Mwahahahahahaaa...

Nice nickname, Celestria. Love it.

Oooo! Another Barlowgirl fan! I just got their latest album AND went to a concert and got to see them literally face to face. I have some characters that I want to base off of their songs, but I just haven't gotten around to it yet.

While we're back on the topic of theme songs *ahem*, Chayten, my Tuliran character who's giving me so much trouble, has recently found a theme song:


Here are the lyrics if you can't watch the video:
I tried to kill the pain but only brought more (so much more)
I lay dying
and I'm pouring crimson regret and betrayal

I'm dying (dying)
Praying (praying)
Bleeding (bleeding)
and screaming ...
Am I too lost to be saved?
Am I too lost?
My God, my tourniquet
Return to me salvation
My God, my tourniquet
Return to me salvation

Do you remember me
lost for so long?
Will you be on the other side?
Will you forget me?

I'm dying (dying)
Praying (praying)
Bleeding (bleeding)
And screaming ...
Am I too lost to be saved?
Am I too lost?
My God, my tourniquet
Return to me salvation
My God, my tourniquet
Return to me salvation

My wounds cry for the grave
My soul cries for deliverance
Will I be denied?

Christ ...
Tourniquet...
My suicide

Oh, I love Barlowgirl! They have some really great songs.

But, back on topic, who sings that song you posted?

Amy Lee from Evanescence.

I know. I have all their albums.

lol I actually don't have any albums... I just have a lot of their songs of my ipod. I just got one for free, and you have no idea how excited I was!

I accidentally stumbled upon a perfect theme song for my MC in Armorbearer: Robert Wilson. His theme song is "Lay Down My Guns" by Sanctus Real.

Finally found a couple And actually they're songs I've heard before a hundred times, so I don't know why I just thought of them. I haven't even been working on this story lately.

Hayli -- Scream, by ZOEgirl
Thomas -- Monster, by Skillet

I have loved reading this thread, ya'll! Sometimes, music really captures the essence of a character, and I love it when that happens.

For my supreme evil in one of my books his anthem is "When You're Evil." (Original, I know. )

I pledge my allegiance, to all things dark
And I promise on my damned soul
To do as I am told, Lord Beelzebub
Has never seen a soldier quite like me
Not only does his job, but does it happily.

I'm the fear that keeps you awake
I'm the shadows on the wall
I'm the monsters they become
I'm the nightmare in your skull
I'm a dagger in your back
An extra turn upon the rack
I'm the quivering of your heart
A stabbing pain, a sudden start.

And it's so easy when you're evil
This is the life, you see
The Devil tips his hat to me
I do it all because I'm evil
And I do it all for free
Your tears are all the pay I'll ever need
And I do it all for free
Your tears are all the pay I'll ever need
And I do it all for free
Your tears are all the pay I'll ever need

*shiver*

Hm...for my MC in Bonesword, it's definitely "Pretender" by the Foo Fighters. For my antagonist, I like "Evil: A Chorus of Resistance" by Project 86.

Usually, though, I like to use songs for plot points and themes, rather than for character themes.

Aha! I have one for Dani. It is To Aslan's Camp from The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. One part makes me think of a bad guy, which Dani is not.

EDIT: I didn't want to post 2 times in a row, so I'm just adding this in. I just found one for Kachel. It is I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day by Mercy Me. And yes, it is a Christmas song. ^^ The 3rd verse really struck me as being like her.

Every song has its own unique 'feel,' to it. Sometimes it's the lyrics, but usually it's just how it feels. The melody, the beat, the instruments. Each song, you might say, has its own individual 'personality.'

Just like our characters. Sometimes I'll be listening to a song and I'll stop and realize how very much it reflects my character's personality. Lyrics sometimes help, but in one particular instance the lyrics to a song had absolutely nothing to with the character, but the beat, melody, etc, reflected her perfectly.

I find songs that reflect my characters all the times, but just now a thought occurred to me. What if I were to take a song, listen to it, and then form an entire character around it? There are tons of songs out there, some of them are bound to coin out some interesting people.

