Finding your Voice

by Maria Geraci

As I write this, I have no idea who will be the winner of the new NBC show The Voice. I will say, that I have thoroughly enjoyed the show and really like all four of the finalists. But hands down for me, my favorite has been Dia Frampton, the beautiful, shy, folksy indie singer-songwriter who never fails to blow me away each week.

Dia doesn’t have the most powerful voice on the show. Or the biggest. But for me, it’s the voice I’ve most connected to. And that translates into the voice I’d most likely buy an album from. And as a matter of fact, I’ve already bought one of her songs. If you haven’t heard her rendition of Kanye West’s Heartless, run to go hear it. It’s absolutely fabulous.

I also love the fact that Dia wears flats on the show (sorry, Stiletto Gang!) She’s not a heels kind of girl. She’s not overly glamorous. She’s just her and that shines through in her music. And just like musicians and any other artists, as writers, we too, have to let ourselves be who we are. We have to let our voices shine.

Voice is often defined as that unique quality that you and only you alone possess. It’s your style. Your signature. It’s what makes readers connect to you. It’s your view of the world and how you present yourself to others. No one can teach you “voice.” It’s developed through frequent writing and letting one’s guard down. Stripping yourself of pride and ego and all the walls we put up to hide ourselves from others. Letting your voice shine through is scary. But we owe it to our readers and to ourselves to give them the very best of us. The real us.

FYI: Today, I’ll be over at Romance Divas (a free website for romance writers) doing a workshop called “Picking up your Sagging Middle.” I’m dissecting the novel The Hunger Games to figure out what made it such a page turner. The workshop is being held in the forums section of the website under Workshops and Conferences- NGTCC (Not Going to Conference Conference). Best part? It’s free!

Writing Schedules, Writing Setbacks

By Elizabeth S. Craig

Some days it’s tough to find time to write. But I really have to squeeze it in. I have an approach that works really well (except, well, when life happens):

The Set-Up—the Night Before:

I make a list of what I’m writing the next day. By no means can I call this list an outline because that messes with my head. 🙂 It’s just “a list.”

I make sure that there are no social media windows up and running when I close my laptop before going to bed.

I set the coffee maker to automatically start perking at 4:45 a.m.

That next morning:

I get up and start writing. No email, no social media. Just an hour of writing. Then I feel smugly successful all day!

Unless….

There’s a sick child.

There’s a sick dog or cat.

There is some horrible, unspeakable disaster awaiting me when I go downstairs.

Plan B!

For me, Plan B involves giving up on writing first thing, addressing whatever disaster has happened, then running away from home to find a suitable location for writing (i.e., a place that sells good coffee at an inexpensive rate). I will eat an egg, bacon, and grits and will consume about 4 cups of coffee…and write for an hour straight, at least. The waitresses, realizing my desperation, silently refill my coffee as I mutter to myself. I know no one there, nor am I likely to make friends, since I’m usually make-up free, haphazardly attired, and in disreputable flip flops. I tip well, knowing that I’m doomed to return and wanting my laptop and me to be welcomed back.

Unless…Plan B won’t work because there’s some place I have to be right after taking the carpools. (For you this could be work, for me it could be a dental appointment for a child or myself, the vet with the sick animal that put me on Plan B to begin with, etc.)

For that, I offer Plan C

The most important part of Plan C involves being prepared to write on the go. To implement Plan C, I’m armed with 4 x 6 notecards, pencils, and pens. At stoplights on the way to whatever thing messed up Plan B, I make notes on the tops of each notecard, detailing what scene, setting or character description, etc. will be on that card. During the day, I fill the cards with writing.

But then, some days… Even Plan C won’t work. These are truly wretched days when unexpected events leap out at you all day and wrestle the pen and paper right out of your hands.

So…you might have to get all the way to Plan Z (before Plan Zzz). Writing really late at night before turning in. This is when I call it quits after 15 minutes. If I’m not under a deadline, I might just give myself a free pass…a Get Out of Writing Free card. But I can’t do that very often because it’s ten times harder to get back into the manuscript (and meet deadlines.)

Do you have fallback plans for your writing? How often do you give yourself a Get Out of Writing Free card, or end up at Plan Z?

