What are the three steps to getting your foot in the door of the music business? It's all about 

• Craft

• Network, and

• Technology.

These are the essential ingredients for transforming your musical aspirations into a tangible reality. Building trust and excitement for aspiring songwriters means giving them the tools to navigate this complex industry. That's why, in my books, Song Maps and The Organized Songwriter, I offer practical strategies to elevate your songwriting craft and approach your career with the mindset of a seasoned professional.

Let's break down these three crucial steps:

• Crafting a strong song: This is your foundation. Without a great song, the other steps won't matter. Learn to focus your ideas, get feedback, and create resonant lyrics.

• Building your network: Networking is about building relationships with other songwriters, publishers, and industry professionals. 

• Utilizing technology: From recording software to online platforms, technology is essential for hearing your music. 

Crafting a strong song: the foundation of success

A strong song should connect with listeners on an emotional level. Focus on creating a captivating title that draws people in and sets the stage with a compelling introduction. Consider incorporating destination writing techniques to create vivid imagery and emotional depth in your lyrics. It's essential to limit the number of ideas in your song, allowing them space to breathe and grow organically. Don't be afraid to seek critiques from trusted sources; their feedback can offer valuable insights for improvement. To find out more about writing new, fresh, and cool songs, click here.

Why it Works: A well-crafted song showcases your songwriting skills and gives you something valuable to share with your network and promote through technology.

Building your network: connecting with the industry

Building a solid network is crucial for getting your foot in the door. Start by attending industry events, joining songwriting organizations, and contacting other songwriters and publishers. Participate in online songwriting communities and forums, sharing your work and engaging with others. Building genuine relationships is vital. To find out more about how Ed Sheeran did this, click here.

Why it Works: Networking expands your reach and opens doors to opportunities you wouldn't have access to otherwise.

Utilizing technology

Technology plays a vital role in getting your music heard. Use recording software to create high-quality demos of your songs. Explore online platforms like YouTube, SoundCloud, Distrokid, and social media to share your music with a wider audience. Consider using paid advertising options to target specific demographics and increase your visibility.

Why it Works: Technology empowers you to showcase your music to a global audience, connect with fans, and build a following.

Conclusion

Breaking into the music business requires a combination of talent, hard work, and strategic planning. Focusing on crafting strong songs, building a solid network, and leveraging technology can significantly increase your chances of success. Remember that your unique perspective is invaluable.

Your unique perspective is invaluable

 Don't be afraid to experiment, learn from your experiences, and persevere in pursuing your musical goals. 

Questions

Here are a few questions for you to think about:

1. What steps can you take to strengthen your songwriting craft and create songs that resonate with listeners?

2. How can you expand your network and connect with key players in the music industry?

3. Are you effectively utilizing technology to promote your music and reach a wider audience?

Hope this helps! 

Simon. 

www.simonhawkins.com

If you find you’re putting in your best work and still not getting songs cut, here’s something that might help. In the advertising world, there’s a thing called the “sales funnel.” This is a representation of how individual sales go through several stages: 

• Awareness

• Interaction

• Interest 

• Action

Which finally means resulting in a sale. 

Well, just in this similar way, as songwriters, we have our very own version: The Song Funnel. All songwriters have different versions of what that might look like.

Example

In my Organized book, I set out the various creative and commercial processes songs go through from initial ideas through to recognitions (and ideally awards!): 

• Idea

• Writable

• Written (draft songs)

• Delivered (work tapes)

• Demos

• Cuts, and, finally 

• Recognition 

In reality, no matter how good your songs may be, there are always way more ideas than final songs that get recognized. I don’t know the percentage of recognition songs versus the number of ideas at the top of the Funnel, but it’s a very low percentage, even for a professional songwriter.

Here’s a picture of what the Song Funnel looks like:

What this Funnel looks like is different for each songwriter, depending on their own process of songwriting, their songwriting journey, and their own definition of success. However, the trick of the Song Funnel, like the sales funnel, is to process as many song ideas as far down the Funnel as possible. 

Aim: To process as many song ideas as possible

Many pro songwriters actively manage this process, whether they call it a funnel or not. 

Why do so many songs not get cut?

