The Perfect Soundtrack for Your Book

annak97 said:

I've always listened to music while I write, and lately, I've been obsessively listening to soundtrack music while I write. Dramatic, epic, lyricless stuff from the Avengers, TFIOS songs, Disney Brave, Tangled, and Tarzan music, etc. I've discovered that every moment has a perfect song, and every book has a soundtrack that just works.
Mine's the Avengers soundtrack, for me.
What about everyone else? Music that just fits your novel? Totally epic, completely adorably romantic, sad, happy, sweet?

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I've created a soundtrack for my novel. It's pretty eclectic, each song representing a character. It ranges from Cake, David Bowie, Coldplay, Depeche Mode, Godsmack, Placebo, Oasis... even to a song that was on the concept album for the musical, "The Scarlet Pimpernel" (but was not ultimately used in the show). I've found that certain artists match certain character themes Usually when I am writing I just run the playlist, but if I need to get into a character's head, I'll obsessively listen to the artist whose theme matches the character.

Hmm... I haven't really had a soundtrack for my fiction (my preferred work music is industrial and aggrotech), but if I were to pick ONE song that best represents my ongoing Epic, it's The Ride to Agadir by Mike Batt. Starts off a capella, jumps into it, rambles easily for a bit, harmonizes oddly, becomes an all-encompassing clash of styles, fades into the sunset.

"...we have taken up our guns
For the ashes of our fathers and the children of our sons."

I was wondering just the other day if writers do this. I started to listen to music while I write to capture the character POV I'm writing in. Each scene has its own song that I listened to helping set the tone for the events. Mostly Lana Del Ray, Phildell, Florence and the Machines. Interesting to know that other do this as well.

I use a couple of different channels on Pandora. The most common channel is mostly action movie soundtracks. I also use one seeded with Mary Youngblood, another with quiet/romantic movie stuff (songs that came up on the other channel that I moved), and still another with California Guitar Trio and Tom Shinness. I find that I need music in general, and not usually a specific genre.

I can't listen to music when I write. It distracts me too much. Sometimes I listen to music before I sit down to write. Especially when I know what I am writing about next I can listen to something that captures that mood. But once I start writing all distractions are gone.

I think that would mean I have to listen to it while I write, and, for me, that simply work. The reader isn't going to have a sound track, and I don't want to listen to something like that while writing. I prefer listening to old time radio, or to the news, or sometimes a talk show.

I listen to a huge playlist of all the Mass Effect soundtracks when I write. It has a good variety of intensity levels and I just plain like the music/games.

I've tried adding other game soundtracks to the list, but it distracts me because I sit there wondering what it's from. Or I'll add a whole soundtrack and realize that there are a lot of songs in the playlist that I don't like for writing, even though I may like them in the game.

Now I feel like I'm conditioned to do writing stuff whenever I hear Mass Effect music - including when I play the games. The thought "I'm gonna finish up this mission and then write something" comes up a lot.

ETA: I should point out that I use music because I don't like to be distracted by outside things. If my girlfriend is watching TV, studying (she flips pages and highlights a lot, and it gets oddly annoying, probably because it's not rhythmic at all) or playing a game, I have to have music on when I write. If I hear words, I can't write (or read, usually) and this is the reason I stick to instrumental pieces. Plus, having the headphone barrier usually prevents too many peanut gallery comments when the significant other is doing stuff.

I love making soundtracks/ songs to match up with the chapters of a book! Sometimes I'll hear a lyric from a song, and be all like "THIS IS PERFECT!" I'm also a big fan of Lana, Coldplay, and Bastille!

Soundtrack for a work in progress - a Scottish supernatural with both historical and cosmic pretensions

- Mars - Holst (The Planets Suite)
- The Hut of Baba Yaga - Mussorgsky (Pictures at an Exhibition)
- Who Wants to Live Forever - Queen
- In a Big Country - Big Country
- Matty Groves - Fairport Convention
- Lang Lankin - Steeleye Span
- Fotheringay - Sandy Denny
- The Battle of Evermore - Led Zeppelin
- Satan, Your Kingdom must come down - Robert Plant and Band of Joy
- Beat the Devil's Tattoo - BRMC
- Echoes - Pink Floyd
- The King Will Come - Wishbone Ash
- The Tain - Horslips
- In the Court of the Crimson King - King Crimson

I listen to new age music while I write. It seems to fit my scifi writing and it also relaxes me which I think helps.

I'd love to do something like this, but I'm generally crap at finding something that fits the mood I want.

I've got a playlist (some 183 strong now) of chilled, morbid music, which has served me well so far! hits from Tori Amos, Sarah Mclachlan, Joni Mitchell, Goo goo dolls, etc etc

You can never go wrong with the Conan the Barbarian soundtrack. And the Bladerunner soundtrack.

Dizzy Gillespie. Not sure if it fits or not. Just dig his stuff.

Defining characteristic? Ingenious.

I can't listen to music and write at the same time, but I find myself trying to cobble together a soundtrack for my novel. Right now, I can only think of three songs that really fit the spirit of my book: "Kidz" by Take That, "Lift Every Voice and Sing," and "This is War" by 30 seconds to Mars.

I'm one of those people who, if I hear music, I *listen* to it. That means anything linear goes out the window. I can draw and design with music, that meshes really well for me, but the only music I can deal with when I write it the college station they play at the cafe where I have lunch. But the cafe generally has enough human buzz to muffle the music.

I was listening to to MTV years ago and heard Led Zep Done by the London Philharmonic and had to run out get the CD it fit so great with the Fantasy I was writing. Yes, music and can help.

Try the soundtrack album from the recent Fargo TV series, for pure atmosphere

Music similar to a cross between Apocalypse Now & I've Done All The Dumb Things would be appropriate

Each story I write has one song that I associate with it. I'll play that particular song on repeat until the story is done.

The Gladiator soundtrack was my muse for the first novel I finished. I was NaNo-ing so I needed tune-out music. My current WIP music ranges from Spanish guitar to Nine Inch Nails...

MagicWriter said:

Each story I write has one song that I associate with it. I'll play that particular song on repeat until the story is done.

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That's interesting. You may have an original approach there.