If you’ve been a songwriter for a while, you’ve probably noticed that the times you don’t particularly feel like writing are predictable. I’m not necessarily talking about day-to-day here: everyone has the time of day when they feel most creative, and the times when they don’t.
I’m more talking about larger time segments – monthly or yearly. For example, if you tend to take a summer vacation at the start of July every year, you may have noticed that for you, vacation time is not the best time to write songs. Your brain is in a kind of shut-down mode.
Or maybe, if you’re a student, exam period is just too hectic for you to set time aside to write.
If you know that there are certain times of the year where you just don’t feel particularly creative or imaginative, it can feel like writer’s block if you try to force yourself to write at those times.
There’s a better way to handle those times of the year where you know that writing is going to be difficult: make a decision to refrain from writing during those times.
By scheduling your break from songwriting, you are taking control of the situation, and you are taking a very positive step toward preventing writer’s block from setting in.
Writer’s block is a very negative situation: you want to write, but you can’t come up with anything useable. It’s frustrating — there’s nothing good about writer’s block. And some bouts of writer’s block can last a long time, because it puts your brain in such a negative mode.
But taking a preemptive break — actually deciding that for the next several days, or week, or even month, you are not going to write music, is a very positive action that puts you in control of the situation.
At the end of that period of non-writing, you feel refreshed, and your creative mind is ready to get back to work. You don’t feel down about the time y0u weren’t writing, because you planned it that way!
So if you feel that writer’s block is an all-too frequent situation for you, try scheduling a break from songwriting. I believe you’ll see positive results.
Written by Gary Ewer. Follow Gary on Twitter.
“The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” eBook bundle includes the all-important Study Guide. Discover the secrets of making the chords-first songwriting process work for you.