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I know probably sound like a broken record, but I really,\u00a0really<\/em> value reading<\/strong> to become a better\u00a0writer. \u00a0When I’m reading\u00a0writing that was written by someone other than me, I usually don’t listen to music. \u00a0Well, that’s great, I’m really sticking to my theme here…\u00a0What kind of music do you listen to? Oh, hah, NONE! \u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n When I’m re-reading<\/strong> my own writing, I speak every line out loud, and I like to pick music that can transition song-to-song while keeping up a\u00a0fast, consistent tempo. \u00a0Yup, I essentially\u00a0listen to dance music when I’m reading my work, because I like to feel that\u00a0each sentence has\u00a0rhythm<\/em> and\u00a0drive.<\/em>\u00a0 Also, I don’t care if there’s lyrics, because I like challenging myself needlessly. \u00a0A sample of this kind of music: Pendulum’s “Propane Nightmares”<\/a>.<\/p>\n * * *<\/p>\n When I’m drafting<\/strong>, I need music that is also very upbeat (so that I can feel the “momentum” of every keystroke and continue typing, even though I’m generating\u00a0absolute horseshit. \u00a0Yass.) \u00a0However, when I’m writing I cannot-CANNOT-have lyrics in the background, or else pancake I end up typing the words I’m hearing.\u00a0One superb example of my drafting music is: Rodrigo Y Gabriela’s “Tamacun”<\/a>.<\/p>\n When I’m drafting, I also like to listen to music that is very atmospherically similar to the setting of my project. \u00a0While\u00a0writing AVENGARDE, a book set in the frozen north with a people who very closely approximate Scandanavia’s Finest (Vikings, ofc.), I actually tried to listen to viking music, and this is as close as I got: Wardruna’s “Helvegen”<\/a>.\u00a0They also have cool album art:<\/p>\n * * *<\/p>\n Revising<\/strong> is for me one of the most time-consuming pieces of the great writing process puzzle, and for this, I need my utmost concentration. \u00a0So, I use music that is still good when it’s quiet, that has no major decibel changes, has little discernible beat, and NO LYRICS. \u00a0Sometimes, I’ll have my noise-cancelling headphones on and turn the music as low as it can possibly go without treading into complete silence, and that’s where I’ll keep it. \u00a0Many times, this music ends up being Enya<\/a>, the soundtrack from Ori and the Blind Forest<\/a>, or\u00a0atmospheric music like the track from Skyrim that is literally called “Atmospheres”<\/a>.<\/p>\n * * *<\/p>\n When the time comes to edit<\/strong>, and I have to pour over my manuscript with an eye for the minutiae, I need music that keeps me from throwing my keyboard or getting in such a bad mood I start needlessly deleting content. \u00a0This music is always Rachmaninoff, because Russians are really good at doing “sad” and hearing Sergei’s “sad” makes me feel a little better about editing. \u00a0His\u00a0second symphony<\/a> is my go-to editing music. \u00a0If you have a spare hour to listen–and I mean really\u00a0listen<\/em>, not just hear–you should take the time to enjoy\u00a0this piece.<\/p>\n * * *<\/p>\n If there’s a task more mind-numbing than editing, it’s formatting<\/strong>. \u00a0I mean making sure your chapters are numbered correctly, making sure that you’ve italicized\u00a0that one word<\/em> consistently over 400+ pages. \u00a0You know, the kind of thing I should probably pay someone else to do for me… \u00a0During this stage, I like to picture what the work is going to look like when it’s finished, printed, sold, enjoyed, enjoyed so immensely that it’s optioned as a movie; so, I listen to movie soundtracks. \u00a0I am a real lover\u00a0of soundtracks, and\u00a0a few of the ones I’ve\u00a0been listening to recently to get me through my formatting work are: the original soundtrack from Journey<\/a>\u00a0(the game, not the band), the soundtrack from Avatar<\/a>, the soundtrack of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon<\/a>, and the How to Train Your Dragon OST<\/a>. \u00a0All are wonderful and should be unabashedly loved.<\/p>\n * * *<\/p>\n For blogging, well, I just listened to all the music above, to make sure the links weren’t awful.<\/p>\n So, what kind of music do you listen to when you write?<\/p>\n \n![\"Wardruna\"](\"https:\/\/i2.wp.com\/zachbarnesonwriting.files.wordpress.com\/2016\/02\/wardruna.jpg?resize=284%2C177&ssl=1\")
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