Yet More Musings
If you’re a fiction writer, you know how imperative it is for your characters to have feelings and emotions so that your audience will identify with them.
One of the techniques I use to help set the mood is listening to music. It doesn’t work for everybody–plenty of people say they find music distracting. I’m as guilty as anyone: I’m listening to my writing music right now, taking a break from outlining the first half of book 3 just so I can write this.
But that is how important music has become to my writing.
I keep a variety of my favorite music on-hand at all times. The first thing I like to do is find a “theme song” for the book I’m working on; lyrics that will speak to me while I’m creating and a melody that will first make me feel the emotions I want my characters to feel.
I have several “sets” of music ready to go, depending on what I need. Since I write middle-grade/young adult fiction, I especially like songs with some angst, but most often there’s just something about the song that will speak to me, causing me to lay those feelings on the shoulders of my characters and make them deal with it. It’s interesting sometimes to see the way music influences them!
For my book “Forever Young,” I got permission from the management to quote the lyrics from their song by the same name. This is the theme song of the book, giving my readers a taste of what the story will hold. The song brings me back to my own young teen days, and I look forward to sharing an old favorite with a new audience. I’ve also picked songs for “Rainbow” and “Book of Paine,” but will wait until I have the permissions of the artists before mentioning any names. 
You may not need a theme song, but you may find that you suddenly take your characters’ experiences more personally when you write with the music on.
I owe a great deal of gratitude to so many musicians for the way they’ve inspired the kids in my books. I always look forward to the next book, when I can shop for a new theme song and a set of music that will help make their story come alive…
As some people know, when I’m not at work, I spend my spare hours writing. For two years I’ve been working on a middle-grade/young adult fiction series, and after a slightly extended hiatus, I’ve finally got my groove back.
For me, editing is bliss. I had put down my third manuscript last summer to take a much needed vacation, then started working at LPI in the fall. When I stopped writing I was at the halfway point in book three, just recently picking up where I left off, namely by–you guessed it–editing.
Thanks to all my time away from it, perspective’s been 20/20. (Six months is a long time!) I’m glad I put the manuscript down for a while; I’m almost done editing the first half, then it’s back to the creative side again to set down the rest of the story…all so I can edit some more!
Though I have made a few queries for the book, I’ve been waiting to hear back from one publisher in particular. They’ve had the manuscript for over a year now, but I’m starting to see some light at the end of the tunnel. All I can do is hope that they see the same vision I do. And if they don’t? I’ve planned for that too. I’ll just keep writing more manuscripts until they realize I’m not going away.
The best part of all is that since I started working on the series again, more ideas have come flooding in. I’m actually going to start on a brand new idea before the other dozen or so books I’ve planned for. Yes, it’s true…the idea in question is that worth it. Women’s Open World Empowerment Movement. Wowem’s mission: “…created by and for Women who use or want to learn more about Free and Open Source Software, also called F/OSS, or OS, and sometimes Linux. F/OSS is the first successful, sustainable, community developed and owned software model that can provide new access to communication rights for people worldwide.” Take a look and get involved…..I’ve been working very hard on the third manuscript in my series, having almost reached the halfway point in writing the first draft. For related news, click…… I’ll probably make some publisher a whole lot of money, since the ideas are lined up and waiting to be written.
I’ve started the third manuscript in my middle-grade/young adult series. This one is called “Book of Paine,” and should be completed by October 2004. Visit the link shown in the news from March 14th for more details!
Can you believe MerlinMonroe.com turned 2 years old last month and I didn’t even write a message? Happy belated anniversary to me.
Remember when I mentioned all those life-altering experiences I had ahead? It’s my pleasure to reintroduce myself to you as Tabatha Marshall, having officially returned to my maiden name today. My deepest gratitude to God, my family and friends for all their hand-holding; you gave me the strength to insist on my terms and succeed.
With that done, I’m looking forward to spending more time on my fiction writing and volunteer work, while I continue to make this site a valuable resource for fellow writers…I still have many life-altering experiences ahead of me this year, all of which I am very excited about. I’ll continuously improve this web site and continue my work with the LDP and The Linux Counter. To all of you who visit my site and work with me in the Open Source community, and to the new friends I’ve made around the world, my sincerest gratitude - you ALL make this worthwhile….
If you are looking for author guidelines, check out Resources, Tools, Guidelines for Writing. Listings now include guidelines for Children, Non-fiction, Fiction, E-publishers and Poetry. Please note again that the majority of all my resources will open in new windows, and take you straight to the information you need, for your browsing convenience!
June 27, 2002
A couple of weeks ago, I threw in a short blurb about how I came to love writing, and what I’m all about. Today I’ve added another page to include my writing and editing services. If you need this type of work done, please have a look at my qualifications and these new sections by clicking on the “About Me” link.
I am putting the Guestbook and Forums on hold until I complete the Resources section. Once this is done, I will be moving to a PHP format which will allow me to insert these pieces and complete the web site. Thank you for your patience while I get this done!
The RDME Project (RPM Dependencies Made Easy) is growing! Details can be found by clicking on the “Projects” link. We anticipate the launch of the official web site this fall. Visit the link to the Sourceforge page and have a look at the mailing list archive if you’re interested in checking out our progress!
June 5, 2002
I’ve added a large list of associations open to people in the writing industry, including links for editing associations! Also new - publications for writers. Visit the “Resources” page and follow the link to “Guilds & Associations” or “Publications for Writers” for details…I am steadily getting content added to the site; my focus currently on adding resources. Soon I will be adding discussion forums for writers, as well as a feedback form. I will also continue to add projects or assignments that are fairly easy to get started with to my Projects page….I am steadily getting content added to the site; my focus currently on adding resources. Soon I will be adding discussion forums for writers, as well as a feedback form. I will also continue to add projects or assignments that are fairly easy to get started with to my Projects page.