Writing Music: Be Prepared

I love listening to music while I write. Something about having a tune pouring into my ears while I’m typing away makes it easier to concentrate. But as well as listening to music while writing, I also like to listen to music while planning a book, or before writing to get myself into a certain mood. For me, Disney songs are really good at inspiring characters and situations, or creating the right mood for a scene. While they’re not really good for writing to (I have a terrible habit of singing along instead of typing), they’re perfect for getting the creative juices flowing.

Some of my favourite characters to write are the villains. From the moustache twirlers to the heartless brutes, there’s something wickedly satisfying about writing the hero’s main opponent. And for me, there’s no song that truly captures my villainous imagination like Be Prepared, from The Lion King. This song has it all; a catchy tune, a suave villain, a brilliant evil plan, and the not-so-bright minions that no good villain should be without. Listening to that song always gets me in the mood to come up with some evil plots. If you’re looking for a song to get you in the right mood for making that end of the world button, why not give Be Prepared a listen?

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Do you ever listen to music to get into the right mood for a character? Feel like plotting evil things now? What’s your favourite villainous song? And who is your favourite villain of all time?