Writers block

[Cliffy1001]

Hey all

At the beginning of lockdown in the UK I finally started writing my own synth music which I've wanted to do for years but never had the time. I have to admit while I don't think I'm gonna become the next Depeche mode I've loved every minute of creating songs on my own from scratch and up until last week worked on stuff every day since from around April. Sometimes spending weeks on one section of a song it I got it just right.

I've managed to finish around 4-5 songs and about another 5 half finished to use with my band when we start rehearsing again.

At the start of last week I thought I'd take a couple of days off and since doing that I can't come up with anything I think is good. I'm worried those first few month were just beginners luck and now it'll not come back .

Has something similar happened to folk on here. How do you get some new exciting ideas and get back into the creative flow? I think part of my creativity those first month's was discovering and learning the software, but now, while not an expert by any stretch, I'm quite familiar with the software so i not as excited about that. Any tip to start getting excited about coming up with ideas?

I've been using reaper and been tempted to try Ableton live but I was reluctant to learn a new daw while just getting to grips with reaper. Maybe now's a good time to try switching? I do think it'll be more suited to my midi heavy production

Sorry for the long post and thanks for any help or tips

[jancivil]

Maybe relax and adjust expectations. If you literally only started in say March to write your own, four or five tracks done is doing well I think.

Don't want a big point for argument by saying so, people are individuals, but I would actually find the way Reaper looks a hindrance to mood, let alone all the configuration other hosts do not require. if your whole thing is reliant on synths in a DAW anyway.

I have ideas apart from the tech, and I can stand on my own shoulders as it were with experience and use past work as templates if it is going to start with specifics like 'this synth is a must'. Doing everything from a blank-ish slate is going to be a certain kind of challenge. Everyone has dry days, so take it one day at a time. Try doing a cover of something to get out of your head a bit, or other oblique strategies.

[Qkimat]

I sometimes take months between my good ideas. However, if I push myself to keep coming up with stuff, I eventually will. Treat creativity as if it were a muscle. Try to come with new ideas in your head, even if you're not around your workstation.

[Magic Russ]

As Jan said 4-5 songs since March is not bad at all.

I once had a cool grungy guitar riff that I couldn't do anything with. I tried playing the same riff through one of my soft synths, and it just fell into place as a synth pop song. Maybe you should befriend a songwriting guitar player and dive in each others' dumpsters. Maybe you should see if your bandmates have any ideas.

If you are worried about not having any good ideas, why not see what you can make out of your bad ideas?

Ideas are all around you. There used to be a guy preaching on a corner I would pass every day on my way to work. At the same job I had a coworker who would come up with all kinds of malapropisms (ie "Hard Day's Night"). Everything in the news that has affected you. Every lame excuse you've heard while dating. Every time you have been between two cars blasting different songs. Every movie you've seen where you think the ending should have been different.

Ever hear a song and think the singer was full of it? Write a song telling them exactly why they are full of it!

Misheard lyrics can be great song starters. I once wrote a song by transcribing Radiohead lyrics and keeping the lines I got wrong.

Covers are great, but try to go outside of your box. In fact, try to challenge yourself. Can you make a worthwhile synth cover of Black Sabbath, Lynyrd Skynrd, The Association, Ronnie Milsap, Sam and Dave, or The White Stripes? Maybe or maybe not, but you might come up with something interesting that you can take in another direction.

And if you feel too much stress to come up with good ideas, write a purposely bad song or a parody.

And don't forget, if you write something that sucks, you can always try to fix it later or strip the good parts for something else.

[thecontrolcentre]

My advice would be don't try to force yourself to be creative. If you're not coming up with ideas, then practising your chosen instrument or learning a new one may help. Last month, after almost a year of nothing I wrote six new tunes. Writers block is pretty common, so if you have 5 songs down already you're doing pretty well imho.

I've been using reaper and been tempted to try Ableton live but I was reluctant to learn a new daw while just getting to grips with reaper.

Give Live a try before it's too late