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Can You Write With Noise?

February 22, 2012 by Nathan Bransford 90 Comments

I’m not the only writer who has found that a low level of noise can be very conducive for productivity. A few months back in The Atlantic, Conor Friedersdorf had an entire roundup devoted to exploring why so many people find themselves more productive in coffee shops.

His reasons jive with mine, including there being something about a certain level of distraction, working against closing time, and being out of the office making it feel less like work (he neglected to mention one massive reason: caffeine).

Personally a change of scenery can work wonders, but even when I’m home I like to have just the right amount of noise, which usually comes in the form of a sporting event droning in the background. But I’ve also known writers who lock themselves in a closet and must have complete and utter silence.

Which kind of writer are you? Do you like having a bit of noise or do you need to block everything out?

Art: “His Master’s Voice” – Francis Barraud

Filed Under: The Writing Life Tagged With: How to Write a Novel, You Tell Me

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Becky Mahoney says

    February 22, 2012 at 3:26 pm

    I generally like absolute quiet when I write, but if there are conversations/constructions/etc going on, I will block it out with music. On the other hand, though, I can't brainstorm in absolute silence – I need my playlist to get my brain moving!

    Reply
  2. funny in the 'hood says

    February 22, 2012 at 3:26 pm

    I can't draft with any noise whatsoever, but I can revise and edit with kids running around and the T.V. on in the background (as long as the volume isn't too high). I prefer silence for all stages of the writing process, but it's not realistic that I'll get it so I have to be flexible. I absolutely can't write in a coffee shop because the people watching would be too distracting.

    Reply
  3. Wandering Quill says

    February 22, 2012 at 3:30 pm

    I personally cannot write without sound of some sort.

    If I do not have theme music playing, or nature sounds that jive with my current setting, I find that everyday things distract me.

    I can write in silence, but it stunts my productivity.

    Reply
    • Anonymous says

      February 25, 2012 at 5:46 am

      you can't, but you can. go contradict on a different post…

      Reply
  4. DRC says

    February 22, 2012 at 3:34 pm

    Music. Must have music. I have a huge range from classical and movie scores to heavy metal. Each help to enhance moods that I'm trying to portray. I love my music. I also find a change in scene can work too. I remember a year or so ago I went on a cruise with my husband and took my laptop with me. The last two days were spent at sea sailing back to our final destination. Instead of sitting in bars spending money on drinks, etc, I sat next to our little window in our cabin, watched the sea roll by – and finished my novel…lol. I get distracted watching people too much when I'm out. I'm a people watcher

    Reply
  5. Jory says

    February 22, 2012 at 3:35 pm

    I need a little noise, like ambiance or instrumental music, but if there is lyrics it has to be turned down so it is almost muted and I can't know the words or I'll start singing along. My favorite is listening to movie scores that reflect the mood of my writing.

    Reply
  6. R. F. Long says

    February 22, 2012 at 3:37 pm

    I need some sort of noise. I have small kids and the absence of noise is deeply suspicious. I can write with the tv on, music playing and occasionally with a minor war breaking out on the sofa. I wish I was kidding.

    Reply
  7. Rita Arens says

    February 22, 2012 at 3:38 pm

    I have to have music on low volume. I need music that speaks to what I'm writing about if I'm writing fiction. For work (I write for a women's website), I like swing/big band really really low so you can barely hear it, like in the old-timey movies. When I'm working on my current YA novel set in the nineties, it's all Journey all the way.

    Reply
  8. jenna234 says

    February 22, 2012 at 3:39 pm

    I finished my first novel to the sound of some japanese mech cartoon on continues loop. Sadly the computer was right next to the family tv and my brother was obsessed with this one video. I wouldn't recommend it, but for some reason it worked.

    Reply
  9. A. K. Fotinos-Hoyer says

    February 22, 2012 at 3:39 pm

    Most people seem to write well to music, but I can't write at all when music in on unless the music doesn't have lyrics. Even then, its difficult. What doesn't make any sense though is that I can write really well with a TV on in the background – as long as its not too loud.

    Reply
  10. Mieke Zamora-Mackay says

    February 22, 2012 at 3:39 pm

    I like to use quiet piano solos to drown out the excess noise wherever I am.

    Reply
  11. Janice says

    February 22, 2012 at 3:44 pm

    Even in high school I studied with the stereo on. I still have the radio or TV on when writing although I absorb nothing from them. They become white noise for me.

