Music or silence when you write? Do you
develop playlists for your books?
develop playlists for your books?
"Silence."- Bonnie Doerr, author of Island Sting.
"It depends on my mood. I do have several playlists, but I write without music as much as I write with music, so it all depends." - Julie Kagawa, author of The Iron King.
"Music is so important to my writing. I'll find songs that fit the story I'm writing and I'll listen to them over and over again. Sometimes if I'm writing a difficult scene, I need it to be quiet, but music always gets me in the mood to write, and takes me to the emotional place I want to be to write the book. I probably should be more organized about it, and make playlists, but I usually just bring up iTunes or Youtube and search for the songs I want to hear."- Lisa Schroeder, author of Chasing Brooklyn.
"I make playlists for my books, but I write in silence a lot of the time. Music is good for when I'm just starting to get into the book and I need a certain 'feel'." - Steph Bowe, author of Girl Saves Boy.
"Mostly music. I create a playlist for each book- songs with the right tempo, the right atmosphere, the right lyrics. And then that's the only music I listen to for the entirety of that book. No new music until the book is finished- I even listen to that soundtrack in the car. There are times when I have to turn the music off to figure out my words, but those are rare. Almost always, I'm listening to my playlist on repeat." - Saundra Mitchell, author of Shadowed Summer. 
"Music. I associate certain songs with my works in progress, but I don’t know that anyone else would link those songs with those stories." - Jennifer Hubbard, author of The Secret Year.
"Silence when I write although I often hear songs and think, for example, 'that's Maggie's song.'" - Janet Fox, author of Faithful.
"I listen to film scores when I'm drafting because lyrics dilute the voices of my characters. I choose scores that mimic the atmosphere I'm trying to create in my story, which makes it easy to sink back into the writing zone when it's time." - Michelle Zink, author of Prophecy of Sisters.
"It depends on my mood, on the scene. I don't have playlists, though I have songs that make me think of certain books/characters that I can use during brainstorming. Often, I pick one song and put it on repeat all day. This makes it tough to be around people unless I have my earbuds. I've listened to "Starlight" by Muse about 234 times this week." - Tessa Gratton, author of Blood Magic. 
"Silence. I can’t focus well with noise of any kind. I haven’t yet created a playlist for a book, but as I write I do often have at least one song in mind, which usually defines a specific character." - Kristina McBride, author of The Tension of Opposites.
"Music, for sure. I got into the habit of writing with music because I needed to block out the other kids studying or talking in the library. I’m realizing more and more that music can both lift and drop your mood, which tends to be pretty useful when you’re in a chipper mood but need to write about someone losing a loved one or coming close to death. And I have countless playlists, most hundreds of songs long. I try to whittle them down to under 25 before I share them." - Alexandra Bracken, author of Brightly Woven. 
"Silence. I'm distracted easily by pretty things or shiny objects." - Dawn Metcalf, author of Skin & Bones.
"I usually have my iTunes going. I do have a moody playlist I prefer when I'm writing more serious stuff." - Shari Maurer, author of Change of Heart.
"I always listen to music when I write, although I only listen to Coldplay. Sometimes when I’m writing I’ll be listening to a song and begin to write and when I take a break five songs will have gone by and I didn’t even hear them! I don’t develop specific playlists for my books, but certain songs fit certain moods or scenes." - Riley Carney, author of The Fire Stone.
"I used to use playlists, but now I like silence. I'm usually too entranced to notice the quiet anyway." - Suzanne Young, author of The Naughty List.
Should you always write what you know? Come back Tuesday to see what the authors think!
That is a good question.
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