What about you? For those of you who are in need of characters. Just an idea I thought I'd throw out there. ^.^

Only song I know for a character would be
'Monster' (skillet) - Suske, a character in my manga plot line that still is in the process... possibly for Caesar as well (novel in progress).
Suske: He suffers from a mental condition that will make his mind snap, he ended up killing his father during one episode due to he finally had it with the long term grudge he had against his father. (His father had another son with a different woman than Suske and his sister's Mother)

Caesar: Son of a 'wild child' that had been married to a merchant (by wild child I mean literally, her parents gave her to the first man to visit them as soon as she was old enough...) He was raised in the military and when he gets really angry will start to shape shift (not like the hulk though.... it's something to do with his rare genetics.)

A strange thing happened to me the other day. I found a song that fit instead of a MC... a country. The who story just seems wrapped up in the song with all those emotions and vivid scenes that just seemed to pop out at me.

A Place in Heaven - TSfH - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_2hXZYhE59k

Interesting, Celestria. *looks song up on Grooveshark*

eru

Nessa's song-- Better by Plumb

You live inside a dream
Everything tastes so sweet
As long as it agrees with how you feel
You're dancing in your sleep
'Til all the eyes that look at me
awaken your anxieties

You're so afraid, so you try to break me, yeah

Chorus:
I don't want to care
And I don't want to hate
And I don't want to see you fall too far away
All because of fear
'Cause when you're afraid
You lash out at me
When you say all the things that you never meant to say
And try to break me

But in the end, what leaves you broken
In the end, makes you better, yeah

Your face looks so green
When the sun is shining differently
And you're standing in the shade
'Cause face to face you're sweet
Like candy sticking to my teeth
But underneath so damaging

There is no strength in trying to break me, no

Chorus

I don't want to hate
I don't want to be broken
I don't want to hate you
I don't want to hate
I don't want to be broken
I don't want to hate you

I don't want to care
and I don't want to hate
and I don't want to see you fall too far away
All because of fear
'Cause when you're afraid
you lash out at me
When you say all the things that you never meant to say
and try to break me

But in the end, what leaves you broken
In the end, makes you better,

I find theme songs for all my characters, but, seriously, I have never found two songs that fit my characters so perfectly as these two...so I just had to post in this thread.

Zaelinia: Miss Invsible - Marie Digby

Levi: Give Me Your Eyes - Brandon Heath

The chorus of both the songs just describe the characters wonderfully... I was nearly bouncing off the walls each time when I heard these songs.

I found Jaimie's song when I wasn't looking for it.

It fits her perfectly. It's scary. It wraps up her struggles, her defiance, her grief...

Over You by Miranda Lambert

Weatherman said it's gonna snow
By now I should be used to the cold
Mid-February shouldn't be so scary
It was only December

I still remember the presents
The tree, you and me

But you went away
How dare you? I miss you
They say I'll be okay
But I'm not going to ever get over you

Living alone here in this place
I think of you and I'm not afraid
Your favorite records make me feel better
'Cause you sing along with every song

I know you didn't mean
To give them to me

But you went away
How dare you? I miss you
They say I'll be okay
But I'm not going to ever get over you

It really sinks in, you know,
When I see it in stone.

'Cause you went away
How dare you? I miss you
They say I'll be okay
But I'm not going to ever get over you.

Did I ever mention that I find this hilarious? I find it hilarious.

The only novel I've ever actually had songs for is my scifi novel "The Justice Project." I blame this on the fact that I listened to the same playlist exclusively for a month while revising and so the songs wormed their way into the very fabric of the plot.

The playlist, incidentally, was Evanescence, and therefore all these songs are by Evanescence.

The main character is Kaylee/Justice, a little girl who grew up in a matter of days, her childhood memories buried, and her entire past a mystery. Her song is Field of Innocence.

I still remember the world through the eyes of a child
Slowly those feelings were clouded by what I know now

Where has my heart gone?
An uneven trade for the real world
Oh, I – I want to go back to believing in everything
and knowing nothing at all.

