What music, if any, do you listen to when writing?

[UntoldStoryteller]

I do like writing in silence but ........ during covid with family and dogs ..... where’s silence again???

This winter, I’ve been putting on a track with a fire crackling in the background when I write. I’m also a big fan of making a playlist for each WIP, like Kat said.
Anyone have any favs they’ve made?

 

[TheKingsWit]

I typically pick a wordless 'epic music compilation' on YouTube, which either matches the atmosphere of the scene I'm writing, (sad, mysterious, intense), or just pick an action/adventure one as they tend to get me hyped up regardless of the mood of the scene.

 

[TurbulentMuse]

I tend to write at night in silence, but when I do put on music I have a playlist full of Porter Robinson and Madeon. It feels close enough to instrumental not to distract me, but has enough lyrics to keep my mind from wandering too far away from the present.

 

[B.D. Skunkworks]

-Iron Maiden: The Book of Souls- all but serves as the soundtrack for my first manuscript. For my current WIP it's -Sirenia: Arcane Ancestral Aeons-

 

[Just Jeremy]

I've been enjoying Hiromi and Jaco Pastorious the past few days, but It changes constantly.

 

[Richard White]

Depending on the story, I like to use game soundtracks (Final Fantasy XII, Tales of Xillia, Horizon: Zero Dawn, DragonAge: Origins, Guild Wars) or I have some new age/celtic music (primarily Mediaeval Babes) or some soft jazz (mainly Keiko Matsui). When I did my last story for Sisyphus, it was "of course, anime soundtracks. *grin*

 

[Kjbartolotta]

Worldhaspostrock Good post rock music, all varying degrees of metal, shoegaze, prog, psych and etc, not all great but good for atmospheric by music with some bite.

Hollow Instrumental and arrangements from the first Dark Souls, gets the vibe without the bombastic vocals. Get yer goth on.

MrRPGStar OSts from 90s rpgs, and so on, pretty all around agreeable.

Also spending a lot of time with the Snowfall soundtrack and Spotify’s got some very reliable 90s era hip hop channels I’ve been listening to for every occasion. I personally lean towards artists representing the great state of California, but there are more coastaly balanced channels as well.

Edit- I have no clue if I’ve posted these links before but I thought them worth sharing and, hey, it’s been a minnit.

 

[Autumn Leaves]

Classical and rock — mostly. I’ve got several rather eclectic playlists for inspiration for different types of stories; some of the tunes are so firmly linked with a particular story/genre in my mind that I can’t hear them without getting a little burst of inspiration for said story/genre.
My most “universal” favourite seems to be Händel’s opera Julius Caesar in Egypt — to its sound, I’ve written almost everything I can write at all: from thesis to fanfics to stories I actually published.

 

[tianaluthien]

A lot of the time it depends on my mood. If something is being particularly stubborn, I made to turn off all noise, shut the door, and just focus on getting the words out. Otherwise, sometimes I listen to songs or instrumental (if the lyrics are too distracting).

I generally compile playlists for all my works. It's half the fun, really, as I find that it actually helps in world-building. I'll hear a song and know that it belongs to the story I'm writing, and sometimes it unlocks something I hadn't thought of yet. Other times, it just helps me get in the zone.

The last book I wrote, The Midnight Hour, was Victoriana horror with steampunk & fantasy vibes, so I had a lot of dark and eerie and sad music. I'm working on the sequel now, which takes place in a completely different locale (think outback), so I'm trying to find steampunk-western music, keep the darkness, but also allow a little light in.

Some of my instrumental faves (just in general):

Ludovico Enaudi
E.S. Posthumus
Brunuhville
Adrian von Ziegler
Audiomachine

Lyrics:
Sam Tinnesz
Zayde Wolfe

These are some of my go-tos, but I've discovered a lot of new music for this sequel, as I did for MH itself.

 

[NickyRainbow]

I find lyrics too distracting when I'm writing, so I always lean towards instrumental music, or sometimes nature sounds. I usually end up circling back to my favourite video game soundtracks, because the emotional undertones tend to put me in just the right headspace. Lately I've just been putting ambient Red Dead Redemption 2 videos on in the background — they're the perfect mix of gorgeous, mellow music and relaxing nature sounds!

