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Lack Of Inspiration

By Lewys93
in Songwriting

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Lewys93

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After reading the "build-a-song" series, which discusses the importance of inspiration, I've found that I don't have any, and however hard I try (or don't try) it doesn't work.

I notice that I tend to use other songs for inspiration, but I do that too much, with the song sounding almost exactly the same as the one I drew inspiration from.

Does anybody have any suggestions?

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john

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Hi

Ok,try only doing sections of songs as imitation. The point is to be inspired by what doing the imitation teaches you, hopefully over several songs.

I suggest writing pieces drawing from more than one song. Select 2 - 5 songs to learn from selected from one artist on same album, different albums, same genre different artists, and different genres. Each category is worth doing, though your purpose might help you select specific approaches at different times.

One thing I found useful was to write a short song inspired by 2 songs by the same artist on the same album. then write another song based on the same two songs as a seed, but add into the mix a 3rd song from a different artist in a different genre. the difference can be quite illuminating.

In general such experiments I keep to sections of a song rather than the entire thing. Just grab the crucial bits, the bits that make a difference, store them away as techniques and ideas...

so when you do write your nice original work you have no shortage of ideas on where to take it... You might think this a lot of effort to go to but the results can be very good. the more seeds you give yourself, and the more tools, the more likely your ideas will be a blend of inspirations creating something new.

Cheers

John

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FinnArild

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Try writing in your mind away from your instruments. Do short themes at a time until you get used to the method. I find the shower or jogging/cycling are good times for getting the creative juices flowing. When you then come to your instrument to put your idea into music - don't change it into an "easier" key, but play it where you "thought" it in your mind.

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lemonstar

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Late - 1 quick comment out of many I'd like to have the time to add.

Agree - try writing away from your instruments.

Keep a notebook - buy yourself a nice one, one you'll treasure and enjoy having at hand (keep it under your bed at night - I often get ideas (not dreams) first thing in the morning as I'm just about to get up - write them down before they evaporate). Don't put pressure on yourself about not being able to write BUT it's a myth that you have to wait for inspiration to strike (I have a technical paper somewhere that concluded that) - in the words of Jack London "go after it with a club".

See my comment on this book:-

Inspired creative writing: Secrets of the master wordsmiths

There are no short-cuts - songwriting is 1% inspiration 99% perspiration but you can learn by practicing, by writing - Lennon (I think) said they threw away a 100 songs before they wrote a good one. I bought this book before Christmas and while not specifically for songwriters I'm finding it helpful, e.g. you have to be reflective - really deeply instrospectively personally reflective - that's what will make you and your songs unique, don't be vague with detail - be specific..., try to find your own (writers) voice - to hell with the fact that it doesn't sound the way you'd like it to or the way you expected it to (I had great difficulty getting over that particular mismatch between reality and expectation)

Be inspired by a book title, a book cover, a newspaper article, write a response or a sequel to a song (e.g. Ticket To Ride - be that girl, Get Back - be Loretta) if you want to tie yourself down to a subect - make a list of your unique experiences in life - the 5 things that might surprise or interest a stranger, listen to songs and think hard about how and why the writer wrote them, structured them, worded them, edited them, arranged them, orchestrated them - what inspired them and would your response have been different? What might they have left out/also included? Identify what is it you personally like about the songs that inspire you - I've been listening to Death Cab for Cutie for a month (Transatlanticism and Narrow Stairs) on my mp3 player when I've been out running doing exactly that - I'm with Finn on that - I run about every 2-4 days for about 40 mins and do most of my serious music listening and reflecting/thinking about song writing then.

As you can tell, I'd like to write more but can't.

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TaoMannaDon

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After reading the "build-a-song" series, which discusses the importance of inspiration, I've found that I don't have any, and however hard I try (or don't try) it doesn't work.

I notice that I tend to use other songs for inspiration, but I do that too much, with the song sounding almost exactly the same as the one I drew inspiration from.

Does anybody have any suggestions?

Everyone occasionally finds inspiration just in the normal course of watching TV, reading books, surfing the net, listening to the music you like, etc. Those things inspire the ideas but they may not provide the impetus needed to write the first word of a song. That part rests in you. You decide when to begin the writing process. If you aren't writing because you are waiting for inspiration, I suggest you learn to enjoy waiting.

