How do you get into ‘Songwriting Mode’?
By Don • Jun 21st, 2007 • Category: Songwriting Advice, Songwriting Articles
Like a beauty ritual before bed, some people have a few things they need to have in place before they sit down to write a song. What are yours?
Here’s mine:
I like to do a little meditation before I start – even if it is only for five minutes. Usually my songwriting is based on a song I started previously, or a concept for a song, so I will meditate on that particular song only and banish all other thoughts from my mind.
Side note: For a quickie primer on meditation without all the religious mumbo-jumbo, I recommend the book 8 Minute Meditation by Victor Davich.
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Anyways, after that I will work on the song (usually on acoustic guitar) until it’s as finished as I can get it in that session. I have my journal of random phrases in front of me and will use that for inspiration to plug in various phrases that might be somewhat related to the topic or story I am writing in my song.
The important part for me is the prep work of meditating and calming my mind and getting rid of the anxieties of the day and regular day-to-day issues that clutter my brain on a regular basis.
What is your “get into songwriting mode” ritual?
I bet most Blogging Muses readers would love to hear them!
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Don is the founder, writer and editor of BloggingMuses.com. He lives in Asheville, North Carolina, USA.
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I have a desk, that I like to try and clear off as much as possible. I really prefer to have my dedicated songwriting notebook and a really nice pen around. Diet Coke helps, or coffee before noon.
No food, it distracts.
Sometimes I like the “outside noises” coming in (city traffic and birds, in my case) but sometimes I like to close everything up for some true silence.
Then I just…mess around and sometimes things spew out and sometimes I will spend 30 minutes on “and” versus “or” — and I will admit sometimes choosing the right joining word is more satisfactory than getting a whole verse down. Only sometimes.
Thanks for the post!
Thanks for the comment Jana! Sounds like a good little ritual with enough variations to get things going. -dm
I clean. I’m generally keep a pretty cluttered house, and am comfortable in it. But when I want to get down to business writing or recording, I tidy up my studio, vacuum the rug, clean off the monitor and keyboard, take out the trash, and so on. It’s totally mundane and can take awhile but I come out the other side more focused and productive.
To get in the songwriting mood, I go for a walk (or drive) and see what rhythm develops in my head as I go. Then I’ll usually just start scatting or humming whatever comes naturally. If the content isn’t flowing, I’ll try changing the style, slowing it down or synchopating it a little. The hook of the song usually presents itself first, and I try to scratch it down somewhere. If I keep going back to it a few times, the rest of the song is usually ready to show up in the next day or two.