What Do You Write Next?

The best songs pull you in by making you wonder what’s going to happen. You hear a nice crescendo in the instrumentation… where’s it leading? You hear a captivating twist in the chord progression… Why? Where’s it going? The lyric describes a circumstance or situation… what’s going to happen next?

Good music keeps us riveted because we believe that something even greater than what we’re hearing now is about to happen. In a great song, good stuff leads to better stuff.

In that sense, a good song can be a wonderful metaphor for life itself, and it’s something worth thinking about as you plunge ahead to 2019. Many people are fond of making new year’s resolutions, and if that works for you, that’s great.

But here’s something else to consider: just as wonderful moments in songs are set up and prepared in earlier moments, good moments in life also require preparation.

I could say “We reap what we sow,” but that might sound negative and judgmental. It’s far better to do this: think back on the year that’s passing, and on the wonderful things you were able to accomplish, and ask yourself, “Where’s it leading?”

If your life is a metaphorical song, you need to ask yourself, “What do I write next?”

Think of 2018 as the good verse that’s about to lead to a great chorus called 2019. What are you planning? What’s going to make it better? How do you plan to improve your songwriting technique?

If you treat your life as a series of events that happen to you… well, you take what you get. But if you approach your life as a good songwriter creates a song, where you are in charge of every step along the way, the possibilities are truly endless!

I wish you all the best for a wonderfully exciting and successful 2019!

Written by Gary Ewer. Follow Gary on Twitter.

“The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” eBook bundle includes“Writing a Song From a Chord Progression”. Discover the secrets of making the chords-first songwriting process work for you.