Must artists be unhappy to make great art?
Most songwriters I know, myself included, were inspired to write their first songs because of two factors:
1. They enjoyed learning their favorite songs, which gave them the tools to write their own; and
2. They were grappling with a difficult experience–like a breakup–and needed a way to process the event.
Hence, heartache, and a songwriter’s first songs emerge!
There is a belief that unhappiness creates great art, and I’m not going to dispute that. Rather, I’d like to point out that all human emotions can create great art.
The danger is if songwriters only rely on negative experiences to sit down to write. “I never write songs anymore now that I’m in a stable relationship,” say some songwriters.
This idea is only true if you let it be…The reason someone isn’t writing songs is because they aren’t writing songs. Simple as that.
It’s not the relationship ruining songwriting inspiration; rather any change to our schedules can disrupt the ebb and flow of inspiration, which is why making a schedule is important.
My wife, who is an incredibly diligent writer, has a whiteboard with lists of weekly and daily tasks that she follows. I’ve learned from watching her productivity that a schedule is the only way to combat distraction and procrastination, the true enemies to writing. (And fear.)
So you love birds out there feeling stuck by writer’s block, take action! Schedule in time with your craft like you do dinner with your significant other. Your muse will love you for it.
Thanks to the DEART class for sharing their drawing with us after Nat and I gave a lecture about writerly life.
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