Over the years I've had the chance to meet a lot of artists, producers, songwriters, singers, and rappers, and talk with them about their daily habits — and how many songs they actually have in the pocket. What I found is that the ones who come up with the right lines, the soulful bars, or the catchy hooks are the ones with a daily writing habit.
They write at least three times a week, if not every day, for at least an hour.
They do more than that, of course, so here's a quick rundown of what they do to stay in writing shape and keep improving:
1. Every day they clear out a full hour just to sit down and write.
They keep a notebook where they write down their thoughts — everything that comes up in their brain.
It's very common, and very helpful, to sit down every day in the morning or at night (mornings tend to work better) and write three pages of things — anything. Gratitude, experiences, whatever — it clears the brain of all the thoughts you might be carrying.
2. After that, they'll take another hour — or make a full day of it — going through the notebook, reading back through everything they've written, and pulling out a couple of song topics, or just one. Then they start writing a few lines.
They sit down and work through those thoughts, even without a muse, and it helps.
If they don't have a muse or an idea, they go through their notebook, or find something they can write about in their notes app or a small notebook.
3. Every day for 15 minutes, they pick a subject and write about it. Then, for 10 more minutes, they write a few more lines — and if they can, a full song around that subject.
This exercise sharpens their writing skills and cuts down the time it takes to write a song, so they're able to write about anything in just a few minutes.
Not every line or every song is going to be a hit, but over time — and I'm talking months and years — you'll build your vocabulary with new, beautiful words, and be able to write a great song. Maybe even your next hit.
So have a great writing session with yourself. May you discover yourself, sharpen your writing skills and bars, and may you write that next summer hit — or that rainy-day lullaby.
Stay blessed and positive,
Shaynee
P.S. If you have more ideas on how to improve your writing, please share them with us in the comments.