Monday, November 14, 2011

I need music to get me in the mood…

by Jessica E. Subject


Did I get your attention? So maybe it’s not what you’re thinking, but stick around.
Okay, I have a story idea in my head, maybe even on paper, and I’m about to start writing. But there’s one thing I have to do first:

MAKE A PLAYLIST!

Why? For me, the songs I chose evoke the same emotion in me that I wish to evoke in my readers during a specific scene. Sometimes I even have more than one song for a particular scene, as is the case with Unknown Futures (coming soon to Decadent’s 1 Night Stand series).
I go through my selection of music to chose the ideal songs, create a playlist on my phone and burn a CD with the same songs, to play while I’m driving. The playlist inspires me while I’m writing and keeps me motivated during the editing process.
Songs can enhance scenes of seduction, betrayal, discovery, and passion. When writing Never Gonna Let You Go, another science fiction romance coming soon to Decadent, I turned to one band in particular for inspiration: The Veronicas.
I love most pop and dance music – it gets my heart pumping and the ideas flowing. The Veronicas’ songs are no exception. Here are some of the songs by The Veronicas on my playlist for Never Gonna Let You Go:

Take Me On The Floor: http://youtu.be/jEiGbXvF_Rw

Untouched


All I Have, Goodbye To You, I Can’t Stay Away, I Could Get Used To This, This Is How It Feels

And now a question for you:
Readers – Do you chose the music you listen to based on your mood?
Authors – How do you chose the music on your playlist?

Bio:
Jessica Subject started writing to encourage her daughter to read. Now she writes to keep herself grounded. Although she reads many genres, she enjoys writing Science Fiction Romance the most and believes everyone in the universe deserves a happily ever after. She lives Southwestern Ontario, Canada with her husband and two kids and loves to hear from anyone who has enjoyed her stories. Her debut novella, Celestial Seduction is available from Decadent Publishing.

6 comments:

Liz said...

nice post Jessica. You'll see my choices next Monday but I will admit I have a couple of set Pandora stations I have trained for either a sexy or a romantic mood...all of them filled with a mix of Avett Bros, Foo Fighters, Cake, Sheryl Crow, and a little NIN for fun.
Liz

JoAnne Kenrick said...

Ohhhh flashback :) I haven't heard any tunes from The Veronicas since we left Oz...inspired me to go a few CDs hehe
My daughter used to be nuts on them!!

As for how I choose my playlist, well, Spotify is highly useful for seeking out and making a playlist. And i usually know where to go looking, in which genre or what band, but sometimes I'll find a hidden treasure that I've not heard before, or had long forgotten.
Music rocks when writing, you're so right when you say it invokes emotions. Songs also bring out memories and feelings we have that are attached to certain songs, which is definitely a huge help when trying to ' get in the mood' for a certain scene.
Great post, Jessica!

Casea Major said...

Jessica - Music is a primary source for my inspiration. Every story I've ever written has a playlist. But yes - sometimes I feel like a kid listening to the same song over and over to ingrain the emotion in me I want to evoke.

Great Post.

Kaye Manro said...

Hi Jessica! At one time I used music more and had an interesting playlist-- for example when working on my TT Medieval stories I would listen to music such as Blackmore's Night, Celtic music, etc.

Most of my work is SF/R so I have to search it out. I'm rather inspired by watching SF episodes and movies while going to sleep too.

Jessica E. Subject said...

Thanks everyone for stopping in! :)

Liz - Oh, I can't wait to see your playlists! :)

JoAnne - Spotify isn't available in Canada yet. :( But I do have a large collection of songs I've downloaded that range in emotion.

Casea - I listen to them over and over too. I can't tell you how many times I've listened to Katy Perry's ET when writing some scifi romance stories. :)

Kaye - Yes, I watch scifi movies as well. Helps to get in the right frame of mind.

Unknown said...

LOL! Nice header there hon LOL! I agree, a great music playlist helps a lot when writing. Even when I am writing reviews, I need music playing that helps me think of certain scenes and actually help with my memory a bit. Weird, but it works. I really enjoy the Veronicas, great choice there hon. You should add Puscifer's "Rev 20:22". That is one sexy song. Great post hon, thank you so much :)