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NaNoWriMo & Music

I can not listen to music with words while writing. I love music and can't help but sing along. I sing along even though I can not sing. I seriously can not sing. I had a dog once that also let me know I couldn't sing. When my oldest was a newborn I would sing to my daughter and my dog would howl.  Yes, howl.  I would like to think she was singing along too but I am pretty sure she didn't like me singing.

Music is a good way for me to block out the world and focus on writing but it takes a special mix for me. Pandora is my go too music radio. My writing station was found by recommendation, Classical for Studying radio. I gave it a try and fell in love. It isn't all classical Mozart, Bach, or Beethoven. It has a modern twist. My favorite is the Dallas String Quartet. They play top 20 music but all strings no words. This is tricky when I know the words to the song though.

I have learned a lot about my classical music likes. I love cello solos, string quartets and piano solos. Canon in D is playing as I type, it is just a magical song.  True magic, not the fantasy magic in books.

Listening to music is also a kind of a totem for writing. It is a sign to my family that if my earphones are on and I am at my computer interruption is only welcome if necessary. I try hard to not write when the family is around.  I try to do midmorning during the week or late night after everyone is in bed. When word counts are low and a day missed writing has happened, earplugs and classical wordless music help drown out that movie playing on the TV.

Find you writing music before November.  Try and write while listening to music.  I find my normal go to station is to fun for me to focus on the 50,000 word goal.

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