5 Tips to Get Out of Songwriting Ruts

Everybody has their own way of writing songs. And unless you're Paul McCartney, there's no one unanimously good way to go about it. Sometimes hearing tips from other musicians can help you get out of ruts, though. I'll sling a few things I've learned and maybe they'll help you out.

1) Develop an idea to it's peak. Don't run away from a song simply because you just can't come up with something. Musicians who don't know theory often get stuck at this point because they don't understand what they're playing. Theory or not, don't give up on an idea the moment it goes south. Stay with it and develop a song to it's completion. The experience is invaluable.

2) Listen to other genres. And I don't mean sub genres of something you already listen to. I also don't mean other forms of popular American music. I'm talking world music, like Argentinian Tangos and French Waltzes. Really branch out, because these forms of music may contain exotic ideas and arrangements that you've never heard before. If you know theory, breaking down foreign songs can you give you tons of insight into how music works across the entire world. You'll be surprised at how similar all forms of music are, even if they sound completely different.

3) Listen to instrumental music. I find it shocking how often people refuse to ''listen to music without words''. In truth, instrumental music makes up more than 90% of the music that's ever been created. If you refuse to listen to it, you're robbing yourself of a large body of experience and material to learn from.

4) Write multiple songs at once. Sometimes, it's better to have multiple songs going at once. Just because you're stuck on one doesn't mean you'll be stuck on the other. This also makes it easier to pump out more material in a shorter amount of time, if that happens to be your goal.

5) Know when to walk away. Be subjective when you listen to your music. If it doesn't completely please you, chances are it won't blow anyone else away either. If you've developed a song, given it a few days, and still think it's mediocre... then drop it. Don't feel like you need to keep a song simply because you worked on it. It's hard to throw 40 plus hours of work down the drain, but sometimes you have to do it. Remember, just realizing what you don't want your songs to sound like is good information to be learned. Good luck!