Elizabeth S. Craig
______________

Elizabeth’s latest book is, Finger Lickin’ Dead, released June 7th. Elizabeth writes the Memphis Barbeque series for Penguin/Berkley as Riley Adams and is featured at The Mystery Lovers Kitchen. She also writes the Southern Quilting mysteries (2012) for Penguin/NAL, and the Myrtle Clover series for Midnight Ink.

Blog: Mystery Writing is Murder

Twitter: @elizabethscraig

Why I Love Facebook

Families use Facebook to keep in touch, same with teenagers, and authors use it to let people know about their books.

I’ve heard some say they don’t understand Facebook or what the great attraction is–frankly I don’t understand those people.

Here’s why I love it. I have a huge family and many of them are on Facebook and I get to read what they’re doing and see their latest photos. One of my friends from grammar school found me on Facebook. She read about me making an appearance at a college near her home and she met me there and we had dinner together. Never would’ve happened without Facebook.

Someone who friended me on Facebook made comments after a lot of my posts so I became familiar with her face. When I was giving a talk at a bookstore in her town, she came and I recognized her face immediately. It was like greeting an old friend. Recently she told everyone at another talk that she loved having me for a friend on Facebook because I shared so much of what is going on in my life it made me seem like a “real person” not just a writer. (And she loves my books.)

Other readers I’ve met at mystery conferences have become my friends and I love reading about what they are up to–and the same with writers I’ve met in the same places. Especially since Mayhem in the Midlands was cancelled at least I can keep up with the authors and fans that I loved to hang out with.

I like it when people review movies they’ve seen–I rely on their feelings about the movie much more than any of the paid critics. Same with books, if someone I “know” really likes a book chances are I’ll like it too.

I like reading what other members of the Stiletto Gang are doing when they post on Facebook.

So, what are your feelings about Facebook? Love it or hate it? And why?

Marilyn
http://fictionforyou.com Books by Marilyn

Lori’s Book Sense

Lori's Reading Corner

Long Gone by Alafair Burke

After a layoff and months of struggling, Alice Humphrey finally lands her dream job managing a new art gallery in Manhattan’s trendy Meatpacking District.According to Drew Campbell, the well-suited corporate representative who hires her, the gallery is a passion project for its anonymous, wealthy, and eccentric owner. Drew assures Alice that the owner will be hands off, allowing her to run the gallery on her own. Her friends think it sounds too good to be true, but Alice sees a perfect opportunity to make a name for herself beyond the shadow of her famous father, an award-winning and controversial film maker. Everything is perfect until the morning Alice arrives at work to find the gallery gone—the space stripped bare as if it had never existed—and Drew Campbell’s dead body on the floor. Overnight, Alice’s dream job has vanished, and she finds herself at the center of police attention with nothing to prove her innocence. The phone number Drew gave her links back to a disposable phone.The artist whose work she displayed doesn’t seem to exist. And the dead man she claims is Drew has been identified as someone else.When police discover ties between the gallery and a missing girl, Alice knows she’s been set up. Now she has to prove it—a dangerous search for answers that will entangle her in a dark, high-tech criminal conspiracy and force her to unearth long-hidden secrets involving her own family… secrets that could cost Alice her life.

Long Gone is Alafair Burke’s first stand-alone thriller that it has no trouble standing on its own two feet. It grabs you from the get go right up until its stunning conclusion. Just when you think you have it all figured out, another twist knocks you around and you need to rethink your previous conclusions. Ms. Burke has an inherent talent for bringing her readers right into the pages of the book, making you feel as if you are living the story along with Alice and everyone she comes into contact with. Long Gone is an engaging read, with a new protagonist you’ll enjoy getting to know and who you will continually root for, an interesting supporting cast of characters, each with their own six-degrees-of-separation connection to the murderer,and a multifaceted plot that constantly surprises the reader. Without a doubt, Long Gone should be on every mystery reader’s must-read list. An engrossing thriller that can hold its own against any other in its genre. 

