Music!

Hello everyone, my name is Corinne Starr, I'm sixteen and the second oldest of ten kids.

I don't know about you guys but for me, music is a huge part of my writing. It makes my imagination run wild with new ideas, story plots, plot twists, characters, scenes, etc. If I haven't made it clear enough already, I love music (and not just because it blocks out the noise of all the chaos and craziness going on around me ;) I honestly have no idea what I'd do without it.
So, I thought that I would compile some lists of music that inspires me the most when writing. Almost all of these songs I pulled from my Spotify playlists so you can search for them there or on YouTube too. (Spotify, by the way, is the greatest music app ever invented. If you haven't heard of it, I highly suggest you check it out.)
Anyway, here are my lists, which I hope spark your imagination and boost your motivation.

HEROES/HEROINES:

1. Unstoppable - E.S. Posthumus
2. Epic Game of Thrones - Pisces Rising (no, I don't watch this TV show, I just really like the score)
3. Adagio in D Minor (Orchestra Mix) - John Murphy
4. The Tribute/Agnus Dei - Michael W. Smith (if you want, skip to 3:05 for the best part)
5. Return of the Heroes - Patryk Scelina
6. We Will Not Lose - Mayrain, EpicMusicVn
7. Heroes - Michael W. Smith
8. Facing His Destiny - 8Dawn
9. Surrender to Hope - Immediate
10. I Like to Win - Shonlock
11. Top Gun - Sound Adventures
12. Aura - StoneOcean
13. Arise - E.S. Posthumus
14. A Useful Striker - Murray Gold & BBC National Orchestra
15. Isles of Wonder - London Symphony Orchestra


HAPPY:

1. More Love - StoneOcean
2. Celebration - StoneOcean
3. Medieval Anthem - Peter Crowley
4. Night of My Life - Group 1 Crew
5. Oraanu Pi - E.S. Posthumus
6. Code Lyoko 'A World Without Danger' - Walt Ribeiro
7. Awaken - StoneOcean
8. Hard Headed Woman - Elvis Presley
9. Smack Attack - Audiomachine
10. River's Dance - Firefly OST
11. The Bathtub - Beasts of the Southern Wild(soundtrack)
12. Finale (William Tell Overture) - Hans Zimmer
13. Spirit of Moravia - Two Steps from Hell
14. The Kiss - Trevor Jones


SAD:

1. Remember Me - Ivan Torrent (ft. Roger Berruezo)  
2. Love Lost - Mattia Lupelli
3. D*** Few - Nathan Furst
4. Cows on a Hill - Jay Ungar
5. Legends Never Die - Ferras, Katy Perry
6. Eulogy for a Friend - Harry Gregson-Williams
7. Safe and Sound - Taylor Swift
8. Porcelain - Helen Jane Long
9. The Last Paradise - Yiruma
10. Only the Winds - Olafur Arnalds
11. Home - Clinton Shorter
12. Patriot - Michael W. Smith
13. See You on the Other Side - Harry Gregson-Williams
14. Children from the War - Two Steps from Hell
15. A Song for Sienna - Brian Crain


DEFEATED/BROKEN:

1. Rain and Pain - Christian Reindl
2. Because of You - Kelly Clarkson
3. Lost on You - LP
4. Rosebud - Marco Beltrami
5. Torn - Nathan Lanier
6. Resistance - Muse
7. Runnin' - Adam Lambert
8. On Trees and Birds and Fire - I am Oak
9. Tessa - Steve Jablonsky
10. Nuvole Blanche - Ludovico Einaudi
11. Land of Shadows - Audiomachine
12. An Old Friend - Henry Jackman
13. Hunted - Steve Jablonsky
14. Fix You - Coldplay
15. My Blood - Ellie Goulding


FIGHT SCENES/CHASE:

