Not for me.
The 10% inspiration, 90% perspiration rule has never worked for me. If anything I'd reverse those percentages around... I find that when I 'work' at a song, trying very hard to make it better, where I end up is a place where I need inspiration to improve it; inspiration to finish it; inspiration to enjoy it.
Many times I've spent hours working hard at my songs only to end up with something I can't stand the sound of. And how do you know when a song you don't like is finished? Is it when you REALLY hate it? It makes no sense.
This is how I work now: I only work on songs I am enjoying and feeling inspired by; I only do it for as long as I am enjoying it and feeling inspired by it; when I hit a creative brick wall I will try something else instead, safe in the knowledge that my song will still be there if I want to work on it again.
Of course there are moments where perseverance and effort is required to get a breakthrough in a song you want to finish. But if that is your predominate experience of writing you will be good at problem solving not song writing. Do a Sudoku instead.
Song writing should always be a delight before it is a discipline.
dg
4 comments:
I agree, it's nice to hear. I resent being forced into a songwriter's shaped box where my role is educational rather than inspirational. Being creative is nebulous at best. I would rather work on what is fuelling my personal 'fire' than spend hours writing a hymn-like deconstruction fo lamentations.
Not that I'd be any good at that anyway.
In an unrelated comment, you will appreciate this:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/tv-and-radio/mediamonkeyblog/2010/feb/02/lost-10-minutes-full-version
Thanks Matt...
Yeah I've seen that video... its funny... I like Walt.
Hey David,
Great posts as always, they usually get me thinking!! which is the point I guess.
I find it's 50/50 for me. I totally agree that we need to discern what songs of ours God may be breathing on, what gets us excited and then learn to shelve the rest for another day.
The rewrite and rerwrite again policy is useful but not all the time, sometimes you can over edit, or edit too soon. A song I wrote recently was done in about 2 hours, felt wonderfully natural, it's as good as another song which I'm pleased with which I wanted to work on a lot as the intricacies of it took a lot of crafting.
Saying all that there is no excuse for sloppy songwriting or lazy songwriting. Songwriters should learn the crafts of rhyme, sounds, language and theology and then take the best bits of all that and combine with their natural flair. Well thats what I reckon.
Great blogging David.
You at Caueway Coast this Sunday? You speaking?
Andy Y
Good thoughts Andy... I feel i need to work hard at improving as a writer - (rhymes, words, poetry, rhythm, melody, theology) rather than spending hours improving each individual song!
...and yeah I am at Causeway this weekend - hoping to bless some folks!
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