Looking at the Funnel and the Song Chain in Part 2 of my last book, it quickly becomes clear that most of us have very little control over what happens to our songs. For most of my time as a commercial songwriter, I’ve had very little control once a song was given to my publisher. Apart from doing everything I could to make it the best song possible, making use of my publisher’s feedback to make it even better, there was very little I could do to help get it cut. Some of my best songs still are just not cut, and there are a million reasons why:

• Supply and demand — it’s not that my songs are not great; it’s just they’re not needed right now

• Artists writing their own material

• Other writers pitching their songs more aggressively

• Geography, timing, and personalities 

• The number of publishers pitching other songs 

Whatever the reasons, a great song doesn’t get cut, the big question is: what does that mean for us as writers? The fact that your great songs don’t get cut doesn’t mean you’re not a great writer, and it doesn’t mean you should not be writing. Cuts are not the measure of your writing; that’s mostly the measure of other people involved in the financial value part of the Song Chain after you send your songs into the world. 

So what should you do if they are not cut? As I see it, there are three things you can do:

1. Write another great song, as soon as you can, maybe one closer at the edge of the table

2. Every now and again, review your catalog and enjoy the songs you’ve written

3. Think about whether there could be any new opportunities for your songs

Enjoying the journey is the best reason to write more songs. After all, the journey matters more than the destination.

Question

Here are a few questions for you – 

• What processes do you use with your song ideas?

• How many ideas do you write into finished songs? 

• What more can you do to help shift your song ideas through the Funnel?

• Are there opportunities of connecting with people who could also move your songs through the end of the Funnel?

Hope this helps!

Simon. 

www.simonhawkins.com

“Next”

Co-writing is one of the best experiences and most fun things I’ve had as a full-time songwriter. While I have been truly blessed with the people I write with, I have heard some horror stories.

One top Country writer told me one such story. She had been set up by her publisher to write with two iconic (male) Country writers on Music Row. It was a three-way co-write and she was the junior writer in the room. This is what we call “writing up.”

Once the introductions were over, one of the two veteran writer dudes looked at her and said,

“So what’s in your hook book, Darlin’?”

Nervously, she opened her file (she was a paper person) and offered these two demigods her best idea. Before she was able to finish explaining the idea, the other guy said,

“Next.”

So she turned the page in her hook book, and the same thing happened all over again, and again, and again.

“Next.”

This continued until she finally got to the end of her hook book, having offered some 40 great ideas, which were all met with the same disdain by her co-writers.

At this point, one of the two veterans picked a title out of thin air and started riffing with it on his guitar. Before they knew it, they were writing his idea.

It could be that they wrote the best idea in the room and got a song out of it. But it cost them a relationship because she would never write with them again. The way they went about it—an act of creative terrorism—also trashed my friend’s confidence.

My point is this:

The way we go about it matters.

Yes, just like my friend Kyle Matthews says, the relationships with our co-writers matter. Relationships, in reality, are greater than songs. But to guard against this happening, we need to turn up to our co-writes with the very best ideas we can muster. Ideally, writable ideas. But more than that on it’s own. It’s all about co-writing etiquette.

So, what should be done or not done in a co-write? Here are my top 20 dos and don’ts.

DO

1. DO bring writable ideas — Especially if you are writing up, you will be asked to come up with a great idea. Bring them with you!

2. DO be flexible — Whatever is going to make a better song, do what needs to be done. Many jobs need to be done in the writing room, so choose a job the others are less strong at doing. See more in The Organized Songwriter in Part Four, the chapter on Cowriting = Writing Together

3. DO tell them you’re a fan — Encouragement brings better-quality ideas when your co-writer knows they’re performing for a supportive audience. Make your co-writer feel good about their input.

4. DO say it, even if it sounds stupid — Co-writers love other writers who have the guts to say something odd or different, even if they sound dumb. It might point everyone on the way to a golden idea later.

5. DO get the basics right — Arrive early at the right place with the right people, great coffee, and a great writable idea. Boom. Take your diary, too, because you might pick a date for the next appointment to co-write.

6. DO keep it in the room — If your co-writer is talking confidential stuff, then keep it in the room. Most chit-chat is going to be confidential. 

7. DO keep going until it’s right — Keep working at the lyrics and the melody until it’s a great song, according to everyone. There’s no CEO in a co-write.

8. DO agree on shares upfront — Get the royalty share money thing out of the way right up front. Ideally, settle on equal equity shares. No one loves a word counter. And there are some out there even writing worship songs!

9. DO take a break — The best ideas often turn up at the most awkward moments (the loo). So make that moment happen. 

10. DO be fun — Good hangs are generally asked to write again next time.

DON’T

1. DON’T be negative — Don’t give negative comments about your co-writer’s idea, even if you think it sucks. Find a way to positively say the same thing. Words like "Maybe," "What about," and "Let’s pencil that in" are great phrases in a co-write!

2. DON’T bring problems into the room — Unless it’s a song about your problem, leave it outside the room. Chances are they have more significant problems they could bring to a co-write if that’s the game you want to play.