1. Run Boy Run - Woodkid
2. Invaders Must Die - The Prodigy
3. Dope Nose - Weezer
4. Fever - Wisin & Yandel
5. Hong Kong Chase - Steve Joblonsky
6. If it Ain't Dutch - Armin Van Buuren, W&W
7. Must Be Love - Christina Grimmie
8. Run - Pryda
9. Surpass - PostHaste Music
10. Xscape - Audiomachine
11. Kalki - E.S. Posthumus
12. One Minute Over - Zack Hemsey
13. Sinister Threat - Danny Cocke
14. This is Our Legacy - Zack Hemsey
15. Tribal Battles - West One Music


VILLAINOUS:

1. Glory and Gore - Lorde
2. Blood Red Roses - C21Fx
3. Silent Runner - Alexis Troy
4. Ushas - E.S. Posthumus
5. Everybody Wants to Rule the World - Lorde
6. Power Changes Everything - Harry Gregson-Williams
7. Skyfall - Adele
8. Why So Serious? - Hans Zimmer
9. Santa's Nightmare - StoneOcean (ignore the bells and the 'ho, ho, ho')
10. A Thousand Details - Trent Reznor
11. Main Title (Terminator 2 theme) - Brad Fiedel
12. Tech War - Dark Electronic Music
13. Informing the Target - Zack Hemsey
14. Shredder - ReallySlowMotion Music
15. Outlaw - Peter Roe


COUPLES:

1. If I Had You - Adam Lambert
2. Hanging On - Ellie Goulding
3. Compass - Jonathan Thulin, Manwell Reyes
4. ABC - Alexander Fairchild
5. Hypnotize Me - Taylor Berrett
6. Stand By You - Rachael Platten
7. Oh My Love - The Score
8. Surrender(acoustic) - Cash Cash
9. Hero - Enrique Iglesias
10. I Love You - Alex & Sierra
11. Such a Night - Elvis Presley
12. Magic of Love - Celtic Music
13. Romantic Flight - John Powell
14. More Than Friends - Two Steps from Hell
15. Take My Hand - Emily Hackett, Will Anderson


VICTORIOUS:

1. Stand Up - The Prodigy
2. If Elephants Could Fly - Marcus Warner
3. Road to Victory - Veigar Margeirsson
4. Go Time - Network Music Ensemble
5. Pulsaris Prime - Gothic Storm
6. Demacia Rising - League of Legends
7. Hope of Men - Blytheway-May
8. Vishnu - E.S. Posthumus
9. Rise (epic music) - John Dreamer
10. Let Them Up - Tom Holkenborg (dang...what a name...)
11. Glory Battle - Michael W. Smith
12. Autobots Reunite - Steve Jablonsky
13. Breaking Through - Audiomachine
14. Victory Lap - Audiomachine
15. The New Earth - Audiomachine


RANDOM (AKA: no category but still freakin' epic)

1. Myotis - Hans Zimmer
2. Molossus - Hans Zimmer
3. Tai Lung Escapes - Hans Zimmer, John Powell
4. Arabian Nights - StoneOcean
5. Who We Are- Imagine Dragons
6. Time is Running Out - Muse
7. Echo Sensation - DJ Airecho
8. Awakening - Michael Allen Harrison
9. Assassin's Creed Rogue Main Theme - Elitsa Alexandrova
10. Whitaker's Wonder - Michael W. Smith
11. The Wild West - Wild Western Music
12. Rising Force - R. Armando Morabito
13. Lockdown - Steve Jablonsky
14. Pirates - Sound Adventures
15. Turning Point - Audiomachine


There it is. Hope you enjoy! :)

-Corinne

NaNoWriMo Help!

So, how are your brains and your novels going now that we're officially into day 4 of NaNoWriMo?  Usually, by this time, you'll either feel super pumped, or the exact opposite. Which is it, my dear friends?  I can tell you, as of right now, I'm in the middle.  I'm trying to wonder if that's possible.  My novel is going... pretty well.  But my word count is WAY down. I'm a whole 1K behind, and I started out NaNoWriMo being 3K ahead.  But that's okay, I'll get it.

For all of those out there who are feeling the same way, WE CAN DEFEAT THIS GIANT!  WE ARE CONQUERORS! conquerors... that word looks weird typed out...

