Story Playlists

Penna and I both find it helpful to create playlists when we write a story. The selections act as a personal soundtrack. Some songs evoke the atmosphere of a story, while others depict the mood of a character or simply create a stimulating background to write. Music, just like a plot arc, can extend over several stories. Whenever I hear Crosby, Stills, and Nash, I'm transported back to Arkham. If I play Schubert, the plot bunnies for Klaus Mansfeld come out of hiding. I had Diana reference the process in the last chapter of Nocturne in Black and Gold when the top of her playlist for Cinereous Skies was "Run through the Jungle" by Creedence Clearwater Revival.

Occasionally we've managed to sneak some of the songs from our playlists into the actual stories. A character may sing a selection from the playlist or have a piece of music playing in the background. Concerts featuring music from our playlists have been part of the plots for Caffrey Flashback, Caffrey Disclosure, The Queen's Jewels, The Dreamer, and The Mirror.

In the case of Arkham Files which is set in 1975, I've scattered the songs into the stories to help convey a sense of the times. Like his New York counterpart, Arkham Neal sings and plays the guitar. He frequently goes to Dorian's Coffeehouse which is owned by his friend Jack, also a singer. When I wrote the first Arkham Files story, Visions from Beyond, "Sounds of Silence" and "I Am a Rock" by Simon and Garfunkel played in my head. They helped me relate to the loneliness and isolation Neal was experiencing in the beginning of the story. By the end of the story, thanks to Peter he was singing "With a Little Help from My Friends" by Joe Cocker. In the second story, when Neal discovered he carried an unknown chemical element, the lyrics about stardust in "Woodstock" seemed particularly appropriate. In Cinereous Skies, my playlist includes "Carry On" by Crosby, Stills, and Nash, "Blackbird" by the Beatles, "Vincent" ("Starry, Starry Night") by Don McLean, and "Bridge Over Troubled Water" by Simon and Garfunkel.

Neal and Peter sometimes reference songs from Arkham Files in the Caffrey Conversation stories. After Neal broke up with Fiona, he sang "Fire and Rain." That was Kate's favorite song in Arkham Files. In Nocturne in Black and Gold, it was New York Neal who sang "The Sounds of Silence" in the aftermath of a virtual trauma he'd experienced. In Nocturne in Black and Gold, Peter suggested to Diana that she include "Bridge over Troubled Water" in Cinereous Skies. Bridges now have a special meaning for Neal and Peter.

Diana used "Run through the Jungle" as her theme song for Cinereous Skies. The following is my list of theme songs.

Complications: "For What It's Worth" by Buffalo Springfield
The Golden Hen: "Glory Days" by Bruce Springsteen
The Woman in Blue: "One Less Traveled" by Jonae
The Queen's Jewels: "Bound for Botany Bay" by John Doyle
An Evening with Genji: "Up Up and Away" by The Fifth Dimension
The Dreamer: "Time of My Life" from Dirty Dancing
The Mirror: "Slip Slidin' Away" by Simon and Garfunkel
Visions from Beyond: "Sounds of Silence" by Simon and Garfunkel
Whispers in the Night: "Hot Blooded" by Foreigner
Raphael's Dragon: "Aquarius" by The Fifth Dimension
Witches Sabbath: "Bad Moon Rising" by Creedence Clearwater Revival
The Locked Room: "Woodstock" by Crosby, Stills, and Nash
Echoes of a Violin: "The Old Ways" by Lorena McKennitt
Fireflies at Midnight: "Fires at Midnight" by Blackmore's Night
The Crypt: "Hey Jude" by the Beatles
Nocturne in Black and Gold: "Nara" by E.S. Posthumus
Cinereous Skies: "Carry On" by Crosby, Stills, and Nash

And here's a peek at what I'm currently listening to for upcoming stories:

Dark Rabbit: "White Rabbit" by Grace Slick
Harlequin's Shadow: "Cowboys Pirates Musketeers" by Milow
Lion's Lair: "Anticipation" by Carly Simon
Night Howls on the Hudson: "Howling at the Moon" by Milow
The Musicians: "Wicked Game" by Chris Isaak


Related Posts:
Music in Caffrey Conversation
Klaus Always Loved the Classics

Cinereous Skies on Archive of Our Own
Cinereous Skies on FanFiction