Freelancer

I was thinking back to my music appreciation classes, and came up with this off the wall question. Anybody use the church modes for their writing? If so, any success with it?

Seconding what crazypoet and snabbu said, but I'll add a little something. Music lessons are worth their weight in gold. All my skills harmonizing, I learned from choir, and some chord progressions I use got borrowed from other songs. To me, the black magic of pop is all about emotional subject matter, good rhythm (a la Lady Gaga), and a catchy hook. Being catchy though, that's the hard bit.

I know I'm new to the whole songwriting thing, but I've been a journalist and fiction writer for a while, so I know about the big hairy monster of writer's block. Here's some things I like to do. Find something similar to your idea and make it your own. Example, just for creative purposes, I take song titles and write a new song with the same title. It gives you subject matter. Writing fiction works the same way. You read something that piques your interest and you write from there. Carry a notebook EVERYWHERE if possible. I have a "hook book" I use for scribbling down snippets of ideas for whatever I'm working on. A few songs have come together from bits and pieces that weren't much before. If writer's block has you down and you still need inspiration, just look around. I've written a couple of songs about coffee, about faded posters, so forth. Take an everyday object and make it your own! Hope that helps!