    Reply
  12. Kathleen Basi says

    February 22, 2012 at 3:44 pm

    I need absolute quiet–being a musician, I can't use music to block it out (I go into theory analysis mode). I have, however, been forced by the presence of small children, to learn to function without absolute quiet…but I'm never as productive.

    Reply
  13. Suzie F. says

    February 22, 2012 at 3:47 pm

    A little background noise won't distract me while writing: the TV if it's on in another room, the kids talking, the birds if I'm on my deck. But I absolutely cannot write with music of any kind. My mind always wants to wander off with the lyrics or melody.

    Reply
  14. AlvaradoFrazier says

    February 22, 2012 at 3:47 pm

    I feel like an oddball. I need quiet for writing and revisions. A coffee place is the last place I could write since I'm such a looky-loo that I get distracted by making up stories of people I see.

    Reply
  15. Meghan Ward says

    February 22, 2012 at 3:48 pm

    I don't write well with noise. I used to write at my local Starbucks, but I wore headphones or earplugs because all the conversations and kids who would come in were so distracting. Now I have an office that is silent, and I love it. I just wish I could get there more than twice a week – only once this week with the holiday weekend.

    Reply
  16. R. J. Kessler says

    February 22, 2012 at 3:53 pm

    I love to write while listening to lyricless music. Soundtracks, instrumentals, and cinematic music is all fair game.

    But I also like to write in a droning environment. The slight hum of conversations floating about actually helps me to get into my own focused zone.

    Although there is a point when it gets too loud and becomes a distraction. That's just frustrating.

    Reply
  17. Carmen Ferreiro-Esteban says

    February 22, 2012 at 3:55 pm

    It depends. If I'm in a creative phase, I need total silence.
    If I'm "stuck" background noise works better.

    Reply
  18. Stephanie Reed says

    February 22, 2012 at 3:55 pm

    I'm home alone *and* I take out my hearing aids. Ahhhh…

    Reply
  19. Ishta Mercurio says

    February 22, 2012 at 3:56 pm

    I need project-related noise, if anything. So, if I'm drafting a picture book, I like to be in a public place like a cafe or mall or restaurant where there are kids and other people around just doing what they do. If I'm working on a novel, I need some scene-related mood music to get me going, but then I really need quiet.

    The most important thing, though, is that the noise not be of the distracting nature – my kids in the background, a TV show I'm a little bit interested in, anything like that. The noise needs to be tune-out-able.

    Reply
  20. Richard Gibson says

    February 22, 2012 at 3:56 pm

    NPR is on all the time. The occasional times when something so interesting comes on that I must stop and listen are welcome and usually make me more invigorated to write.

    Reply
  21. Anonymous says

    February 22, 2012 at 4:06 pm

    I like background noise for sure, especially a laundry machine or car traffic. But as an ex-barista I can't work in a coffee shop unless I have headphones in. I get too distracted by analyzing people's drink orders 😛

    Reply
  22. Josin L. McQuein says

    February 22, 2012 at 4:08 pm

    If by "noise" you mean white, red or brown noise, then yes – if it's the right frequency. But I cannot abide talking, music, or snoring doggies.

    Reply
  23. Chudney Thomas says

    February 22, 2012 at 4:08 pm

    Mostly noise, though there are times when I have to have silence.

    Reply
  24. Steven J. Wangsness says

    February 22, 2012 at 4:10 pm

    I'm the strong-on-silence type myself, though a quiet coffee shop is close enough. When I was writing my novel, I found the sessions at Starbuck's were pretty productive. (And I was drinking decaf.)

    Reply
  25. Debbie says

    February 22, 2012 at 4:14 pm

    I've never been able to work in total silence. Coffee shops work okay, but if there isn't enough noise, I tend to key in on individual conversations. And there goes any chance of productivity.

    If I play music, it has to be instrumental or I start singing along.

    Over the holidays, I found that the food court at the mall worked great. There's a waterfall that gives just enough white noise so the conversations don't distract. However, they closed the coffee shop in January, so I'm back to searching for just the right place.

    Reply
  26. D.G. Hudson says

    February 22, 2012 at 4:20 pm

    No, usually noise distracts me.

    If I'm in a coffee shop or busy place, I tend to observe the people and activity, and produce little.