3. DON’T give up on your own craft — Whatever part of the craft your co-writer is doing, keep coming up with alternative ideas because they might be the best ideas for the song. The idea fruit can be picked from the tree by anyone in the room. 

4. DON’T talk theory, write — Sure, everyone likes talking about how beautiful the craft of songwriting is, but we’re actually here to write a great song…so can we, er, maybe, er, start?

5. DON’T steal others’ ideas — Your co-writers need to know that they can share their best ideas with you without you using them in your next co-write with someone else. Just be a good person.

6. DON’T finish until it’s finished — A co-write isn’t finished until the song is honestly finished. Sometimes it takes a lot longer than any wanted it to take. But it still needs to be finished.

7. DON’T leave the room without a work tape — It’s always a mistake to finish without capturing the song in a recording. Better ideas could come later, but you need to know what initial ideas were captured first. 

8. DON’T oversell your ideas — Sure, you need to pitch the idea enough for your co-writer to understand what it’s about, but if they’re not into your idea, just keep it for your next co-write. 

9. DON’T talk too much — You need to hear your co-writer’s thoughts, too. After all, they could be thinking better quality thoughts than yours!

10. DON’T let your nerves kill the song — Sure, everyone is nervous in the first three minutes, and that’s what the first three minutes are for. Keep your eye on the nerve-free 177 minutes, which will be all about writing a great song (I’ve been there and still regret it).

Questions

Here are some questions for you:

1. Do you have all your writable ideas handy to bring to your next co-write?

2. When you turn up for your co-write, are you in the place in your mind so you can best serve your co-writer? What does that look like for you?

3. Have you done all your homework? What does your co-writer love, want to write with you? What is their catalog? Where is their writing likely to go to?

4. Are you ready to say anything in the co-write, just to turn the song into the best it can be? Even if it might sound a bit dumb?

Hope this helps!

Simon

www.simonhawkins.com

In my last book, I talked about how I learned a lot from going to songwriter's conventions. I was really interested in getting feedback on my songs, and I was fortunate enough to have around 8-10 other students also getting feedback on their own work. 

Sure, these critiques could sometimes be tough sessions, but I always came away with gold from these sessions, not just from my own songs but from others' songs being critiqued. And it was at one of these sessions I heard about a second songwriter’s secret weapon. 

The Songwriter’s Secret Weapon II

I already knew songwriters had a Secret Weapon, one I mentioned earlier in my first book, which is about how people are deeply moved by LOVE IN THE FACE OF ADVERSITY – see here. However, during song critiques, I realized there was a Second Secret Weapon, one I found I’d use more and more. 

It was simply this:

When wanting to write a successful commercial song, artists are not looking for middle-of-the-road songs, but they are looking for songs that are:

At the edge of the table.

What does this mean? I was initially thinking they meant that if you take a circular table and point to the middle of the table, most songwriters are writing songs like that. And that’s true. But, if you point to the edge of the table, that's what artists are most looking for. Songs like this are more likely to be heard and cut than songs that are similar to all of the others but not so different that they fall off the table entirely.

Examples

Here are some examples – 

• Rock: Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” - where did that song come from? For me, that would have been well and truly off the edge of the table, but it's worked, clearly

• Pop: Jimmy Webb’s “MacArthur Park”, nicely sung for Jimmy, Richard Harris, and Donna Summer, but it’s pretty at the edge of the table, lyrically

• Pop: The Beatles’ “Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band”, another right at the edge lyrically 

Take, for example, the top 3 songs in the overall charts in the UK a little later, we had:

• Lil Nas X – Old Town Road (remix feat Billy Ray Cyrus), at the edge of two tables: Country and Hip-hop/Rap

• Billie Eilish – Bad Guy, Alternative, space, speech, and right at the edge of production, too (“Duh”)

• Lizzo – Juice, Pop, 1980 samples and speech and shouts, again production edge of the table 

In all of these, hugely successful songs have something either in the writing of the music or, often not, writing in the lyrics that make it away from the middle of the table of others who might be writing that kind of genre.

Question

Here are a few questions – 

• What successful songs in the genre you write are ‘edge of the table’ songs?

• What is about them that makes them so successful in your genre? 

• Is there anything you can do to make your own songs more edge of the table, further away from the middle of all other songs but not so far away that they go off the edge of the table?

• How about trying to write a new edge of the table song?

Hope this helps with your songwriting!

Simon. 

www.simonhawkins.com

Being an organized songwriter is giving your craft a wonderful gift: both parts of your brain:

• The right side to be creative, and

• The left side to be logically organized.

