Taylor Swift Draws Inspiration from “To Kill a Mockingbird”

On October 24, 2012, during a meet-and-greet with contest winners in Times Square, the renowned singer shared how a particular 1960 novel and another popular book series have significantly influenced her writing. “There was a book called To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee that really changed the way I looked at life,” she revealed. She continued, “After reading all the Hunger Games books, I was so sad that they were over. I wanted to read them over and over again.”

She went on to discuss the addictive nature of certain books and how talented writers craft lines at the end of chapters that compel readers to keep going. “A lot of books have a very addictive quality,” she said. “Many writers are really good at putting lines at the end of a chapter that make you wanna read the next one. That’s something I really admire about writers.”

This wasn’t the first time the celebrated singer mentioned the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel. In an earlier interview with Big Machine Label Group, she delved deeper into how To Kill a Mockingbird has shaped her songs and ignited her creativity. “You know, you hear storytelling like in Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird and it just…it makes your mind wander,” she explained. “It makes you feel like it makes your world more vast. And you think about more things and greater concepts after you read something like that.”

Source: Taste of Country