Was listening to music this morning and heard Breathe by Anna Nalick (which of course always reminds me of my Breathe). As a writer, I can relate to this part…
“2am and I’m still awake writing this song. If I get it all down on paper, it’s no longer inside me threatening the life it belongs to. And I feel like I’m naked in front of this crowd, cause these words are my diary screaming out loud. And I know that you’ll use them however you want to.”
– Breathe (2 AM) by Anna Nalick
From Yahoo! Music
“This week, Beyoncé worked her magic and did the impossible. She made Michelle Obama’s fight against childhood obesity look cooler and more fashionable than ever before. The pop chart diva revamped her 2007 hit ‘Get Me Bodied,’ and dubbed the new version ‘Move Your Body’ in support of the first lady’s ‘Let’s Move!’ healthy eating campaign.”
What a cool move. Go Beyoncé!
Finding yourself moved by your own writing can be a surreal experience, but I believe all writers should write with incredible passion for the story they are telling and pour as much of that as they can into every scene. If you can’t create a love story and characters that move you, then it’s less likely to have meaning for anyone else.
I was driving home from the grocery store the other day when an old song from the 80s that I hadn’t heard in a long time came on. Well, twenty seconds into it, and I had tears streaming down my face. All I could think about was Jay and Linc from Breathe.
I was reminded once again how much I love this story. Which was a nice feeling. After a book is released you tend to get some distance from it. You’re busy working on something else, and you take a step back from the previous story. You are no longer holding it as close to you as when you were writing it, and that may be a good thing. It’s out in the world and people are having their own experiences with it, their own reactions, which is both exciting and disconcerting at times.
This song reminded me how much I love this story, how much I wanted to take these two men and give them the possibility of a new life, a happy ending together despite all the odds against them. It also reminded me that forgiveness and love can be such positive influences in our lives.
So I sat there listening and crying, thinking about Jay and Lincoln. They felt like these real people who had been through something, and I had merely the pleasure of helping them find their way. Yeah, call me a nut. I love this job!
So here’s a live performance for the song that had me crying while sitting in my driveway the other day: “Against All Odds.”
Worked on editing a love scene in HOME AGAIN (my friends-to-lovers contemporary) yesterday. One of those scenes that are pivotal to the relationship and a character’s acceptance of his feelings. I have a playlist of songs I listen to when I want to get into the mood for certain types of sex scenes. Romantic vs. hard and fast vs. intensely emotional. This song fit yesterday’s scene. It’s an oldie but a goodie. “Have a Little Faith in Me.” Perfect for Kyle and Evan.
I recently downloaded an iPod app that rocks when it comes to my writing life. It has nothing to do with helping to organize my plots or character development. Nothing for keeping track of word count or character names. It’s not a fancy storyboard app or research app. It’s not a fancy app at all, really.
It plays white noise.
When I’m outlining or drafting a story I sometimes listen to music. Just so it’s not so quiet. But most of the time it ends up distracting and I have to turn it off. When I’m reading through a scene and revising I really can’t have distractions. Yet I have found the near silence of the rural area where I live almost too distracting. An entire day of that silence can be a bit much. Some background noise, the sound of a fan running or something constant like that is nice. It even helps me focus.
I had downloaded white noise and nature sounds on my laptop, which worked pretty good. Then someone mentioned the White Noise app from TMsoft. Now I can listen to various nature and white noise sounds on my iPod which also has a couple of other apps I use while writing (including a timer to keep track of my writing sessions). I’m even using White Noise to sleep at night.
There’s a running shower, a kitty cat purring, crickets and frogs (which I find annoying rather than soothing), waves, several types of rain, and more.
You can also create mixes. These are my two favorites for sleeping and writing.
I can even spend my day writing on a sailboat. Could be good to put me in the mood for a sailing romance. Do you think there’s enough room on that deck for some down and dirty action?
Here are a few more mixes.
I’ve got a ton of other apps that I love for the little things in my daily life, but I won’t bore you with the list. Just know, they all help to make life more efficient and give me more time for my writing. Speaking of…I’ve got two boys who were just about to hit the sheets.
Heading back into the writing cave.
Have a fab weekend!
Sloan