Before I delve into this week's blog post proper, I have some amazing news: the official results of Metamorph Publishing's Summer Indie Book Awards are in! I'm proud to announce that From the Desk of Buster Heywood ultimately won 2nd place in the Thriller category! My sincere thanks to each and every one of you who voted ... I couldn't have done it without you!
Music is always an integral part of my writing ... I construct a soundtrack for each novel as I go along, with a little help from music cloud sites like Pandora and Google Play. They help me set a mood, and then as I refine the novel, I also refine the list, choosing songs to fit characters and scenes. Last year, I shared my list for From the Desk of Buster Heywood, so it seemed only fitting to celebrate In The Cards' release with its own soundtrack. If you haven't yet grabbed a copy, it's $0.99 on Kindle until September 25th! The reviews on Amazon are already phenomenal... but you're here for the music. Go ahead, punch play and follow along ...
1. Fall Out Boy - Fourth of July
This is one of my favorite songs for Ral, and his failed relationship with Natalie. He can't deny that he's still attracted to her, and there are a lot of regrets ... but there's a lot of anger surrounding how it all ended, too.
2. Nina Gordon - Horses In The City
A great, lovely, lonely song that captures Beatrice's mood on her first few weeks in Aviario perfectly.
3. The Bangles - Walk Like An Egyptian
This has been June's theme for many, many years, ever since I came up with the concept of a perky goth with a love for all things 1980s. It's what's playing in the Balefires the first time Beatrice sets foot inside.
4. John Mellencamp - Small Town
This is the Weldyns' theme, and the perfect music for writing Ral's visit to their house for dinner and conversation. I have always had this song as part of a generic Aviario playlist, and it's likely to stay there.
5. Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds - Messiah Ward
The Bad Seeds are my go-to music for writing Dr. Feistus in any stripe, but this serves his therapy sessions with Troy almost too well.
6. Oingo Boingo - No One Lives Forever (Live, Farewell Tour)
Dr. Jon Knight is filled, heart and soul, with the essence of Danny Elfman in the '80s. It's only fitting that this is what he's rocking out to when Sam comes to visit him in the morgue.
7. Peter Gabriel - Sky Blue
I had this song on loop while writing Beatrice's visit to Louise's house. For me, it has always been a song connected with magic and serenity.
8. Christophe Beck - Suite from Restless
Ral's nightmare about his initiation was inspired by this piece from Buffy: The Vampire Slayer, and as such it was constantly playing as I wrote. It captures the sacred, ancient nature of the ritual along with the frenzied, wild panic which ensues as it all begins to go wrong.
9. Rasputina - The Olde Headboard
Melora Creager's violin-infused goth rock is my go-to music for writing Natalie ... her signature tune is "Things That I'm Gonna Do", but this one seemed to fit a little more with what happens to her during In The Cards. I put this one on while writing her breakfast date with Ral at Somethin' Brewin'.
10. Peter Gabriel - Cloudless
A song without words for the loss of a lovely character.
11. John Fogerty - Premonition
I was at a loss for any music for Troy until I heard this gem. It has a rustic soul like Troy's, and ties down into everything that's plaguing him by the time the plot really begins to gain ground.
12. Collective Soul - Where The River Flows
I wrote Troy's premonition at the bank of the Housatonic to Peter Gabriel's "Red Rain", but Pandora fed me this song one day while I was editing, and it seemed so much more gritty and visceral. (Besides, this was already a pretty Gabriel-heavy soundtrack.)
13. Florence & the Machine - Shake It Out
Ral lets go of his hang-ups, and it's about damn time.
14. Team Fat - Funky Tubes
What better music for the novel's final confrontation than a piece from something that inspired it all?
15. Cher - Heart of Stone
Just because Ral's decided what's best doesn't mean he's happy about it. I wrote his visit to St. Dymphna's with this playing ... in fact, it was the very first song I ever chose for him.
16. MGMT - Kids
As all-out terrifying and trippy as the video for this song may be, its bouncy, upbeat tune is a perfect match for the Fire Gang's gathering at Madie's in the final chapter.
17. The Rolling Stones - You Can't Always Get What You Want
It may be a little cliche, as final songs go, but I can't think of a better fit for Troy's last few moments on the page ... and for the man who sets him on the next branch of his path.