Waiting rarely is as much fun as writing; so, perhaps you should find the will power to make that decision and start writing.

If you still need song ideas then look at your own life. I don't know how old you are but, since you are old enough to use a computer, you have lived enough to have things to write about. One of my favorite original songs is about something that happened to me when I was six years old. I wrote it from a sixty year old man's perspective but I could have written a similar song the day I started writing forty-five years ago. Songs about your life experiences can be rewarding in many ways.

You might want to look at some of my topics on this forum for more guidance. And you might want to read the quotes in my signature section for more thoughts on waiting for inspiration.

Keep writing,

Don

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Lewys93

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Fantastic! These seem to be all excellent ideas that I never would have thought of.

And for the person who posted above me, I'm 15, and not very outgoing, so I don't really have many experiences to write from.

Although, I suppose I could write about all the things that may lie ahead.

I'd like to thank everybody here for putting so much effort in to help beginners such as myself, this is easily the nicest forum I've posted in.

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TaoMannaDon

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And for the person who posted above me, I'm 15, and not very outgoing, so I don't really have many experiences to write from.

Although, I suppose I could write about all the things that may lie ahead.

I was 15 when I started writing. I was not very outgoing either. I'm sure that was part of the reason I began writing. I just made stuff up by copying ideas from the songs on the radio. That was very satisfying. It was many years later when I realized how many song-worthy things I had already lived through by the age of 15. I mentioned a song I wrote about my childhood in my other post; another one of my favorite original songs is about a fishing trip with my father when I was much younger than you.

Teenage angst has been the driving force of many generations of music. We all go through similar issues at that age; not being very outgoing should be a help, not a hinderance, to your writing. Take some time to think about it. Plenty of things have happened to you or around you. Many things didn't happen the way you wanted or at all. A lot of stuff turned out much better than you expected. All this is fodder for songwriting.

The main thing is to get started and keep at it. Don't expect every song to be good. Do expect to get better. Learn from the experts (read some songwriting books) as you develop your skill; but don't wait for that knowldege from experts. Don't wait for inspiration. Don't wait because of doubt or anything else. Begin immediately.

Right now you are on the edge of joy. It's a joy that may follow you throughout your life. If you come to love songwriting, as so many people have, it will lighten life's burdens and give wings to your spirit.

Keep writing,

Don

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Retrosaurus Rex

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Unfortunatley, I have no friends who are interested in songwriting. If I did, I'd probably try collaborations with them to bring in new ideas that I would not have though of.

You need a better class of friends... ;)

Seriously tho... This is a pretty good place to come in contact with like-minded people. Put some stuff out there on the review boards and see what comments you get. Read other peoples stuff and try to give some honest, detailed, constructive criticism. This will really help you develop some objectivity about your own writing and learn to get your ideas across. You might even get inspired... :) You might further be able to develop collaborations with the people you meet here. It might happen that someone lives near you, but with technology that's available now distance isn't really an impediment to collaboration anyway. I know of at least one trans-atlantic collaboration that developed thru this site, so it's definitely possible. Keep writing, and don't lose your focus on what's most important to you. Good luck!

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roxhythe

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Good suggestions all. I recommend constantly keeping one's eyes and ears open. Life is just chock full of inspiration. If you're not noticing it where you're at, change location. Do something different, go somewhere new, listen to different stuff, yada yada. When you come back, things will probably look a little different.

I definitely study the work of songwriters whose stuff I admire, and try to figure out what it is they're doing that appeals to me. Then I try to *apply* it to my stuff. I guess I don't have to worry too much about being imitative, because anything I write is going to come out country whether I like it or not. Really shocked my teenaged daughter when I adapted an Avril Lavigne rhyming scheme to a bluegrass song. It did work, and I tend to use it a lot.

I read once (not here, I don't think) that the four elements in a song are GENRE, SUBJECT, STYLE, and POINT OF VIEW. It's fun to mix 'em up. What if you did (for instance) a country (GENRE) love song (SUBJECT) in the STYLE of The Ramones, from the POINT OF VIEW of the dog? Wouldn't *that* be interesting?

Have fun...

Joe

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