Many songwriters don’t actually like being organized. Even part of me doesn't want to feel I’m organizing myself sometimes. There are days I love having a lovely creative day off. However, doing creative work is still doing work. It's not actually a day off. It's a working day, which means doing something that needs organizing. And ignoring what needs to be organized stops me from doing my best work.

But here’s the good news: 

"Organized work is a lot less effort than unorganized work." 

Most times, organized work is incredibly productive. And, given the proper focus on the right tasks, it actually takes less time to do organized work. Even the task of organizing work sounds like it's going to take a lot of time in the first place, but it doesn't. Sometimes, deciding what to do with a raw idea can be done in less than five minutes, especially if done with all the emotional juice behind it. 

The difference between being organized and unorganized is the key for us creatives: adding significant creative value and taking the opportunity to do something positive with the idea. For example, 

• It's having the effort of thinking, "what can I do with this raw idea?". It's about taking a raw idea through a process that will enable the raw idea turn into something more developed—a writable idea—and then planning to write it into a finished song at some stage in the future. 

• Or it can be about taking an amazing writable idea and organizing it to use with a co-writer or planning when it will be written on our own. 

So, here's the process I work on now, something I wish I had figured out right at the beginning of my full-time life as a songwriter: Getting Songs Written. 

Getting Songs Written (GSW)

The difference between Getting Songs Written (GSW) is about putting our chaos in enough order to turn our songs into successful songs, from idea through to recognition, rather than random ideas into songs unused (in files or piles of paper – A below). It's about using the chaos in our lives, then pushing them in the right direction - the bull's eye we're trying to achieve, according to our own 'why' we write songs (B below).

It's the difference between writing songs using random chaos versus writing with organized, productive, and purposed crafting. This aim is to try and put some order into our creative lives. 

In my former corporate day job, I used David Allen's Getting Things Done (GTD) and several apps like OmniFocus to try to increase my productivity. However, as a creative person, some elements don't work for me in my songwriting. For example, 

• I never trash ideas because they are too valuable. 

• I'm always in control of my ideas because they are always there waiting for me to write into a song. 

So, to make a modified GTD for songwriting, I had to make a few changes. And over the years, here's my own modified version I use now: 

Here's what the process looks like:

• Step 1. Captured - all raw ideas 

• Step 2. Mapped - turn the best raw ideas into writable ideas

• Step 3. Organized - plan when to turn writable ideas into songs

• Step 4. Written - written writable ideas into songs

• Step 5. Sent - recording finished songs sent off

Here's what it looks like in a picture –

Having used this kind of approach, GSW, in managing my ideas and songs as a songwriter, I believe this is one of the main reasons I ended up getting signed at Brentwood Benson/Universal Music and more. 

To see more details of this see Part II of The Organized Songwriter.

Questions

Here are a few questions: 

• How do you feel about combining creativity and organization for songwriting? Does it work right now?

• What elements of the writing process could usefully be organized better for you?

• Could a GTD, a GSW, or another alternative approach work for you?

I hope this helps!

Simon

www.simonhawkins.com

This follows the last few blogs on sacred spaces, moments, and creative habits. Having put all of these in place, it’s still possible to miss something. Being an all-weather writer is possibly one of the most important things I found that changed my productivity as a full-time songwriter.

All-weather writing is a mindset, a choice. Most of my songwriting friends enjoy the privilege of writing most days every week. Like all of us, they also have good days and bad days. But they still write. This is the big difference between those who are productive and those who are not so productive: 

It’s simply the decision to be an all-weather writer. 

Here’s what I mean. Some songwriters have a certain routine: 

• A certain mug to drink from a certain brand of coffee

• The sun shining

• Sitting facing the right direction (wherever the sun is)

• A certain candle smelling a certain way

• No paperwork needing to be dealt with

• Done the dishes beforehand

Believe it or not, they are all REAL hurdles people have said they needed to fix before starting to write songs. And you may have your own hurdles. When I first started my new job as a songwriter, I had my own – for me, it was the weather. Yes, unless the weather was lovely, I was telling myself -

Surely I can’t write the best song without the sun shining today.

The trouble is hurdles are bad for your writing. Because they are UNREAL hurdles. So finally, when I decided to be an all-weather songwriter, I started doing my work like I did when I was doing a corporate job - out of my house at 6:30 am and writing when I got to my studio. Fixed.

I don’t think I’m on my own. When you decide to be an all-weather songwriter, everything changes. Here are a few other elements of this tool I found.

Six ideas 

Here are six ideas to be more productive as an all-weather songwriter

• Just write, write, write – When I sat down to write, I focused on one thing: writing. And just carried on writing. And then again, until I’ve finished a draft.