Kiss Me Kill Me by Allison Brennan

KISS THE GIRLS AND MAKE THEM DIE ….Lucy Kincaid has firsthand experience dealing with deadly criminal predators, and she’s fully prepared to share her many talents with the FBI. But when her career plans are derailed, her boyfriend, security expert Sean Rogan, asks for help on his latest private investigation. Using her well-honed cyber-hunting skills, Lucy is soon on the trail of a missing teenage girl with a penchant for disappearing—and a shocking secret life. FBI Agent Suzanne Madeaux is also tracking someone: a serial killer on the loose in New York City. Dubbed by the press the Cinderella Strangler, he cruises seamy underground sex parties, where drug-fueled women make for easy pickings. As Lucy and Sean’s desperate search collides with the FBI’s hunt, Lucy isn’t about to step aside. Haunted by painful memories of her own harrowing encounters with evil, she’s determined to keep any more innocents from meeting the fate she so narrowly escaped. Delving deep into the twisted psyche of a remorseless killer, Lucy must confront her own fears—even if it means risking a future job with the FBI and future happiness with Sean.

 One of the reasons I love Allison Brennan’s books so much is that she carries her characters over from book to book. While each trilogy may focus on one Kincaid or Rogan, all of the other family members are involved as well and you get to know their stories too as secondary characters. As you get to know each of these secondary characters you hope that Ms. Brennan will eventually give each of them the spotlight, give each their own book. She has done just that with this series (also see Love Me To Death). I love to see series that go on and on, book after book, and I love the way Ms. Brennan handles the Kincaid and Rogan families. The three-book arc gives us plenty of time to fall in love with each main character, to invest in their lives, without getting too sick of them. Characters that are not leads in one book are still mentioned, giving us a clue as to what they are up to now. Kiss Me, Kill Me is the perfect amount of romance mixed with the precise amount of suspense that come together to form one incredible romantic-suspense thriller. 

A Turn In The Road by Debbie Macomber 

In the middle of the year, in the middle of her life, Bethanne Hamlin takes a road trip with her daughter, Annie, and her former mother-in-law, Ruth.They’re driving to Florida for Ruth’s 50th high-school reunion. A longtime widow, Ruth would like to reconnect with Royce, the love of her teenage life. She’s heard he’s alone, too…and, well, she’s curious. Maybe even hopeful. Bethanne herself needs time to reï ¬ ‚ ect, to ponder a decision she has to make. Her ex-husband, Grant—her children’s father—wants to reconcile now that his second marriage has failed. Bethanne’s considering it….Meanwhile, Annie’s out to prove to her onetime boyfriend that she can live a brilliant life without him!So there they are, three women driving across America. They have their maps and their directions—but even the best-planned journey can take you to a turn in the road. Or lead you to an unexpected encounter—like the day Bethanne meets a man named Max who really is a hero on a Harley. That’s when Bethanne’s decision becomes a lot harder. Because Grant wants her back, but now there’s Max….From Seattle’s Blossom Street to the other end of the country, this is a trip that could change three women’s lives.

 A Turn in the Road is the story of three generations of women at a crossroads in their lives. Each one must take the road that will bring them to the place they want to be, the place that will bring them the happiness they so richly deserve. Can Ruth be forgiven for her past sin? Can Annie let go of a past love and make room in her heart for a new one? Will Bethanne choose between what is safe and familiar, or what she knows in her heart is her destiny? A Turn in the Road is touted as a “Blossom Street” book due to the fact that the main character is a part of the original books. As much as I enjoyed this book, and I fully understand the meaning behind the road trip, I wish it would have (or maybe future books will) taken us back to Blossom Street – literally. I would love to know, in more depth, how all of the other Blossom Street residents are doing, instead of the little snippets we get at the beginning of the book when Bethanne stops by A Good Yarn to pick up some yarn. The writing is strong, the story flows smoothly, and the characters could very well be your own mother, sister, or daughter. This is a beautiful story of good times spent with family, forgiveness, faith, and finding the love of your life no matter what age you are.

Until next month…….

Doing It Old School

by Maria Geraci

A few months ago while watching as I manually jotted down an important date into my calendar, a friend convinced me that I wasn’t taking full advantage of my iPhone.

What’s the use of having a smart phone if you’re not going to be smart about using it?” she said to me.

Gee, I guess you’re right,” I said back. She then showed me the Calendar function on my phone (which I was aware of, but I confess had not really explored much).

You just place all your appointments in the calendar and you’ll never miss anything again,” she said.

