When
the word “love” is mentioned, the mental picture of babies and kittens is
oftentimes conjured up. But like a coin, love has two sides. One’s full of
happiness, a joyous heart ready to burst. The flip side is darker, where the
word “love” is used to ensnare, control, and dominate.
My
newest mystery novel, Deadly Fantasies,
explores the idea of how under the guise of love, people commit some of the
most heinous acts. My characters, Jonathan and Nina Grace, were madly in love
when they first met, but over time, those blissful feelings morphed into suspicion,
hatred, and jealousy. Physical violence soon followed.
Sadly, too many times vows are exchanged but happily-ever-after never happens.
I was
inspired to write the darker scenes of my novel listening to Eminem’s song, Love the Way You Lie with Rihanna. Here’s an especially
poignant part in the song where the male character is apologizing for
brutalizing the female. Yet even during the apology when she won’t face him, he
falls right back into his old patterns getting angry again.
All I
know is I love you too much to walk away though
Come inside, pick up your bags off the sidewalk
Don't you hear sincerity in my voice when I talk
Told you this is my fault
Look me in the eyeball
Next time I'm pissed, I'll lay my fist at the drywall
Next time? There will be no next time!
I apologize even though I know its lies
I'm tired of the games I just want her back
Come inside, pick up your bags off the sidewalk
Don't you hear sincerity in my voice when I talk
Told you this is my fault
Look me in the eyeball
Next time I'm pissed, I'll lay my fist at the drywall
Next time? There will be no next time!
I apologize even though I know its lies
I'm tired of the games I just want her back
As a
reader, I appreciate it when an author really “goes there” emotionally and as a
writer, I don’t want to disappoint in that arena either. When I take on a
writing project, I fully commit to my characters so I can understand their
feelings in any particular scene and convey that to the readers. What happens
when love hurts? That’s the question I wanted to answer in “Deadly Fantasies.”
And by delving into that theme, I was able to unearth how love in all its
different shapes and forms impacted each character in their own way.
Bianca’s Note: I can appreciate being inspired
by songs while writing my books (I even create playlists for my books – click here for the Live and Let Die playlist and here for the
Sweet Little Lies playlist). Love
the Way You Lie is a chilling song; it
really does give you pause. Definitely see why Kelly was motivated by it!
Kelly is
offering a free electronic copy of the first book in her Detective Kate
Springer series, Dead Like Me. It was
a runner-up in The Kindle Book Review’s 2013 Best Indie Book Award’s
Competition. It also won second place in the best mystery category of the 2011
FWA Royal Palm Literary Awards competition. Kelly’s newest book, Deadly Fantasies is the second book in the
series. Visit Kelly’s website at www.kellymillerauthor.com
to find out more information about the author and find a link to her weekly
blog.
Enter
below for your chance to win!
I'm loving these glimpses into other writers' motivation and aims. I prefer silence when I write because it allows me to get right inside myself. Music pulls me out. But the idea of songs being the springboard--very appealing :)
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