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Writing Playlist #1

Hannah Truelove

Music

It soothes the soul, calms the mind, and is great for getting those creative juices flowing.

For this week’s WritingTipWednesday we’re going to focus on inspiration. Specifically, musical inspiration. I can’t tell you what a difference the right background music makes in my writing. Sans music, I find myself constantly distracted by every little noise.

Hear the kitchen sink dripping? Suddenly you’re wondering what to make for dinner, if you remembered to buy milk, and sooner or later you’ll have an urgent need to pee.

These constant distractions I don’t even notice will pull my brain in so many directions it’s no wonder I can’t get more than a sentence at a time written in a sitting.

My Writing Technique:

I’ll go into my process more on another Writing Tip Wednesday, but this is the abridged version:

  1. Semi-quiet room or corner
  2. Noise-cancelling headphones
  3. Music– the louder and weirder, the better

Now I have three kids, so number one is nearly impossible, and number two is a life-saving necessity.

Background Noise

A lot of writers seem to include movie scores and video game themes in their writing playlist, and I totally see why. The mostly instrumental music is the perfect backdrop for a productive writing session. My advice when choosing your music is to avoid tracks that are too poppy or catchy, as your mind will get stuck on those hooks and you’ll be humming them the rest of the day rather than thinking fresh thoughts.

My Music

On my most recent manuscripts, which are both epic fantasies with alot of dark and sci-fi themes, I found that my inspiration was unleashed by (very loud) alternative, Dub-Step, and indie pop. Some which was in my usual eclectic music selection, and a few tracks that even surprised me.

Muse, AWOLNATION, and Twenty One Pilots have been huge motivators for the novels I’ve been working on.

Of course if your genre is say, Romance or Western, you may want to include tracks from appropriate genres or that have a theme similar to what you’re writing.

Here’s Playlist #1

Writing Inspiration Playlist image

#1

  1. heavydirtysoul– Twenty One Pilots
  2. Whatever It Takes– Imagine Dragons
  3. Woman Woman– AWOLNATION
  4. Blood in the Cut– K. Flay
  5. Lane Boy– Twenty One Pilots
  6. Pumped Up Kicks– Foster the People
  7. Uprising– Muse
  8. MF– AWOLNATION
  9. Supermassive Black Hole– Muse
  10. I Just Wanna Run– The Downtown Fiction
  11. No You Girls– Franz Ferdinand
  12. F.M.L.- K. Flay

Check out the YouTube Music Mix and don’t forget to follow me for more playlists, writings, and tips.

Comment below with your favorite music to write to!