Music is a huge part of my writing process. As the daughter of two professional musicians, I grew up in a household where music was everywhere, and to this day someone is almost always tuning, practicing, or making some other kind of musical noise in our house. I learned early on what a powerful tool music can be for writers, from helping you wrap your brain around the vibes of a story to keeping yourself grounded in a setting or mood as you write a tricky scene.
Over the years, I’ve curated a fine little collection of favorite artists and albums that I listen to specifically for writing different kinds of scenes, and today I thought I’d spread the love by sharing five of my favorite albums, and what kinds of stories and scenes I personally use them for. I’m including links to Spotify, YouTube, and Apple Music with each one so that hopefully you’ll be able to find them easily wherever you like to listen. (To be clear, I’m not sponsored by any of those entities in any way — I am a tiny writing blog in a backwater of the writerly internet, spouting thoughts into the void. Spotify, regrettably, does not care.)
Here we go!
For general purpose (but also battles): Chronicles by Audiomachine
We’re starting off strong with one of my go-to albums for most of my novel-writing career. This album is stunning, seriously. If I need background music to write but nothing fits the vibe, this is my old faithful. The tone of the tracks ranges from suspenseful to triumphant to ominous to investigative, with a million other emotions in between. But in terms of specific types of scenes, I’ve found it makes a pretty sick backing track for fight scenes, from gritty skirmishes to epic battle sequences.
It’s got sweeping orchestral vibes. It’s got dramatic percussion. It’s got a choir. Need I say more?
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/156CHY4RlBD8iY2TLG9Jg8?si=Gy9SbQY5QrSXNRaJahZGQA
YouTube: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_nOjcTiFZU4zbnTj7BTU7YDWRN_tuKF9LE&si=VzbKEtpLlyEEWzoc
Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/album/chronicles/1603356920
For atmospheric sci-fi and horror: the SOMA soundtrack by Mikko Tarmia
Okay, first of all, I know this isn’t the point of this post, but if you’re a sci-fi or horror author and you haven’t played this game, what are you doing? Go do that first. Then once you’re done staring at a wall and contemplating your own mortality and the meaning of life and all that, go listen to the soundtrack. It’s amazing.
This is one of those soundtracks that’s much more ambient than it is melodic. It’s great to have on in the background when you’re writing scenes without a lot of action, but heavy on the ambiance. It’s subtle enough not to intrude too much on your stream of consciousness, but creepy enough to keep you in the zone of a dark and mysterious sci-fi horror setting. A perfect collection of lovecraftian bops for the morally gray rogue AI in your life; 10/10.
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/19nBFW5TDocB8rQTBHO9Qc?si=AphKgnOhQ0yj2JrIT1t4yA
YouTube: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_kDICde2iHMCSL92sRgHCg6OOE32Gkac7g&si=oY3W56uCAG_VM2-q
Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/album/soma-original-video-game-soundtrack/1504455699
For historical fiction: the Assassin’s Creed soundtrack of your choice
The Assassin’s Creed franchise games all take place in various historical time periods, and the composers behind their incredible soundtracks have all put an incredible amount of effort into crafting atmospheric, adrenaline-pumping background music that fits seamlessly with the setting of each game. I love the way these soundtracks blend the unique instrumentation of different cultures and time periods with just the right amount of contemporary edge. And because of the nature of the games, these soundtracks tend to be extremely long and varied, with a wide range of moods accounted for, from stealth music to emotional cutscene background tracks to your classic “oh shit oh crap oh shit they saw me shit shit shit I gotta hide where’s a pile of straw oh SHIT” jams.
And the best part is, there have been, like, a bajillion games in this franchise, all with different settings, so there’s no shortage of unique vibes to choose from. Writing about vikings? You want Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla. Got pirates? That would be Black Flag, and it’s one of the best soundtracks, IMO, so you have great taste. (It has sea shanties!) Crusade-era Jerusalem? Good ol’ AC 1, and enjoy those flashbacks to Altair glitching in the middle of chase scene and yeeting himself off the highest building in town while onlookers gravely remark, “He is going to hurt himself.” It’s your one-stop shop for historical action-adventure soundtracks, and I’ve never been disappointed by a single one. I’m linking the artist page instead of an individual soundtrack, where you can find them all in one place.
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5ct8AlcDgWMp4O25vbcjpC?si=XJoYDTWEQD-mzFiamTzHEg
YouTube: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLu6_FOgZp3ehMYY530BPLNqZMZJNYH5tI&si=xl4VWb39657y8EwT
Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/label/assassins-creed/1695226817
For uplifting adventures: Oceans by Marcus Warner
Marcus Warner is one of my favorite composers, and Oceans is probably my favorite album of his. For some reason I find his music really easy to focus to, which is how it ended up all over not only most of my writing playlists, but my study playlist in college. But despite the fact that some of these songs now send me astral projecting straight back to a very unpleasant linear algebra class, this album still has my heart. It’s also great for working out, if you want to feel like you are running through some sort of ~realm~ carrying a sword. (And why wouldn’t you?)
I would describe the general tone of this album as far more uplifting than most of my other selections. Marcus Warner’s albums tend to feel very cohesive, like the whole album is part of a single story, and this one feels like a sweeping fantasy adventure about the power of friendship or something. If you like this one, definitely check out some of his other work as well — it was incredibly hard to pick just one Marcus Warner album for this list, and if you like one, you’ll probably like them all.
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/4juFcYJvv4q31Oq26Ab738?si=I3hEXYGtQ1qAYJGFrQjt9g
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2OP0RKTgW0s
Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/album/oceans/1077987996
For action-packed fantasy: the Ori and the Blind Forest soundtrack by Gareth Coker
My last recommendation is another gorgeous soundtrack from an incredible game that you should definitely play (and I promise it’s less stressful than SOMA). This is one you definitely need on your playlist if you write fantasy. It’s mystical, beautiful, and has a huge amount of emotion packed into every single track, with its fair share of dark and spooky tunes to boot.
I mostly write sci-fi, but I’ve still found a lot of use for this soundtrack as neutral background music or accompaniment for scenes that are very emotion-heavy, regardless of genre. I also sometimes listen to it when I’m writing romance scenes. It also just makes for very pleasant general listening. Even the chase music is sort of soothing. If you need a hug, this soundtrack feels like one.
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/7xPc1OsC2R0siZKMlzRBIo?si=9JjVTEGiTPmYJt0NtO9esg
YouTube: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_m4-ujEmPxa_TMjUFMGm7bJ-N2x7Pem6iE&si=7dY_EXbxv4MBtJWw
Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/album/ori-and-the-blind-forest-original-soundtrack/971519718
What’s your favorite writing music? Share your recommendations in the comments! I’m always looking for new things to add to my playlist, and I’m sure other writers are too.
Happy writing, and happy listening!