Squawk Radio
Monday, October 17, 2005
Christina Ponders Music to Write Sex To
It’s not an easy business, this writing gig. I write a story told (and lived) everyday, the dance of courtship, of love, of passion. When I write a love scene, I want the reader to relive (or anticipate) the moment she first touched the man she loved, first took the huge step of trusting him with her body. The only tools I have are words, but I do have an assistant, and that’s music. When I’m writing, I put on my ipod and listen …
Right now I’m listening to Madeline Peyroux, a Frenchwoman with a fabulous voice, and her album CARELESS LOVE, and that one fabulous song she sings called, “Dance Me to the End of Love.” I swear, that song with its yearning and makes me remember what it is to fall in love for the very first time.
When I want that driving sexual force, I listen to Melissa Etheridge from her album YES I AM and the song, “I’m the Only One.” What great lyrics! “But I’m the only one who’ll walk across the fire for you, I’m the only who’ll drown in her desire for you.” This is such a great song it leaps generations — both my daughters and I bound up and pretend to sing into a fake microphone when it’s on. (Oh, shaddup. Yes, it’s dorky but it’s fun.) (And my kids are terrified right now that I’m going to tell a certain story on them … heh heh. The only thing that’s stopping me is they know stories about me. J)
I love the old standards. Grab Ella Fitzgerald and any of her songbooks and you can find at least one unforgettable gem — “My Funny Valentine” is a great ballad about a guy who’s not handsome or smart but she loves him anyway. Yep, that’s love. Oh! And Nat King Cole — “Stardust,” “Unforgettable,” or ::cough:: “Almost Like Being in Love.” (Which some romance writers whose initials are Christina Dodd were smart enough to name a book.)
“Have You Ever Loved a Woman?” by Bryan Adams (out of Don Juan de Marco, one of the MOST passionate movies ever) tells about the kind of devotion a woman WANTS a man to feel for her. Most men don’t, but when I asked Scott what he thought the most romantic song ever written was, this was his choice. Yes, girls, there’s a reason why I’m a romance writer, and a reason why I’ve been married pretty much since the earth’s crust cooled.
So, since I’m always looking for new songs, what are the sexiest melody you know? You never know, the next time my heroine rips off my hero’s clothes, it could be to your song!
Right now I’m listening to Madeline Peyroux, a Frenchwoman with a fabulous voice, and her album CARELESS LOVE, and that one fabulous song she sings called, “Dance Me to the End of Love.” I swear, that song with its yearning and makes me remember what it is to fall in love for the very first time.
When I want that driving sexual force, I listen to Melissa Etheridge from her album YES I AM and the song, “I’m the Only One.” What great lyrics! “But I’m the only one who’ll walk across the fire for you, I’m the only who’ll drown in her desire for you.” This is such a great song it leaps generations — both my daughters and I bound up and pretend to sing into a fake microphone when it’s on. (Oh, shaddup. Yes, it’s dorky but it’s fun.) (And my kids are terrified right now that I’m going to tell a certain story on them … heh heh. The only thing that’s stopping me is they know stories about me. J)
I love the old standards. Grab Ella Fitzgerald and any of her songbooks and you can find at least one unforgettable gem — “My Funny Valentine” is a great ballad about a guy who’s not handsome or smart but she loves him anyway. Yep, that’s love. Oh! And Nat King Cole — “Stardust,” “Unforgettable,” or ::cough:: “Almost Like Being in Love.” (Which some romance writers whose initials are Christina Dodd were smart enough to name a book.)
“Have You Ever Loved a Woman?” by Bryan Adams (out of Don Juan de Marco, one of the MOST passionate movies ever) tells about the kind of devotion a woman WANTS a man to feel for her. Most men don’t, but when I asked Scott what he thought the most romantic song ever written was, this was his choice. Yes, girls, there’s a reason why I’m a romance writer, and a reason why I’ve been married pretty much since the earth’s crust cooled.
So, since I’m always looking for new songs, what are the sexiest melody you know? You never know, the next time my heroine rips off my hero’s clothes, it could be to your song!
Christina Dodd, 11:53 PM
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