Fighting Off Songwriter’s Block: The Ebb and Flow of Musical Ideas

Back when I was a composition student at university, there was always pressure to write. I had weekly sessions with my composition prof, and the whole point of that hour-long session was to show what I had been up to for the week previous.

This part won’t surprise you: some weeks the writing happened easily, but other weeks I had little to show. I look back on it now, and almost find it funny how I’d hang my head in shame and drag myself in to the session to explain that “nothing happened.”

The good thing was that any composition instructor I’d ever studied with had been through the same thing before: the natural ebb and flow of musical ideas. As long as the good weeks outnumbered the bad ones, things were fine.

You know that writing a good hook is an important part of songwriting success, but how do you do that? “Hooks and Riffs: How They Grab Attention, Make Songs Memorable, and Build Your Fan Base“ will give you several optional step-by-step processes for writing a hook that really grabs the audience’s attention. It’s part of the 10-eBook Deluxe Bundle. Read more.

The problem was that the academic structure of university demanded results. Once it became time to issue a grade, you had to show what you had written. Your music had to be assessed, usually by a jury of professors and instructors, and then a mark issued.

That academic structure had a powerful affect on one’s ability to write. When so much rides on whether or not you get something finished, institutional pressure, it turns out, is a powerful motivator. I quoted English novelist Mavis Cheek in my book “Beating Songwriter’s Block“: “Authors with a mortgage never get writer’s block.”

In your life, you may not have anything providing you with that kind of healthy pressure. You may find that the only way to get through a tough week is your own personal determination to get the job done. It’s why I wrote the article, “Songwriting Success Requires a Plan” recently. If you have a plan, and stick to it, your chances of success are much greater.

So if you find that you’re always being tripped up by those few days or weeks where “nothing happens”, and there’s no pressure on you to write your next song, a plan may be what you need – as long as you stick to it.

Here are some tips to help you:

1. Set real targets. If your plan is that you’re going to write every day, that’s too vague to be of much help. Set a target, like “Finish one song every week.” That gives you something more tangible to aim for, and therefore more likely for you to achieve.
2. Write song fragments on tough days. If you find that on any one day you just aren’t producing much, take that day to work on one small bit of your song, like a hook, a line of lyric, a bit of a bridge… that kind of thing. You’ll end up feeling like you accomplished something, and that positivity will help you on your next day.
3. Stay involved in non-compositional music activities. As a songwriter, you’ll benefit from involving yourself in other musical activities that take the pressure off writing. So try painting, singing in a choir, performing in a musical, or taking instrumental lessons. These are all great ways to stay involved in music without feeling the need to create something.
4. Give yourself a break. Though I really do believe that it works to keep trying to write through a mild or moderate block, there’s something to be said for taking a break for a few days, just long enough to recharge your batteries. If nothing else, it keeps negative attitudes from grabbing hold and making you feel like a failure.
5. Minimize your inner critic. Sometimes it’s hard to write because each time you complete a line of music, you see all the ways it could or should be better. The best approach is to write to complete the song. There will be lots of time to change what you’ve written. And you’ll benefit from the rush you get at being able to say that you’ve “just written a new song.”

Written by Gary Ewer. Follow Gary on Twitter

“The Essential Secrets of Songwriting”, 3rd edition, is the main eBook text in the Bundle packages that Gary is selling on his online store. That eBook will reveal the secrets of making your songs sound great, based on 11 principles of songwriting that every songwriter needs to know. Right now, take advantage of the DISCOUNT PRICE on the 10-eBook Deluxe Bundle. More..