Writing and Songs

This past weekend, Deek and I hit the writing session hard. He's working on the sequel to 122 Rules (can't wait to read it--yes, people, even I haven't read the sequel yet! Oh the anticipation!!! He says he wants to go over it again before he lets his "Grammar Police" wife have a crack at it--haha), and I've been working on getting The Fulfillment, the final book in The Fulfillment Series, ready for my editors!

I don't know about your music on/music off preferences when you write, but I definitely have my own. I can write with music if I'm not trying to listen to the words. But sometimes I need the words to inspire me. In that case, I have to stop, listen to the song, and then proceed to write. However, if it's the feel of the song that I need, I can listen while I write. Sometimes the tone and mood place me the right frame of mind to complete a scene.

Example: When I wrote THE SCENE in the The Outlanders (if you've read it, you know which one I mean), I listened to "My Immortal" by Evanescence. Before I started the scene, I listened to the song itself a few times, for the words. Then, as I wrote, I listened to the song over and over again for the mood and tone. I can tell you, when I finished writing that section, I was in a sad funk for the rest of the day. It's amazing how emotionally invested we can become, as both readers and writers.

My Dream Team members and I decided that each book in The Fulfillment Series should have a theme song. So, here they are:

The Prophecy:  "I Won't Give Up" by Jason Mraz

The Outlanders: "My Immortal" by Evanescence

The Fulfillment: "Wide Awake" by Katy Perry

I can't hear these songs on the radio now without thinking of scenes from my book.

What about you? Do you use music in your writing? What songs have inspired scenes in your books?

Or...have you read The Prophecy and The Outlanders? Do you think these songs fit?