An "Even Better" Playlist

My book Even Better Than Before features many (some might say too many) characters and stories as part of the plot, but there are few things more central to the story than music. There are over a dozen songs attributed to the main character Brent; those are all titles and lyrics written by me. But there are a number of real songs- over 25, actually- that help give the story a rich and authentic feel. Music helps us connect and it touches us, and when you are meeting new characters music can tell us so much about who they are as people. Music can be such a common denominator in our lives. Plus, there is romance in music. And who doesn't love a little romance?

Since finishing the manuscript and e-mailing it to nearly 35 (the number keeps climbing) friends since last Friday I have suffered from a bit of the old "so now what?" syndrome. To help me through this melancholy mood I compiled a playlist for my iPod featuring songs that were mentioned in the book and a few others that were in there at various points in time before being edited out. For instance, there were stories that revolved around The B-52's Love Shack and Orleans' Still the One that didn't make the cut. At one point I had the characters of Craig and Brent break into Darius Rucker's Homegrown Honey while sitting on the porch of the Betsy B, only to realize that in May of 2014 when that scene was taking place that no one had ever heard of that song. And a pivotal scene in the book originally referenced Fort Atlantic's Let Your Heart Hold Fast playing in the background until I remembered that How I Met Your Mother had already used the song in a similar setting- if fact, that's the whole reason I knew the song in the first place! But they all are on my Even Better playlist whether they made the novel or not! When I hit shuffle this morning, these were the first 10 songs that tickled my ears...

1. Only Wanna Be with You - Hootie & the Blowfish
2. Keep Me in Mind- Zac Brown Band
3. Don't Look Back in Anger - Oasis
4. Surfer Girl - Beach Boys
5. I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles) - The Proclaimers
6. Horse with No Name- America
7. Do It Again - Beach Boys
8. Why Don't We Get Drunk? - Jimmy Buffett
9. I Saw Her Standing There - The Beatles
10. Make a Little Magic- Nitty Gritty Dirt Band

My day is off to a flying start fueled by some great music. I hope your Hump Day will feature a killer soundtrack too...

Peace, my friends!