Writers block...aargh

J

jimihey

New member
My first post, and probably something that's been asked millions of times.

Still, I've just finished producing a wee album and am in the middle of my own band's.
Loads of songs already written for the project.
However, recently all I can do is sit at the computer and watch DVD's each time i try and think of a tune, plonk on the piano. Nothing comes and anything that does, ends up sounding like the worst pap ever. I can't even be bothered to do some work on the stuff we already have. It's almost like i didn't write these songs, no longer like them and have no idea with what to do with them.
I've even taken to singing nonsense - great stuff about the street outside the studio..ya know.
Anybody got any tips about how to get the juices flowing again, I've got a great new piece of recording software and have set up my studio in a new way with loads of room and a far more ergonomic space to work from. Just when everythings optimal my head and heart take a holiday.
Any tips folks..or do i just sit waiting for the muse to strike..

All the best,
This is a great wee forum by the by

Iain
 
I've done this with other songwriters who have experienced the same thing. What you need is to write a song for someone else by request. So............I need a song about Scottish Sheep. See what you can do with that will ya. Yeah yeah....I know they're scared....yada yada!
Once the pressure of that is gone, your mind will open up to you once again. Mostly because it won't want to go through that experience again!


bd

ps...trust me on this one.
 
sometimes we need to step away for a second and do things in our lives that are away from songwriting, when i go through a block i try to get out.... hang with some friends, stimulate my life, do some meditating, new experiences, meet new people helps too and sharing experiences with people is also good.
then after i have refreshed my soul i can start writing again with new inspiration and determination.
good luck
B
 
I gotta say, nothin like an overnight stay in the local jailhouse to get those creative juices flowing. That's always step two in my program!!!!!!



bd :D :D
 
Thanks folks,

I feel better already, Scottish sheep, hanging out with them and the local jailhouse...there's the making of a great song right there.
Actually, just to know this happens to other people is comforting and somehow less frustrating.
Will take on advice - the local jailhouse bit will be easy..part of my day job involves forensic work ( a kind of male Dr Scarpetta..y'know...). Quite a schizphrenic existence in a sense.

Thanks so much for replies on this one, much appreciated.

Iain
 
Glad I could help brighten your outlook man, keep them cards and letters comin in!


bd


BTW, welcome to the board!
 
Sometimes, we spend a wee bit too much time in front of our computers, or behind our guitars.
The human body in the mean time is building up amounts of toxins in the system. Toxins that cause us to be sluggish and experiencing writers block.

When the muse doesn't repond to my pleas for help, I go for a long, fairly fast paced walk. Or I mow the acerage with a push mower instead of the riding mower. One other free tip is to increase your water intake.
What I'm trying to say, is if you don't get much physical activity, you might try doing some.
It'll get the blood moving, which will add more oxygen to your brain, and an oxygenated brain is a happy creative brain. The CO2 build up in your body will be quickly replaced. The water will flush the stuff that's been laying around in your cells for some time.

Ya gotta tend to the needs of the body, things besides sex and hunger. It's a machine too.
 
Hey Jimihey,

"Just when everythings optimal my head and heart take a holiday."

This is something that I have experienced a lot. It seems as though I am more suited to adversity and deadlines than having a clean slate with time to work. Very strange indeed.
 
definately a lot of good advice here!!!! but ultimate;ly you gotta find out what works for you and in time you will.
 
Don't know where I read this but it's an idea you can work with which might get ur juices flowing again:

write using adjectives instead of nouns and nouns instead of verbs - and then try to work out what it all means.
 
Umm...smoke some weed. If you have been doing that already try stopping.

I get this problem all the time...I just consider it time to mix or perfect a guitar track or something. One thing that really helps me is to write a comedic song. The last one I did is actually called writer's block and it's on my nowhere page (hit my www button at the bottom of this post). The funnier the better..you need to break all that serious monotony.
 
Cheesy stuff

My ideas kinda come a bit more from a painter's perspective than a musical one (I'm a learner guitarist who hasn't attempted much in the way of song writing at this time)...but I figure that if you're in a rut you need to try something a little different, and you never know what crap could come in useful :D Besides that, I'm in the mood for waffling on and you're a captive audience...heh.

