--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I've tried writing with music on, but I…" description: "\"I've tried writing with music on, but I find it distracting.\" — John Grisham" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ace/john-grisham-974_distracting_i-ve-tried-writing-with-music-on-but-i-f_755446.jpg" --- # I've tried writing with music on, but I find it distracting. ![“I've tried writing with music on, but I find it distracting.” quote by John Grisham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ace/john-grisham-974_distracting_i-ve-tried-writing-with-music-on-but-i-f_755446.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ace/john-grisham-974_distracting_i-ve-tried-writing-with-music-on-but-i-f_755446.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ace/john-grisham-974_distracting_i-ve-tried-writing-with-music-on-but-i-f_755446.jpg) > “I've tried writing with music on, but I find it distracting.” [John Grisham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-grisham/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Music can distract a writer, breaking focus on narrative. **In simple terms:** Music may interrupt writing focus. Key Takeaway Choose silence or instrumental background. Themes creativity focus environment Mood neutral thoughtful Type advice personal When to use this quote - writing sprints - home office - library sessions Key Concepts cognitive load flow state distraction Questions to Reflect On - Do you need silence to think? - What background helps your flow? A Different Perspective Some writers thrive with music; it's personal. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Music](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/music/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) [Writing music](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing-music/) ## Related quotes > [I find music distracting - it takes me out of my head. What I love so much about skiing is the peacefulness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-mancuso/i-find-music-distracting-it-takes-me-out-of-my-head-what-i-love-so/) [Julia Mancuso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julia-mancuso/) > [One thing I've tried to do in writing music is take on very basic things, very archetypal things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harrison-birtwistle/one-thing-i-ve-tried-to-do-in-writing-music-is-take-on-very-basic/) [Harrison Birtwistle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harrison-birtwistle/) > [I've never tried writing at a coffeehouse. I just know instinctively it's not for me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wentworth-miller/i-ve-never-tried-writing-at-a-coffeehouse-i-just-know-instinctively/) [Wentworth Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wentworth-miller/) > [I've tried writing darker, more serious songs, but they don't go anywhere. Everything revolves around the chorus for me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shura/i-ve-tried-writing-darker-more-serious-songs-but-they-don-t-go/) Shura > [Ever since I was a child, I've been a huge comic and graphic novel fan, but I've never tried writing one before.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/ever-since-i-was-a-child-i-ve-been-a-huge-comic-and-graphic-novel-fan/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [I've tried writing on a computer thinking it would make me more efficient, but if you're writing crummy stuff, being efficient is no help.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/i-ve-tried-writing-on-a-computer-thinking-it-would-make-me-more/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [I tried writing fiction as a little kid, but had a teacher humiliate me, so didn't write again until I was a senior in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-fitch/i-tried-writing-fiction-as-a-little-kid-but-had-a-teacher-humiliate/) [Janet Fitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-fitch/) > [I started writing short stories. I tried writing horror, mystery, science fiction. I joined a little critique group here in town and ran my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-rollins/i-started-writing-short-stories-i-tried-writing-horror-mystery/) [James Rollins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-rollins/) > [I tried to write poems in rhyme. I tried writing songs. Sometimes I jotted down a thought. I would keep a log of spontaneous…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chath-piersath/i-tried-to-write-poems-in-rhyme-i-tried-writing-songs-sometimes-i/) [Chath Piersath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chath-piersath/) > [All I've tried to do (with my writing) is capture the essence of my time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-penn-warren/all-i-ve-tried-to-do-with-my-writing-is-capture-the-essence-of-my-time/) [Robert Penn Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-penn-warren/) > [I knew I just loved comedy, and I think it was my parents who initially brought up the notion of me trying to do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-rogen/i-knew-i-just-loved-comedy-and-i-think-it-was-my-parents-who/) [Seth Rogen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-rogen/) > [We already tried writing musicals. Sometimes that failure can become a cause for us. We had so much passion for the idea of doing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-mael/we-already-tried-writing-musicals-sometimes-that-failure-can-become-a/) [Ron Mael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-mael/) > [I’ve tried writing and the sentences come out fine, but I write a few pages and I don’t want to go on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-block/i-ve-tried-writing-and-the-sentences-come-out-fine-but-i-write-a-few/) [Lawrence Block](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-block/) > [I tried writing a novel, but plays were the thing that kept feeding me, asking me to come back, sit down and be with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/branden-jacobs-jenkins/i-tried-writing-a-novel-but-plays-were-the-thing-that-kept-feeding-me/) [Branden Jacobs-Jenkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/branden-jacobs-jenkins/) > [I don't know if you've ever tried writing a Doctor Who story, but it's a lot more difficult than it initially appears, especially if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-sutton/i-don-t-know-if-you-ve-ever-tried-writing-a-doctor-who-story-but-it-s/) [Sarah Sutton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-sutton/) ## More by John Grisham > [“Do you read them? Faulkner, Hemingway, Fitzgerald?" "Only if I have to. I try to avoid old dead white men.