Maybe I should have had those words bronzed, because the fact is, my friends, as you have probably guessed by now, I’ve missed just about everything. And this is despite using the “alarm” function on the calendar. I’m a visual person, and by visual I mean I need to write something out and then look at it constantly for me to “get it.” I need a real calendar that tucks nicely into my purse that I can pop out to look at and I need to flip pages. I like my iPhone. But I don’t love it. I’ve had it for almost 4 years now and I think it’s awesome, but it’s not the be all and end all that a lot of people think it is. At least not for me.

Recently, I was hacked. All my email accounts, my Facebook account, even my website. It was my own fault really. I hadn’t changed my email password in years. I stored almost all my other passwords and important information in the Saved Mail portion of my email account. Pretty dumb, huh? All this happened while I was visiting my parents and had no Internet access. By the time I was able to get into my account and change my password 4 days had passed. Four days of someone else playing with my life (in not a pretty way). I now have all my important information printed out and saved in a real time file in a real time desk.

Yes, I think the Internet is pretty awesome, but you have to respect the awesomeness and protect yourself. It’s not enough to have a “smart” phone or a “smart” computer. You have to be smart too.

In Defense of Trees

or, Ah crap, just move already; I’m tired of emailing you and want to have coffee in person.
 
by Bethany Maines
So I’m trying to persuade my one-time college roommate, and old fiend The Hobo (not her real name), to pack up her stick and kerchief and move back to Washington State after graduate school.  The Hobo happily attends the illustriously ivy-league institute of Columbia.  That’s right, Columbia, the one in New York.  And I want her to move.  Leave.  Vamoose.  Exit that city stage right.  Yeah… I know what you’re thinking: my odds are not good. 
Manhattan has all night food delivery.  Museums on every block.  Night clubs that stay open till four in the morning.  Better zombie culture.  I’m not sure why that one’s important, but she seems to enjoy it, so who am I to argue?  Manhattan has street vendors, Broadway, fashion, and every movie that does’t blow up LA, blows up New York.  New York has EVERYTHING.
Washington has… trees.  Don’t get me wrong, we have a lot of trees.  And in a grudge match, I would bet on our trees against the trees of any other state in the Union.  (Does your state have Madrona trees?  Coniferous AND deciduous trees?  Rainforest and desert trees?  Yeah… didn’t think so.)  But let’s face it, trees and a fairly decent cultural scene are never going to stack up against New York, New York.
To put it another way, if New York were a man, he’d be Brad Pitt (occasionally the alcoholic, filthy Brad Pitt from Snatch, but still, Brad Pitt).  And if Washington were a man he’d be Jim Caviezel, the dude most well known for playing Jesus.  Just for the record, Jim Caviezel is adorable and was born in Mt. Vernon, Washington (Ok, yes, so was Glenn Beck, but there’s nothing we can do about that).  The problem is that nobody wants to date Jesus except for nuns.  Girls want date dangerous bad boys who make grand gestures.  They don’t want to have a fling with a steady guy who shows up on time and remembers your birthday.
But girls do marry those kind of guys. 
And here’s where I think I’ve got a shot.  As an established Washingtonian I’m in a position to introduce my old friend to Washington’s fun side, it’s sunny side, it’s side that already has connections in the field you want to work in and wouldn’t it be nice to get a job and settle down, not that I’m pressuring you, but you’re not getting any younger and your cat needs someplace larger to run around in than an itty-bitty studio on the Upper West Side. Not that I will be phrasing it that way.  I just want to point out, as subtly and subversively as possible, that the steady guy is worth a look.  Is that so wrong?
And also… we don’t have cockroaches.

This is What I was Doing and Where I was Doing It



This was the pond by our campsite

 


One of the many gorgeous scenic views in Sedona

Sedona is one of the most gorgeous places I’ve ever visited. Around every turn is a surprising and mouth-dropping vista.

Besides the book events I did, we traipsed all over and even took a Pink Jeep tour into the back country.

 One of the highlights of our trip was attending a cowboy dinner and show. The food was delicious and ample–and most surprising was the talent of the performers. I couldn’t help but wonder what they were doing in a small town like Cottonwood. 

Next week, I promise I’ll be back to normal–whatever that is.

Marilyn
  

 

A Mystery Writer Watches the Casey Anthony Murder Trial

A heart shaped sticker on a piece of duct tape is a vital clue in a murder mystery. Truth is stranger than fiction.

