writing is a fire
it burns in the blood
hold back the desire
and it becomes flood.
the voices they speak
they cry out to be heard
go away! – but i’m weak
and the ‘real world’ is blurred.
i’ll give in – just once!
tell your story tonight
the love, the adventure
the heartache and fright.
tomorrow i’ll wake
back in the mundane
and wonder if it isn’t
the ‘real world’ that’s insane.
all this time, I’ve just been too blind to understand
what should matter to me
my friend, this life we live it’s not what we have,
it’s what we believe
As I writer, sometimes I tend to see romance where it doesn’t overtly exist. This song is one of those that I will use to put me in the mood to read or write dark romance for many reasons, the lycis, the beauty of the video, and the themes it evokes, to name a few.
The story told in the video brought tears to my eyes the first time I saw it. A beautiful angel, played by Gabriel Nunez, does parkour across Cincinnati to save a young mother and her child from being hit by a truck at a streetlight. The video is wonderfully shot, using buildings, an angelic fountain, and a skywalk as the background for the stunts.
The idea that a guardian angel is watching out for us, that they would go to extraordinary lengths to protect us from harm, is very close to several themes that philosophers have struggled with as long as philosophy has existed. Where do we come from? Are we alone? Is there anyone out there who watches over us?
It isn’t hard for me to bring romance into this scenario. In my mind, the woman is a single mother, and the angel is her protector. He fell in love with her, but was busy being lectured by another angel until the last minute, when he realized she was in danger. Normally, he would have interfered to move the truck out of the way, or urge her into a different route, but because of the lack of time, he was forced to simply run in front of her car, showing himself.
You know where this story is going to go next, don’t you, lover of dark romance?
Yes, this is the beginning of a wonderful story where the angel is going to sacrifice his wings to live a human life, and she has to come to terms with feeling worthy of that sacrifice, just by being herself.
And no, she isn’t going to be hit by a car the next day for all of you naysayers. 😉 They are going to live happily ever after.
Well, whether you agree with my dark romance or not, this video is wonderful and if you haven’t seen it, you can find it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qpfhcljJ9bQ
there might be more than you believe
there might be more than you believe
there might be more than you can see
Written and Performed by 3 Doors Down
On the Album 3 Doors Down
arms wide open, i stand alone
i’m no hero, and i’m not made of stone
Today’s song is not a romance ballad…but I think if you look you will see that it is the inspiration for a lot of writers. This song, Wrong Side of Heaven, by Five Finger Death Punch, is intended to show to the plight of the veterans who have returned home with issues but aren’t receiving help.
Why do writers write? I suspect that it’s probably for the same reason that singers sing, and today I am going to share with you another way that songs can inspire me to write – that is, by bringing up an issue or problem that needs to be solved.
In the same way that they were inspired to sing this song, many romance writers have been inspired to write stories about veterans with issues, trying to give them the fictional ‘happily ever afters’ that so many of them desperately need. Three such stories I can think of immediately are:
It lightens my heart when artists try, in their own myriad ways, to bring attention to real world issues. If nothing else, it can help us open our hearts and minds to those who are suffering. A few science fiction romance novels I could recommend would be:
If you enjoy historical romance novels, I can recommend:
right or wrong, I can hardly tell,
i’m on the wrong side of heaven, but the righteous side of hell
Written and Performed by Five Finger Death Punch
on the album The Wrong Side of Heaven and the Righteous Side of Hell, Volume 1
you’re beautiful – you’re beautiful to me
don’t ever say you never lost your way
you’re beautiful today
and every day for the rest of your life
Last week, I mentioned that I often use music to get myself ‘into the mood’ for writing. One of the songs I used for my soon-to-be-released steampunk series is Beautiful, by Pop Evil.
This song is special to me because it communicates strongly and clearly that beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and that each of us is beautiful to someone. It really fit the series, because my hero, Cyrus, has bionic legs and a bionic eye from being involved in a mine explosion, and my heroine has been through her own battles working underground in a mine for five years. Neither of them feel beautiful, but each of them is beautiful to the other, and eventually comes to see that beauty in themselves.
Creating this type of feeling before writing is very important to me, because I want my characters to be beautiful despite their flaws, or perhaps because of their flaws. . I can only hope that my characters inspire the feelings of love and self-acceptance in the reader that this song inspired in me when I was writing.
And this idea doesn’t have to be relegated to the realm of fiction. I think it is important to remember that YOU are beautiful, flaws and all. In fact, your flaws are probably your greatest undiscovered assets. They make you unique, they give you obstacles, and they imbue you with character.
for the rest of your life
for the rest of your days
you feel it inside in every way
for the rest of your life
 “Beautiful”
Written by Leigh Kakaty, Davey Grahs, Johnny K & Shaun Michael Lichtenstein
Performed by Pop Evil on the Album Onyx
i’m in love with an angel
heaven forbid
made me a believer
with the touch of her skin
I often use music as a catalyst when I’m writing. The combination of lyrics and melody can instantly evoke powerful emotions and imagery in the listener…and since as an author I am trying to do the same in the mind of the reader, it helps me to get into that state of mind when I’m writing.
There are many songs which I consider to be almost akin to the musical version of romance novels. However, often people think of typically ‘pop’ songs in this category. I tend to like darker music, and heard this dark ballad, Angel, for the first time today on the local hard rock station.
I was instantly swept away by its power and beauty. To me, the lyrics read as a wonderful prologue to a dark, paranormal romance, where the man comes to the realization that he has to let go of the love of his life.
Perhaps not surprisingly, the video uses strong, romantic imagery typically seen on the covers of romance novels, a beautiful woman in a white gown walking through the forest, often superimposed with the image of the singer. She heals a white dove by whispering into its ear, and then succumbs to death herself.
Of course, as a science fiction romance author I believe that the song is begging for someone to pick up the story and detail what happens next. Does she rise from the dead? Does he arrive and bring her back with a kiss? Do they meet again, years later, in another life? The beauty of art is that it’s all up to your imagination.
you wanted a soldier, but it wasn’t me
because i could never set you free
so fly on your own
it’s time i let you go
Written by Herr Jager
Sung by Theory of a Deadman
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=thfpVOAC-y0
Aeon Igni 