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-grisham/do-you-read-them-faulkner-hemingway-fitzgerald-only-if-i-have-to-i/) [John Grisham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-grisham/) > [“Cuando duermes, engañas al sistema. El tiempo del sueño te pertenece a ti y no al Estado.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-grisham/cuando-duermes-enga-as-al-sistema-el-tiempo-del-sue-o-te-pertenece-a/) [John Grisham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-grisham/) > [“The Senator did not know who owned the jet, nor had he ever met Mr. Trudeau, which in most cultures would seem odd since…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-grisham/the-senator-did-not-know-who-owned-the-jet-nor-had-he-ever-met-mr/) [John Grisham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-grisham/) > [“What kind of name is Siler-Spence? I mean, what's wrong with these women who use hyphens? What if her name was Skowinski and she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-grisham/what-kind-of-name-is-siler-spence-i-mean-what-s-wrong-with-these/) [John Grisham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-grisham/) > [“In that case, the truck driver took the stand, swore to tell the truth, then lied for three hours. He said Gretchen crossed the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-grisham/in-that-case-the-truck-driver-took-the-stand-swore-to-tell-the-truth/) [John Grisham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-grisham/) > [I'm being followed so much I'm causing traffic jams.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-grisham/i-m-being-followed-so-much-i-m-causing-traffic-jams/) [John Grisham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-grisham/) > [Quite often I can be in a bookshop, standing beneath a great big picture of myself and paying for a book with a credit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-grisham/quite-often-i-can-be-in-a-bookshop-standing-beneath-a-great-big/) [John Grisham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-grisham/) > [Reading is by far the most successful pursuit of happiness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-grisham/reading-is-by-far-the-most-successful-pursuit-of-happiness/) [John Grisham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-grisham/) > [“We were invincible because we were eighteen and stupid.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-grisham/we-were-invincible-because-we-were-eighteen-and-stupid/) [John Grisham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-grisham/) > [“One good thing about jail is that it allows you to think a lot.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-grisham/one-good-thing-about-jail-is-that-it-allows-you-to-think-a-lot/) [John Grisham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-grisham/) > [In my case, once you sell a lot of books and you are labeled a bestselling author, the serious critics are never gonna say…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-grisham/in-my-case-once-you-sell-a-lot-of-books-and-you-are-labeled-a/) [John Grisham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-grisham/) > [Twenty years on, the books are still fun to write and I've still got lots of stories I want to tell, mainly about social…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-grisham/twenty-years-on-the-books-are-still-fun-to-write-and-i-ve-still-got/) [John Grisham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-grisham/) > [Sometimes I can tackle an issue -homelessness, tobacco litigation, insurance fraud, the death penalty - and wrap a good story around it. These are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-grisham/sometimes-i-can-tackle-an-issue-homelessness-tobacco-litigation/) [John Grisham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-grisham/) > [“So why do these guys hate your guts?” “Because they believe strip-mining is a good thing. It provides jobs, and there are few jobs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-grisham/so-why-do-these-guys-hate-your-guts-because-they-believe-strip-mining/) [John Grisham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-grisham/) > [“In little pockets of conversation, old men were telling stories of ancient floods. Women were talking of about how much rain there'd been in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-grisham/in-little-pockets-of-conversation-old-men-were-telling-stories-of/) [John Grisham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-grisham/) [Explore all 316 John Grisham quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-grisham/) ## More Distracting quotes > [I don't want this to be a distraction. This has been distracting enough. I'm not going to rehash this going forward. I'm sure other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jayson-werth/i-don-t-want-this-to-be-a-distraction-this-has-been-distracting/) [Jayson Werth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jayson-werth/) > [Eyes are distracting. You see too much. You don't see enough.