BONUS: Linkin Park - Waiting For The End
Heart of Stone may have been Ral's first song, but this was the song that helped me really get under his skin and connect with him. It got me through a very difficult part of my life, and I tapped into that to find his feelings and his thoughts about his uncle, Duncan. I'd be doing both of us a disservice if I didn't give it some form of mention.
That's all for this week, folks! I hope you enjoy the soundtrack and will come back next week, when I'll have a review of indie author L.M. Bryski's spectacular debut novel, Book of Birds! Until then, I remain your hostess,
This is one of my favorite songs for Ral, and his failed relationship with Natalie. He can't deny that he's still attracted to her, and there are a lot of regrets ... but there's a lot of anger surrounding how it all ended, too.
2. Nina Gordon - Horses In The City
A great, lovely, lonely song that captures Beatrice's mood on her first few weeks in Aviario perfectly.
3. The Bangles - Walk Like An Egyptian
This has been June's theme for many, many years, ever since I came up with the concept of a perky goth with a love for all things 1980s. It's what's playing in the Balefires the first time Beatrice sets foot inside.
4. John Mellencamp - Small Town
This is the Weldyns' theme, and the perfect music for writing Ral's visit to their house for dinner and conversation. I have always had this song as part of a generic Aviario playlist, and it's likely to stay there.
5. Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds - Messiah Ward
The Bad Seeds are my go-to music for writing Dr. Feistus in any stripe, but this serves his therapy sessions with Troy almost too well.
6. Oingo Boingo - No One Lives Forever (Live, Farewell Tour)
Dr. Jon Knight is filled, heart and soul, with the essence of Danny Elfman in the '80s. It's only fitting that this is what he's rocking out to when Sam comes to visit him in the morgue.
7. Peter Gabriel - Sky Blue
I had this song on loop while writing Beatrice's visit to Louise's house. For me, it has always been a song connected with magic and serenity.
8. Christophe Beck - Suite from Restless
Ral's nightmare about his initiation was inspired by this piece from Buffy: The Vampire Slayer, and as such it was constantly playing as I wrote. It captures the sacred, ancient nature of the ritual along with the frenzied, wild panic which ensues as it all begins to go wrong.
9. Rasputina - The Olde Headboard
Melora Creager's violin-infused goth rock is my go-to music for writing Natalie ... her signature tune is "Things That I'm Gonna Do", but this one seemed to fit a little more with what happens to her during In The Cards. I put this one on while writing her breakfast date with Ral at Somethin' Brewin'.
10. Peter Gabriel - Cloudless
A song without words for the loss of a lovely character.
11. John Fogerty - Premonition
I was at a loss for any music for Troy until I heard this gem. It has a rustic soul like Troy's, and ties down into everything that's plaguing him by the time the plot really begins to gain ground.
12. Collective Soul - Where The River Flows
I wrote Troy's premonition at the bank of the Housatonic to Peter Gabriel's "Red Rain", but Pandora fed me this song one day while I was editing, and it seemed so much more gritty and visceral. (Besides, this was already a pretty Gabriel-heavy soundtrack.)
13. Florence & the Machine - Shake It Out
Ral lets go of his hang-ups, and it's about damn time.
14. Team Fat - Funky Tubes
What better music for the novel's final confrontation than a piece from something that inspired it all?
15. Cher - Heart of Stone
Just because Ral's decided what's best doesn't mean he's happy about it. I wrote his visit to St. Dymphna's with this playing ... in fact, it was the very first song I ever chose for him.
16. MGMT - Kids
As all-out terrifying and trippy as the video for this song may be, its bouncy, upbeat tune is a perfect match for the Fire Gang's gathering at Madie's in the final chapter.
17. The Rolling Stones - You Can't Always Get What You Want
It may be a little cliche, as final songs go, but I can't think of a better fit for Troy's last few moments on the page ... and for the man who sets him on the next branch of his path.
BONUS: Linkin Park - Waiting For The End
Heart of Stone may have been Ral's first song, but this was the song that helped me really get under his skin and connect with him. It got me through a very difficult part of my life, and I tapped into that to find his feelings and his thoughts about his uncle, Duncan. I'd be doing both of us a disservice if I didn't give it some form of mention.
That's all for this week, folks! I hope you enjoy the soundtrack and will come back next week, when I'll have a review of indie author L.M. Bryski's spectacular debut novel, Book of Birds! Until then, I remain your hostess,
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