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Character playlists?
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Yes, and you are not crazy. I don't have formal character playlists created, but certain songs definitely make me think of my protagonist(s) and inspire me to write for them.
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I don't do playlists for characters, but I sometimes compile one to fit the era or the mood of the story. My personal favorite is the playlist I compiled for "Happy Clown Burger". I often imagine there is some kind of cheesy Muzak playing in the background, so I put together a playlist of mostly easy listening instrumentals from the '40s - '70s with stuff like Lawrence Welk, Al Hirt, Herb Alpert and Ray Conniff. And if that isn't trippy enough, I tossed in stuff like "Hocus Pocus" by Focus, "Mah Na Mah Na" and Duane Eddy.
I don't have playlists for my characters either, though it is an interesting idea. I do look for certain music to evoke certain emotions when I am writing scenes, particularly those painful ones where I need to, in a sense, identify with a character who has been crushed by life. (I wrote such a scene yesterday, in fact.) I don't often write those sad scenes, though it would seem to be the over-all effect of the book I am currently writing. (I'm mid-series of a Sci-Fi, and this is where I needed to cultivate enough trauma to carry more through the remainder of the series.)On the other hand, there are certain songs that feel like I intend my books to feel. And I will listen to them repeatedly while writing. For example, I listen to a lot of Two Steps from Hell, and in particular, the song "My Freedom" was very evocative of the feel I was trying to achieve with the first chapter in my current Novella Retrospect.
Dwayne wrote: "Missy wrote: "The character introductions thread made me think of this. Does anyone else have character playlists?"I don't do playlists for characters, but I sometimes compile one to fit the era ..."
Just read Happy Clown Burger 1, loved it! Thanks for the laughs. :)
Playlists no, but pretty much all of my characters have a "theme song" from mp3 list that represents them or something about them.
Joe wrote: "Playlists no, but pretty much all of my characters have a "theme song" from mp3 list that represents them or something about them."Oh, thank goodness. I thought I was the only one who assigned characters their own theme songs.
I also have a sad playlist that I used to help get in the right mindset for a really sad scene, and a couple of relationship playlists to remind me about how characters feel about each other (Taylor Swift helps a lot with those.)
Sia has been my muse, especially in book 2 when Azi was going through some things, and one of her new songs practically wrote one of the new characters in my next book. If anyone wants to make and share a playlist I think it'd be fun
Inspiration!
One of my favorite characters I created is a girl named Amy who deals with growing up and falling in love in the 1960s. I use songs by Priscilla Ahn, Scott Alan, and Ramin Karimloo to capture her emotions; like "Never Neverland (Fly Away) by Scott Alan or Eyes of a Child by Ramin which are songs about growing up and the power of imagination.
When I first started writing, I noticed I tended to certain songs for certain projects, and it just became a habit to create playlists for books/characters. Although there is overlap sometimes, I can see (maybe I should say hear?) a difference in overall character when I compare playlists. This is one I had unofficially for Independent Will.
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list...
Jesse, a major character, plays a guitar and banjo, so I wrote a song for him: Jonathan Ashton. The tune I am not sure of but it is probably blue-grass. It plays in the backroom of my mind when I write more Jesse
Here's one for Azi, my main protagonist:
http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=...
I listen to it when I need inspiration for her. There are times when I find the perfect song for a certain character and I get so excited! Anyone else, or am I crazy?