Pine Music & Matisso

How to cure writer's block

Sitting in front of your desk and not knowing where to begin is a feeling most people in the creative space have experienced. This common phenomenon is something we call writer's block. In this blog you will learn how to overcome the 3 most common types of writers block.

Table of Contents:

1 - Type 1: Too many ideas

2 - Type 2: No ideas

3 - Type 3: The perfectionist

1 - Type 1: Too many ideas

Having an abundance of ideas might seem great at first. But it can make it hard for you to focus and get things done. The problem here is that you have so many projects and ideas you want to start, but you're basically too overwhelmed to pick one. Make sure you actually notice that you have too many plans to accomplish. After you did that, make sure you write down all of your ideas and list them by order of importance and excitement. Then, choose two ideas since some variety at work can be helpful. When you choose two, make sure you really forget about the other ones. Give those two projects 100% of your energy and you will start noticing that you can achieve them with ease! This applies to not only music production but also to all other goals you want to achieve.

2 - Type 2: No ideas

We've all been there. You sit in front of your computer or instrument, and you just don't know how to start. Your creativity feels like it's at rock bottom. To manage this problem of "no" ideas, we have to understand why your mind creates such a mindset. Often you might feel like your work is not good enough, not outstanding enough, or just boring overall. You might even be experiencing the Imposter Syndrome. As soon as such thoughts flow across your mind, you are lost. These thoughts create a vicious cycle and you start falling into a writer's block.

Now, you might wonder, how on earth can we get out of this cycle? It's going to take some work, but know that it's worth it and writer's block doesn't last forever.

Here are the things you could try:

Take some time off: taking time off helps you see things in a new way. It doesn't have to be long. You could go for a walk, do something fun, experience life or just do nothing at all. Inspiration comes out of boredom. When you're not working hard on that project or watching that movie, but you're just doing nothing, your mind will be free to receive the ideas. Sometimes it can be beneficial to take a few weeks off to really get a new perspective on your project and really get excited about it again. Don't let it be years though, the world needs your art!
Try something new: whether that's new genres, a new hobby or experience, trying new things will always broaden your view of life and spark creativity. Maybe you've always wanted to make a certain style but never got to it, now is a good time to do so!
Cover or remix an original song: if you're out of ideas for original tracks, maybe try covering or remixing a song that already exists. The idea, lyrics and chords are all already there. This gives you a huge step ahead, and if you really like the song you'll get inspiration for your own version right away. Later on you could release it and send it out for support, or turn it into an original!

How to cure writer's block as a producer.

3 - Type 3: The perfectionist

The third type, the perfectionist, is usually found later on in a project. When you want to finish a song, for example, you may find yourself working on a single chord stack for hours and hours. When you like the way it sounds and compare it to what you started with, you notice just a super tiny difference. And exactly this is the problem of the third type of writer's block. You work on a certain area for hours and hours and the effect that it has on the overall project, or the section itself, isn't really that noticeable. The fear that occurs here is not being good enough to show your work to other producers or labels. Always remember that you listened to this song a thousand times and the A&R won't even notice the details you're struggling with in your head all the time. However, don't take this the wrong way: it still pays off really well to put in the hours and hard work to get your mix as tight as possible before sending it over to an A&R. For more tips on mixing & mastering check out these blogs.