It’s WEEK 7 of the MFRW 52-week blog challenge, and this time the prompt is Music To Write By. In my case that means movie soundtracks.

Why soundtracks, you may wonder.

Because I can’t write and listen to songs. I stop writing to sing along, and that gets me nowhere. My first choice of writing music was The Pachelbel Canon with Ocean Sounds by Anastasi. Classical plus New Age. Very soothing and mesmerizing.

Then, when I was writing my French & Indian War novel, Rogue’s Hostage, I discovered the Daniel Day Lewis movie of The Last of the Mohicans. I didn’t just love the movie, I loved the soundtrack, too, so I got the CD and listened to it while continuing to write the book. I loved it! The moment I heard that music, I was back in that time and place.

From then on I looked for a soundtrack from a movie similar to the book I was writing at the time.

For Regency: Sense and Sensibility
For Science Fiction: Stargate Atlantis
For my Fairy Tale romances: The Mists of Avalon

And another favorite is the soundtrack to Somewhere In Time by John Barry, one of the most beautiful and romantic soundtracks ever written.

The only problem I had was with the one contemporary, Worth The Risk. I finally settled on the soundtrack for The Rocketeer, which has a score I love. The problem with most contemporary soundtracks is that they use a lot of popular songs. And then I’m singing instead of writing. Some of my friends can write while listening to songs, but it doesn’t work for me.

I have tried using classical music, but prefer soundtracks for the recurring themes that give the overall score a continuity.

At home, I listen to the New Age Soundscapes channel on my TV when I need to relax. What do you listen to when you’re writing or just relaxing?

Linda

Click on the linky list below for more Music to Write (or Read) By.