I’ve been watching and/or listening to the Casey Anthony murder trial on CNN via the computer

The good thing about the computer live feed is no commercials. No talking heads. Just what is actually happening in the courtroom. Without sounding unfeeling, I couldn’t help but think that the Casey Anthony trial has all the elements of a good mystery. At the same time, I can’t forget that an innocent child really is dead and her killer, may or may not pay for the crime.

When Court TV first premiered back in 1991, I was fascinated. I video-taped hearings so I could watch at night when I came home from work. Memorable hearings for me included: the Rebecca Schafer murder trial, a Denver bank robbery case, and of course the O.J. Simpson murder trial. I used to get so frustrated with the commercial interruptions and the hosts talking over the proceedings. Maybe I’m the exception, but I like hearing the “boring” parts. I’m interested in the process, in the objections, in the judge’s instructions. I always learn something new about evidence collection or the law in a certain jurisdiction.

For me a trial is structured much like a mystery novel. A crime occurs. It’s investigated. Evidence is gathered. Witnesses interviewed. Experts consulted. Suspects eliminated. Someone is arrested. And in most cases, unless there is a plea bargain, the matter goes to a hearing. The prosecutor sets out a plot and lays out a timeline, weaving in the evidence and testimony. The defense attorney does much the same while attacking the prosecutor’s theory of the crime. As a mystery writer I find the whole process as intriguing as a fiction – maybe more so.

Setting aside for a moment the real tragedy of this case, I viewed the main players in the courtroom as a cast of characters. The following are my opinions based on my viewing of the trial so far. As I write this the final witnesses for the prosecution are being called.

Casey Anthony is a young, narcissistic, unwed mother who has been proven to be a compulsive liar. She led a double life for more than two years since the birth of her daughter, Caylee.

Casey and Caylee lived with Casey’s parents, Cindy and George. Cindy was a nurse. George was a retired police officer, who worked part-time as a security guard. Casey has an older brother, Lee, who was not living in the home at the time of Caylee’s death. The family seems to have been enablers for Casey’s irresponsible lifestyle.

Casey pretended she worked at Universal Studios as an event planner. She pretended she had a babysitter, Zanny, for Caylee. At one point in June 2008, she and Caylee left the Anthony family home. After 31 days and many lies from her daughter about where her granddaughter was, Cindy Anthony reported Caylee missing.

Casey’s car had been abandoned and found with a terrible odor inside. Casey wove a tale of a kidnapping by the babysitter. The world searched for the missing child. In December Caylee’s body was found a few blocks from her home, wrapped in a Winnie the Pooh blanket, and duct tape with a heart-shaped sticker on her skull.

The prosecutor’s evidence:

  1. Casey lied to the police about her daughter’s disappearance.
  2. Casey lied to the police about her job.
  3. Casey lied to the police about the babysitter.
  4. Casey abandoned her car. When it was towed and later retrieved by George Anthony, the car reeked of decomposition.
  5. Coffin flies were detected in the car and on paper towels that when tested had adipose materials on them.
  6. A hair was found that matched Caylee’s and this hair showed root banding – a known phenomenon of hair from a decomposing body.
  7. Chloroform was found in the car’s trunk liner.
  8. An examination of the family computer revealed searches for “how to make chloroform.”
  9. Heart-shaped stickers were found in Casey’s room. A heart-shaped sticker was found with remains.
  10. Casey worked nights as a “shot girl” in a nightclub. No one knows for sure where Caylee was when she was supposed to be with the imaginary babysitter. Speculation is that she was locked in Casey’s car or car trunk – sleeping.
  11. The duct tape, baby blanket, and other items found with the body came from the Anthony house.
  12. After Casey was missing but before police were involved, Casey partied, got a tattoo, and generally did exactly what she wanted.

The defense’s evidence:

We don’t know yet. In the defense’s opening statement, Attorney Jose Baez claimed that Caylee drowned in the family swimming pool and the body was hidden by George Anthony, Casey’s father. Casey, he claimed was a victim of childhood sexual abuse and was too afraid to report the accidental death, fearing she would be blamed by the police and even more importantly, her mother. So in response, she lied about everything.

