Sometimes when I write I need a little music to help me set the tone of my story. Some people like to listen to white noise or ocean sounds, but I write stories that are a bit dark. Whale noises and static aren’t going to cut it for me. I like to listen to something heavier and/or a bit ‘off-kilter’. Here are my current favorite tunes for writing:
- Cryo Chamber: This is a dark ambient music label. They always have a live stream running on Youtube running tracks from their label. I found this through Livia Llewellyn (a ‘4x Shirley Jackson Award-nominated writer’) on Twitter.
- Doom (2016) Sountrack by Mick Gordon: If you like your music a bit more heavy and you want something that will add some intensity to your writing, then look no further. This mostly instrumental heavy metal album is perfect for those tense horror moments. I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve play through this album. Last year it was my most played album on Spotify. (I generally skip the narration tracks.)
- Russian Turbo Polka Metal Playlist: Over the past months I’ve been listening to this playlist quite a lot. I don’t know why I love it so much. I think the off kilter feeling of heavy polka may have something to do with it (and a touch of Polish ancestry). Though, I imagine for some it may be difficult to concentrate between toe-tapping on some of the tracks.
What tunes do you play when you want to get ‘in the zone’ and get those words down?
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