Firstly, I always find that I struggle less with the whole block thing when I'm exercising regularly...sounds corny but sometimes ideas come when I'm slaving it out on the treadmill. Secondly, I keep a journal which basically consists of every snippet of stuff that may have creative potential during my lifespan. Even if you find a sentence or a quote you like, write it down - it might trigger something down the track. Go back and reread your old stuff and write a list of what you hate about it, maybe finding the things you want to refine/change could help and lead to something ENTIRELY different. You could challenge yourself by chopping up bits of paper with lyrics/quotes/poems on them and reforming them randomly.

Go far, far away to get a whole new perspective.

Listen to some weird music you've never heard before, as well as the stuff that inspired you to start doing this in the first place. (Maybe play it backwards to check for subliminal messages).

If all else fails, I vote for a ritual burning of all material on the front lawn...nothing cleanses the creative passages like having to start all over again :D

By the way, I'm not sure if anyone else finds this, but I always have the best ideas when I'm too bloody busy to do anything with them!
 
hmm

for me, when i'm kinda on a block

i kinda step out for awhile and just listen to ALOT of different songs in different genre..
and while i'm listening, it kind of gets me going again.
it really does help listening to different genre of songs, it can give you a new inspiration to what kind of song(s) you are going to write...

my two cents :)

in anyway, you will get your juice flowing again, do not despair my friend heh heh
 
The too busy thing...man oh man that's so true.
With me it's having the "ideas" studio in the house. Every time I get the killer riff, the kids knock on the door and begin to play up.
My wife (bless her...) also works under the allusion that music can be created in set time frames "oh you can go into the studio for an hour....."
Consequently,
Over the years there's been quite a few tracks with a small child way off to the left. Anybody ever want to know the eq frequency of a 11/2 yr olds cry...I'm your man.

Iain

ps:
Seriously though, the point about excercise has really got some merit methinks. It makes perfect sense.
As to writing satirical material. I think that's hugely difficult as a writer, particularly as I often feel the best work is...in a sense..timeless.
There's some really excellent advice here. I knew I was going to love this board, so...cool.
Thanks again guys.
 
Jimihey.
Being single for 25 years myself, I can only imagine how your plight can be frustrating.
1. The most important thing is family. I put mine on the back burner so I could tour North America and Europe for three years with some top named bands, with the visions of grander and fame for myself, my band and the $s for my family left down in Florida. Nothing worked out. I ended up alone and penniless.
Keep your family first. That's more important than any song. I learnt it the hard way.

2. When you have a few free moments, grab them. In the mean time, plan what your going to with your next session. Organize your thoughts so that when you sit back down in your studio, you know right then what your need to do. Planning what your wanting to do is very important, not as important as wife and kids, but it's right up there if you want success.

3. Carry a pad and pencil, or a mini-cassette with you, ALL THE TIME, so you can record that riff, even if it's mumbled or hummed. You'll have it for later. Any lyrics, parts of lyrics, a hook, a song title, write or record them.

Just a few I hope will aid you in your time sharing.
Good luck.

BTW, what is the frequency of an 11 month old, and do they maintain a constant key within a few cents or do they harmonize. I ask this, because I missed it all with my family.
 
badgas said:
Jimihey.
1. The most important thing is family. I put mine on the back burner so I could tour North America and Europe for three years with some top named bands, with the visions of grander and fame for myself, my band and the $s for my family left down in Florida. Nothing worked out. I ended up alone and penniless.
Keep your family first. That's more important than any song. I learnt it the hard way.
Click to expand...

Badgas,
Man, that sounds so much like what happened to me. I bet you have some killer tunes that came of it. That's exactly why I quit playing 17 years ago........but it's also a period of my life when I wrote some of my best music.


bd
 
bdbdbuck

I wish I'd of quit and stayed home. I was so close a few times to making it that my addiction to it ran my life. And that was back when getting in with a label was far easier than it is now.
But if I'd of quit and stayed home, the old woman said she'd of divorced me anyway. She had great expectations for my future, in sales, like selling cars, homes, ect. I'm not that easy to be around, especially if I'm doing something I hate. Either way, I guess I lost what I had, but it may of worked, who knows for sure.

I was so high on drugs all the time, bd, that I remember very little of those killer tunes. We would sit in hotel rooms after the shows and party and jam. Now all I play is my own material, and a few favorite tunes that I like from some great guys like Leon Redbone, Frakie Vallie, Lonnie Mack and others. I've mellowed out my tunes in the past few years.

Keep on writing, bd. Some of those songs could possibly use a bit of rework?, some new stuff is waiting for you to reach out and grab it. Don't dwell on the past, keep an eye on the future and set your sail appropriately.
 
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