 

[holmes]

For whatever reason, I have to have something going in the background or my mind will wander too much. As long as it's music I already know, it doesn't distract me and can even set my mood.

 

[tiddlywinks]

A lot of the time it depends on my mood. If something is being particularly stubborn, I made to turn off all noise, shut the door, and just focus on getting the words out. Otherwise, sometimes I listen to songs or instrumental (if the lyrics are too distracting).

I generally compile playlists for all my works. It's half the fun, really, as I find that it actually helps in world-building. I'll hear a song and know that it belongs to the story I'm writing, and sometimes it unlocks something I hadn't thought of yet. Other times, it just helps me get in the zone.

The last book I wrote, The Midnight Hour, was Victoriana horror with steampunk & fantasy vibes, so I had a lot of dark and eerie and sad music. I'm working on the sequel now, which takes place in a completely different locale (think outback), so I'm trying to find steampunk-western music, keep the darkness, but also allow a little light in.

Some of my instrumental faves (just in general):

Ludovico Enaudi
E.S. Posthumus
Brunuhville
Adrian von Ziegler
Audiomachine

Lyrics:
Sam Tinnesz
Zayde Wolfe

These are some of my go-tos, but I've discovered a lot of new music for this sequel, as I did for MH itself.

*cough* I’m gonna take credit for introducing you to Sam Tinnesz among others in that list

 

[tianaluthien]

*cough* I’m gonna take credit for introducing you to Sam Tinnesz among others in that list

As you should.

 

[JJNotAbrams]

It usually depends on the mood. Sometimes silence but sometimes I listen to the soudntrack of Mandy.

This one, mostly. To get me in the mood.

 

[CMBright]

What kind of music, if any, do you listen to when writing?

I'm not sure how to classify the music, but I listen to instrumental pieces from some of the following artists:

- Jeremy Soule
- Two Steps from Hell
- Jo Blankenburg
- Twelve Titans music
- Ivan Torrent
- Audiomachine
- E.S. Posthumnus
- Thomas Bergesen
- Hans Zimmer

Just to name a few of my favorites. The mood or tone I need to write might determine what I chose to listen to.

Um... Cooking shows...

 

[scifiguy]

I have a playlist for my trilogy to help sort of define the mood and spirit of the various acts within. I listen to it while daydreaming or sketching out scenes (my sad form of planning, most work/discovery is situational).

I tried listening to music during writing. Music with lyrics was the first to go, my brain too quickly wanted to latch on to the song instead of typing my story. But I've found I'm preferring the focus of no distraction, no music at all. I might fire up some music if I'm writing a particularly emotional/dramatic/action packed scene and need a lyric-less track to help set the mood.

 

[Norsebard]

Similar to what scifiguy mentioned in the above post, I just can't listen to anything with lyrics when I'm writing - it messes up my brain!

I use Classical music and long-form Trance/Ambience techno instead. I've found the symphonies of Tchaikovsky and Dvorak as well as some of the works of Grieg (Peer Gynt) and Rimsky-Korsakov (the Scheherazade Suite) to be perfect accompaniment to my writing.

For Trance, I go back to the thriving scene of the mid-to-late 1990s with artists such as Astralasia, Cosmosis, Hallucinogen, Astral Projection, Chi-AD, Nostrum, Man With No Name and all those cats


Norsebard

 

[Cerasus]

I have a playlist for my trilogy to help sort of define the mood and spirit of the various acts within. I listen to it while daydreaming or sketching out scenes (my sad form of planning, most work/discovery is situational).

I tried listening to music during writing. Music with lyrics was the first to go, my brain too quickly wanted to latch on to the song instead of typing my story. But I've found I'm preferring the focus of no distraction, no music at all. I might fire up some music if I'm writing a particularly emotional/dramatic/action packed scene and need a lyric-less track to help set the mood.

Similar to what scifiguy mentioned in the above post, I just can't listen to anything with lyrics when I'm writing - it messes up my brain!

I use Classical music and long-form Trance/Ambience techno instead. I've found the symphonies of Tchaikovsky and Dvorak as well as some of the works of Grieg (Peer Gynt) and Rimsky-Korsakov (the Scheherazade Suite) to be perfect accompaniment to my writing.

