Eight Questions with D. M. Needom
As an author, do you also see yourself as an entertainer or artist?
Both, I consider myself an artist because I have to create not just a story but a visual buffet for the mind. The reader has to be placed into the world of the novel that I created. They have to feel something, whether it’s good, bad or indifferent. They need to make that connection with the characters and their experience. I hope to entertain them while they enter the world I’ve created.
Do you consider rock as a music style, as alive and vibrant as ever?
Rock, like any other type of music, evolves. When you listen to early rock, it was bare bones. There was a certain innocence and rawness about it. Other musical styles have been incorporated into it too and used to build on it. If you look at the Beatles and their career. They started out with fun pop songs that had their base in other music. As they developed as individuals, their songs and style of playing changed. It became much more complicated and turned into an experience to listen to. That being said, as a bass player, their early songs had a lot of meat to work with.
Today, we have artists like Imagine Dragons and Nothing but Thieves. You can see that newer artists are picking up the mantel and running with it. They’ve taken styles from the past and built on them. Some groups that have stuck around have continued to evolve. While they try to stick to a core foundation of their sound, they understand that they have to grow and adapt. I also think with apps like Spotify and Pandora, rock and other types of music will continue to grow and find a different audience.
Did any specific album or song inspire your writing?
I write with music and each book has its playlist, which is on Spotify and is in the back of each book.
When I first started writing, I used to write to movie soundtracks. However, with My Daze with the Dark Muse, I created a playlist that offered me a much edgier soundtrack to write to. Imagine Dragons played an integral role in it. When I was writing My Daze, the aggressiveness in some songs allowed Nigel’s anger to come out. There are also a few songs that are a little calmer and that fit him being the repentive man. Songs like ‘I’m So Sorry’ by Imagine Dragons and ‘Always Wrong’ by Neurotic Outsiders, played on a loop. When I was writing and the song resonated with the scene, you don’t want to break that momentum.
‘Circle the Drain’ by Katy Perry and ‘Call Me When You’re Sober’ by Evanescence played well because they’re basically from the woman’s perspective of dealing with the addict. Even though we don’t hear Ava’s story, there are still hints of it. For instance; when she says, “People will question why I stay.” Those songs besides offering a glimpse of Ava allow Nigel to see what he has done.
The soundtrack for Worth Waiting For is a diverse blend of nineties music and a lot of covers. I went with music that offered a little more of the longing and missing someone. Also, some songs I used to imagine Wes writing and singing them. The one song I used from the Princess Bride soundtrack, called ‘Storybook Love,’ made readers connect with the scene, it’s mentioned in.
For me, as an author, music plays a huge role. We all have a soundtrack of some sort in our lives. A song that we can hear, that can move us to tears or remind us of one of the happiest moments of our lives. So, the music I chose for the story, I’m working on has to connect with the characters in some way. It’s their soundtrack for their lives, and sometimes I listen to things I’d never listen to normally. Sure, there are a few songs that have some crossover on multiple playlists, but mostly each is individual to the novel.
Did any rock band, rock star, or actor inspire scenes or characters in your stories?
Yes, having been lucky enough to hang out with musicians and bigger-name bands, there are certain things and events that inspired my muse. That doesn’t mean that any of my characters are based on one person. Most of my characters are a composite of several people or events. While I was writing Daze, The Originals was airing. Watching Joseph Morgan’s portrayal of Klaus Michaelson, when he had this kind of rock star swagger, was also an inspiration. Jack Davenport in SMASH, his character Derick Wills, had that curt aggression that I felt Nigel had. That is only a little of what created Nigel.
Worth Waiting For was a whole different process in writing a book. I had seen Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, and something about Brad Pitt made me think to look back to his younger days. Wes first came to me like Brad Pitt and then as I was writing someone shared an image of Christopher Mason on Facebook and I knew he was perfect. So, Wes is kind of a blend of Brad and Christopher. There was no question with Mason. If I had to cast Mason, there was only one person who came to mind, and that was Julian McMahon. Between him being evil on the original Charmed and Nip/Tuck, there was no one else I could see being Mason in my mind. So, when I’m writing, the visual of the person is there acting it out as my fingers hit the keys. That being said, I don’t believe that Julian is anything like Mason. It was his character portrayals that inspired me.
Do you think the excessive lifestyle that seems to go with the territory of being a rock star, is a source of creativity or a negative force?
I think it’s both. For some people, they get so wrapped up in the stage high that when they come off of it, they’re still craving it. This is where the negative starts. Being on stage is a drug all in itself. There was one night when I was in a skybox at Rosemont Horizon watching a Depeche Mode concert. They lit the audience, and the stage was dark. At that moment, from where I was standing, it was like being on stage. Hearing the crowd singing along and being in that perspective, you could feel the power and energy of the fans.
If you put yourself in that situation on multiple nights and then find yourself suddenly alone in a hotel room, it’s hard to find balance. So, you look for an escape or a connection. It could be drugs, booze, or sex. Especially before the internet, when it was hard to make connections, albeit some connections on the net aren’t real. But if you think about being on stage, you just had this massive high and the adrenaline rush, and then it’s gone. If you’re not used to being alone, it’s going to mess with your head.
Most people who start their first band are still in high school or just out. Some do it for the love of music and others for the attention, fame, or sex. The thing about it is, at seventeen, you’re not fully aware of what you’re stepping into. This applies to models and young actors as well. You think you have an idea, but you don’t know all that comes with fame or success. No one has revealed all that is entailed to you. Suddenly, you have people who are telling you wonderful things, and building you up, and if you come from a problematic background, it can overwhelm you, because there is no one to help ground you. If they don’t have a solid relatable support system, it’s easy to give in to the lifestyle. Many in the industry haven’t succumbed, and many have beaten their demons.
