Music When I'm Writing?

     Nope. No music.
   
     Of course, that verdict is subject to the situation. For example, at this moment I am listening to music. If I'm composing an email, then I'll absolutely enjoy some music along with it! Even, occasionally, while I'm writing school papers I'll turn on something mellow––but that's the keyword there, mellow. When I'm writing my story I'm very particular about what I listen to and usually choose to eschew the extra noise altogether.

     To properly defend my position against indignant and enthusiastic music-lovers, I need to explain my creative process.
     I love music, I really do. Whether I'm in the car, writing a blog post, doing my morning chores, in the shower or even doing my math I like to have music playing. I would die without my iPod. I love music. I love it loud, and I love it awesome.
     Music is how I get my thoughts rolling. Doing my morning chores is sometimes my most productive time for great ideas. I sweep, listen to music, and my mind is snatched into my magical worlds through the lyrics or mood of the song that I relate to a story. When I sit down for a brainstorming session I pick the best song that most relates to the story I want to brainstorm, and my mind takes it from there.
     However, this can be a problem if I'm trying to focus. I'm pretty adept at not letting it distract me when I'm engrossed in a book or doing my math, or even when I'm planning a scene in my mind I often grow so immersed that I tune out. When, however, I'm writing and simultaneously listening to music––even if I'm mostly ignoring it––it does pull me off track. That's because of the mood.

     Mood is exceptionally important to me while writing a scene. Sometimes I plan scenes out very well, and sometimes I do not. But whether I do or not, planning out what needs to happen or even what should be said is a far cry from how the reader is supposed to feel when they're reading it. And to do that, of course, I have to put myself in the minds of my characters and in their positions.
     If I'm writing an intense scene where Tigress is fighting for her life while I'm simultaneously listening to a flaccid song by Taylor Swift… Well, Tigress gets a little confused. I mean, she's not planning on ever ever ever ever getting back together with Scorpion anyway…not that she was ever with him in the first place! The song has gone and destroyed the entire mood of the scene for me. This is an especially potent problem when I haven't planned the scene out completely. I go off on tangents and write things that detract from what I wanted and the main storyline. It just doesn't work. I can't listen to a peppy song while trying to write a death scene, I can't listen to a depressing, emotional heartbreak when I'm trying to create a happy, companionable moment between my characters. Pop songs are off limits, no exceptions.
     What if I only chose specific songs to fit specific moods? Well, I would spend quite a bit of time putting together playlists. Sometimes my moods are rather unique.
     What about non pop music? Sometimes. If they have little or no vocal, then yes. Classical music usually doesn't cut it, though. The Lord of the Rings soundtrack is my top preference, but even then I have to be picky and skip songs that turn on at the wrong times (Minas Morgul always makes me jump!). Occasionally I try Enya's beautiful Shepherd Moons, or Fleet Foxes or even Gregorian Chanting (that is very scene specific).
   
     When it comes down to it, the best bet for me is to simply shut the music off. If Tigress is crouched beside a rat's abandoned shelter of cobblestones, Casting for sunshadows every few moments, eyes straining in the darkness through the flakes of snow as she warily watches for Soulles… The fearful silence defines this scene. Tigress would hear nothing but her own hurried breathing, the pounding of her heart in her ears, a few distant screams echoing through the dark-gripped city…and the soft, squeaky crunch of approaching boots on fresh-fallen snow.