{"id":289,"date":"2011-01-08T01:35:09","date_gmt":"2011-01-08T01:35:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/billythekidonline.com\/site\/?p=289"},"modified":"2011-01-08T01:35:09","modified_gmt":"2011-01-08T01:35:09","slug":"where-do-you-find-inspiration-and-how-do-you-cure-writers-block","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/billypettinger.com\/billythekid\/2011\/01\/08\/where-do-you-find-inspiration-and-how-do-you-cure-writers-block\/","title":{"rendered":"Where Do You Find Inspiration and How Do You Cure Writer’s Block?"},"content":{"rendered":"

‘Hi Billy,<\/p>\n

what do you do when you are looking for inspiration? I like to write poetry\/ try to make songs, but I never know what to write about.<\/p>\n

Another question I have, is when you get writer’s block, how do you get rid of it?’<\/em><\/p>\n

For me, inspiration comes from all over the place, most of all when I least expect it. I’m inspired by people, places, current events, movies…you name it. One thing I have a hard time with though, is forcing inspiration.<\/p>\n

Creative people everywhere are constantly searching for a remedy to the illustrious “writer’s block”. I am part of this group! Personally, I like the Kevin Smith approach to Writer’s Block. When asked what he does when he can’t think of anything to write about, he replied:<\/p>\n

I don’t write.<\/p>\n

There you have it!<\/p>\n

Obviously this isn’t an option for most creative people. But if you want to know my opinion, here it is: Don’t force inspiration. Of course there needs to be a divide between never producing anything at all, because you’re just waiting around for the perfect melody or concept to just “come to you”. And by no means am I encouraging you to be lazy. But let’s face it, most of the garbage that exists out there in the world exists because someone (or a group of people) sat down with either a deadline or the intention of creating something by the time they stood up. (A lot of this conversations, especially in Hollywood, begin with the phrase “let’s write a hit song!”) <\/p>\n

As I like to say, to each his or her own, however…<\/p>\n

Some of the most inspirational people I know are constantly creating. It’s almost a part of their fabric as much as breathing in and out it is. It is because they are so creative that they have a higher output and thus, a higher opportunity to create something great.<\/p>\n

Of this mindset are some of my favourite songwriters of all time: The Beatles.<\/p>\n

I heard a story about how they were such productive songwriters. When asked how they had such a broad and plentiful catalog of music, they answered that they would just sit in a room and not leave until they had created something (I’m paraphrasing of course). The intention of this was to think of each song as an exercise toward being a better songwriter. Much like one would practice a math equation or piece of music in order to become an expert, they would, in turn, practice the craft of songwriting.<\/p>\n

The great thing about thinking of each song as an exercise (rather than the be-all-end-all) is that it completely frees you from some of the limitations that may be, unbeknownst to you, stifling your creativity.<\/p>\n

One example is the concept of sitting down to write a song and thinking “Okay! This song is going to be my masterpiece!” <\/p>\n

The problem with this is that you will write the word “The” and immediately cross it out, exclaiming “A masterpiece most certainly would not start with the word ‘The’…!” <\/p>\n

This is the beginning of never finishing anything.<\/p>\n

So in short, don’t be too critical of yourself, think of each song as an exercise and if you’re not inspired, don’t write \ud83d\ude09<\/p>\n

How do you guys find your inspiration? Doesn’t have to be for songwriting, this can include anything creative from poetry to painting.<\/p>\n

?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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