Anywho!  If you're struggling with your novel, I have made a NaNoWriMo help board on pinterest where us authors can get help, comments, suggestions, and feedback.  Even if you're not stuck on your novel, it's nice to take a break, look at other's novel, develop your characters more with a CC, or just hang out and talk with other NaNoers.  All that fun jazz.  :)  Check it out!

CLICK ME FOR THE LINK TO THE BOARD


~Angie

How I NaNoWriMo (plus me introducing myself)

Hi everyone! Considering this is my first post, I wanted to quickly introduce myself. My name is Kirsi (pronounced KEER-see), I'm 15, I'm a middle child, and I have the best brothers ever. Don't even try to fight me on that, you will not win.

Anyway, NaNoWriMo is coming up, as Angie mentioned in her most recent post, and I wanted to share how I am preparing for this upcoming challenge.

I. LOVE. POST-IT NOTES. So I use them. A lot. I have all sorts of colors and sizes and shapes, some of which aren't even pictured here. I'm gonna kinda walk you through each of my different post it notes really fast, then talk more about some NaNoWriMo tips.

Okay so the closeup picture of Laurence's sheet of paper down below is the one for my main character. I used the pink post-it for words describing him (I chose six words), yellow is physical description (based on the actor I picture him as), green is the role he plays (it says main character/protagonist on it), blue is the challenges he has faced, and purple is his greatest accomplishment (I like to color code, lol).Those five things seem so simple but they're so much harder than I expected! I learned way more about my characters than i thought i would. It helped me just dig a bit deeper, though I won't stop digging there.

One last thing about the picture above. The picture of Laurence (partially hidden under the pink post-it) is a picture of the actor I imagine him looking like printed on a white post-it note. I found out how to print on post-its from this website: http://tatertotsandjello.com/2013/07/diy-secret-how-to-use-post-it-notes-in-your-printer-free-printable.html (Also don't judge my messy, "in-the-zone" handwriting.)

Alright. Now to the other helpful, handy dandy, super duper tips.

1 - Tidy up your workspace! Even if your workspace is your bed, or the kitchen table, the clutter and mess just gives you more things to get distracted by. If you work in your bedroom, whether at a desk or on a bed or on the floor, tidy up your area. Make your bed (a little at least), organize your desk, tidy up the floor a bit. It makes your environment less stressful (because you don't need to add stress to NaNoWriMo), and makes you less irritable. I recently was able to get my own office, and it's clutter free, my own space, and MADE FOR ME AND ME ONLY. It's so much easier. Before, i had to write on my bed, and it did a number on my back. Which leads to my next tip:

2 - If possible, have your own workspace. I understand this is not an easy task for some people. Some of you share a room with someone else, or there's never a moment where someone isn't by the dining room table, or whatever the reason - it isn't easy. I get that. If you are able to have your own workspace, though, DO IT. I love having my own workspace now. Writing is just so much easier. No distractions. Nothin'.

3 - Have a chart. If you look at the picture way up at the top, you'll see a random, blue post-it. That's my chart. It has every thousand from 1,000 to 50,000 on it, each one having a check box next to it. I don't want a schedule, because I know if I get off schedule it'll freak me out and I'll quit. I know approximately how much I need to write each day, but if I do more or less, it's no biggie. 

4 - CANDY!!! Candy. Have some candy, or nuts, or crackers, or anything to munch on while you write. With Halloween coming up, that isn't a terribly difficult thing. I have some candy on my desk that takes a really long time to chew so I don't eat too much and get fat... But in the past I've had blueberries just sitting in a bowl on my desk, and, well... I ate the whole bowl in one sitting. Healthy, right?? It was great though. Snacks just make things more enjoyable. Right? Right.

