I've been insanely busy writing, trying to finish FORSAKEN before November comes to an end, but I'm able to sneak away for a few minutes to write this!
I want to talk about writing with music, for a minute.
Anytime I plan to get some serious writing done--like when I'm planning on sitting down at the computer for three hours at the least, and ignore all of the internetz, the first step is to put on my headphones and start my playlist.
Most of the time I open up my FORSAKEN playlist, which is full of Jennifer Thomas and Brian Crain and such, OR, on days that I need a little more motivation and excitement, I click over to my playlist titled 'EMOTIONS' which is packed full of lyrical songs that make me happy and have a good tune, such as Twenty One Pilots, Evanescence, and plenty of other songs I've heard on the radio and added.
Music has the power, to me, to make my book better than I ever could have written it. With a soundtrack in the back, I can't spend a bunch of time thinking about which words to use, or worrying about if it sounds good, ect. This is a good thing. Editing comes later, and having music to half-way distract me keeps me from critiquing AS I'm writing, which I think is what most authors struggle with.
It also has the power to set a scene. Is it an emotional song? Is it a fun, pop song? Is it full of sad violins and quiet pianos? Every song carries an emotion, so be careful which song you're playing when, because, believe it or not, it has power over you, as the writer, to accidentally seep into your writing as well. You expected that scene you wrote to be lighthearted, yet you were listening to a hard rock song? Yeah, think again.
Music has influenced my writing to the point that, if a good enough song is playing, something COMPLETELY unexpected happens, and I have to rearrange my entire plot just because a certain song played.
This is just how it is for ME, of course--I'm not sure about other writers. I've heard some writers need complete silence, others with a rainfall sound in the background--we each have different quirks. What's yours?
Do you play music while writing? Does music influence your writing? What is your favorite artist to listen to?
Thanks for reading, and I'll see you soon!
(Actually, I won't SEE you, because this is a blog and technically I'm looking at a computer screen right now, but... Whatever, you get the point.)
