It is incredibly difficult for me to write while listening to music. Lyrics cross my wires and, perhaps due to playing (and learning) violin by ear as a child, I'm unable to listen to even wordless music without being entranced by it.
That being said, I do practice the long dabble of "long walks with my profound feelings." My music go-to is minimalist piano music a la Philip Glass. If you've ever taken a class with you, you'll probably have heard me play "Mad Rush," the song of my teenage years, which has aged rather gracefully, if I may say so myself. It appears on Glass's "Solo Piano": https://open.spotify.com/album/1VZPXdEJiXJ4CMedhASknN?si=OzJFm1yFQHu4y3Stp9vNWg.
I'm also quite fond of soundtrack music, namely The Hours and Brokeback Mountain.
Okay, now that everyone else is replying, I'm realizing that I should at least share the ambient noise that I've grown fond of over the years, available on the hallowed ground of YouTube:
I can only write to instrumental and I love soundtracks. I used to only listen to The Nutcracker while writing, but now I only listen to Nicholas Britell–– my favorites being the Moonlight or If Beale Street Could Talk soundtrack. Creates such a soaring, dramatic atmosphere!
Love this question bc I like to make playlists for specific projects haha. Music provides so much in terms of settling me into the world of a story or setting the mood I need to write. Currently been listening to Fatima Al-Qadiri's score for Atlantiques and I often return to William Basinski's Disintegration Loops. Alternately I like to listen to one song on a loop for hours while writing...
Ooh, I love this approach. I feel as though soundtracks have really set us all up for soundtracks of our lives, and of course writers are writing during theirs. How many playlists do you have now?
There's a couple, right now I have one playlist that I listen to for a few thematically connected stories I'm working on. I think your point about soundtracks is true, especially bc as a writer I get so much inspiration from film, and for me, listening to scores brings that filmic element/texture into the writing process.
That said I wrote Edinburgh while listening to a lot of Kiss 97FM and WBLS radio in NYC. For some reason, songs with lyrics playing on the radio don't interfere with me in the same way as if I choose music with lyrics. It's as if I'm overhearing something meant for someone else.
Mostly instrumentals and soundtracks for me. My writing playlist is called "write something that breaks a heart" and ranges from the Harry Potter/ Moonlight soundtracks to a couple off Braveheart (lol!)/ In The Mood for Love/ Call Me By Your Name.
I usually write about home, longing, loss, sentimentality - and these tracks usually get me in the mood :)
From the responses yesterday, it certainly seems like "mood" is the main reason we factor in music while writing. I love thinking about the emotionality of music. Film has definitely helped that impression.
Hi Yanyi, great question... love the Butt song, first time I've heard it.. have you ever listened to any Hildegard von Bingen? .. famously sampled by The Beloved in 'The Sun Rising'...
My favorite workshop I did involving music was a painting exercise in an Art foundation class. With a huge piece of paper on the wall, each student brought in a track, I brought in 'Them That's Not' by J-Live, queued up on a cassette tape, (I'd taped the track off the radio lol).. with paints, pens, ink, charcoal, crayons etc... we all worked blindfolded for about an hour... I still have my picture.. it's really kinetic.. wondering if this could be replicated with words somehow... blindfolded, responding to music!? I might have a go! :-)
Hahaha, I remember taping music off the radio. Good days! There's still a recording somewhere out there of my child self recording over the vocals of a Chinese 80s pop song. I had hoped to join the chorus...alas.
Lovely!! Yes I think we had a few similar tapes knocking about once! :-D
Really like Amanda's writing to a track as a timed writing exercise, thank you, I can see me having a go at that..
you might like the Leo Chadburn track.. very minimal, I write to a mostly minimal electro (James Holden) / binaural beats / Kirtan chanting (With some Glass, Nyman and Alice Coltrane mixed in.. but I am also loving the idea of atmospheric sounds like trains etc.. I'll check out the links..
