So, I promised a teaser and a first look at the playlist for THE SCRIBE. Now, the majority of the music I listened to while writing this book was instrumental or atmospheric. Lots of Loreena McKennitt, Dead Can Dance, Sigur Ros. It was a very moody book, musically. So I tried to think of a song that really captured Ava and Malachi and how their relationship develops. It’s a little bit older, but I think I found it.
Bring Me To Life by Evanescence.
How can you see into my eyes like open doors? Leading you down into my core where I’ve become so numb Without a soul my spirit’s sleeping somewhere cold Until you find it there and lead it back home
Wake me up inside Wake me up inside Call my name and save me from the dark Bid my blood to run Before I come undone Save me from the nothing I’ve become
And here’s the video for the song, if you haven’t heard it:
After silence, that which comes nearest to expressing the inexpressible is music.
Aldous Huxley
So most of you know that I love music. A lot. A lot a lot. As in, I was a sobbing mess when I lost my playlists in my hard drive crash. (“But honey, we saved all the music!” “But…but…my playlists! How will I ever remember the exact order of my Lyle Lovett collection?”) As in, I still travel hundred of miles and drag my six-year-old along to go to music festivals. (He likes the contact high. Kidding! Mostly…) And music really inspires me in my writing. But I wanted to write a little here about how I actually use it as a writing tool and not just for fun.
While some people have set hours of the day that they write or a particular room that seems to make that creative energy flow, I do not. Nope. Most of the over half a million words I’ve written in the past couple of years have been written at my kitchen table.
Sometimes it’s quiet, most times I’m surrounded by the cacophony of an active household. Since my husband works from home, that means that at any time, I can have one small boy, one large man, and three loud dogs running around and barking. (They all bark, or at least it feels that way sometimes.)
The reason that music has become so essential to my writing isn’t just that it sounds cool, but because it allows me to focus. Before I sit down to start writing, I put together a playlist for a book. I listen to it while I brainstorm. I listen to it while I plot or time-line. Sometimes there are songs for each individual chapter, sometimes it’s a set for a character, but there is always a playlist, and I don’t change it much once I start writing. When that playlist starts, it immediately puts me in “writing mode,” no matter where I am. I might be at the kitchen table with one earphone in so I can make sure no one starts crying or bleeding, it might be at the library while my son is at judo, or at a coffee shop late at night, but whenever I hear that music, it allows me to focus my mind and brings me back into my characters’ universe.
This might not work for everyone, but it’s pretty effective for me, and it’s something that you might try in your own writing if writers’ block is an issue for you. Sometimes, all I need is the first few bars of a song to throw me into my character’s mind or body and then away I can go.
So if you don’t have a crystal cocoon to write in (and frankly, who does?) try a dedicated playlist! I save them all and go back to them when I’m editing, or just need to remind myself why I loved that book or piece of writing in the first place.
What do you think? How does music move or inspire you?
Thanks for reading,
Elizabeth
Below is the music video for one song that was instrumental (ha! I’m punny.) in the development of Giovanni Vecchio, the main character in A Hidden Fire, which will be out on Tuesday!
I’m sick of the dumb-as-dirt women I’m seeing on television lately. I don’t know these women. Most of my friends, even if they’re not Rhodes Scholars, are pretty savvy about their own lives. And I rarely see the grown women I know acting like high school drama queens. So I give you, R/W/L Smart Chick’s Edition. Enjoy.
I love opening a book and feeling like I’ve fallen into a really well-developed universe, and Kissed by Darkness is looking like a great read so far. Add in a kick-ass heroine with a quick wit, a great sense of humor, and a pair of nice boots? I’m sold. Plus, it’s set on the West Coast. Go Portland!
I’m only a few chapters in, but I’m already enjoying Morgan’s distinctive voice, the well-developed cast of supporting characters, and the intriguing premise. This is the first of the Sunwalker Saga, and if the first book is any indication, I’m going to enjoy digging into the second one, as well.
Kissed by Darkness is well-written and moves at a fast clip without seeming rushed. It’s adult paranormal fiction with a smart feel, a lot of humor, and a very appealing protagonist. Check it out!
Pet peeve? Giving a female protagonist in a series a smart, professional career, and then writing her like she was a bubble-headed teenager. (Ally McBeal? I’m looking at you.) Thing I love with hearts and flowers? Finding female characters in supposedly misogynistic environments that are smart, savvy, and fully developed.
Which is why I can recommend watching Sons of Anarchy, whose fourth season just premiered here in the U.S. Given the premise of the show, a drama surrounding a motorcycle club in Northern California, viewers might expect the show’s female characters to be window dressing, but they would be dead wrong. Katey Sagal won a Golden Globe last year for her portrayal of Gemma, the matriarch of the club, and why she didn’t win every other award out there, I don’t know.
These women are powerful, intelligent, diverse characters; and the writers on the show have a lot of respect for them. The male/female interaction is genuine and uncontrived. The relationships feel real. I cannot recommend it highly enough. It’s Shakespeare on Harleys, people. Check it out.
This listening pick has a lot to do with what I’m writing right now, which is the third Elementals book, and has some very East meets West themes. So I’m listening to a lot of this particular album while I write.
But, if you’ve never checked out Loreena McKennitt’s music, please get thee to iTunes or your local music store soon! This is folk/Celtic/world music that not only sounds great, but has a lot of depth. If you’ve ever read McKennitt’s liner notes, you know that she not only writes and performs, but she does a lot of research into the culture, folklore, and geography of the genres that inspire her. Your ears will thank you, as will your brain.
Check out “The Mummer’s Dance” from The Book of Secrets. And don’t forget, smart chicks rule.
ELIZABETH HUNTER 