Music and the Creative Process

Do you need absolute silence to write?  Or can you handle some background noise, maybe even some music to help your creative juices get going?

I find silence to be too disturbingly different from my normal environment to be able to focus on the writing task at hand.  I need some sort of noise in the background, either from a TV show (if I'm writing on my couch) or from some MP3s playing on my desktop PC.

There's been a lot of discussions about whether or not listening to music can actually interfere with the creative process.  Some people say that listening to instrumental music doesn't interfere, but if there's words it can cause a disconnect between what you're trying to think about and what the singer is singing about.

After all, "music" sounds like "muse" and, to some extent, that's the effect it has for me.

That's why I suggest that you organize your MP3 collection into play lists, so that the music you listen to is on topic to what you're doing.  When writing a violent fight scene, for example, it's probably best to listen to some high powered heavy metal.  That sort of music probably wouldn't be the most conducive to the process if you're imagining a tender moment between two characters.

To be up front, I like to listen to music when doing various everyday tasks -- when I go for a walk, when I'm playing a game on the Xbox, or even when I'm browsing some Web sites.  But it has to fit what I'm doing.  I don't listen to slow symphonic music when I'm playing Modern Warfare; it doesn't fit.  That's when you need to be listening to some Metallica, AC/DC, or the like.

When the music fits the task, I've found that everything goes smoother and becomes "funner".  Whether it's just taking a walk through a park or writing my latest novel, I like to have a beat and rhythm to what I'm doing.  Music provides that in a way, that to me at least, isn't obstructive to the process.

What do you think?  Do you like to listen to music when you write?   Do you have your songs organized so that you only listen to what matches the current task?

7. Do you lis­ten to music while you write? What kind? Are there any songs you like to relate/apply to your char­ac­ters?