Sweeter than Fiction

"Sweeter than Fiction" is a song by the American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift, who wrote and produced it with Jack Antonoff for the soundtrack to the 2013 film One Chance. It was released by Big Machine Records for digital download on October 21, 2013. An incorporation of bubblegum pop, synth-pop, and electropop, "Sweeter than Fiction" features elements of 1980s new wave. The track peaked in the top 40 on the singles charts of Canada, Ireland, Scotland, and the United States.

Critical reception of the song was generally positive, although retrospective opinions have regarded it as a lesser entry in Swift's discography. Some critics opined that "Sweeter than Fiction" was pivotal in shaping the musical collaboration between Swift and Antonoff on subsequent albums. Following the 2019 dispute over the ownership of Swift's back catalog, she re-recorded the song as "Sweeter than Fiction (Taylor's Version)" and included it in the physical Tangerine Edition of 1989 (Taylor's Version) (2023). Swift performed the song live for the first time, in a mash-up with "Holy Ground" at The Eras Tour on July 6, 2024 in Amsterdam.

Background and release
Taylor Swift was on the Red Tour to support her fourth studio album, Red, in 2013. Swift and her management at Big Machine Records wanted to release no new music in order build up anticipation for her next studio album. Upon watching the 2013 biographical film One Chance about Paul Potts, Swift insisted to the label that she "[had] to be a part of this", despite being told by her label, "No new music until the next album comes out."

She wrote and produced "Sweeter than Fiction" for the soundtrack of One Chance with Jack Antonoff. The song was conceived when she was also writing songs for her next album while on the Red Tour. In an interview with Taste of Country, Swift said that she viewed the film as a chronicling of a man's road to success and a recount of his wife's love for him, which inspired her to "tell a story musically from that perspective". Big Machine released "Sweeter than Fiction" to the iTunes Store on October 21, 2013.

Following a dispute with Big Machine Records in 2019 over the rights to the masters of her first six albums, including 1989, Swift announced her goal to re-record each of these albums. Product images on Target's website confirmed it as a bonus track on the Tangerine Edition LP of 1989 (Taylor's Version), which was released on October 27, 2023.

Composition
"Sweeter than Fiction" is 3 minutes and 54 seconds long. It is a bubblegum pop, synth-pop, and electropop song that contains influences of 1980s pop, rock, and new wave. The song is musically and lyrically upbeat, with Swift singing from the point of view of a longtime friend or fan who has always believed in a performer's talents. "There you'll stand, ten feet tall", Swift sings in the chorus, "and I will say, 'I knew it all along.'" It was written by Swift along with Jack Antonoff and is in the key of B major for its verses, switching to D-flat major for its choruses and the bridge. With Swift's vocal range between the octaves of F♯3 and D♭5. has a tempo of 135 beats per minute.

Critical reception
The song was well received by critics. Entertainment Weekly praised Swift's approach to the subject matter - "The track ... is uplifting without being hokey and sweet without being cloying." - and described the song as "addictive". Rachel Mcrady of US Weekly felt "Sweeter than Fiction" possessed "all the makings of another hit" in Swift's career. MTV blogger Jenna Hally Rubenstein summarised "Sweeter than Fiction" as "a masterfully crafted pop song that should do a killer job of soundtracking any and all uplifting moments in One Chance." Carl Williott of Idolator called the song "pretty great", saying "it's a ... sweet song, but the confident synth-pop/New Wave stylings keep it from being an overly saccharine affair, resultingly in a surprisingly bold offering from Swift." Spin editor Larry Busacca gave a more mixed review. Though deriding the song for being "[not] the least bit groundbreaking", Busacca did admit the song was "too catchy and effortless-sounding to resist." In a retrospective review, music journalist Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone called it a "warm-up for the synth-pop of 1989". In June 2022, Insider ranked "Sweeter than Fiction" as Swift's sixth best soundtrack song, calling it a "pivotal moment in Swiftian history" due to it being the first collaboration between Swift and Antonoff.

Awards and nominations
"Sweeter than Fiction" was nominated for Best Original Song at the 71st Golden Globe Awards. This was Swift's second consecutive nomination in the category, after "Safe & Sound" the previous year.

Commercial performance
"Sweeter than Fiction" debuted at number 34 on Billboard Hot 100, her forty-third top forty hit, thus tying with Aretha Franklin for the second-most Top Forty entries among women in the chart's history. It also Swift's fifth movie song to crack the Top Forty, following "Crazier" from Hannah Montana: The Movie which reached number 17 in 2009, "Today Was a Fairytale" from Valentine's Day which reached number 2 in 2010 and two songs from The Hunger Games: "Safe & Sound" with The Civil Wars which reached number 30 in 2012, and "Eyes Open" which reached number 19 in 2012. On Hot Digital Songs, "Sweeter than Fiction" entered at number 6 with 114,000 downloads sold. It is Swift's twenty-eighth song to reach the Top Ten of the Digital Songs chart, thus tying with Rihanna for the most Top Ten hits among all acts.