I try to listen to mood music with no lyrics and that can be anywhere from minimalist to metal depending on the subject matter BUT I think I might have to try this https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMJaDvHyR/
It's 50/50 for me. Sometimes I can listen to music and other times I get too caught up in the melody or lyrics, especially it's a new song or a beloved favorite that I can't reduce into mindless sound. However, I am such a sucker for making playlists for my stories. I love finding the perfect song or words or to perfectly encapsulate the mood, tone, and vibe I'm going for. I even get fussy about song order and playlist cover. If a story doesn't have a playlist then it at least has a couple dedicated songs or the makings of one that remind me of it. I have one giant playlist that serves as mood music for writing that's mostly made up of straggler songs that aren't enough to make its own playlist or don't have a set story attached to them.
This is such an interesting phenomenon to me. When writing poems, I often end up writing seed texts that evoke the emotions/ideas that I want to expand upon in the eventual manuscript. It sounds like this is something you do with songs. I will definitely try this if I ever write fiction again!
Yes! That's exactly it! I never thought of the term "seed" but that's basically how I use music. When writing I first think in terms of theme and mood which is hard to sustain as logistics or actual story structure begin to take precedent. It's helpful to return to music that already evokes the emotion I'm going for to inspire me. Mitski is an artist I find myself studying not only sonically but sentence-wise because her songs are crafted in such a way that I envy and wish I could emulate!
Maybe because I grew up with one parent who loves musicals and another who loves opera, but for me music has always been tied to scenes and a device for moving the story along. So listening to most music is a slightly annoying process of deciding where in the story a song/piece might appear. Like, "oh, this is clearly kissing-passionately-in-the-rain music" or "this section from Holst's Jupiter should be used during the parade at the end of a sci-fi novel".
As such, I'll only listen to music while writing if it fits the exact mood I want for each scene (and it can take hours to find the right piece), or if it's one of those 3-hour long "coffee shop sounds" or the Phantom Thread soundtrack.
It's funny how living situations play a huge part in this. I remember only have privacy when I locked myself away in my room (which I am so thankful I had), so perhaps silence plays into the "soundtrack" of how I used to be with myself.
I love that you only name one soundtrack. Why that one? I remember hearing about the Phantom Thread soundtrack a bunch when it came out. I guess I must rectify this.
I can't even explain what it is about Phantom Thread that works. I still haven't watched the film, but the soundtrack was recommended to me and worked marvels the first time. I kept coming back to it and I'm pretty sure it's a conditioning thing now.
Ooo I have a big playlist I listen to for focusing, which is mostly chamber music (no symphonies, pianos preferred) which I use for doing brain work. I think some of the Spotify stuff is actually good for this.
if I'm doing novel writing I tend to create huge, hours-long playlists that have a vibe. Recently I've been experimenting with music in languages I don't understand because it creates really strong atmospheres and I like how it's been helpful for stories set in non-Western places. Recently, been listening to a lot of Cantonese rap, this has been a fun one (tho canto-rap can be quite racist, so apologies for some of it) https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLgEioYONRUPGxEIMyI-N-btD7WRoEI9Gs
It is incredibly difficult for me to write while listening to music. Lyrics cross my wires and, perhaps due to playing (and learning) violin by ear as a child, I'm unable to listen to even wordless music without being entranced by it.
That being said, I do practice the long dabble of "long walks with my profound feelings." My music go-to is minimalist piano music a la Philip Glass. If you've ever taken a class with you, you'll probably have heard me play "Mad Rush," the song of my teenage years, which has aged rather gracefully, if I may say so myself. It appears on Glass's "Solo Piano": https://open.spotify.com/album/1VZPXdEJiXJ4CMedhASknN?si=OzJFm1yFQHu4y3Stp9vNWg.
I'm also quite fond of soundtrack music, namely The Hours and Brokeback Mountain.
This is definitely a question that others will have more useful answers for than me, though I love music!
Okay, now that everyone else is replying, I'm realizing that I should at least share the ambient noise that I've grown fond of over the years, available on the hallowed ground of YouTube:
A fireplace (which I like to cast in the winter time, ha): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L_LUpnjgPso
Bergensbanen (doc that records the train ride from Bergen to Oslo, Norway): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d_S_13TWn1c&feature=emb_title
Airplane white noise (I write very well on planes): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=co7KgV2edvI
Another train video I'm fond of: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZqeaUZ_2NM
Sound gives a sense of space. Importantly, different spaces. And wouldn't that be nice for us all right now!
