My Writing Playlist: Songs to Listen To Before, During, and After Writing

I love listening to music about writing. Two awesome art forms come together to support each other and inspire us unworthy humans. It’s like having two adorable puppies give you a hug at the same time.

Teddy patiently listening to my writing playlist. If my dog likes it, everyone should like it.

I have two different playlists that are ‘writer inspired.’ The first is stocked with calming, beautiful music so I can concentrate on writing, and the second consists of literal songs about how cool it is to be a writer (spoiler alert: SUPER COOL.) I usually listen to this playlist before I start writing to get excited about being a writer, and after I finished working for the day,

Without further ado, here’s my writer’s playlist:

• EVERYTHING BIRDY HAS EVER WRITTEN.
  • Birdy’s music is perfect writing music. Some songs are warm, others are stark. All are calming and beautiful. Birdy is who I listened to when I won NanoWrimo.
• Oh Wonder’s self-titled album.
  •  Everything I said about Birdy applies to Oh Wonder.
• Lorde’s Pure Heroine
  • Lorde’s music is perfect for writing tense action scenes. If you are a super easily distracted writer, Lorde might not be for you, because her lyrics are so intricate you might want to listen to them instead of writing. But if you have a tendency to zone out after a while, like me, she’s perfect for absorbing a suspenseful and witty mood.

I usually just listen to these three albums, so I know what’s coming up next and am not taken out of the zone each time a new song plays.

• Magic by Ben Kweller
  • You are a writer and therefore magic. Bonus points if you’re writing a fantasy novel.
• Burning Gold by Christina Perri
  • This song will inspire you to finish your WIP because this is your time and you are a boss.
• The Writer by Ellie Goulding
  • Cute love song using writing as a metaphor.
• People Like Us by Kelly Clarkson
  • The ultimate writing group support song.
• A World Alone by Lorde
  • Everyone has a favorite semi-angsty teen love song and this is mine. Sometimes it feels like you and your writing are in ‘a world alone,’ and I love how this song ends. (Now you have to go listen to the song to figure out how it ends. 😉 )
• Life in Color by One Republic
  • Because your awesome writing lights the world up with color. Your plot is the light bulb and your characters are the electricity. Plug everything in, and turn the lamp on.
• Brave by Sara Bareilles
  • “Let the words fall out.” This song will validate your decision to kill off that character. You were being brave! (Your readers may call your bravery ‘cruel’ and cry over the death of said character, but that’s a problem for another day.)
• Schuyler Sisters / Nonstop / Hurricane / Burn from Hamilton
  • Okay, so I really like Hamilton. I love how big a part writing plays in the musical. First of all, listen to Schuyler Sisters, because YOU are the mind at work Angelica is looking for. Then, listen to Nonstop, because Hamilton wrote THE OTHER 51! Nonstop is a great writing inspiration song. WORK HARDER. Then, listen to Hurricane and Burn back to back. Both brilliantly display the power of writing. Hurricane is all about how Hamilton wrote his way out of poverty, and Burn is all about how Hamilton wooed Eliza with words, and how eventually, writing something too true destroyed her. All because of words.
• Paperback Writer by the Beatles
  • Is any writing playlist complete without this song? I mean, to start off, it’s THE BEATLES, and because the Beatles were amazing, they wrote us a song about the aspirations of a writer. If you don’t have this song, get it now, and if you do have it, play it!

What songs do you guys listen to while writing? Do you listen to music at all? Let me know in the comments!