Writing playlists transformed my productivity. When I started creating playlist for each WIP, I instantly wrote more often as the music served as a psychological trigger for knowing when to write. When I hear one of my WIP playlists, I instantly want to work on that project. Why? Writing playlists help us maintain the aesthetic of the novel. It's kinda like a vision board, but for your ears. So how do you create a writing playlist? I create mine in the following seven steps using Spotify: Step 1: Write down a few words to describe the aesthetic of your novel For my contemporary romance project, I would use: -cutesy -indie movie -cozy sweaters -pink decor and fairy lights For my upcoming thriller project, I would use: --dark --badass females --mysterious ambiance --hazy Take a moment right now to write down random words for the aesthetic of your novel. Step 2: Link your descriptive words to a genre of music And get really specific about the genre. Don't just link it to pop but to main female powered, upbeat pop or slow and romantic pop. This can give you an idea of what sort of music to be on the hunt for, For my contemporary, I linked it to indie folk music you would play at Sunday brunch For my thriller, I linked it to dark, mysterious pop that bordered on indie rock. Step 3: Decide if you're doing instrumental music or music with lyrics Try out writing to both types of music and decide what works best for you. For me, I write with music that has lyrics although I think I'm the exception to the rule. Most writers I know write to instrumental music and that's great! There's tons of spotify playlists out there with instrumental music for any genre. Step 4: Think of one song or artist that defines the genre you chose Usually, this comes pretty naturally once you have determined the genre. Ask yourself, who is my favorite artist in that genre? What song in the genre speaks to me? For my contemporary, I chose the song Sunbleached Girl by Shag Rock For my thriller, I was stuck between two artists and chose both--Hozier (especially his newest album) and Billie Eilish Step 5: Create the actual playlist and add your guiding song(s) Remember to name your playlist something fun. And don't worry if you don't have a name for your book yet, just name it something you will remember it by. When I first created the playlist for my contemporary, I called the playlist "Fun Lil Novel". My thriller playlist is currently called "Thrills and Chills". After you add the first song, think of any songs by the same artist or similar artists that might fight the vibe of the book. Add those to the playlist as well. Step 6: Once you run out of your own ideas, add songs based on Spotify's recommendations Once you have added all the songs you can think of, Spotify should autogenerate some song recommendations. Listen to them and decide which ones to add. Usually, I know within the first thirty seconds of a song if it will fit the vibe of the playlist. Another tool to find more music is to go to the artist's page on Spotify. From there, Spotify will recommend similar artists and you can look through their stuff to see if any resonates with the vibe of your playlist. Invest the time to look for the perfect songs! Step 7: You have a completed playlist!! Congrats!! A rule of thumb I use to know when a playlist is created is when a WIP playlist has 30-50 songs. I do add new songs as I'm drafting and revising, but 30 songs gives you enough content to listen to the songs without them becoming repetitive and tiresome. This number might change for longer, instrumental pieces, but is a great baseline for songs between 2 and 6 minutes! Congrats! Listen away!! And if you want more tips, check out my friend, Madeline's blog post about how she creates her writing playlists!!
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AuthorI'm Angela Anne, a Young Adult contemporary writer committed to helping you achieve your writing goals + giving you writing inspiration. ArchivesCategories
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