Trish Milburn | The Power of Music

It’s amazing how much emotional power can be packed into song lyrics. I admire anyone who is a good songwriter, creating a story out of a few short lines. I like to incorporate music into my stories to show a character’s feelings or to set a mood. Though I’m careful not to venture into copyright infringement by using actual song lyrics, I do reference them.

For instance, I was recently working on a young adult story (Winter Longing, Razorbill, Summer 2010) in which my heroine has experienced a significant loss. As teens often do when they’re hurting, she listens to certain music over and over. For my heroine, Winter, it’s the songs of Breaking Benjamin, a band that I like and whose lyrics really speak to what she’s experiencing.

Winter is enduring a loss, so when she hears Breaking Benjamin’s “Breathe,” the lyric “You left a hole where my heart should be” really packs an emotional punch. Later, it’s the band’s song “So Cold” that takes on new meaning when heard in the new context of her life. Though I don’t quote the lyrics, it’s the lyrics “You're so cold, but you feel alive; Lay your hands on me one last time,” that serve as an important turning point for her.

Because making pop culture references tends to be more common in YA novels than adult romances, I use them when they seem appropriate to the story. I try to either reference bands and/or singers who I think have staying power and aren’t one-hit wonders, or I use older artists as deliberate out-of-fashion favorites of the characters even though they might not be popular in the real world anymore. It’s also my way of giving shout-outs to some of my personal favorites.

While doing these revisions, I discovered a band called Anberlin. Their song “Last First Kiss” fit into a new scene I was writing. And in an odd twist, while searching for photos of a Piper Super Cub, a plane that is often used in Alaska, where this story is set, I happened upon a YouTube video that used a beautiful hymn by Chris Rice called “Come to Jesus.” Once again, the lyrics spoke to a specific aspect of the story, so I mentioned the song.

We all know that music can heighten emotions we already feel. So it only seems natural that they would do the same for the characters we create. They help squeeze even more emotion out of the heroes and heroines we write. And listening to the songs these characters are listening to can help bring new depths to a scene when we’re writing it. And hopefully that will translate to a highly emotional read for the reader.

Trish Milburn’s first young adult novel, Heartbreak River (Razorbill), written as Tricia Mills, is out this month. Her second romance from Harlequin American, Her Very Own Family, will be a May release. Visit her at website.