When I’m stuck with a project and short on time, I like to jump start my stagnation with a little music. Music is a powerful tool. It can motivate, sooth, and evoke emotions in an instant.
But rhythm and beats don’t just help the writer it can help in other instances as well. Music therapy has been proven to help will all sorts of disabilities and can improve mental health.
But what sort of music gets you going?
I used to enjoy Grooveshark but now I use Pandora or an album I purchased. Some of my favorite artists are Frightened Rabbit, Of Monsters and Men, Hey Marseilles, Mumford & Sons – Wilder Mind Album, and Florence + the Machine.
A good song can also set the mood for a scene. Need something mysterious with piano and strings as characters are trying to solve a puzzle? I use the soundtrack from A Lady in the Water.
A noble charge across a plain in your fantasy novel? The soundtrack for The Two Towers in the Lord of the Rings Trilogy does the trick.
If a character dies or is parted, I listen to the magnificent string piece by Alan Silvestri from the movie Cast Away.
This is the part where Chuck and Wilson the Volleyball are separated. It may seem silly but the inanimate object has been his only friend for years. I did this and I hear the music every time I read the piece I wrote while listening to it. I cannot help but tear up.
As you work on your piece, do you listen to music? Do you listen to a streaming service? If so, what are some of your favorite streaming sites, bands, or inspirational pieces?
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I like to put headphones on and tune out the world around me as I listen to my own playlist of my favorite contemporary Christian songs….helps me to capture the emotions I want in my characters.
Nice!
I find motivation in music…I use Pandora or iTunes…but I can’t seem to focus on writing while the music is on…music provokes inspiration but silence keeps me focused…weird …
I know another person like that. He is equally weird 🙂 but also one of my best friends. I can go either way. Do you have a random playlist or listen to anything in particular?
I’m as diverse as it gets…I typically let Pandora choose similar songs, but occasionally I use my own playlist. It’s really hard to find a pre-made playlist with equal parts Mob Deep and Brahms…there’s no playlist with Jay-Z/Taylor Swift/Rush mashups. Lol…also depends on what I intend to write and what I need my mindset to be…funny. I’ve never really thought about how music relates to my writing. Thanks for the post..thought provoking!
Nice. I have a wide range as well. Mostly Indie rock and classical. Never heard of Brahms or Mob Deep I’ll check ’em out!
I love music, but I’ve found music without lyrics are best for writing. I listen to soundtracks of movies and I mostly use Spotify. I’m pretty happy with it. My taste in music, though, is eclectic. From country to trance to classical and everything in between…except rap. Like my reading, my taste is linked to my mood.
That makes sense to me. A lot of the time I have to shut it off to concentrate if it’s not classical. I pass on rap as well. What is trance?
Trance is like this, and I have to be in the mood, usually when I do research: http://open.spotify.com/track/7EG4gIGjsU2FDW4uyvYac3
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