I need some advice

[jchitty]

Hey, Ted and Arkjack, yeah....I agree, it's better to weed out your catalogue and pick the best 3....the problem is finding which 3 those are. It's gonna mean that I will have to get a lot of critiques like you do, AJ. And sometimes, that is a little overwhelming because the critiques can put you back to square one as you say......good luck to you Jack.....you have worked your tail off for a foward, and I hope you get one. Maybe you already have.BTW, Ted, I bought a copy of 'The Artist's Way.' I'm excited about reading it. I'm gonna sit down and curl up with it tonight. Well, yeah, I've written a lot of songs...whether they are good songs, well, that's a WHOLE 'nuther story.

[sgs4u]

I journaled 3 pages a day for about 4 years, after assimilating the Artist's Way too, Chits. Loved it. It really helped me clear my mind daily, and also kept me from wasting too much time writing/producing songs that sucked. (That's what I did needed, not what you do.) You'll never be sorry you got the book.

[jchitty]

Quote:I journaled 3 pages a day for about 4 years, after assimilating the Artist's Way too, Chits. Loved it. It really helped me clear my mind daily, and also kept me from wasting too much time writing/producing songs that sucked. (That's what I did needed, not what you do.) You'll never be sorry you got the book.Hey, thanks, Steve. Yet another recommendation for "The Artist's Way." I trust you folks on this....all of you have been writing a long time. Can't wait to crack it open tonight.

[hummingbird]

Quote:BTW, Ted, I bought a copy of 'The Artist's Way.' I'm excited about reading it. I'm gonna sit down and curl up with it tonight. Well, yeah, I've written a lot of songs...whether they are good songs, well, that's a WHOLE 'nuther story. Ah, good!! You will also need a notebook or journal. The Artist's Way is a workbook, and she gives you tasks to do. If you wanna share what's happening at all... PM or email me... my girlfriend and I did the AW together about 4 years ago now... helps to have someone else to talk to about it... took us about 3 months to do the 12 week course as sometimes we sat with a chapter for a couple of weeks... I resisted it sometimes, I grieved it sometimes, sometimes I found it joyful and uplifting. In the end, I was clearer about who I am and what I want... and I'd gotten deeper into songwriting... and I'd begun to paint.H

[jchitty]

Quote:Quote:BTW, Ted, I bought a copy of 'The Artist's Way.' I'm excited about reading it. I'm gonna sit down and curl up with it tonight. Well, yeah, I've written a lot of songs...whether they are good songs, well, that's a WHOLE 'nuther story. Ah, good!! You will also need a notebook or journal. The Artist's Way is a workbook, and she gives you tasks to do. If you wanna share what's happening at all... PM or email me... my girlfriend and I did the AW together about 4 years ago now... helps to have someone else to talk to about it... took us about 3 months to do the 12 week course as sometimes we sat with a chapter for a couple of weeks... I resisted it sometimes, I grieved it sometimes, sometimes I found it joyful and uplifting. In the end, I was clearer about who I am and what I want... and I'd gotten deeper into songwriting... and I'd begun to paint.HThanks, Vikki. I When I get the process started with the notebook, I'll let you know what develops. I have to admit I'm a little intimidated by this book, but maybe, that's a good thing.

[tedsingingfox]

FYI, Chits, I owned the book for nearly five years (and had read and reread it at least 3-4 times) before I finally decided to give the morning pages a try. As a matter of fact, I'd almost recommend reading it through once before jumping in with both feet.WELL WORTH IT. I honestly look forward to them every single day. There's NO question it helped to preserve my sanity these past 2.5 years.Enjoy...Ted

[squidlips]

absolutely. I've read it twice now and still haven't done the exercises. I should probably hurry and catch up with ya, chits!

[michaeldean]

Boy, I think if I were on a roll like that, I'd try to ride it as far as I could! Seems like it's got to slow down some time (knock on wood), and hey, technology just keeps getting better and cheaper...I, too, have very much enjoyed TAW (and sequels), though I was not particularly diligent about doing the morning pages. I got a lot out of just reading the book, doing some of the exercises, and doing the pages for a couple of months.I really can't relate to people who write prolifically. I think I've completed about a dozen songs in the last 15 years (really).I think, perhaps it's because I do most of my editing in my head before I even write anything - if it doesn't really work I don't bother to write it down. I don't think this method is superior to any other (on the contrary, in fact), but one advantage it does have is that I don't have to go through all that narrowing down my song list to find the one(s) to record! I've spent about a year rewriting my latest song (that's after spending several months writing it the first time). Sure, I write other tidbits from time to time, but I didn't really feel I could "move on" until it was complete. It's a frustrating way to work at times, but I guess it works for me - the song got forwarded.I guess my point is, we all have to do what works for us. Being concerned about having "too much" inspiration seems a bit like being worried about being "too joyful". It's a problem a lot of us would like to have...Then, again, as I write this it occurs to me that the attitude I expressed in the opening paragraph is largely based on the scarcity principle - there's only so much inspiration, so you have to get it while it's hot (so to speak) - the more I ponder it, the more I gravitate toward Squid's point of view, which seems to say that there's limitless inspiration out there, so why not take a short break and record a song or two?Well, the good news is, either way you can't really lose...

[hummingbird]

When I did FAWM this past February (write 14 songs in 28 days), I spent a lot of time producing demos of the first 3 or 4 songs... then I realized I didn't have the time to do that... so I was forced to get something down, and move on. It was a good exercise for me, pushed me to let go of what I'd just done and move on, trusting I could come back if I wished.It kinda reminds me of a book I've been (not) writing for several years. I sketched out a plot and wrote the beginning of the book... and then started writing from the last chapter back (best way to write a mystery). But every time I'd work on the manuscript, I'd get caught up in editing & rewriting that first chapter. I didn't get very far with the rest of it.My point being, creativity is about process and not product. If we concern ourselves with the product / end result too soon, we shut down our inspiration. The point of creating is to create. Once you've got it in some kind of a tangible form, you can come back anytime and work on molding into something.

[mixopenta]

I envy everyone that has this kind of productivity. I really wish ideas would keep popping into my head like this. I Spoke to another taxi member awhile ago that had the same kind of "problem", couldn't barely finish one song until another one was in the pipeline...I Consider making good music being a little like photography; you need at least 100 pictures to get a single good one, often more. So this is a valuable gift, - nurture it! I have 160 songs that made it to the PRO over a period of 30 years...compare that to 106 songs in two years Gotto get to work...