I still remember the sun always warm on my back
Somehow it seems colder now

Where has my heart gone?
Trapped in the eyes of a stranger
Oh, I – I want to go back to
Believing in everything

Dorus/David Helton is the other MC; half human, half alien, an outcast everywhere he goes. I haven't found a song to fit his character, precisely, but this one fits his mood perfectly at the end of the book: My Heart is Broken

I pulled away to face the pain.
I close my eyes and drift away.
Over the fear that I will never find
A way to heal my soul.
And I will wander 'til the end of time
Torn away from you.

My heart is broken
Sweet sleep, my dark angel
Deliver us from sorrow's hold
(Over my heart).

I can't go on living this way
But I can't go back the way I came
Chained to this fear that I will never find
A way to heal my soul
And I will wander 'til the end of time
Half alive without you

My heart is broken
Sweet sleep, my dark angel
Deliver us

Kaylee's song for the ending is My Last Breath. And it fits so perfectly I wish I could find a way to just stick the lyrics in the chapter somewhere...

Hold on to me, love.
You know I can't stay long
All I wanted to say was I love you and I'm not afraid.

Can you hear me? Can you feel me in your arms?
Holding my last breath. Safe inside myself. Among my thoughts of you.
Sweet rapture, light, it ends here tonight.

I'll miss the winter; a world of fragile things
Look for me in the white forest hiding in a hollow tree
Find me

I know you hear me, I can taste it in your tears

Holding my last breath.
Safe inside myself.
Among my thoughts of you.
Sweet rapture. Light. It it ends here tonight.

Say goodnight, don't be afraid
Calling me, calling me, as it fades to black.

I think I finally have one Aidan Romero. I don't have the lyrics yet though, because it's a new song. The title is "Fighter" by Manafest. (I can't get the upside down A in there)
It's found here (With lyrics in video): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vcboKwXz ... ture=share

Jaynin, I want your book.

Haha! Because you like the songs or because the songs have somehow become inextricably linked with the plot?

Because the songs are incredible, and are linked to the plot. They make the characters...engaging. It makes me really really really want to read it.

I like plots connected with songs *coughShatteringtheDarkcough*

I'll let you know when I'm done writing it, how about that? (Just watch my gchat status...)

Will do.

* rerails thread *

This is a great idea! I've fully developed two of my characters so far, but I've not found a song that fits Phaidra quite yet. For Murren, I would say Dust in the Wind by Kansas, especially this verse:

Same old song
Just a drop of water in an endless sea
All we do
Crumbles to the ground though we refuse to see
Dust in the wind
All we are is dust in the wind

Yep, it's a depressing song, but Murren has lived a pretty truamatic life and has a skewed vision of the world. To him, there can be no good, guilt is a ceaseless companion, and he wants his life not to matter because of all the horrible things he has done. No hope exists in his mind, so I thought this song really fit him.

I found a song for Jayson Neil Lewis.

It's "Don't Hold Your Breath" by Eric Peters.

Don’t hold your breath
Don’t hold your life
Even though I let you down
Even though you know me now

Don’t blink an eye
You’ll be surprised
I got caught up in the storm
I got so caught up in me

Everything you ever wanted
I could not be

It’s been a long time since I kept my word
A long time since the flooded earth
Draw near when the waters rise
We’re learning how to be alive

I’ve been knocked down
Been made a wreck
Everything my fingers touch
Turns into an awful mess

Everything you hath provided
Is an endless sea
Everything the world demands of me
Is fear and loathing

It’s been a long time since I kept my word
A long time since the flooded earth
Draw near when the waters rise
We’re learning how to be alive

It’s been a long time

It’s been a long time since I kept my word
A long time since the flooded earth
Draw near when the waters rise
It’s been a long time since I kept my word
A long time since the flooded earth
Draw near when the waters rise
We’re learning how to be alive
I’m learning how to be alive

I can't find one for James in Dream of a Shrouded Quest, does anyone have any suggestions?

*facepalm* Can I blame exams on that error?

He's a timid daydreamer INFP who wants to be a hero but is to cowardly to live up to that dream, and in the story he has to overcome that to rescue the girl he's in love with from a dungeon which symbolizes her depression.

Did that make any sense?

The fractal probably would help more than my summary.

Yes, I realized that as I was working on him. He's a lot like a lot of people here. That's why I was asking INFPs on FB how they express moods and such.

