Most people I know need some sort of background music or noise while they work. One of my closest friends is the type to have a movie running on one screen while he plays games and browses reddit. While I can’t do that (he’s crazy, yes) I do need something in the background. While I’m working I tend to have a Twitch stream running on the side, at least while I’m still able to work from home. This doesn’t exactly work while I’m writing as it’s little too obtrusive. It’s distracting me right now actually.
When writing, I’ve started to use a bit of conditioning to make sure I’m associating a certain artist or style with a certain story. For the last couple books of the Demon series, I listened almost exclusively to symphonic metal, primarily Nightwish. The style of the music really tended to put me in the mood for Zay’s character and the general tone of the story. Kevin didn’t have quite the same strong theme and it’s been long enough since I wrote those stories I don’t actually remember what I was listening to at the time. Maybe anime music.
For my current work, I’ve been listening to Amaranthe, which is more of a pop-metal style. It’s not terribly fitting for what this story’s all about but it’s also one of my favorite groups. Since the story itself is much slower and relaxed than my prior series, the up-tempo music does help me stay engaged. That being said, something more chill might be fitting. Anyone have a suggestion?