When I started writing There You Are, I knew that my main character would be one that had a true love for all kinds of music. Hip-Hop, R&B, Amina would love, but Indie music would be the thing that she really connected to and wrapped herself around to convey her emotions and feelings.
The more the story started to develop in my mind, and eventually on the page, I began making a playlist of songs. Each song I felt told a story of Amina and Nathan’s relationship. Stories of how they met, how it felt when they were together, how they felt about each other. Each time I came back to this story to revise and edit, I listened to this playlist, and was presented with a new idea or emotion. Before I knew it I compiled a playlist of 41 songs. I would like to share a few that are my favorites.
Somersault – Zero 7: I chose this one because it really tells how Amina feels in the chorus. She’s been so afraid to take another chance on love, but Nathan comes into her life. It for me would be the main theme of the book. Here’s a bit of the chorus:
You put my feet back on the ground
And did you know you brought me around?
Yeah, you were sweet and you were sound
You saved me
Three Rings – Grizzly Bear: First, the sound of it feels very sexy. Second listening to it, I feel Nathan’s urgency in making sure Amina knows how much he cares for her and wants to be there for her. Check these lyrics out:
I wanna be the guy who’s right
I want you to see things clearly
I wanna make it alright
Don’t you be so reasoned
Don’t you know that I can make it better?
Don’t you ever leave me
Don’t you feel it all come together?
Love on Top – Beyonce: Pure joy and acceptance. I hear this, and all I hear is Amina’s overwhelming love and happiness of finding love and who she found it with. Pure happiness.
Baby, it’s you
You’re the one I love
You’re the one I need
You’re the only one I see
Come on, baby, it’s you
Below is the link to the entire playlist of songs. Please feel free to listen to them while you read along to There you Are, and I hope you enjoy them both.
About the Author
Ieshia Wiedlin grew up in Detroit, Michigan, and currently resides in Brookfield, IL, which is a suburb of Chicago. She is married and has two great kids, Lucas and Zoey. She has always loved writing and telling stories, mostly sci-fi and fantasy, and is a huge junkie for all things Marvel and Star Wars. But somehow in the midst of loving all things sci-fi, she was a sucker for all things Molly Ringwald. Ieshia became a huge fan of rom-coms and loves stories with strong women characters. Growing up the youngest, and the only girl on her block, she craved strong women who fell in love. She loves romances with strong women leads who have conviction, but are also filled with humor. It’s important to her that women in her stories are smart, strong, loving, and funny, and also represent for sci-fi geeks and music lovers everywhere.
Congratulations on your new book. It sounds amazing.