Okay, thanks!

I don't think so. But the "Beauty from the Pain" by Superchick in the suggested song list could work for Anastasia.

I don't usually listen to songs too closely, but I have one character, Ndaaro, who has a theme song. And it's a song from Disney's Tarzan cartoon. It's "Strangers Like Me" by Phil Collins. I was listening to the song and realized that it fit with Ndaaro's personality and story arc perfectly. (He was raised by mermaids, not gorillas, but oh well.) These are the verses that stood out the most to me.

Whatever you do, I'll do it too
Show me everything and tell me how
It all means something
And yet nothing to me

. . .
I wanna know, can you show me
I wanna know about these strangers like me
Tell me more, please show me
Something's familiar about these strangers like me

Every gesture, every move that she makes
Makes me feel like never before
Why do I have
This growing need to be beside her

Ooo, these emotions I never knew
Of some other world far beyond this place
Beyond the trees, above the clouds
I see before me a new horizon

Maybe it unconsciously inspired me when I watched it years ago. Or maybe it's just a common story idea.

You guys have such interesting themes for your characters!

Gee, where do I start? I have one character who's just a kid, lost his parents traumatically and is very shy and damaged, his theme is Underdog by Audio Adrenaline.

For Xironi, the catgirl in my Spacetime series, one of her songs is Forgive Me by Jars of Clay, and potentially also Frail by Jars of Clay.

For Carda, the teen with the taste for hot cars and magic powers of time and space, one of his themes is definitely Supersonic Speed by Die Happy.

Indal, the chronomancer/werewolf from Spacetime, gets landed with things like The Shadow Proves the Sunshine by Switchfoot and Mirrors and Smoke by Jars of Clay. (I love artists with ambiguous breakup lyrics!)

*late* What about:
"I Want to Know What Love is" - Foreigner
"Wild World" - Cat Stevens

I'll give those a try. Thanks.

AAAGH YAY I finally figured out one of them!! (this is insanely hard!!!) OK:
Breindel's theme song is "Never Alone" by Barlow Girl. It describes her character arc perfectly, because she feels alone most of the time since she's got short hair, limps badly, and has God-given gifts (which are basically superpowers) that make her stand apart from the crowd. (Ever tried fitting in if you glow every time you start praying? XD)
Still working on one for Alastair, though...(why is "God is Bigger than the Boogeyman" the only thing I can think of??!!)

*Chuckles* What is he like, maybe we can give some suggestions?

you (meaning HW people;...English really needs a plural form of the word "you" ) would do that? Uhh...ok...*clears throat* Alace is very observant, intelligent (meaning clever. he likes puzzles, and if Rubix Cubes were in New-Sindo, he would own one), a little absentminded, and deathly afraid of almost everything. He also has a temper, and acts impulsively...*thinks*.a lot, actually... . He struggles against his conscience and the whispering of the Holy Spirit (who he hasn't recognized as such yet) in the first chapters, then he is given the name Fireheart from Esh Okhlah, (God, "consuming fire" in Hebrew ) and slowly begins relying on Him for his courage. ....So......Yeah. XD that was long and drawn out and I'm not sure if it's what you wanted, but there it is. I was thinking of a Third Day song yesterday, but I forgot it...

(It used to be that 'you' was plural and 'thou' and 'thee' were singular... Then everyone stopped using 'thou' and 'thee'. )

What about 'You're So Cool' by Hans Zimmer? It's sort of quirky and clever and quick paced, but it seemed a little dreamyish/absentminded and not-war-like to me too, if you know what I mean. And the ending even has a more noble, courageous tone to it than the rest of the song.

Uuuuh...yeah. That's funny. A quick search – and apparently 'You're So Cool' is Zimmer's version of Orff's Gassenhauer, which was either inspired by or an arrangement of something by someone named Hans Neusidler. 0.o I'd never even heard of Gassenhauer....

Hawkes' theme.

At first, without hearing the song, I thought the choice happened to be delightfully ironic. But now, after listening to the song, it seems rather bittersweet.

*chuckles* I figured that was what the smilie meant... 'Tis indeed bittersweet, although a little bit too...calm for him.