Writers Block

Hey all,
 
I'm guessing most people have come across this from time to time. I have musical writers block :)

I sit in front of X1 and nothing comes out, does anyone have any tips or strategies to combat writers block?

browse some loops

Jeff Evans


Listen to Frank Zappa. There are usually more ideas in 30 seconds of some of his music to allow you to springboard off into some new territory.

+ several million!

"The Frustrated songwriter's handbook" by Coryat and Dobson has helped me out a lot. Main idea in it is something called the 20 song game, basically try to write 20 songs in 12 hours. I've done that a couple of times with good results. But even if you don't there's lots of other ideas, tips and tricks in it that's useable. I don't think it's a book for every songwriter, but it has served me well.

I have that book also - very good!!! It works.

record yourself playing an instrument of your choice.
throw it on the canvas/begin to random ly slice 4 beat measures.
do all this withou listening to it first.

record/dont listen/slice randomly/turn them to groove clips/drag random drum loops(4 beaters) to acompany those slices.

this topic belongs under technics hommie.

Here is what i recomend

Find a song that inspires you.
Throw it into Sonar,  Match the tempo and find the chords.
Rephrase the melody.  If the melody starts on beat 1  you start before, or perhaps after.
Rephrase the lyrics,  so "Feels So Right" might become "It Aint So Bad". Say the same things only opposite.
Play with the rhythm a little and perhaps reshape the harmony the way you'd like it.

If your new song sounds to much like the original,  go back and rephrase/reharmonize again.

When you are done you should have a new song and it is a great exercise in learning how to write a song (by analyzing another proven, well written song).  

...or just take a break for a while. The creative process needs a rest now and then. You can't expect it to go 24/7!...
 
23/6 seems more reasonable.

- Get a cork pinboard, some pins, highlighter pen, and a pair of scissors.
- Get a newspaper or two.
- Read the newspaper looking for interesting phrases.  Try not to let your mind go to the gyst of the article, instead read the words, phrases and sentences as just that - phrases.
- Highlight the ones that could possibly serve as  lyric snippets or song titles, cut those pieces out and pin them on the pinboard.
- When stuck, go to the pinboard and look for something that could start a song idea.

After training yourself to do this type of reading you'll find it'll happen naturally when you do 'normal' reading.  I saw a documentary on Gilbert O'Sullivan and he has such a board in his kitchen.  These things can pop out when watching TV, so keep a pad and pen nearby when lounging in front of it .  Recently I heard someone say 'It's a zero sum world' and I wrote it down.  A week later I'd written a song with that as the punchline at the end of the chorus.

Good ideas are triggered by something else.  They don't pop into existence from nothing.  You need a catalyst.  Peter Green asked John Mayall how he could write his own songs and John told him, "Play one or two of your favourite blues records, then turn that off and pick up the guitar."  People wondered where Benny Hill got his comic ideas from.  He had a big notebook and would spend days just sitting in cafes and other public places making sure he was near people who were just chatting about their everyday lives.  He collected masses and masses of material to which he then applied humourous twists to.  Most artists are avid magpies.

I find that when I can't write it is because I am too involved in the musical process.  That is to say, I am focused too much on trying to produce something, sometimes even trying to produce something remarkable.  With this kind of pressure I find I can't produce much of anything.  The times when I am most successful at writing are when I am able to take a step back and really listen to what I am working on and let the ideas come to me.

I remember a friend once telling me that the harder you try to be original, the more cliche you will be.  The key is to relax and have fun with the process and just experiment with an attitude of exploration.

I am sure what I am saying here is well known, and certainly nothing new, but I do find I need to remind myself of it from time to time.

Oh, and I have to remind myself sometimes that a great book is not written in one sitting - neither is a great song.  You just need to get your ideas down in some form so that you can develop them further.

2 things I do....

1: Just sit with a piano sound, play a few chords hum a melody, maybe record on a voice recorder.

2: Take a song you like, reverse it in sonar (play it backwards), often you can hear complete new melodies and ideas.

+1 for shutting off the computer and playing music on guitar or keyboard. Whenever I have ideas for songs, I will record a snippet and put it aside. When I hit a block - I browse through my song idea files and usually find something to work on.

great thread :)

mattox82


Hey all,
 
I'm guessing most people have come across this from time to time. I have musical writers block :)

I sit in front of X1 and nothing comes out, does anyone have any tips or strategies to combat writers block?

Get into a 'car crash' relationship.  That should keep you going for a few years.

I've got a few numbers if you need them but there's probably a few good candidates in your area too.

Remember if you are REALLY committed to the creative process then gender shouldn't matter the important thing is to survive the experience so you can write about it afterward.

HTH

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??? ....yeah!.... what he said.