If you find yourself hunched over your desk with the light of an empty Google Doc blaring at your sunken eyes, you might hope that a strike of lightning will cause your fingers to be unable to stop hitting keys.
This blog is your strike of lightning. Every writer needs a soundtrack to propel their language and allow for endless words to pour out of their fingertips. From me to you, here are 15 songs for writing that could fire up your mind and inspire you as a poet, novelist, essayist, and beyond (and don’t forget to save the playlist on YouTube!)
This ethereal song sounds like pure gibberish, which may be perfect if you are a writer that gets easily distracted by lyrics. Throughout the song, there is a sense that the cosmos is a guiding force; perhaps the celestial magic of “Cico Buff” will inspire your writing, leading you towards infinite worlds.
Whether or not this blue light is emanating from your laptop screen, or from the faraway lands that you write about, Hope Sandoval’s voice sounds like a hazy, melancholic murmur in this song for writing, making me feel as though I am sailing through midnight skies.
Perhaps night is falling for you too, now. The indie-pop band, The Clientele, never fails to evoke waves that wash over mounds of sand, revealing forgotten ideas. Alasdair MacLean seems to sing in but a whisper, as if trying to keep quiet for the writers that concoct new worlds.
From my mom–to me–to you, I hope Mamouna brings you prosperous writing. This is my mother’s writing song, one I used to hear on repeat growing up. In light of the album cover, this elastic song makes me feel like I am a traveller, voyaging across unknown lands with only a horse as my companion.
A pioneer of avant-garde, alternative pop, genre bending music, the Icelandic singer does not fail to deliver a smooth and ambient vibe in “Come to Me,” making it a perfect song for writing about funky and bizarre realms that distort our reality.
Known for their ambient electronic songs, Air brings us this smooth instrumental. “The Silver Woman” conjures a ghostly and haunting presence, perhaps one that may linger, becoming enveloped in your stories.
Santana brings us a blend of jazz, Afro-Cuban rhythm, and soul in this classic instrumental tune. The quick pace is perfect for when you are frantically typing on that keyboard, or scribbling in a journal, struggling to keep up with all the ideas floating through your mind.
In this jazz and funk fusion, Roy Ayers offers an optimistic and upbeat rhythm if you are starting to lose morale while writing. Plus, the repetition of the lyrics will minimize distraction and keep you in the zone.
King of creating synthy and ambient music, Dev Hynes always sounds like an echo from another time. Perhaps it is time to be taken away to the countryside and hide in vast fields to be able to continue writing.
A whimsical follow-up to “Countryside,” the distant hum of chirping birds in the background of this song sounds exactly like summer in the countryside. From wherever you may be writing, I hope you feel the magic of “Sketch for Summer.”
Sade does not fail to deliver a melodic instrumental that embodies a siren song. The ambient bass and guitar riffs give the tune its breezy allure, capturing the moment everything becomes still in the wake of chaos.
This is a coming-of-age song for flying. With unintelligible lyrics that still feel deeply emotional, it is like everything in your writing has led up to this culminating moment of sonic release.
With minimal and whispered lyrics, “Eris” is grounded in a consistent flow of percussion and a trickling synthesizer. The hypnotic loop of this song will definitely keep you in a creative writing flow; it’s the perfect soundtrack for mapping out a moody backdrop.
This list of songs for writing would not be complete without the iconic trip-hop band, Massive Attack. With moody strings and a deep bass, this tune feels like a haunting echo from another time.
Finally, Cerati’s “Bocanada” translates to smoke, and that is exactly what the song feels like. Its existence lingers beyond the final quiet moments at the end of the song, transient and thick like fumes. He says “When there is nothing else to say to one another / Let the smoke speak.” When there is nothing left to write, just let its existence linger, beyond. He finishes with “a story without end,” leaving the door open for your stories to continue.
Whether you’re looking for something dreamy, atmospheric, upbeat, or simply inspiring, I hope one of these songs finds its way into your writing playlist. Sometimes the right song is all it takes to shift your perspective, unlock an idea, or help you see your story in a new way. Now, put on your headphones, open that blank page, and see where the music takes you.
P.S. Save this article to inspire your writing to enter one or more of our competitions from our 2026 to 2027 Lineup.
P.P.S. If you are passionate about music, like me, consider entering our Songwriting Competition, which is coming up in March 2027!
About the author
Kika Jiménez Singer is a writer and editor from New York City and Havana. She is currently entering her fourth and final year as an English student at Brandeis University, where she is crafting her thesis on literature about the ocean and its relation to the Caribbean quotidian. Beyond reading and writing, she is a fashion-lover and obsessor of all things Soul, R&B, and Post Punk; she hosted a show titled “Eclectic Feels” on her college radio station. Previously, she interned at a Contemporary art gallery in NYC and then at a mosaic studio, Studio Cassio, while studying abroad in Rome.