Diving Into Inspiration

Author: Phöenix Lazare

To become the best songwriter you can be, you must first discover and explore your natural inspiration. This is one of the most important parts of our voices as artists; it is what fuels our creative fire. It is true that as songwriters we need to learn and continue to educate ourselves on tools to enhance the quality of our writing, but inspiration is the foundation that our work stands on. Nurture it; trust it. 

• So - what is inspiration? Here are a few dictionary definitions:

1. "A divine influence or action on a person believed to qualify him or her to receive and communicate sacred revelation."
2. "The process of being mentally stimulated to do or feel something, especially to do something creative."
3. "A sudden brilliant, creative, or timely idea."

I do not believe that inspiration can be forced, nor do I think you should ever force yourself to write if it’s only going to continue to frustrate you. This is often how songwriters fall out of love with the craft. That being said, I speak from experience when I say that there are ways to stimulate yourself creatively and encourage inspiration to be present with you in the moment. 

• So, I wanted to share some tricks I use to dive head first into my inspiration:

1. Be unafraid and accepting of the path that your inspiration takes you on. This is important, especially as you begin to develop your relationship with songwriting. Before you begin to learn the many techniques used to further your writing, allow yourself to freely create without any boundaries.
2. Listen to your favourite music, or more importantly, music that you wish to create. This motivates us to implement unfamiliar elements from songs into our own writing. We all have musical influences and need to allow ourselves to pull from them.
3. Do a creative write. Set a timer for 5 minutes and write anything and everything that comes to mind, focusing on the five senses. When you're done, underline your favourite parts and try writing a song section.
4. Pick up an instrument. Either an instrument you're fluent on and feel comfortable exploring, or one you’ve maybe never even touched. It will push you in a way you may have never experienced.
5. Be honest with yourself. This helps to encourage lyrical and musical content - allow your writing to reflect your emotions. How are you feeling? What are you thinking about the most? Start there.
6. Find a place where you feel comfortable. Whether it's sitting with a journal in nature or on your bed with a lit candle, we all have spaces in which we can create most freely.