Last night was our monthly songwriting group which I co-coordinate. We had a guest last night, a local songwriter named Belle Plain. She spoke openly and honestly about her songwriting process, about the challenge of finding the right words, the crafting of the song and the time the whole process takes for her. She was also clear about how important each word is and about the fact that she must know the intention of the song before she can begin writing. We have had several other songwriters as guests over these last couple of years and I find it so interesting to hear about their process, what songwriting means to them and why they continue to pursue their craft.
All this to say that last night’s meeting reminded me about respecting my own process, taking the time that I need. Realizing that what I have to say may be very different then someone else but no less important. That I need to remember my own reasons for writing and sharing my songs. My songs come from both a very intimate place and a more superficial one, well I guess not very often a superficial one. It was also reassuring last night to hear another musician I respect talk about the meaning and reason for each song she shared with us. I know how important my own songs are to me and most have a story that is important to me that is associated with them.
I am hoping to be in the studio this spring and so the songwriting continues. I want to have the best songs possible for this new album.
May your hearts be full of joy!
Yours in music and all things creative,
Wanda G.
Wanda, thank you for sharing. This is very relatable for other kinds of writing, too. I’m thinking about my journey with writing about astrological trends in a blog format. I want the work to have value for the reader, and meet my creative needs.
I’m glad you found it helpful!