5 - Don't strain yourself. If you've been sitting there, staring at a screen for awhile, you're starting to get sore, (you know the feeling. Your butt starts to get numb and your eyes are burning every time you blink.) you need a break. Even if you've only written 10 of your 1,670 words for the day, take a break. It doesn't have to be long, just get up, grab a drink, take a shower, something. Don't strain yourself too much. Also, if it's 12 am, or later, and you can't even keep your eyes open as you write, GO TO BED. Everything you write when you get to that point isn't gonna make sense and you know it's gonna suck to you the next day. So why waste the time and sleep?! Go to bed. 

6 - Start catching up on sleep now, before NaNoWriMo. You know you're behind. Everyone is. Try to get as much sleep as you can before NaNoWriMo, so your mind can work properly and you won't have to dread December as much, when you start editing.

7 - HAVE FUN! What is the point of wasting countless hours over the course of November if you aren't going to enjoy yourself??! That seems so ridiculous. So have fun with it! Try to find friends that are doing it too! You can help each other stay caught up, and encourage each other to keep going! If you and/or the other person/people you do it with are competitive, maybe you can see who writes the most by the end of November (if you finish your book early by doing this, just write other stories or start editing:), or see who gets to 50,000 first. Just do what you have to do to make it fun.

I really hope these tips helped. I'm so excited to be a part of this blog! 

~Kirsi <3

NaNoWriMo 2015 (Yay!)

It's October, and we all know what that means.  No, not Halloween, not fall weather (though that is a wonderful relief to this summer heat), not cinnamon brooms and fall decorations, but NaNoWriMo!  (Shall I insert my favorite gif...?  Yes... yes I shall.)




For those of you doing the painful challenge of NaNoWriMo this year, I applaud and bow down to your dedication.  Some of you may be scratching your head and going... "NaNoWhatO?"  If that's you, let me explain.

NaNoWriMo stands for National Novel Writing Month.  It's always in November of each year, and, as it implies, your goal is to complete a full novel in a month.  It's not a competition, but if it helps you to think that, it's a competition against yourself.  For youths (those of us who are 18 and under), it's easier because we get to set our word goal count manually.  It can be as low as 100 words to as high 100,000 words!  Not so easy for those of us who are "adults" (yeah, being an adult doesn't have as many benefits when it comes to that area).

For some (maybe most, maybe even all), NaNoWriMo can be quite... overwhelming, daunting, even scary.  But if you're equipped with the right knowledge and preparation, I promise that it will be less stressful and maybe even really fun. :)  Here are some things that I do before NaNoWriMo and during to prepare and meet my word goal.  Hopefully, it will be helpful to some of you.


#1.  Actually have an idea.  Yeah, it's hard, I know, even if you're planning to start NaNoWriMo the day before, it's a really good idea (obviously... duh.) to have an idea of what you're going to write.  Even if you don't have an idea at all, you can start by asking yourself some questions.  What genre am I writing about (or want to write about)?  The protagonist's personality vs. antagonist's?  Those kind of questions.  What I might do sometimes (ssshhhhh) is look at a few of my favorite movies or tv shows and take my favorite aspects from each and try to come up with an idea from that.  But that's only if I'm desperate and on the brink of brain deadness.  Pinterest always helps, too.  Looking at story inspiration boards really helps... more than I could ever fathom, really.

#2.  When you have an idea, outline it, plot it.  Yes, yes, I know, I know, you've heard this a million and a half times, and it can get... redundant.  I hate plotting.  I absolutely HATE it!  It makes me feel like I have to stick to this one thing, I have to get organized, and I have to stay in a box.  But it's really not like that.  I have found (for the unorganized and list haters out there like me *cough*) that if you plot the beginning, middle, end - along with critical turning points in the storyline (which I usually write in different sentences at the end of the document) - then it's not so bad and lets you be more flexible with your storyline.  But for those of us who are strict plotters, I applaud you and encourage you to do just that.