+1 for the Bergensbanen. Never considered using this as a soundtrack, but it's definitely going to be the backdrop for a novel sometime soon.
I can only write to instrumental and I love soundtracks. I used to only listen to The Nutcracker while writing, but now I only listen to Nicholas Britell–– my favorites being the Moonlight or If Beale Street Could Talk soundtrack. Creates such a soaring, dramatic atmosphere!
Hi Kyle! Thanks for sharing. I can't wait to try these out!
Love this question bc I like to make playlists for specific projects haha. Music provides so much in terms of settling me into the world of a story or setting the mood I need to write. Currently been listening to Fatima Al-Qadiri's score for Atlantiques and I often return to William Basinski's Disintegration Loops. Alternately I like to listen to one song on a loop for hours while writing...
Ooh, I love this approach. I feel as though soundtracks have really set us all up for soundtracks of our lives, and of course writers are writing during theirs. How many playlists do you have now?
There's a couple, right now I have one playlist that I listen to for a few thematically connected stories I'm working on. I think your point about soundtracks is true, especially bc as a writer I get so much inspiration from film, and for me, listening to scores brings that filmic element/texture into the writing process.
I love listening to film sound tracks. The soundtracks for A Single Man, and Lust Passion are two I write along to regularly.
That said I wrote Edinburgh while listening to a lot of Kiss 97FM and WBLS radio in NYC. For some reason, songs with lyrics playing on the radio don't interfere with me in the same way as if I choose music with lyrics. It's as if I'm overhearing something meant for someone else.
Perhaps it's like listening to the humdrum of a cafe?
I have the physical CD for Lust, Passion. I'm sure it's somewhere next to my first ever purchase, Evanescence's FALLEN.
I think that's right, it's strangely anonymizing, the context.
Mostly instrumentals and soundtracks for me. My writing playlist is called "write something that breaks a heart" and ranges from the Harry Potter/ Moonlight soundtracks to a couple off Braveheart (lol!)/ In The Mood for Love/ Call Me By Your Name.
I usually write about home, longing, loss, sentimentality - and these tracks usually get me in the mood :)
From the responses yesterday, it certainly seems like "mood" is the main reason we factor in music while writing. I love thinking about the emotionality of music. Film has definitely helped that impression.
Hi Yanyi, great question... love the Butt song, first time I've heard it.. have you ever listened to any Hildegard von Bingen? .. famously sampled by The Beloved in 'The Sun Rising'...
My favorite workshop I did involving music was a painting exercise in an Art foundation class. With a huge piece of paper on the wall, each student brought in a track, I brought in 'Them That's Not' by J-Live, queued up on a cassette tape, (I'd taped the track off the radio lol).. with paints, pens, ink, charcoal, crayons etc... we all worked blindfolded for about an hour... I still have my picture.. it's really kinetic.. wondering if this could be replicated with words somehow... blindfolded, responding to music!? I might have a go! :-)
But I do find working to instrumental music really helps me concentrate... I wrote a poem last week with this incredible track on loop.. by Leo Chadburn, https://open.spotify.com/track/0uRvjPhq7vNQPAD11bYPlW?si=quQEgSAQS06aV1WtUbISRw
I love that exercise, Vicki! Last week, amanda posted a comment about writing to a song that you might be interested in trying out: https://yanyi.substack.com/p/the-writing-how-do-you-write-when/comments#comment-608652
Hahaha, I remember taping music off the radio. Good days! There's still a recording somewhere out there of my child self recording over the vocals of a Chinese 80s pop song. I had hoped to join the chorus...alas.
Lovely!! Yes I think we had a few similar tapes knocking about once! :-D
Really like Amanda's writing to a track as a timed writing exercise, thank you, I can see me having a go at that..
you might like the Leo Chadburn track.. very minimal, I write to a mostly minimal electro (James Holden) / binaural beats / Kirtan chanting (With some Glass, Nyman and Alice Coltrane mixed in.. but I am also loving the idea of atmospheric sounds like trains etc.. I'll check out the links..
