ABSTRACT
This chapter considers the evolution of the soundtracked book as it finds new methods of expression, distribution, and engagement in the digital era. As technological advancements have simplified (and made less costly) the process of combining print with audio, soundtracked fiction has proliferated—from CDs tucked inside book jackets to download codes and Spotify playlists. In addition, the digital revolution has not only broadly normalized multimedia but it has also served to connect readers in new ways, providing interactive platforms for discussion, exchange, and interpretive collaboration. This chapter begins, then, with punk icon Kathy Acker, whose embrace of online communities in the mid-1990s helped shape her soundtracked novel, Pussy, King of the Pirates (1996). The primary site considered in this chapter, however, is Mark Z. Danielewski’s House of Leaves (2000), which, together with Poe’s album Haunted (2000), arguably stands – even twenty years on – as the highwater mark of the form. Finally, the latter sections examine several twenty-first-century developments, including the rise of crossover fiction (i.e., soundtracked novels written by musicians) and the emergence of the streaming playlist as the primary format for soundtracking print.