#3.  Character personalities.  This is an area that I feel I'm stronger in (unlike plotting *hides face in shame because I'm not one of those people who can plot extremely well*), and is actually one of my favorite aspects of "planning".  In order to have a good novel, you MUST have characters with strong personalities.  Not strong as in overbearing, but strong as in sound and dissectable (yes, I made that word up), not shallow and boring.  The key to this is really getting to know your character, feeling your character, putting yourself in their shoes.  I know with some characters it's a bit hard to "be" them, but that's where imagination comes in handy.  Character questionnaires are also a great way to better know and develop your characters.  You may have an awesome storyline, but if your characters are shallow and stink, then it's not worth the read.  The other way around, however, might be forgivable.  Stinky plotline maybe possibly be saved by amazing characters.  Trust me, it's worked for me in the past.

#4.  Set a schedule.  On the NaNoWriMo website, once you type in your set goal wordcount (for YWP, where you can set your word goal), it automatically tells you how many words you must write a day for you to finish on time with your set word goal.


#5.  (Optional, depending on what kind of a writer you are, if you can stand this sort of thing) Have inspirational music going on in the background as you write.  I know - for me, at least - that when there is righteous music going while I'm writing, it inspires me, makes me feel the emotions of what I'm writing, and also makes me feel that I can do (write) anything!  Also gets your brain juices flowing.  ;)  If you don't already do this, then I encourage you to at least try it.  If you're looking for good writing music, I have a list made out especially for writers, some of my music. :)

#6.  Write.  "Well, duh, Angie."  Yes, this one is a bit obvious (a bit?), but it can also be the most challenging.  Actually find time to write in the day.  If you're super busy, find time at night, or early in the mornings.  This is critical to meeting that word count goal.  (Well duh again)

#7.  Push through.  Sometimes when writing, we can get bored with out plot or characters or whatever aspect on the book (as a huge procrastinator, I find this very true for me).  We can even get discouraged at our daunting word count goal, or even the way the story is turning out.  But no matter what, PUSH THROUGH!  It will be totally worth it in the long run, trust me.  Here's a little tip I have for this "sickness": write another scene, switch POV, change your text color to something bright and different every time a new speaker or paragraph or scene comes on.  Believe me, these little things can actually help.  What I DON'T suggest doing: going on pinterest for inspiration.  If you do that, then you'll be stuck there for eternity.  Take it from the Queen of Procrastination, you don't want to do that.


As I said in the beginning of this post, NaNoWriMo can be really scary, but if you just tackle it head on with a clobbering stick, then you'll be just fine this November.  I applaud you, writers for NaNoWriMo 2015.  You are brave souls.


~Angie

Dear writer's block,

Please leave me alone.

Love,

Angie

Inspirational Prompt of the Week

When I should be doing schoolwork (heh... *hides face ashamedly*), I was on pinterest this morning checking my notifications, and I saw this writing prompt in my feed.  It struck my interest.




When I say "struck my interest", what I really mean is "I WANT TO WRITE A WHOLE BOOK BASED OFF THIS INSPIRATIONAL PROMPT".  Who knows... NaNoWriMo is coming up and I still don't have any idea of what I'm going to write.

So, imagine, away!



~Angie

WRITING PLAYLIST

I don't know about you, but when I write I HAVE to have music on in the background... It just gets my inspirational juices flowing.  I can't seem to write anything that's even decent without my groove tunes, not even school papers.  I know, I know, it seems like a problem, but it's not... to me, at least.  What I've done is made a bunch of playlists; one for school, and one for writing.  The playlist for writing has a bunch of subcategories intertwined...  For example, under writing music I have subcategories for genres in writing, such as action, emotional, ect.  It really does help, I've found, and I want to share some of my music with you. :)  And one big note, I do not always watch the movie from where some of these soundtrack songs are from... I usually find them by searching instrumental stuff... Some of the movies I listen to soundtracks from I do not agree with, watch, or even know.  Please keep that in mind as you go along with this list.  :)

So, without further ado...






(NOTE: Anything to do with the artist Audiomachine is background writing music worthy.  When you listen to them, you can just feel yourself soaring through different emotions. And Hans Zimmer, too. 'Nuff said right there.)



