3 Simple and Practical Tips to Reignite Your Songwriting
Episode 3, The Magic of Songwriting with Francesca de Valence
“Inspiration is what happens when you start working,” says Neil Finn from Crowded House.
If you’ve been waiting for inspiration to strike, but you’re doing more waiting than writing, then let us guide you to reignite your songwriting practice with these 3 simple steps. Whether you’re just starting out on your songwriting journey, coming back to it after some time away, or even if you’re an experienced songwriter, these simple and practical tips are going to be something that you can use straight away to help you go from songwriting drought to flow!
Listen to the full episode of The Magic of Songwriting Podcast with Francesca de Valence for the whole story, or read on for the main points of this episode.
Here are the main points of this songwriting podcast episode:
How to find the space to write in a busy schedule
We all lead such busy lives that the idea of finding a quiet space to write a song can feel really tricky.
Many songwriters say that they are waiting for something to happen before they can write. For the kids to go back to school, when the house is clean, for the new year to start. But waiting for the ideal scenario often results in no songs.
In the podcast episode audio, we share some of the reasons people struggle to find time to write. But what if you could start writing despite your busy schedule? What if you could reignite your songwriting practice in 3 simple steps?
If you’re someone who feels out of practice with songwriting but know how important this is to your life and know a bit of encouragement and guidance will get you back on your path, then these simple tips are going to help you move forward.
Tip #1 to reignite your songwriting practice: Have a time limit, deadline and accountability for your songwriting practice
Without a deadline, songwriting will fall in the important-but-not-urgent list and will be overshadowed by more pressing matters. And will constantly be put off.
Without accountability, it will be so easy to stop when songwriting gets hard, get distracted and go and do something else. And you will likely have all the justifications and excuses for doing so.
Without a time limit, a song could take a year to write. And that’s really not going to help you build skill and confidence in your songwriting.
Want an example of how you could do this? Write one song a week in an hour and share it with a group of songwriters.
This is how we do time limit, deadline and accountability in I Heart Songwriting Club. In The Club, you’re with around 10 other songwriters in an online group for 10 weeks at a time. Each week The Club sends out a new songwriting theme that everyone writes to. You put aside your 1 hour that works for you in your week, write your song in response to that theme, make a rough recording, and then upload it to your private group for accountability.
This level of commitment to songwriting may be a completely different way to your norm, but the feedback we have from our members about this structure tells us it’s incredibly valuable to them.
One of our members wrote to us recently and said “I would NEVER have written 10 songs in 10 weeks previously. I would’ve been lucky to write 10 songs in a year. It is changing my life.” (Alana-Lee – Sydney, Australia)
Not sure what you can write of quality in 1 hour? Check this next tip out.
Tip #2 to reignite your songwriting practice: Be prepared to throw away your finished song
This tip is about unlinking from the ego attachment to what you write, and just writing for the sake of writing.
If you have expectations about the song you’re about to write, you will likely end up getting stuck and caught up in the expectation of it all. You’ll have a much less joyful experience and possibly even give up halfway through – cause the pressure is just too much. Watch our free masterclass where we unpack this tip in more detail.
So whilst you might be able to find 1 hour to write a song, if you can also let go of any expectations about what that song is going to be used for, you’ll be writing songs with a greater sense of ease and flow from the get-go.
Want help getting started? Check out this tip…
Tip #3 to reignite your songwriting practice: Honour the very first creative idea that comes to you
If you’re now letting go of the outcome of what the song will be (tip 2), then it stands to reason that the first creative idea that comes to mind will be just as good a starting place as any other.
Whatever your first idea is – whether that’s a chord progression, a lyric, a melody – work with it. Honour the first creative idea and keep going and finish it. Be prepared to throw it away, but finish it first. We will address the quality of songs in a future podcast episode, but right now you’re wanting to reignite your songwriting, so take the pressure off and just get writing again.
And that’s how simple it can be to reignite your connection with songwriting and bring some of that magical creative spark and energy back into your world. And given how amazing it feels to have created a finished new song, we feel we would all benefit from doing this a lot more often.
Episode Show Notes:
Get your creativity, confidence, and songwriting output flowing. Join The Club and receive the support and structure to write 10 songs in 10 weeks and get feedback from a private peer community. This is THE essential writing practice that has changed the careers and lives of 1000s of songwriters worldwide.
Just getting started on your songwriting journey and need more hands-on support? Establish a firm foundation and develop your musical and lyric skills with our Beginner Songwriting Courses. They are the perfect place to begin and cover everything you need to know to write your first songs. You’ll receive lessons from Francesca directly!
Don’t struggle to write your next album – write an album a year with ease! Watch our Free Songwriting Masterclass.
Want more for your songwriting but don’t know where to go from here? Take the I Heart Songwriting Club Quiz to discover your next steps and inspire your way to writing better songs.
Get songwriting insights from I Heart Songwriting Club:
Be inspired by Francesca on socials:
Podcast theme song: “Put One Foot In Front Of The Other One” music and lyrics by Francesca de Valence
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