When I was writing You Spin Me Round, I sat in coffee shops  listening to music on my mp3 player.  Sometimes I would enjoy the music selected by the baristas; but, mostly I was my own DJ.

Music drenched my creative process with style and vibe and rhythm.  At times when I felt apathetic about the writing process, I would put on The Gossip or The Clash or Sleator Kinney and think about my characters.

Spin needs a soundtrack.  Music is on in the background and becomes the house that Spin resides in.  Authors are making book trailers now, just like movies.  I want a soundtrack for Spin. When I was almost complete and needing motivation to finish the first draft and start thinking about revision, I actually made a 3 disc Spin mix.  I made a fourth disc which was a sampling of the 3 discs and would play that while I worked the cash register at Powell’s on Hawthorne, which is where I worked for a year while writing this novel.  One of the songs on that mix is You Sexy Thing by Hot Chocolate.  Good god that’s a good song and boy did it inspire comments from coworkers and customers alike.  It’s the pull of a song, even a forgotten gem like You Sexy Thing that can evoke so many powerful emotions.

So, in my dream world, You Spin Me Round get’s a soundtrack and it begins as follows:

  1. You Sexy Thing by Hot Chocolate
  2. Add It Up by the Violent Femmes
  3. Mangled Heart by The Gossip
  4. Standing in the Way of Control by The Gossip
  5. London Calling by The Clash (or Guns of Brixton…it’s a hard call.)
  6. Detroit 442 by Blondie
  7. Tattooed Love Boys by The Pretenders
  8. Basket Case by Green Day
  9. Boulevard of Broken Dreams by Green Day
  10. Sheena is a Punk Rocker by The Ramones
  11. Jumpers by Sleator Kinney
  12. Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want by The Smiths
  13. Take It Off by The Donnas
  14. Coma Girl by Joe Strummer

That’s a fine start and that doesn’t include dance tracks and a basement dwelling mopey song playlist.  Mopey song playlist is a list all on its own and in some ways as important as the main soundtrack.  There are so many more songs and artists that I listened to while writing: Talking Heads, Iggy Pop, Cake, Nirvana, No Doubt, Chet Baker, X-Ray Specs, Joan Jett, Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings, Luscious Jackson, Morningwood, New Order, Prince, Laura Gibson, Madeleine Peyroux, Jolie Holland, bluegrass given to me by a friend, Cold War Kids, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Beirut and I could go on and on.  All of these artists contributed to the mood and feel of Spin.