Dark YA Blogfest Week Three: Soundtrack

Good morning, everyone!

I was really looking forward to this week. I may not be terribly on top of things when it comes to the music scene (I rely on my more savvy friends to recommend things to me), but music is a huge part of my writing process. Sometimes I find music that's specific to characters and stories, but generally I stock up on mood music for writing different tones and genres. And as y'all might have guessed, I have a lot of horror-writing music!

So today, I am going to raid my playlist and put together an awesome soundtrack for you to listen to while you read stories of the creepy persuasion. And since I just read (and adored) ANNA DRESSED IN BLOOD, I should note that these songs make for a pretty good accompaniment!

(To learn more about the Dark YA Blogfest, go here!)

1. Howl - Florence and the Machine

I love the way this song escalates, especially with the drumming. There's a reason it's my HUNGRY GROUND theme song!

2. Haunted - Poe

I love Poe, and this song in particular is awesomely eerie. The disoriented feel makes it an especially good fit for Anna, what with the warped reality she has to deal with in the house.

3. Apres Moi - Regina Spektor

I just love the moodiness of this song, with all the deep piano notes, and the line "I'm not my own/it's not my choice." It's another great Anna song.

4. They - Jem

Another eerie, atmospheric song. The slightly off-kilter chanting in the background feels very haunted house to me!

5. Violet Hill - Coldplay

I felt like I had to get some dude singers on this list!  This is very different from their usual fare, and tonally I think it's a good match for the story.


Enjoy! And go read ANNA DRESSED IN BLOOD if you haven't already!

Music and writing

Wow! It appears that I have followers all of a sudden! Welcome, guys!

Sorry for the radio silence on this end. Had a fairly intense couple of days at work last week, but now I am on VACATION and everything is beautiful! I also got some good news on the submission front yesterday... not an offer, but definitely some interesting and exciting things ahead, and a lot to think about this week. I can't wait to tell you guys what pans out.

In the meantime, I thought I would post about one of my favorite aspects of brainstorming: the soundtrack. I love making playlists for my stories. Sometimes I have specific character and relationship songs, but they generally follow a feeling more than anything else. The Grandmaster Draw playlist was surreal and creepy, and The Hungry Ground playlist had some dark, moody songs and some fast-paced chase music. My current project... mostly steals from the 'surreal and creepy' playlist, actually, but since it takes place in Tokyo, I got to use a lot of Japanese pop, too.

But there's always one song that I can play on repeat for days while I brainstorm for a project - the unofficial theme song. My favorite project theme song from my Hungry Ground playlist: Howl, by Florence and the Machine

What's your project's theme song?