For Trance, I go back to the thriving scene of the mid-to-late 1990s with artists such as Astralasia, Cosmosis, Hallucinogen, Astral Projection, Chi-AD, Nostrum, Man With No Name and all those cats


Norsebard

Indeed, lyrics are simply too distracting while writing. It feels like the right word is always at the tip of my tongue, but I just can't seem to "hear" it in my mind due to the constant background noise (namely, words).

That said, back in college, I learned that lyrics make for an excellent pre-writing routine; I have a list of songs that get me all pumped up for writing. This is also true for brainstorming. However, once I actually do sit down and stare at the blank page, I switch to more ambient music, such as soundtracks from games (Starcraft, Warcraft, Oblivion, KotOR, Gothic, WoW, etc.) and movies/series (LotR, The Dollar Trilogy, The Mandalorian, etc.).

Sometimes when the scene requires it, I switch to more suspenseful music or those ASMR videos — such as "old library sounds," "creaking floor sounds," and whatnot.

And when I'm REALLY having a hard time concentrating due to my cat's constant meowing and purring while she shoves her butthole up my nose, I play some classical (mostly Bach or Chopin) or Zen music to get those brain juices flowing.

 

[Sage]

One of two things:

1. An instrumental soundtrack with some epic music involved. Lord of the Rings, Doctor Who, Avengers: Endgame, and a couple Harry Potter soundtracks are the main culprits here.

2. The in-progress soundtrack I'm creating for my novel. This is a collection of songs that follow the trajectory of the novel, reflecting the plot and/or characters' feelings throughout. I might listen to a section that the scene I'm working on is part of for an added level of emotion that music tends to bring me.

 

[dickson]

I fear I’ve gotten out of the habit of playing music when I’m writing. Instead, at the moment I have the Bill Evans (of “Kind of Blue” fame) piece I’ve been learning for a while now running through my head. ”We’ll Meet Again,“ one of the last pieces he composed. There are YouTube videos of him performing it in his final months.

 

[amo1143]

Historically, nothing.

Lately, instrumental k-drama soundtracks. Everything I write feels SO EPIC now, no matter how terrible the prose may be in that draft.

 

[RGS-Author]

None whatsoever for me. As much as I love music, I can't focus with any audible music or media going on aside from a TV turned down very quietly, just for background noise.

 

[gwunders]

The Disco Elysium (Director's Cut) Soundtrack is wonderful for writing anything semi-psychedelic or punky or mystical.

Disco Elysium Complete OST + Ambience

Horizon: Zero Dawn is magical for anything fantasy. Along with the Tyranny and Pillars of Eternity: Deadfire OSTs.

Though really "insert genre here ambient music mix" in the youtube search bar is my go to, hah.

 

[sonder_siri]

I personally have many, many, playlists I switch through when writing. My most commonly used playlist mainly features these artists:
- Ed Sheeran (I see fire, specifically.)
- Ruelle (Scotland)
- The Lumineers
- Birdy
- Gabrielle Aplin (good for relationship changing scenes)
- Sleeping At Last
- AURORA (everything, pure gold when it comes to my inspiration)
- Lindsey Stirling (mostly violin instrumentals)
- Ricky Montgomery (sounds like a musical, without really being one)

This song, in particular, drives me when I'm writing emotional scenes: To Build A Home by the Cinematic Orchestra and Patric Watson

This might be the sappy teenager side of me, but Taylor Swift's Evermore and Folklore are very soothing when writing. Although they are lyric-driven songs, they fade into the background when I get focused.

I know music is based on personal taste, but you can never go wrong with classical music. You just have to find the classical songs that fit whatever vibe you are looking for when writing.

 

[NBswriting]

I find it easier to write to music that either gets me moving, or puts really strong images into my head. I've got a whole playlist dedicated to writing, and it's a big mix of classic rock, 50's soul, and early blues. There's a lot to dance to, like Sam Cooke, Little Richard, and Warren Zevon, but there's also plenty that just hits me in a certain emotional way. Artists like Kansas, Blind Willie Johnson, and Heart have a lot of songs like that. But long story short: I can write without music, but having it makes everything flow so much easier. The only exception is I can't read or edit to music.