Songwriting duo

In Songwriting, Does the End Justify the Means?

If, in the end, you get what you want, does it really matter how you got there? If you ask that question in some settings, it’s a loaded one, with intense moral implications: if you were able to get enough money to finally buy that car you’ve always wanted, great. If you got that money […]

Songwriter working at a keyboard

Think Small to Keep Feeling Creative

What do you do when you’ve got a day — or a week or a month — where your creative juices are letting you down? What do you do when songwriting, which used to be fun, exciting and fulfilling, is now frustrating? Feeling that you’re getting nowhere with your songwriting often comes from setting the […]

Folk Singer - Songwriter

Identifying Your Current Songwriting Strengths

Do you ever go through periods of time when lyrics just seem to suddenly come easily to you? Or perhaps it’s creating melodies, where you used to find melodies difficult. Every once in a while you’ll find that to be the case: you’ll suddenly go through a very creative time. You might wonder what to […]

Songwriter

How Important Is “Externally-Sourced” Inspiration to You As a Songwriter?

We tend to think of songwriting and inspiration as going hand-in-hand. Talk to anyone about how they write songs, and “inspiration” is probably going to come up pretty early on in the conversation. Here’s the question: Do you need a good dose of inspiration before songwriting works for you? In other words, are you able […]

Mic in a sound studio

Going Old-School: Separating Songwriting From Production

One of the benefits of being a songwriter in the 21st century is you have an incredible array of computer-based tools at your disposal. Like at no other time in history, you can do up a polished, professional end product with not much more than a mobile phone and a good mic. Thousands of songwriters […]

Songwriter with guitar

Five Best Ways to Avoid Songwriter’s Block

There is nothing wrong with being a slow songwriter. Leonard Cohen was practically famous for how long it took him to complete songs to his satisfaction. But if your songwriting process is slow because your creative brain constantly blocks up, that’s more than just being “slow.” The main annoying feature of songwriter’s block is frustration, and […]