If you’re getting into a new instrument, guitar in particular, then you might get the notion into your head of not just playing music, but writing some of your own. If you’re feeling that creative spark then, by all means, start to get into it. However, songwriting is more than just a creative endeavor, it’s also a practical one. Here, we’re going to look at some of the tips that can help you get over the practical hurdles of songwriting so you can let those notes fly.
Learn to read and write tabs
Given the history and tradition of guitars, a lot of people get into it without being able to read sheet music. A lot more guitarists fall into the rock tradition than the classical or jazz stylings. If that’s you, then you need to make sure that you can at least read tabs. After all, there has to be a way of keeping track of the notes that you’re playing. What’s more, you should be able to write tabs, too. There are plenty of guitar tab writing software options that you can find on the internet. See which one you’re able to get to grips with most easily and be sure to put pen to paper (or the digital equivalent) so you don’t lose the work you’ve created so far.Start learning a little theory
You might want to start getting hands-on and follow what sound, riffs, notes, or chords grab you by the heartstrings. There’s nothing wrong with doing that, either. However, as with all songwriters, there are going to be moments that you come up against the feeling of “what comes next?” and you struggle to find the answer. To that end, learning some basic music theory and song structure, which you can do as easily as watching some YouTube videos, can help you a lot. You can start to see what’s going on in the songs that you love and start to apply that to your own strokes of inspiration so that you come out with something more complete and better sounding.Write for more than just guitar
You might be just a guitarist at work, but when you hear the music in your head, do you only hear your own riffs and solos alone, or do you hear it as part of a more complete piece of work? For most people, it’s going to be the latter. Of course, working with a band might be the perfect solution for most, but you might not exactly have access to one. To that end, you should look at tech like a drummer pedal instead. With drummer pedals you can either create and play simple drum beats to play and write along to, or you can get more complex with the help of a DAW and create the whole drum backing for your guitar track.Find yourself a mentor
If you have trouble completing songs yourself, then there’s nothing wrong with that. We all have to start somewhere and the path to mastery (or something approximating it) looks different for a lot of people. One thing is for sure, however: having a mentor can definitely help you learn the ropes a lot sooner. You can either find someone that’s near you or you can go online, where you can make use of online courses, be they interact or pre-made, to help you get to grips with songwriting. A little guidance can go a long way and help you skip some of the most frustrating struggles of going it alone.Make sure that you’re recording and writing your ideas
One of the most important parts of your creative growth is that you’re able to go back over your ideas, try them and hear them, and to see what does and doesn’t work. To that end, make sure you have a decent recording setup. Even if it’s a very basic condenser mic, you want to be able to listen back to yourself later. When you’re in the middle of the practice session, you might be a little too close to be able to judge your work for real. As such, a little distance can go a long way in helping you get a much more objective idea of whether your works are working.If you have your creative juices all stirred up, then you really should find the outlet to let them flow. Songwriting can be a fantastically satisfying endeavor and the tips above can help make it much easier for you.
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