For every writer, there’s a unique recipe for inspiration. The right conditions come together to somehow feed the story in the mind. Some authors dream scenes while sleeping, others glean ideas from movies they’ve watched or books they’ve read. For many, one of the biggest sources of inspiration comes from music. All these elements have come into play for my own writing, but music has had the biggest influence on the ideas flowing onto my laptop screen.
There are many authors who share novel playlists publicly. Stephenie Meyer includes her playlists for the Twilight novels right on her web site. I can remember reading Melissa Marr’s Wicked Lovely and being surprised to see her novel’s playlist printed right in the back of the book, amazed to discover I wasn’t the only one to build these! 8tracks.com even has a collection of novel playlists which allow you click on the list and play the all the songs included.
I’ve read blog posts by authors who use playlists, and many have a list of songs they place on shuffle and listen to while writing. Some even suggest listening to this list when not writing, to start the flow of future ideas. I’m all for listening to a complete list during times don’t have my work in front of me. This exercise takes the mind back to the creative space, and who knows what may emerge, even when not ‘officially‘ writing. But, when I sit down with the sole intent of working on one of my novels, I practice a method my husband thinks is a little crazy.
Each of my chapters has its own song, on rare occasions, more than one. It’s a must I have a song in place to set the mood for the action in the scene I’m writing. And…I listen to that song over and over, for the whole duration that chapter or scene is being written. I just can’t listen to anything else; it breaks the mood for me. When the scene shifts, sometimes within a chapter, it’s time for a new song. If I don’t change the tune to fit the text, it can kill the flow of ideas for me, the song so completely becomes a part of the world I step into and try to recreate on my screen.
Playlists not only help me create stories, but the playlists I’ve discovered by other authors have turned me on to a wealth of great new songs and artists. Before I read the Twilight playlist, I’d never heard of the band Muse. Now I certainly can’t imagine my life without them! Looking for the perfect chapter song is another way I’ve discovered some great new music. Sometimes I don’t have a song in my collection that fits the next scene, so I go hunting. One method I use to find that perfect song has been to Google the word lyrics, along with a phrase that describes the emotional feel of the chapter or section. One of my typical searches may be something like: “lyrics nightmare world” or “lyrics heart on fire.” I’ve found a lot of fine music this way, and discovered some of my other favorite bands like Anberlin and The Spill Canvas.
Now, without further ado, I’ll share my, personal playlist for my novel, Rising Tide: Dark Innocence:
Playlist for Rising Tide: Dark Innocence:
Chapter 1 – “Born Like This” by Three Days Grace
Chapter 2 – “Popular” by The Veronicas & “One of a Kind” by Placebo”
Chapter 3 – “Be My Escape” by Reliant K
Chapter 4 – “Saved” by The Spill Canvas
Chapter 5 – “Broken” by Seether & Amy Lee & “Trouble” by Coldplay
Chapter 6 – “You Make Me Smile” by Blue October
Chapter 7 – “Ordinary Day” by Vanessa Carlton
Chapter 8 – “Vampire” by Antsy Pantsy & “Learn You Inside Out” by Lighthouse
Chapter 9 – “Losing You” by Dead by April & “Lies” by Evanescence
Chapter 10 – “That Song” by Big Wreck & “Bleed (I Must be Dreaming)” by Evanescence
Chapter 11 – “Conspiracy” by Paramore
Chapter 12 – “Fever Dreams” by Dashboard Confessional & “Life on Earth” by Band of Horses & “Almost Lover” by A Fine Frenzy
Chapter 13 – “One Year Six Months” by Yellowcard
Chapter 14 – “Lovesick Mistake” by Erin McCarley
Chapter 15 – “Bleeding Heart” by Acceptance
Chapter 16 – “Hurt Me” by Aiden
Chapter 17 – “All I Ever Wanted” by Adrian Lux
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Rising Tide will sink it’s teeth into you, keeping you awake into the wee hours of the night
Maura’s life just can’t get any worse…or can it?
Isolated and sheltered by her lonely mother, Maura’s never been the best at making friends. Unusually pale with a disease-like aversion to the sun, she seems to drive her classmates away, but why?
Even her own father deserted her, and her mother, before Maura was born. Bizarre physical changes her mother seems hell bent on ignoring, drive Maura to fear for her own life. And her luck just seems to get worse.
Life is about to become even more bewildering when her mother’s abrupt…and unexplained…decision to move a country away sets off a chain of events that will change Maura forever. A cruel prank turned deadly, the discovery of love and friendship….and its loss, as well as a web of her own mother’s lies, become obstacles in Maura’s desperate search for a truth she was never prepared to uncover.
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Genre – YA Paranormal Romance
Rating – PG
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