Good morning, Readers!
This has nothing to do with today's post, I just really love this image by deviantart.com user NTGreen. Click the image to see more of their awesome work.
Those of you who know me, know that music has an enormous effect on me. It really doesn't matter the genre of the music, if it's good, it'll transport me somewhere else, and set my imagination on fire.
A lot of the time, the music I listen to will help set the mood for something I'm writing, or inform a character or scene. I can't help it. Music translates to images in my head, which I turn into writing. I thought that today, I might go through some songs with you, and explain how they relate to my writing or characters, or even the scenes they evoke.
This is by no means a comprehensive list. Not all of my books or my characters will be included. We'd be here for the rest of my life if I even attempted it. So, it's just a few of my more recent works, only one of which, I now realise, is actually published.
I'm going to start with the published book. Specifically, the protagonist of that book.
A lot of the time, the music I listen to will help set the mood for something I'm writing, or inform a character or scene. I can't help it. Music translates to images in my head, which I turn into writing. I thought that today, I might go through some songs with you, and explain how they relate to my writing or characters, or even the scenes they evoke.
This is by no means a comprehensive list. Not all of my books or my characters will be included. We'd be here for the rest of my life if I even attempted it. So, it's just a few of my more recent works, only one of which, I now realise, is actually published.
I'm going to start with the published book. Specifically, the protagonist of that book.
Aleksandar Svetoslav - Human
Aleksandar actually has two songs, neither of them particularly happy (surprise).
I love this particular cover of Paint it Black. This song is basically Aleksandar's background mood. As a young man, he was saved by the man who would become the Tsar of Bulgaria, Theodore Svetoslav. In the time between his rescue, and Theodore's ascension to the Bulgarian throne, Aleksandar falls in love. His devotion to Theodore is complete.
Theodore's adoration is... less so (for the record, Aleksandar's pureness, even after he is turned, grates on Theodore, who is both enthralled and irritated by it).
Their love affair, spanning hundreds of years, is rocky to say the least, but Aleksandar never strays.
It ends abruptly, when Theodore is assassinated by another vampire clan.
The loss very nearly destroys Aleksandar, and the only reason he has not cast himself on a bonfire is a promise he made to the man he loved—to keep their clan safe. For hundreds of years, there is no colour in Aleksandar's world.
Then he meets Alicia.
The second song that instantly makes me think of Aleksandar is this:
Theodore's adoration is... less so (for the record, Aleksandar's pureness, even after he is turned, grates on Theodore, who is both enthralled and irritated by it).
Their love affair, spanning hundreds of years, is rocky to say the least, but Aleksandar never strays.
It ends abruptly, when Theodore is assassinated by another vampire clan.
The loss very nearly destroys Aleksandar, and the only reason he has not cast himself on a bonfire is a promise he made to the man he loved—to keep their clan safe. For hundreds of years, there is no colour in Aleksandar's world.
Then he meets Alicia.
The second song that instantly makes me think of Aleksandar is this:
This song is both melancholic and intense. I feel like this is Aleksandar after he meets Alicia... before everything goes to shit. It speaks to me of Aleksandar's crushing loneliness, the spark of life Alicia injects into that dark world, and how desperately Aleksandar clings to that, however subtly (from the lyrics "Help me make the most of freedom, and of pleasure.").
Alicia becomes the only good thing as Aleksandar's world crumbles around him. The lyrics evoke the most literal images in my head of Aleksander and his character. While Paint it Black is Aleksandar's mood before the events of the book take off, this song is the most accurate representation of the Aleksandar we meet in Human.
Alicia becomes the only good thing as Aleksandar's world crumbles around him. The lyrics evoke the most literal images in my head of Aleksander and his character. While Paint it Black is Aleksandar's mood before the events of the book take off, this song is the most accurate representation of the Aleksandar we meet in Human.
Dark Wolf - Outworlder, Avalon Book One
Dark wolf is the protagonist of my current work in progress. It's currently called Outworlder, but the title will likely change. Dark Wolf is one of the two last remaining pure-blood Fomori in existence. The other is her twin brother, Storm Crow.
Dark Wolf is a tough warrior, who has spent most of her life at war, and witnessed a great deal of grief. She's stubborn, brilliant, aloof, and has a temper.
I don't want to give too much away about this, since it isn't published (or quite finished). But I can tell you that this song describes her completely:
Dark Wolf is a tough warrior, who has spent most of her life at war, and witnessed a great deal of grief. She's stubborn, brilliant, aloof, and has a temper.
I don't want to give too much away about this, since it isn't published (or quite finished). But I can tell you that this song describes her completely:
Commander Skye and the Tahorah - Skylark
This song doesn't describe any one character from the as-yet unpublished Skylark. But it is emblematic of the bond between Commander Bennejin Skye and the Tahorah of the alien invaders (Tahorah means queen, more or less).
I think this song is a masterpiece, by the way, but what connects this masterpiece to Skye and the Tahorah. The melody is light, and so, so endearingly sweet. The brass section intensifies and ennobles the piece, mimicking what the love Skye has for the Tahorah does to the commander. And then the key change and crescendo of the music... the whole score is sheer brilliance.
When I listen to it, all I can see is Skye and the Tahorah, standing in front of a window provides a sweeping view of space, holding each other.
I love the song and the image it evokes so, so, so damned much.
And that's some small insight into my brain, and how deeply music affects my imagination. What about you? What songs remind you of your favourite characters or literary moments. Sound off in the comments below.
Now I have to go write more.
Ciao!
I think this song is a masterpiece, by the way, but what connects this masterpiece to Skye and the Tahorah. The melody is light, and so, so endearingly sweet. The brass section intensifies and ennobles the piece, mimicking what the love Skye has for the Tahorah does to the commander. And then the key change and crescendo of the music... the whole score is sheer brilliance.
When I listen to it, all I can see is Skye and the Tahorah, standing in front of a window provides a sweeping view of space, holding each other.
I love the song and the image it evokes so, so, so damned much.
And that's some small insight into my brain, and how deeply music affects my imagination. What about you? What songs remind you of your favourite characters or literary moments. Sound off in the comments below.
Now I have to go write more.
Ciao!
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