Music for ACTION scenes


1. Hero - Kung Fu Panda OST  // This song is more fun than action-y, really. But it's inspiring, all the same.

2. Discombobulate - Hans Zimmer (Sherlock Holmes OST) // Anything from the Sherlock Holmes (the one from the movie with RDJ) soundtrack is AMAZING and totally worth listening to.

3. Wolf Suite pt. 1 - Danny Elfman // This is a sort of ominous and fast paced one.

4. King Arthur - Hans Zimmer // If you're looking for regal and righteousness with all the trumpets and horns, this is the song for you.

5. Septimus - Ilan Eshkeri (Stardust OST) // Reminds me of a horse riding scene for some reason...

6. This is Berk - John Powell (How to Train Your Dragon OST) // Not as fast paced in the beginning, but it gets more exciting after the first part.

7. Heart of Courage - TSFH // This song... no words... okay, maybe one: INSPIRING!!!

8. The Dream Is Collapsing - Hans Zimmer (Inception OST) // Embrace the dark side... the rush of a million heart beats crying for WAR! *battle cry* Ahem, great movie, btw...

9. Revenge of the Fallen - Transformers //

10. Road To Glory - Audiomachine // The name speaks for itself, peeps.

11. Catatonic - Hans Zimmer

12. Smooth Criminal - Dallas String Quartet // The instrumental for this song is great.



Uplifting mood music:

1. Carl Goes Up - Michael Giacchino (Up OST) // It's just a given, you can never not be happy when you're listening to anything from that blessed movie. Unless you re-imagine the scene... in that case, better grab a box of tissues, preferably the ones with the lotion infused into them.

2. Where's Hiccup - John Powell (HTTYD OST) // Beautiful soundtrack... beautiful music.

3. Another Dance - Dario Marianelli (Pride and Prejudice OST) //

4. Secrets - Dallas String Quartet

5. Hey Soul Sister - Dallas String Quartet

6. Peponi - Piano Guys

7. Baba Yetu - Peter Hollens // His version is the best.  I like to use this and Peponi when I'm writing scenes that are set in like African plains and stuff like that.



RIGHTEOUS music:

1. Time - Hans Zimmer (Inception OST) // This whole soundtrack is amazing and inspirational for just... anything. Seriously, check it out.  (P.S. 2Cellos do an amazing cover of this one)

2. I AM (Creation Overture) // From the album Music From the Story: Old Testament, this song just surges with RIGHTEOUSNESS... and INSPIRATION.

3. Honor - Hans Zimmer // This, just this, it's beautiful! *sobs* It makes me cry from explicit emotion.

4. A Special Bus - Murray Gold // Yes, this is a song from Doctor Who, but it's powerful, nonetheless

5. Redemption - Audiomachine // RIGHTEOUS

6. Winterspell - Thomas Bergersen

7. I Am the Doctor - Murray Gold // Another DW song... I know, I bet you're thinking "ANGIE, ENOUGH!"  I'm sorry... I'm so, so sorry...

8. My Strength - District 78



Melancholy/deeply moving music:

1. Chairman's Waltz - John Williams (The Memoirs of a Geisha OST)// A lot of strings in this one.  Need I go on?

2. Illumination - Jennifer Thomas // This one is half melancholy half righteous.

3. Fall From Grace - Kerry Muzzey // I would describe this first as happyish, but then it gets darker and a bit more ominous.

4. It's Hard to Say Goodbye - Michael Ortega

5. Red Warrior - Audiomachine

6. Letting Go - Patrick Doyle (Thor OST)

7. Rain - Brian Crain



HEART WRENCHING SONGS:


1. Save a Place For Me - Matthew West

2. Last Night - Skillet

3. Without You - For King and Country

4. Saturn - Sleeping at Last

5. All of Me - Matt Hamitt

6. Fall Alseep - Jars of Clay




That's just a small notch in the compilation of songs from my "writing music library", just a few out of many.  You should seriously check some of the songs out, though, if you haven't heard them.  They are amazing.  Most of them.  :P  As always, thanks for taking time to read!


~Angie