in the notes at the bottom of this chapter. Without her inspiration, I wouldn't have begun to even think about the concept of using an artist's catalog of music to propel a story. The first iteration of my variation idea was a, still unpublished but still in the pipeline, fanfiction for Jurassic Park that was based on the catalog of Billy Joel. My amazing co-author Beth ( B2NZ) has been so patient and kind with that story and who knows when it will finally pan out.

Some brief background, I have been familiar with WTB my whole life. This is not a new fandom for me. That being said, I had not been deeply invested in it. Not until my Dad died in September 2023. Nothing felt right. None of the comfort shows, movies, ideas felt like me anymore; not with that major piece of my life missing. As luck would have it, IFC had episodes on and I flicked to it, then went down a Youtube rabbit hole. Sitting through that episode and the Youtube videos and laughing was one of the first times I felt like myself again. And here we are.

I have been a fan of Taylor Swift her whole career. There's a truth to her lyrics, a relatability to them, that feels so deeply personal and appropriate for this show and time in my life. Some of these episodes have been painful for me to watch and work through, and other episodes have brought me so much joy and comfort. Both of which are clearly reflected and linked to the lyrics chosen from Taylor's catalogue of work. I pulled from all of her eras, unreleased songs, covers she's done, collaborations she's been a part of, and songs she's written for other artists. The breadth of the material was, at times, overwhelming. There will also be touchstones to pop culture references that I feel would be in character and appropriate for the plots, as well as being accurate to the specific years of the show.

My plans for this are to be as true to the canon of the show as possble through the 8 seasons of episodes; while still taking creative liberties with season breaks, unseen moments in the show, and character details that are not fully fleshed out. Full disclosure now: This story will contain mature themes and some explicit chapters so the ratings on this will increase as time goes on. So, prepare yourselves and know that anyone under 18 should not be continuing through those chapters.'

I'd like to give a shoutout to the amazing group of people who have welcomed me into their company on the WTB Resource group. They have tolerated my questions and crazy posts and have had my back through a lot of this process of plotting and researching and writing. They have provided a vast database of information, wonderful support, and truly enjoyable banter that has helped to guide this journey.

This has been such a massive undertaking with insane amounts of work behind the scenes. There are excel pages, handwritten notes, printed articles and research that has been highlighted and read through and had notes scribbled all over them. Structured "conspiracy boards" of strung together random ideas, photo references, and several hundreds of dollars worth of Red Bulls have also been invested into this story. And through all of this, the person who has taken all of my random late night messages and calls and has fallen asleep in chairs watching episodes and listening to me rant and rave, is my partner in crime (the best friend I could have) Joy. Words don't even express the gratitude I feel for someone who is so unbelievably willing to follow my crazy ideas.

And the final dedication has to be to the amazing Tony Danza and Judith Light who will likely never see this but who are so phenomenally talented and have brought so many of us together. I am so grateful to them for saving me from some of my darkest days, and I am so honored to be a part of a community that, while small, is loyal. That being said, now seems like the time for this disclaimer of I own nothing that is going to be used here.

So enjoy… and be enchanted.