by Dan Drake

Created on: January 07, 2007   Last Updated: April 06, 2007

All writing, be it song writing, novel writing or technical jargon writing, all writing begins with one thing- Inspiration. Others may say that it begins with knowledge of the technique, or with a firm grasp of the basics of the craft but I believe that those things simply form the foundation of one's career in their individualized writing field. You can't write anything but meaningless babble if you don't know what each letter means and how they relate to each other. Sure you could get lucky and randomly make actual words, but without the understanding, you cant make the words fit together in a way that can move someone to want to read it. In the same way, you can only begin truly writing something meaningful and worth while after you have acquired a certain degree of knowledge; the amount of knowledge necessary varies from person to person.

Inspiration is the first drop of rain in the flood of creation. In the process of practicing, or playing for fun, you play a series of notes or chords that strike that part of your brain that says "ooh, I like that" and you begin to feel excitement blooming in your heart. You cant explain it, but something inside you knows without question that the string of notes that you just played is the most amazing thing you've ever heard and will make you a very very VERY rich person. That is, if you can hash out a whole song that fits around that basic "hook".

From there it becomes work. What chords will fit with this...what melody should I sing...what should the other instruments play...should there be a second guitar part...should I harmonize this part or that part....does this bridge fit with this song...Oh No!...what words am I going to sing...what is this song about..... what am I trying to say? All of these questions pop up and you have to sift through each idea to find what you know in your heart is the finished product. Sometimes the inspiration takes the form of just sitting at you instrument and playing and singing whatever is on your heart and its perfect the first time through.....THIS IS RARE! Most of the time serious work is involved.

Do not give up. Though songwriting is difficult...it is also rewarding and worth every second spent in the workroom. Inspiration has its own time schedule. It comes when it comes. Learn to work with it. And when the time comes and you've spent the time required and you've stared inspiration square in the face and written a few killer songs and people are all around you chanting your name, lights focused on you and your instrument, center stage with the butterflies that live in your stomach choosing that time to fly around and you hit the first few notes...and the people begin to boo and hiss and scream for you to stop...it is then that you remember that the goal of writing music is to have your audience fall in love with it. When they fail to remember...It's not easy to write music.

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