tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-598558136160705007.post859803882613828995..comments2024-01-28T21:33:18.654-08:00Comments on VANESSA GEBBIE'S BLOG: Dan Powell talks about writing to music - and his fab collection of short fictions, 'Looking Out Of Broken Windows'Vanessa Gebbiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09088301040602803489noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-598558136160705007.post-4364349847926715922014-04-03T03:35:18.518-07:002014-04-03T03:35:18.518-07:00Hi Dan, when I'm writing I usually just set my...Hi Dan, when I'm writing I usually just set my entire collection on shuffle and see where it goes. As a result it lurches from cheery indie-pop to electronica to folk-ish stuff, picking up bits of film soundtracks and various impulse purchases on the way. Music I've found particularly good to write to includes Underworld, Candidate, Death in Vegas, Leftfield, Blue States, Agnes Obel, David Holmes, and Massive Attack. But inspiration can come from anywhere. One of my biggest story successes would never have come about if I hadn't been listening to a particular track by The Killers.Dan Purduehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01633271913854946500noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-598558136160705007.post-47396230953703632962014-04-03T03:05:58.417-07:002014-04-03T03:05:58.417-07:00Thanks, Vanessa - I find the same with my blog; so...Thanks, Vanessa - I find the same with my blog; sometimes people comment within minutes of me posting something, other times I'm convinced I'm talking to myself. There doesn't seem to be any logic to it!<br /><br />With regard to writing to music, it's worth a go, although if you're used to silence it might seem very distracting. An interesting experiment, perhaps?Dan Purduehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01633271913854946500noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-598558136160705007.post-43806695392170372962014-03-30T07:53:36.190-07:002014-03-30T07:53:36.190-07:00Hi Dan, I'd be interested to know what artists...Hi Dan, I'd be interested to know what artists/bands you listen to when writing. I don't always use headphones, just when out and about as it means I don't annoy others around me and I can drown out ambient noise. Thanks for the kind words about my stories. Hope you enjoy the collection.dan powellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14131553102349479513noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-598558136160705007.post-16452920258442176922014-03-30T07:51:21.529-07:002014-03-30T07:51:21.529-07:00Thanks Vanessa, I really enjoyed the process of th...Thanks Vanessa, I really enjoyed the process of thinking and writing about just why I need music to write. Hope you get some positive results from trying to write to a soundtrack.dan powellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14131553102349479513noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-598558136160705007.post-22690190048617076302014-03-27T10:13:09.637-07:002014-03-27T10:13:09.637-07:00Thanks for dropping by, Dan - nice to meet you. I ...Thanks for dropping by, Dan - nice to meet you. I was beginning to think my blog had dropped into a black hole! After your comments, maybe I will have a go at writing with music somewhere in the background - Im sure I'd write very differently if I was listening to Wagner or nursery rhymes...Vanessa Gebbiehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09088301040602803489noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-598558136160705007.post-78684581022214981522014-03-25T07:34:10.094-07:002014-03-25T07:34:10.094-07:00I really struggle to write without music in the ba...I really struggle to write without music in the background. I find myself listening to the sounds of the house itself or trying to hear what passers-by are saying outside. Unlike Dan, though, I can't listen to music through headphones when I'm writing - it's too close-up and distracting.<br /><br />I have quite specific requirements for my writing music; it can't be something I've never heard before, as then I can't focus on anything else, so listening to the radio is out. It needs to fit the mood, broadly speaking, of what I'm writing (I can relate to Dan's comment about having something ready to help with writing 'darker stuff'). Oddly, I find it's best to avoid a set playlist - when I know what track's coming next that then becomes a distraction in itself.<br /><br />I've really enjoyed reading Dan's fiction online and am looking forward to getting my hands on a copy of his debut collection. I hope it's a big success for him.Dan Purduehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01633271913854946500noreply@blogger.com