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-graham/eyes-are-distracting-you-see-too-much-you-don-t-see-enough/) [Will Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-graham/) > [Silence and solitude are more distracting to me than chatter and commotion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilu-henner/silence-and-solitude-are-more-distracting-to-me-than-chatter-and/) [Marilu Henner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilu-henner/) > [To the distracting occupations belong especially my lecture courses which I am holding this winter for the first time, and which now cost much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-friedrich-gauss/to-the-distracting-occupations-belong-especially-my-lecture-courses/) [Carl Friedrich Gauss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-friedrich-gauss/) > [It's too distracting to read about yourself. You want to be perfect and you want everyone to love you, and that's never going to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saoirse-ronan/it-s-too-distracting-to-read-about-yourself-you-want-to-be-perfect/) [Saoirse Ronan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saoirse-ronan/) > [“You’re distracting,” I said truthfully. “I won’t be. I promise,” Noah said. “I’ll get some crayons and draw quietly. Alone. In a corner.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-hodkin/you-re-distracting-i-said-truthfully-i-won-t-be-i-promise-noah-said-i/) [Michelle Hodkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-hodkin/) > [“Why is it that you think that technologies are any more distracting than your own mind or anything else in the world?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manoush-zomorodi/why-is-it-that-you-think-that-technologies-are-any-more-distracting/) Manoush Zomorodi > [The climb will go. Get rid of the rope. It's only distracting you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-lowe/the-climb-will-go-get-rid-of-the-rope-it-s-only-distracting-you/) [Jeff Lowe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-lowe/) > [Reading a book and having to re-read the same paragraph over and over again because your thoughts are too distracting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amit/reading-a-book-and-having-to-re-read-the-same-paragraph-over-and-over/) [AmiT](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amit/) > [I think some of my colleagues' spicier lines are distracting. They draw attention away from what the justice is trying to say.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruth-bader-ginsburg/i-think-some-of-my-colleagues-spicier-lines-are-distracting-they-draw/) [Ruth Bader Ginsburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruth-bader-ginsburg/) > [Distracting reactions about anything undermine a clear mind about anything else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-allen/distracting-reactions-about-anything-undermine-a-clear-mind-about/) [David Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-allen/) > [For a long time, I would write without music, because I thought it was distracting until I appreciated that it actually unlocks a certain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-hodgman/for-a-long-time-i-would-write-without-music-because-i-thought-it-was/) [John Hodgman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-hodgman/) > [“For some reason it reminded her of his fingers caressing her cheek in the tiny room. But that thought, along with his exposed throat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melanie-dickerson/for-some-reason-it-reminded-her-of-his-fingers-caressing-her-cheek-in/) [Melanie Dickerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melanie-dickerson/) > [You don't say "Maybe I should go to bed early tonight" or do any of that stuff. It's almost like you know you're alone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ladyhawke/you-don-t-say-maybe-i-should-go-to-bed-early-tonight-or-do-any-of/) [Ladyhawke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ladyhawke/) > [What works for me is that I read widely and stay focused on my writing. I'm no longer concerned about what happens in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sefi-atta/what-works-for-me-is-that-i-read-widely-and-stay-focused-on-my/) [Sefi Atta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sefi-atta/) Browse all 123 Distracting quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I've tried writing with music on, but I find it distracting.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "John Grisham" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-grisham/i-ve-tried-writing-with-music-on-but-i-find-it-distracting/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Distracting" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-grisham/i-ve-tried-writing-with-music-on-but-i-find-it-distracting/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ace/john-grisham-974_distracting_i-ve-tried-writing-with-music-on-but-i-f_755446.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ace/john-grisham-974_distracting_i-ve-tried-writing-with-music-on-but-i-f_755446.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ace/john-grisham-974_distracting_i-ve-tried-writing-with-music-on-but-i-f_755446.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I've tried writing with music on, but I find it distracting.” — John Grisham", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "John Grisham", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-grisham/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I've tried writing with music on,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-grisham/i-ve-tried-writing-with-music-on-but-i-find-it-distracting/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-grisham/i-ve-tried-writing-with-music-on-but-i-find-it-distracting/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```