    Some coffee shops here are now starting to limit the time 'writers' can spend sipping their coffee and writing. They want more turnover at the tables, to preserve revenue.

    I prefer quiet in my study, with coffee or tea, especially in the morning OR when creating the first draft.

    When editing, I can listen to low level music (usually jazz or blues instrumentals).

    Nice to see a writing post, Nathan. BTW – hate the new word verification that a lot of blogs still have.

    Reply
  27. abc says

    February 22, 2012 at 4:24 pm

    Coffeeshops work best for me because there is something about the atmosphere that makes me feel more creatively charged: the music, the conversations, the sound of the milk steamer. I don't know, I just want to get to writing. Quiet feels uncomfortable and lonely. Quiet feels stale. And then there is the nap problem.

    Reply
  28. Mr. D says

    February 22, 2012 at 4:37 pm

    I'm a teacher in a Middle School so I'm used to noise, and I'm the father of two sons, aged 9 and 15, so I can overcome any distraction. I prefer quiet, but that's not the reality in which I live. So just get it done is my philosophy.

    Reply
  29. Court Ellyn says

    February 22, 2012 at 5:10 pm

    Yep, I have to have ambient music playing in the background. Thank goodness for iTunes radio. Total silence and I start thinking, "I can't write! My brain is empty! I need background noise!" Now, people up and moving around? No way. Eye goes to the motion and the story on the computer screen vanishes. Do they make blinders for writers like they do for horses? 🙂

    Reply
  30. Julie says

    February 22, 2012 at 5:30 pm

    I used to write best at my paying job during the most hectic parts of the day(in sales, not for me!)because I could turn the sounds of footsteps and sales being made into a buzzing hum and I'd rocket through chapters like nobody's business.

    Reply
  31. Ryan says

    February 22, 2012 at 5:32 pm

    Last night I sat under a heat lamp at a bar's patio. I could hear the live music through the wall, the rain, and the wind. Toss in a bourbon and beer back and it was a winner. Was able to revise some short essays and put together most of a Powerpoint Presentation for an upcoming reading at Powell's (Yea! Fistpump! Squeee!)

    Reply
  32. Alex Villasante says

    February 22, 2012 at 5:49 pm

    I must have music. I'm usually trying to drown out other noises while i write by listening to music. But I also find music to be a kind of 'engine' of writing. For me it's a forward movement that impels me to write. Maybe it's pavlovian, I put the music on and it's a signal that I'm ready to work. Editing though – totally different. I need silence.

    Reply
  33. John "Ol' Chumbucket" Baur says

    February 22, 2012 at 5:49 pm

    I worked most of my professional life in newspaper city rooms, large, noisy rooms with people coming and going and shouting and talking. A few years back I got a job with my own office and it was TERRIBLE! So quiet I was always falling asleep or wandering the corridors looking for someone to chatter. I last almost two years. Writing at home, I have to have the TV on because the quiet is too damn quiet!

    Reply
  34. Vera Soroka says

    February 22, 2012 at 5:51 pm

    Mostly in utter silence. Noise can be very distracting. I would watch people if I were in a coffee shop. Music plays a huge part for me when I want to create mood and can have that playing while I'm writing sometimes.

    Reply
  35. CMR Prindle says

    February 22, 2012 at 6:13 pm

    For the most part I need some sort of ambient noise. Music is the least distracting distraction, but it has to be the right mood and something I know pretty darn well. New music tempts me to really listen to it, which is not what I'm going for, or makes me stop to switch, etc. As for the mood…it doesn't even have to be the "correct" mood for the scene. I have one, ever-growing playlist that I can and have written nearly any kind of scene to. It just puts *me* in the right mood for writing. When I was younger, I could work with the TV on, but I find that more distracting these days (maybe because I'm rarely alone when I'm watching TV and thus the distraction is the prsn I'm conversing with, not the television). Like Julie, though, I used to work in sales and can write through even the busiest part of the day, so long as no one wants me personally. Too much quiet tempts my mind to wander.

    One inconsistency: If I really, really, really need to concentrate on writing a scene or finding the logical sequence flow (did I say they had been seated in the cafeteria, or are Bob's elbows being pushed off a table that magically appeared?) then I need quiet so I can bring my whole mind to bear on that one point. Then it's back to the music 🙂

    Reply
  36. Anonymous says

    February 22, 2012 at 6:14 pm

    I like white noise, subtle noise. I guess raising kids, having pets, a husband, and typical everyday noise (music, barking, road noisiness, etc) has automatically blurred the sounds into lower tones. I still hear them all but they're not in the forefront of my mind while I'm writing…unless something odd perks up my ears.

