I LOVE the Spotify playlist that features rain sounds. I like to curl up on a rainy day and just chill, and the rain sounds create that mood. It’s a gentle and soothing way I use to get into writing, and it helps keep me in my flow state once I get there.
Music can set the tone when you’re writing a book. Or, it can help you avoid writer’s block by motivating you through the hard, boring work of sitting in your chair.
This mix features some of the most iconic minimalist composers: Philip Glass, Michael Nyman, and John Adams.
In the late 1970s and 1980s, the term “City Pop” described a type of music popular in Japan.
29. Rain Sounds
Streaming background noise on Coffitivity can give you the feeling that you’re in a coffee shop even when you aren’t.
It has everything from Tibetan bells and waterfalls to street recordings and gardens.
This playlist features mbaqanga music, a style of South African music with Zulu roots that originated in the early 1960s.
There are many styles of electronic music: electronica, house, techno, drum and bass, jungle, garage, trance, IDM, etc.
You can use any portion of these chords that works for you. Just make sure that you don’t copy the actual melody of your borrowed tune. Song melodies are protected by copyright law, but chord progressions are not, so you can borrow chord progressions any time you like.
The classic Gershwin tune “Summertime” has an A-A structure, with only two verses (although some singers repeat either the first verse or both verses).
By analyzing songs you enjoy, you can get an idea of some of the different structures that you can use. And as you learn to write songs, you can play around with different types of song structures until you find the best possible match.
- Prize: The Grand Prize Winner receives $1000 in cash, along with a many other extra incentives. A total of 50 awards will be given to the top five in each of the 10 categories. All participating songwriters also receive written evaluations of their songs from the contest judges.
- Details: An entry fee of $30 is required for each entered song. After the first two entries, the entry fee drops to $25 for each additional song. This annual event is designed for amateur and semi-pro songwriters only. Individuals who earn over $10,000 annually from song publishing royalties are not eligible.
Song Structure – Example Two
Another great idea is to record your song. To do this, you’ll first need to decide if you want to book a session in a recording studio or take a stab at recording in a home studio with the equipment you have. With technology today, it’s easy to record your own songs with the right software and a quality microphone.
- Prize: The Grand Prize winner receives $10,000 in cash and a publication of the winning song in Promo Buzz Media Base for one year. The second and third place winners receive the same prize but with lower cash values.
- Details: Participants need a lyric sheet, MP3 recording, and $25 entry fee to enter. This competition is open to all amateur and professional songwriters of all ages.
Grab your recorder and experiment with different melodies, chords, and chord progressions, until one feels right.
Other songs use a descriptive term as the title that is not contained in the lyrics at all. The Beatles’ “A Day in the Life” is an example of this type of title.
If you get easily distracted by lyrics, you still have plenty of musical options.
I’ve found that sometimes I like to write to music in a foreign language. The music is interesting enough to keep me motivated, but I don’t get distracted by the lyrics.
Movie-wise, that’s a big range. But musically, all these songs strike the perfect balance between epic and lowkey so you can focus.
There’s definitely some sadness here. But don’t expect a playlist that’s going to kill your spirit. These songs have solid beats.
Music without Lyrics
You can latch onto the beats, but it’s repetitive enough to help you stay in the writing zone.
Ambient sounds can give you the impression that you’re out of the house even if you’re still sitting at your desk.
It’s heavy on electronic music and sparkly beats. Think more “low-key Paris” vibe than club-hopping.
Music has the ability to move us—our memories and our imaginations. Here’s how to channel that power into inspiration for your writing:
The guys would come up with elaborate ways to ask their dates to the dance. The girls would shop for the perfect dresses. We’d make plans to get together for a group dinner beforehand. And finally, we’d dance all night long (well, until 11 pm), letting loose with that freedom only 16-year-olds can experience.
Imagine the story you are about to write will be made into a movie (we can dream, right?) and this song will be on the soundtrack. Use the song to dream up a movie-worthy plot point or to envision a new setting or character.
So many times, I’ve heard a song on the radio, on a commercial, during a movie, or on my iPod and found myself transported to another place and time. The lyrics and the melody remind me of a moment I’ve experienced, a memory I haven’t recalled for ages, and I’ll feel everything that I felt back then.
1. How does the song make you feel?
Choose a song to use as your inspiration. Listen to it start-to-finish, while keeping the questions above in mind.
Write for fifteen minutes about whatever the song inspires you to imagine. (You might have to play the song a few times on repeat!)
At a wedding reception recently, the DJ played a song that was straight from my high school days. My friends and I danced along and laughed at the lyrics, while the music brought me back in time to all those high school dances.
As a suggestion, here is my favorite essay writing company, a service you can use to find editors (in case you ever need it) and various music playlists that are specially designed for writing activities.
There are plenty of studies that point out the impact of music on a person’s concentration.
Of course, for that to work, you need to create positive associations for the habits you’re developing.
Nevertheless, there’s a known fact that various music types like Heavy Metal, Dubstep (intense/agitated genres) or various popular songs with lyrics can create the opposite effects (loss of focus, procrastination, and stress).
Music Helps You Focus on Repetitive and Boring Tasks
Finding the right doors to manifest your writing passion is crucially important, and certain music can help you achieve that.
Should you listen to music while writing? Now that you’re aware of the benefits, you can surely decide if you’ll make this one of your habits. Nevertheless, you shouldn’t count only on music to help you write – any dependency will disempower rather than boost your performance.
In today’s post, I’m sharing the reasons why music and writing are the perfect matches, a combination that’ll generate motivation, inspiration, and creativity.