For those who don’t know, Scrawl–the UCWbL’s radio show–is live every Friday at 11am on Radio DePaul.
When you’re told to listen to a writing center’s radio show, you’re like, “Yeah, okay,” and figure you’ll never listen, or if you do you’ll do it for four minutes and be done.
But this show is seriously hilarious, full of pop culture references and self-deprecating waves of epicosity.
(more…)
Last week I finally got my Chicago Public Library (CPL) card at the Sulzer Regional Library in Ravenswood. If you live in Chicago or if you are an Illinois resident and have a library card at a reciprocal library, you can easily get a library card by visiting any CPL location. After you get your card, you’ll be able to access free downloadable media from anywhere, including your couch! You can download e-books, audio books, and even music and video! The only downside–and it’s a big one, granted–is the fact that most of the audio and video are available for listening and viewing on PCs only. Despite this limitation, CPL’s downloadable media offerings are worth taking a further look.
I just discovered a fellow WordPress blog called RapMETRICS. It’s an amazing site.
The site’s sole credited writer, rapmetrics, who I’m fairly sure is Liban Ali Yusuf, aka RapGenius (FaceBook here) posts detailed statistical analyses of hip-hop lyrics–end rhymes, internal rhymes, rhyme density, meter, “simple” word usage vs. “novel” word usage, syllables, and so on. (more…)
Generally I put music on when I write. I avoid music with lyrics almost always. I generally start with 1950s and 1960s jazz like Bill Evans or Cannonball Adderly. Sometimes the extreme virtuosity and speed of the solos in this kind of jazz can be distracting, so I turn to more ambient music like Brian Eno or The Ghost Orchid. I like instrumental music like The Six Parts Seven, Mogwai, or Explosions in the Sky when it comes time to revise and there’s more room for my mind to wander. There are times, though, when I’m trying to write and all my mind focuses on is the music. When that happens, it’s time for silence, at least until I get some momentum.
What is your favorite music to listen to while you write?
Click “Continue reading” to take the poll and/or leave a comment.
UCWbLing 