![]() ![]() But why would you want to wait? Ten minutes of freewriting might turn up a new idea. We’re talking weeks, months, or even years. If waiting is your main writing strategy, expect to wait a long time between songs. Mistake #8: Waiting for inspiration to strike. This is the premise behind the Gears Index of Songwriting Techniques that I’m building. You never know when an obscure songwriting technique will bail you out of what would have been a dead end. Every song is unique, with its own set of challenges and opportunities–so there are no rules that can apply to every situation, but lots of little techniques that all work together to form a piece of art that really works. Analyze the lyrics of your favorite songwriters. Learn everything you can about the craft of songwriting! Check out books and online articles. Mistake #7: Letting the dog eat your homework. Fire up that digital workstation or a recording program on your computer and get some sounds down–later on you’ll be glad that you did. But when I revisit all the ideas I’ve recorded in the past, I find myself really energized and excited about songwriting all over again. I’ve personally found this step of the process hardest of all. It feels good to have a demo of a song you’ve written, even if it’s rough–remember, a demo is just for reference purposes. Mistake #6: Never recording your finished songs. Just write down the best lines you can to finish the song–you can always judge and rewrite later then at least you’ll have the advantage of having a foundation to build upon. Mistake #5: Perfectionism.ĭon’t expect your first drafts to be perfect! Writing a great song from scratch takes time. If it’s not done by then, repeat the process at first opportunity. ![]() Set a kitchen timer and apply your butt to the chair until the timer goes off. ![]() If this sounds like you, pick up your notebook right now and choose one of your song fragments. ![]() Some could invent new lyric ideas all day, but can’t seem to focus and finish any of them. Most songwriters work on quite a few songs simultaneously. Learn to take pleasure in hunting through pages of your own rough work to find the diamonds. Make sure you keep a pen handy in a distinct color so that you can write in your thoughts and new ideas. Reviewing your own ideas provokes you to think about them and build on them. But I should also point out that this is only worthwhile if you’re also committed to going back and reading all these fragments and ideas from time to time. Remember how I told you to write everything down? That bears repeating. Mistake #3: Never reviewing your notebook of ideas and drafts. For similar reasons, turn off the TV and sign out of Facebook. I recommend that you silence your phone and leave it in a separate room when you’re writing. Writing a song requires concentration, and if you’re always being interrupted there’s no way that you’ll write as well or as often. Mistake #2: Leaving your phone on.Ĭell phones are always beeping and flashing and otherwise pulling at your attention. Capture any new song idea immediately in writing or on a recording-and be sure to collect all these scraps together in one place for later reference. Never think you can hold an idea in your mind even for five minutes any one of a thousand distractions could arise within that five minutes. I’ve recognized these over and over in my students and in myself.ĭo any of these sound like somebody you know? Somebody who’s reading this article right now, maybe? Hmm? In the article below I’ve gathered together eight of the most common songwriting pitfalls. These self-defeating behaviors often stay under the radar until somebody else points them out. It’s easy to unknowingly (or subconsciously) sabotage your own progress as a songwriter. ![]()
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