    Reply
  37. Diana Hunter says

    February 22, 2012 at 6:33 pm

    Need the quiet.

    Also need the laundry. I write in short bursts (45 min to an hour) and getting up to change over loads is a good break for me. I spend fifteen min away from the computer, get the blood running through my legs and then go back for another 45-60 min stint at the computer.

    In silence.
    🙂

    Reply
  38. Sommer Leigh says

    February 22, 2012 at 6:34 pm

    This is interesting. At home, I can't write if there is music playing or the TV on or anyone around me talking. But every saturday I hit my local coffee shop for 2-4 hours of write time. The noise of the coffee shop is somehow perfect and I get more work done there than I can with the same amount of time at home.

    Reply
  39. Janiel Miller says

    February 22, 2012 at 6:59 pm

    Silence. I must hear myself think. My brain is too hyper-curious and needs to investigate any sounds that creep up. Its a liability. I'd get more done if I could do it with my kids running across my face.

    Reply
  40. Mira says

    February 22, 2012 at 7:06 pm

    Definitely silence for me.

    I prefer not to, but I can write with background noise, although music with lyrics or distinct conversations jar me. Coffee shops are not a good place for me because of this.

    On the other hand, once I'm really into it, a stampede of elephants could tromp by and I wouldn't notice.

    But to start, what works best for my concentration is complete and lovely silence.

    Reply
  41. Kära Syster says

    February 22, 2012 at 7:08 pm

    I like it quiet. Or my playlist (nothing with lyrics though). But most often I prefer it to be quiet.

    /Anna

    Reply
  42. Rick Daley says

    February 22, 2012 at 7:32 pm

    I don't mind the silence of the early morning, when I can't turn on music for fear of waking my kids, but I also do well in a corner of the family room while my wife and kids are watching TV.

    Actually, it's kind of fun when they are watching "The Voice" because I can't see the TV from my writing chair (where I camp out with my laptop) and if someone actually stands out I'll lean forward to take a look.

    But when the winds blows or stops blowing, the two things that set my schnauzer into a neurotic barking frenzy at the front door, I get a wee bit aggravated (at the dog, not the wind).

    Reply
  43. Criticus says

    February 22, 2012 at 8:22 pm

    If the noise is consistent (like white noise) and I know that there will be no interruptions, it's ok. But that's almost never the case in coffee shops! All things considered, I prefer absolute quiet or noise that I create and control myself.

    Reply
  44. Gwen says

    February 22, 2012 at 9:21 pm

    I like background noise, and usually write to random songs playing on iTunes when I'm at home. At coffee shops, there's usually something playing over the speakers already.

    Reply
  45. Imogen says

    February 22, 2012 at 10:02 pm

    I like to write with music playing, but I can also write with noise in the background, just so long as that noise isn't someone talking to me. I don't much like writing in silence. There's something spooky and creativity killing about it for me.

    Reply
  46. Jane Pelusey says

    February 22, 2012 at 10:11 pm

    I find it hard to concentrate in absolute quiet. I think background noise eliminates some of the self talk and day to day thinking that goes on so I can concentrate on what I am writing. For me I usually have the tv or radio on in the background. I brainstorm best in an atmospheric cafe with caffeine of course.

    Reply
  47. Kristin Laughtin says

    February 22, 2012 at 10:12 pm

    I can't write with music playing, but I do appreciate some noise. AS you said, there's something about slightly divided attention that helps me focus. I function better when I multitask, and perhaps that low level of noise pulls on my attention just enough to make me feel like I'm doing two things at once, even though I'm not really paying attention to the TV or other people. It's an illusion that works for me.

    Reply
  48. Janet Fox says

    February 22, 2012 at 11:25 pm

    Total silence. And I love music – I make up character play lists – but while writing I need silence.

    Reply
  49. Heather M Bryant says

    February 22, 2012 at 11:52 pm

    Yeah, I can't do it. I need zero distractions around me or nothing gets done. I even have to turn off my internet ever once and a while.

    Reply
  50. Robin Coyle says

    February 23, 2012 at 12:03 am

    I like quiet, but if there is noise around me I am good at tuning it out. I call it "turning off the world."

    Reply
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