As far as creativity some say, they can only be creative if they are high. Some of your brilliant writers had addiction problems, so I don’t think it is just limited to being a rock star. When you want to be creative and the muse isn’t there, you have to make a choice. Mine is usually to listen to music or look at images and if that doesn’t work I walk away for a bit, but for others, they imbibe or have a drink.
For me as a writer, the rock star lifestyle was always something that intrigued me. Maybe that is because I wanted to be a bassist in a big band when I was younger. Looking back, I’m glad I wasn’t because of some of very things that came with it. While it would’ve been cool as hell, I’m not sure I could’ve handled the pressure back then.
What was the primary inspiration for your books?
The adventures and careers of my life, working in radio, television, modeling, and even being in a band all provide fodder on some level to create my world for my writing. I used to be part of my friend’s band’s entourage, so I went on interviews and trips with her as I was her driver.
Sometimes in my writing, I add shades of people that intrigued and entertained me. I’ve had people in my life that have been addicted. When I plug them into the rock world, it writes itself, because ultimately the rock star is just human. They may have a really kick-ass job they love and more money, but they can have the same problems we do. Addiction be it food, alcohol, sex, drugs, or just past traumas is something that we as humans have to work on every day. Do we give in and succumb or do we fight another day?
With Fame, we build people up so high, that we think they are almost godlike. Then when they crack, we’re ready to burn them at the stake. Britney Spears is a prime example. We watched her grow and then lose her way. Instead of wanting to help her, the public turned on her. Of course, now that’s all changed and she is sharing her own story.
Honestly, though, this can happen to anyone. I once watched a bass player on stage screw up and have the audience turn on him in a split second. The boos and ugly chants filled the stands. It didn’t matter that he had played the song many other times perfectly; it was all in that moment that people turned against him. So his little screw-up turned into something that could cut him to his core. If you screw up at work in most cases you get written up or talked to by your boss. When you’re a celebrity, you suddenly have millions to play judge and juror, especially with the internet.
I think that’s why, when I write, I try to be more realistic in my work. Sure, there are multi-million dollar homes, expensive cars, and charter jets, but at the bones of my story, I’m writing about flawed and damaged people. Sometimes they might get at least a happy-for-now ending and sometimes you just have to wait and see.
How do you feel the Internet has affected the music business and rock stars?
For musicians, their music can find a different audience because of apps like Spotify and Pandora, but there are limitations. I can choose a playlist and listen to only what I want. Though Spotify usually will turn me onto something new after my list is over. I’ve discovered a lot of new music that way. While that’s fine, the days of going to the local record store to pick up a single when it’s released are gone. Back then you got the single and a B-side, and now you can download the single and no B-side. Also, you don’t have to buy the entire record so you lose the album experience.
Back in the day, there was an excitement about the new release. You had to go to the local record store and pick it up. It was something about having a physical record in your hand. You had the album art, pictures, and liner notes, and now you download and get one image. The experience for the fans, it’s much different.
The music business, just like the book business, has changed a lot. Where it was harder in the past to put something out be it a song, record, or a book, technology has given us the freedom to share with the world things that would never have seen the light of day. That doesn’t mean that success is assured, but it allows more people to follow their passion and dreams and deal with fewer gatekeepers.
Another thing about the music industry is radio. The first station I worked at in 93, I could choose everything I played. So, there was some freedom to it. If someone wanted a request, I could do it. When I worked at my next station in 94, that was taken away. A computer did everything, except me talking. If someone called for a request, I couldn’t do it because everything was already set up. Radio has changed a lot, and ultimately that affects the industry.
The downside of apps like Spotify and Pandora is very similar to having a book on KU. For every song that is played, it is like a page read of a book and the artist is making a penny a play if they are lucky.
Have you ever met a rock band? If so, what happened?
I met Kenny Loggins, the day after the Live Aid concert. My friends and I met him at an airport while waiting for our flight, and he was there. We said hi, took pictures, and got autographs.
I had several encounters with the Powerstation, which was Tony Thompson from Chic on drums, Michael Des Barres on vocals, and John and Andy Taylor from Duran Duran. However, I had a very profound moment after the show. The band was sitting in a hotel bar in the French Quarter. The bar was open to the street, and they were sitting right there. Most of the fans were now congregating around the perimeter of the bar. I walked across the street and looked in a shop window. I was ready to go home as I knew my friends and I wouldn’t be meeting them. The fans across the street were loud, but the security guard was louder as he bellowed, “Their people not animals.” This was the moment that things shifted for me. How fitting was it that I was looking through a chain-link fence-covered window as he said this? It was like looking into a glass cage for lack of a better way to put it. This made me think about their world and the fishbowl existence. It would shape my views on celebrity and fame.
In the years that followed my muse would be inspired by my meetings with INXS, and Duran Duran. One of those encounters allowed me to be in the same hotel lobby with the Dalai Lama. I’ve met many celebrities including Donny and Marie, Jeff Beck, Joseph Morgan, and others. While I could tell my tales of what happened here, I feel more comfortable allowing my muse to use them in my books. I’ll leave it up to the reader to try to figure out what is real and what isn’t. The muse will give me direction, I’m sure on what I should share and what I shouldn’t.