"the Creative Process" – Food For Thought

[MikeRobinson]

If there could possibly be any mis-conception in this world that wastes(!) an extraordinary amount of time among creative folks, it would be this:  that the process of listening to a song is at-all(!!) similar to creating one.

 

"A song pops into our head."  We grab a <<keyboard / guitar>> and try to capture it, but then the moment passes and we delete all the files and fuhgeddaboudit.  "A lyric pops into our head."  We write it down, then angrily scribble through it several times, then disgustedly throw the whole thing away.  What's wrong?

 

Well, actually, nothing at all.  Nothing but our expectations ... which are decidedly unrealistic.

 

The "profound disconnect" is that we're basing our expectations of future success upon our recollected memories of au fait accompli. That is to say, "upon our auditory recollections of 'released, therefore perfected' commercial songs."  Therefore, we're comparing our seminal ideas – which necessarily represent the beginnings of "the actual(!) creative process" – against "the highly-polished ends" of that same process (at the hands of consummate professionals).

 

Short Answerâ„¢ ... "you just can't do that."  

 

Therefore:  "you are irrevocably shooting yourself in the foot" ... and "selling yourself short in the marketplace" ... if you try.  

 

A much more pragmatic, and therefore much more practical, way to look at all of this, is simply "to give yourself the benefit of the doubt."  The actual reason why you can't manage to make all of the right decisions in-advance is that nobody else in all of musical history could ever do so, either.  Nothing and no-one will ever present anything to you that "this is 'the Right Answer.â„¢'"  The creative process actually consists of imagination, selection, and refinement, in no(!) particular order.

 

Imagination is literally the process of plucking something from nothing. However, at the time, you have utterly no idea how to "judge" any of it ... no matter how hard you try.  All of this must wait for selection among all of the ideas that you've so-far come up with.  (And, fair warning, you might have to "imagine" more things to fill-in some of the gaps!)  Yes, you'll feel just like a ping-pong ball in an Olympic match ... even as you find yourself migrating toward one (or more!) definite ideas "that seem to be migrating towards the top."

 

Uh, huh.  There's nothing wrong.  Even if there's more than one idea, at the moment, "fighting to be on top."

 

This, after all, is what "a blank page" is really all about.  "The 'right answer' is ... that there is no 'right answer.'"  The finished-song that you come up with, whatever it may turn out to be, will entirely be your ... decision.  Yes, decision.  And, it will not be "the one-and-only decision that you could have made!"  It will simply be the one that you finally, and for now, "approved."

 

So ... what should you do?  Most importantly, you should make it a point never to "discard" anything.  Stuff it under your bed, stuff it into a box, whatever you wish to do, just don't destroy it.  Keep every idea, even as you select which ideas to move forward.

 

Hence, refinement.  "Refinement" of lyrics is very different from "refinement" of a musical turn.  Nevertheless, both of them are "refinement," and this is especially what is customarily hidden from the Public's view.  There will never be "a lyric," nor will there ever be "a tune," nor "an orchestration of that tune," that will ever be proclaimed to be "the best."  No, at some definite point, you must "release the thing."  You must choose, from among many possibilities, what will be "the final tune" and "the final lyrics" to go with that tune.  You must choose, then you must  ... "let it go."

 

The song, even then, might not be "complete."  Orchestration, mixing, mastering, and so-forth might stand in the way of the final, penultimate expression of your musical vision. (All of these, too, are "creative decisions" much like the ones that you so-far have made.)

 

The bottom line, therefore, should be:  "purposeful uncertainty."  Yes, "there is no single 'right answer,' and that is precisely the point."  No matter how "obvious" or "inevitable" the end-result of the creative process might appear to be (as you are signing autographs for millions of adoring fans ...) the actual process of getting there is a system of choices, and the target that you're shooting for is:  a calculated risk.

 

You won't be handed "the right answer" to the accompaniment of beams of light from Heaven, strums from a celestial harp.  So, if you're secretly expecting http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RaBmWqQkKYE, fuhgeddaboudit.   Instead, you have a process ... but it is a process that works.  A song, or a lyric, can be anything that you decide it to be – and that you work for it to be.  But those decisions are not ... are never ... "ready-made."  (If they were, after all, then that means that they would be merely deterministic.  Which would be extremely boring, don't you think?)

 

Therefore, recognize the decision-making that is part and parcel of "the creative process."  Recognize it, embrace it, and above all, enjoy it.