I try to listen to mood music with no lyrics and that can be anywhere from minimalist to metal depending on the subject matter BUT I think I might have to try this https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMJaDvHyR/
I laughed out loud at this. Let me know how it goes. I'd love to hear from anyone who has written a piece while listening to a video game soundtrack.
It's 50/50 for me. Sometimes I can listen to music and other times I get too caught up in the melody or lyrics, especially it's a new song or a beloved favorite that I can't reduce into mindless sound. However, I am such a sucker for making playlists for my stories. I love finding the perfect song or words or to perfectly encapsulate the mood, tone, and vibe I'm going for. I even get fussy about song order and playlist cover. If a story doesn't have a playlist then it at least has a couple dedicated songs or the makings of one that remind me of it. I have one giant playlist that serves as mood music for writing that's mostly made up of straggler songs that aren't enough to make its own playlist or don't have a set story attached to them.
This is such an interesting phenomenon to me. When writing poems, I often end up writing seed texts that evoke the emotions/ideas that I want to expand upon in the eventual manuscript. It sounds like this is something you do with songs. I will definitely try this if I ever write fiction again!
Yes! That's exactly it! I never thought of the term "seed" but that's basically how I use music. When writing I first think in terms of theme and mood which is hard to sustain as logistics or actual story structure begin to take precedent. It's helpful to return to music that already evokes the emotion I'm going for to inspire me. Mitski is an artist I find myself studying not only sonically but sentence-wise because her songs are crafted in such a way that I envy and wish I could emulate!
Maybe because I grew up with one parent who loves musicals and another who loves opera, but for me music has always been tied to scenes and a device for moving the story along. So listening to most music is a slightly annoying process of deciding where in the story a song/piece might appear. Like, "oh, this is clearly kissing-passionately-in-the-rain music" or "this section from Holst's Jupiter should be used during the parade at the end of a sci-fi novel".
As such, I'll only listen to music while writing if it fits the exact mood I want for each scene (and it can take hours to find the right piece), or if it's one of those 3-hour long "coffee shop sounds" or the Phantom Thread soundtrack.
It's funny how living situations play a huge part in this. I remember only have privacy when I locked myself away in my room (which I am so thankful I had), so perhaps silence plays into the "soundtrack" of how I used to be with myself.
I love that you only name one soundtrack. Why that one? I remember hearing about the Phantom Thread soundtrack a bunch when it came out. I guess I must rectify this.
I can't even explain what it is about Phantom Thread that works. I still haven't watched the film, but the soundtrack was recommended to me and worked marvels the first time. I kept coming back to it and I'm pretty sure it's a conditioning thing now.
Haha I will check back in about it sometime after I've tried it myself.
Max Richter's "Vivaldi Recomposed" has a miraculous effect on me, and his soundtracks for "My Brilliant Friend" and "The Leftovers" too.
Juliana Barwick's "Healing is a Miracle" is my latest discovery, and it's a glorious, soothing ambient album.
And for a long time I used to swear by this. It's remarkably effective: https://youtu.be/ArwcHjmsw3A
Oh, I *love* Max Richter. The Blue Notebooks especially. I also have the music for Vivaldi Recomposed—whew!
I also love the Blue Notebooks, but can't write to it at all - it demands too much attention.
Yes! And he loves Woolf. Did you hear what he did with Woolf Works? I'm still jealous I never saw it live. https://open.spotify.com/album/4fo551Vy3KXbbRxRlVTD9D?si=ky05hNrjQMedMgQZBCZeqw
Woolf Works is terrific, but I do feel like I'm missing out having never read "Orlando" - something I need to remedy.
I've tried multiple times getting into Orlando. It just has never clicked for me! I hope you have better luck.
Ooo I have a big playlist I listen to for focusing, which is mostly chamber music (no symphonies, pianos preferred) which I use for doing brain work. I think some of the Spotify stuff is actually good for this.
if I'm doing novel writing I tend to create huge, hours-long playlists that have a vibe. Recently I've been experimenting with music in languages I don't understand because it creates really strong atmospheres and I like how it's been helpful for stories set in non-Western places. Recently, been listening to a lot of Cantonese rap, this has been a fun one (tho canto-rap can be quite racist, so apologies for some of it) https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLgEioYONRUPGxEIMyI-N-btD7WRoEI9Gs