Inspiration is the energy that powers the creation of a song. Songwriters, and other creative types, tend to rely on these precious moments of genius to fuel their craft. Unfortunately, waiting for these spurts of inspiration can be unreliable and inconsistent. It may even lead to writer’s block. So, when you feel like you are running on fumes, try a few of these tricks to restart your engine!

Set aside time. Penciling this into your schedule will eliminate all excuses about how you are too busy. Try writing first thing in the morning; this gets your brain in the mindset to write.
Do a quick write. Write down everything that you are thinking. Don’t try to structure it or pick pretty words. It doesn’t need to be good, bad, or ugly. Just write something! Later, you can sweep through to find the gems.
Write in paragraph form. Express exactly what you want to say in long sentences, then start to condense it into a song. Reword the phrases as many times as you need. Start out simple, reworking it until it is perfect.
Listen to other people’s music. Good music sparks an emotion or a memory and will trigger your creativity.
Step away. This may seem counter productive, but it’s not. You need to go out and live life in order to get some new material.
Write about someone else’s life. Focusing on someone else can help take a bit of the pressure off. An example of this is Michael Shoup’s, “A Song For You.” He asked listeners to submit stories about their lives and wrote about them. Not all of our lives are drama all the time. Thank God for that.

These tips are meant to set you up for success. In the end, you have to find what works for you. But, if you’re expecting to hone your craft and churn out hit songs, you need to put the work in. This is best said in the words of Pablo Picasso, “Inspiration does exist, but it has to find you working.”

-Lyndsey Iellimo