Sorry for being a little flippant earlier.

Lyrics are the most difficult part of songwriting for me, by far.

When I first started writing in high school, I used to keep a journal, and would often write a bunch of single lines that I thought sounded cool.

At some point, when I had the instrumental part of the song ready and recorded on a demo, I’d try to piece together a melody and some of the lyrics over the demo by trial-and-error. Not dissimilar to what others said they did.

Later on, I more commonly wrote songs with a complete set of lyrics written together, focusing on a single topic or feeling. Usually something that has happened to me or someone I know in real life. In general, I tend to like these lyrics a little better.

But it’s all relative. I’m super self-conscious about my lyrics, and crappy lyrics have probably doomed more than 90% of my attempts at writing songs.

Will read this thread looking for hints.

Something to be inspired by or model yourself after certainly helps.

My burst of creativity described earlier was initiated by watching a poetry performance and being like "oh you can do it like that? cool!".

twelvepoint wrote: Sat Jul 01, 2023 8:23 am Also, some people seem driven to write lyrics and are always writing. I’m not that kind of person, and have always felt a bit of imposter syndrome because I’m not some perpetual wordsmith. For me, it’s just really tiring to write lyrics… or more precisely, to get into a headspace where I can write.

That imposter syndrome isn't something you can erase more something we learn to manage. I can't be sure but if I had to guess I've written over 200 songs in my life. I would think at some point that productivity (forget quality, only an insane person feels certainty that their stuff is good) would establish some sense of confidence- like it's all evidence that it's a part of who I am and something I can just do when I want to. But there's always a sense unless I'm in the middle of writing something that I have nothing and I don't know how to do it. I suspect I might not get another one. That endless voice of doubt is just there, it keeps things exciting cause when you have a good moment you get to feel like you beat it for a day.

jfv wrote: Fri Jun 30, 2023 9:47 pmPoorly.

Me too, hence the thread.

losthighway wrote: Sat Jul 01, 2023 12:00 pm That imposter syndrome isn't something you can erase more something we learn to manage. I can't be sure but if I had to guess I've written over 200 songs in my life. I would think at some point that productivity (forget quality, only an insane person feels certainty that their stuff is good) would establish some sense of confidence- like it's all evidence that it's a part of who I am and something I can just do when I want to. But there's always a sense unless I'm in the middle of writing something that I have nothing and I don't know how to do it. I suspect I might not get another one. That endless voice of doubt is just there, it keeps things exciting cause when you have a good moment you get to feel like you beat it for a day.

Interesting, and kind of comforting to know all that. Sounds like when you're staring at a blank page is when it's hardest to feel confident, which I can relate to.

First comes melody and/or inspiration. I don't consider myself much of a poet but I can craft a melodic song. It's much easier for me to pull sounds from the ether than words from my brain, but I enjoy the challenge.

I miss being in an active band.