By the time you are reading this blog, the defense will be well on their way to presenting their case. As a mystery writer I can’t wait to find out what tale they’ll spin. As a human being, I can’t wait for justice for little Caylee.

Rhonda
aka The Southern Half of Evelyn David

Brianna Sullivan Mysteries – e-book series
I Try Not to Drive Past Cemeteries- KindleNookSmashwords
The Dog Days of Summer in Lottawatah- KindleNookSmashwords
The Holiday Spirit(s) of Lottawatah- KindleNookSmashwords
Undying Love in Lottawatah- KindleNookSmashwords

A Haunting in Lottawatah – KindleNookSmashwords

The Sullivan Investigation Series
Murder Drops the Ball (Spring 2011)
Murder Takes the Cake- PaperbackKindle
Murder Off the Books- PaperbackKindle
Riley Come Home (short story)- KindleNookSmashwords

Romances

Love Lessons – KindleNookSmashwords

Are You Ready to Rock? I Mean, Write!

I am fiercely right-brained and numbers-challenged enough not to have balanced my checkbook in twenty years, if ever.  There’s something about math that makes my mind go blank.  How I was ever a card-carrying member of Mu Alpha Theta—the honors math club—is a freakin’ mystery, right up there with Black Holes and Donald Trump’s hair.
Not surprisingly, I’ve always gravitated toward the arts, though my attempts at expressing myself with anything other than words were less than spectacular.  As an artist-wannabe, I drew hands well but never faces, dabbled in acrylics, and produced a metal sculpture that my sister incredibly assumed was made by our very talented architect uncle.  She dug it out of a box in Mom’s basement and admired it so much that she put it on display in her apartment only to have me exclaim, “Oh, God, that’s ‘diving boy’!  I did that in seventh grade!”  I was far more excited than she.
Despite my artistic failures, I’m still a huge fan of visual arts and often attend art fairs and festivals in St. Louis. When I’m not crazed on deadlines, I love to visit the Art Museum to see the latest exhibits and pine over their permanent collection (I heart Impressionists!). 
My right brain also adores the Symphony, as there’s nothing as glorious to the ears as a Mozart piano concerto or Yo-Yo Ma on the cello.  But my biggest love is ‘80s rock.  Despite my preference for clothes that actually cover my boobs and my butt, I am a closet rock ‘n’ roll chick. 
Before I met Ed, I would have dropped everything to be Def Leppard’s roadie.  Their music feeds something inside me like nothing else does.  A few notes of “Photograph” or “Promises” pushes all the right buttons and conjures up so many moments from my past, good and bad, falling in love, breaking-up, sad times, glory days.  I will never again hear “Pour Some Sugar On Me” without thinking of a trip to Nashville with the Deadly Divas where I cracked up Letha Albright by singing aloud in an elevator filled with musicians clutching guitar cases (and staring at me, agape, presumably horrified).
My iPod is full of my favorite ‘80s tunes, and I wear it religiously on the treadmill so I can hear Van Halen belt out “Dance the Night Away” or Night Ranger harmoniously “Sing Me Away.” Whenever Kansas’s “Point of No Return” or Rush’s “Fly By Night” comes up in the shuffle, I’m in heaven, if only for three and a half minutes at a time.
The first concert I ever attended was Billy Joel and a succession of my favorites followed (no, you’re not allowed to laugh):  The Cars, Journey, Styx, Rick Springfield, Tom Petty, Night Ranger, Kansas, Prince, Clapton, Bon Jovi, Jefferson Starship, and, of course, the Leps.  I have newer stuff on my iPod, too, (I love The Script, The Fray, Gavin DeGraw, and even some Katie Perry and Lady Gaga); but I always go back to my true love.  
It might surprise you to know that I don’t listen to music as I write.  It’s too distracting, and I’m too easily distracted already.  I have a rhythm in my head when I’m putting words on the page, so I keep the music off; though if you read my books you’ll always find music in them. When I’m not writing, there’s nothing I like more than turning on iTunes and singing at the top of my lungs. Okay, yes, and I dance, too, which freaks out the cats.
So what music do you listen to?  Do you play tunes while you write?  Has any piece of music ever influenced a storyline?  Inquiring minds want to know!

P.S.  Just for fun, my Little Black Dress video, which has very cool music (reminds me of the theme from Harry Potter!).  Take a peek!

 

And the Beat Goes On (aka, Our Favorite Music!)

Do you have a favorite tune that you can’t get out of your head?  Or a song that reminds you of something from the past?  A beat that, the moment you hear it, makes you get up and dance?  We do!  So we figured we’d share our best “pick-me-up” music with y’all, and see what you recommend.

Maggie:  Every one of my books has a soundtrack but they all have a common thread:  they are danceable.  So, if I’m stuck, I crank up a great dance song (usually Beyonce’s “Green Light”—it starts out “give it to mama,” which makes the kids laugh hysterically) and let my freak flag fly until I get inspiration.

Rhonda (Southern half of Evelyn David)One of my favorite songs is, “The Water is Wide” by James Taylor. I just think it’s a beautiful song and can listen to it over and over.

Marian (Northern half of Evelyn David)We’re great writing partners, but unlike Rhonda, I can’t listen to music when I’m working. I find it distracting—and goodness knows, I’m easily distracted and quite prone to procrastination. When I’m not writing, it’s show tunes and classical music that I enjoy and often inspire some great plotting for future mysteries.
Bethany:  Picking out THE ONE most inspiring song is too difficult for my brain – it tries to sort through the entire library of beloved songs all at once and then comes up with the default answer, which is “Maybe I should have some toast.” But one song that I distinctly remember inspiring me is “Love Song” by Sara Bareilles:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qi7Yh16dA0w.  It’s a clever little video and when it was brand new it got a lot of airplay on VH1. Along with the video, they frequently showed interview clips and in one Sara said that the song was actually about her record company who had demanded that she add a love song to album after it was complete. Since I was I was going through a rather difficult list of demands from my editor at the time, I really appreciated her way of giving the record company what they asked for without compromising her own vision. Interestingly, I only saw that interview clip once. Did someone at the record company have it pulled because it was unflattering to them? I’m going with yes.

Additional Bethany Playlist, should anyone be interested:

1.  Perhaps, Perhaps, Perhaps by Doris Day
2.  Mack the Knife by Bobby Darin
3.  Paint It Black by the Rolling Stones
4.  Paperback Writer by The Beatles
5.  The Rainbow Connection by The Muppets
6.  Mexico by Cake
7.  Rock DJ by Robbie Williams
8.  Paradise by Ana Serrano van der Laan
9.  Volcano by Damian Rice
10. Sour Times by Portishead

Susan:  I always, always turn to Def Leppard when I need a pick-me-up!  One of my favorite tunes of all-time (and I can picture the video with Joe Elliott in his fuzzy bear claw slippers at the end!) is “Armageddon It.” If you have never listened to the song before, you might say, “Whoa, sounds depressing!”  Not.  Think “Are you getting it,” which is really what the song’s about.  Yeah, and “it” can be whatever you want it to be (so far as I’m concerned!).  Just a really fun, fun song that gets me going.

Laura:  “Colour My World” has always brought tears to my eyes and made me… Okay, I just wanted to see if I could make anybody squirm.  Gosh, music. There’s a ton of it, but it’s all definitely mood oriented.  Every book ends up with its own playlist, songs I pick up along the way, some old, some new.  The Avett Brothers’ “Head Full of Doubt” was my anthem going into BEAUTIFUL DISASTER’s publication. Foreigner’s classic, “Jukebox Hero/One Guitar,” is the opening act for my latest effort.  That’s a no-brainer; the main character is a rock star. If a love scene needs more sizzle, I might take a walk, listening to Nickelback’s “Figured You Out.”  It just depends.

Maria:  I don’t write listening to music because I find it too much of a distraction, but I do pretty much everything else to the beat of a tune: brainstorming, showering, walking, housework, driving, you name it. My favorite artists are Rob Thomas, Colbie Caillat, Sara Bareilles, and Adele, to name a few. Right now I can’t get enough of Adele’s latest CD, 12. I think my favorite song from that track is “Turning Tables.” It’s so hauntingly beautiful!

Rachel:  I like “Unwritten” by Natasha Bedingfield. The lyrics appeal to me both as a writer and as a human work in progress. They suggest that a blank page or a new day can become whatever we choose. Everything we try may not work, but either way we can enjoy the freedom and creativity of sculpting what comes next for us.

So we want to know what music gets you up and moving???