• Write what is exciting to write – When I write, I look through my Idea Bank to find what Writable Ideas I’m excited about. 9/10 would be one with a high ‘Cool’ score. That helps get from idea to draft much quicker than others. That's exciting! 

• Filter out no-hopers – In my last book, I talked about the idea of the spectrum of writability. Here’s the picture of what I mean. Focus on the top 60% of writable ideas and filter out the no-hopers. These are neutral titles, DNA titles, and titles that will always be going to work.

  

• We don’t write, we rewrite – I remember from my life as an equity analyst in investment banking, I started with a simple idea behind a product and worked on it until it was good enough to send out to clients. The approach was to keep working on it until it had become the best product it could be. That’s the same thing with songwriting: I’d write until I’ve written a great finished draft. But, especially when I’m writing on my own, I go back to it to make it as best it can be. I have song drafts number version #70 and more. It doesn’t always need to be that, but it just needs to be the best it can be. 

• Timing – This is another lesson from my corporate life, start work when the office is open (for me, it was 6:30 am) and finish when you’ve done your work (for me, 5:30 pm). So, did I just say I work 11 hours a day in my sacred space? Um, sometimes, yes! These days it’s rare, but I certainly used to when I started as a songwriter. I’m not saying everyone needs to do that. But I did. 

• Competencies – In my last book, I talk about strengthening your craft, network, and technology skills and abilities. This can be done in so many ways, from nourishing your creativity, enhancing your skills with your instrument, voice lessons, industry research, studio time looking at engineering, mastering, production, and more. These are all competencies that strengthen you as an all-weather writer.

I know it sounds like a lot of work. Some people would love to keep songwriting a hobby. And that’s fine. But, in reality, songwriting is hard work. Nice work, but still hard work. The big question is, what kind of songwriter do you want to be?

Questions

Here are a few more questions: 

• Do you have a sacred moment each week? Should it be the most productive time of your writing?

• Is songwriting a hobby or a serious craft, something you feel called to do? 

• How productive do you need to be as a songwriter, hobby, or seriously? 

• Are there any unreal hurdles you might be putting before being an all-weather writer? 

Hope this helps!

Simon

www.simonhawkins.com

There are three things here all going on at the same time:

1. Songwriting

2. Creativity, and 

3. Habits (something we often do)

There are a number of great websites about this, but few put them all together. A songwriter’s creative habit is something that many songwriters do as a matter of course. For me, each morning I wake up is best to do this, and others do it later in the day. Whatever time or approach, there are all creative habits to prepare for writing songs.

I still love the work by Twyla Tharp’s “The Creative Habit: Learn It and Use It for Life”. It’s been around for over 15 years in my life, but it’s still an important work that changed my approach to creativity and writing songs. But, as I started on my own creative journey, I picked up a few different alternatives that I found really helpful to try. Here are a few of them.

Ten ideas for songwriters to try

1. Object writing — This was the first time I did any kind of creative habit after reading Pat Pattison’s book, Writing Better Lyrics. The idea, basically, is to pick an arbitrary object — a real object — and then describe it with as much sensory detail as possible. This is set out in Chapter 1 of his book, and Pat’s methodology is awesome. I’d totally recommend it.

2. Destination writing — This is an incredibly helpful application of Pat’s methodology I found in Andrea Stolpe’s excellent book Popular Lyric Writing — 10 Steps to Effective Storytelling. Andrea is also another teacher of songwriting and talks about this in detail in Chapter 2 of her book. In short, it’s sense-bound free writing focusing on a place, a person, or a time instead of an object. Similarly, you need to write describing everything related to the senses of touch, taste, smell, sight, sound, and movement. 

3. Morning pages — This was something I found in Julia Cameron’s The Artist’s Way Workbook, which I found incredibly helpful. It was a time when I had just quit my corporate job but still felt too left-brained and not right-brained enough. Well, that book introduced me to a new way of looking at creativity, and morning pages are right at the heart of her work. Brilliant stuff. 

4. Journaling — This is something most of my co-writers do, and all of these habits can also be included. I use journaling to write about what’s been going on in my life, how I feel about it, and what I’m going to try to achieve in the day ahead. And sometimes include my creative to-do list. It’s a good way to get the day kick-started. It’s also a great way to put on paper what you feel about things going on in life, especially bad moments but also good moments as well. DayOne is a great app to do this on any Mac platform. And it’s secure. Very secure.

5. Freewriting — That is one of my favorite creative exercises because, well, there really are NO RULES except for one: to write more than 500 words or write for 15 minutes. I’d say that out of the 20 years I’ve been songwriting, 70% of my creative habit time has been spent on freewriting. I love the freedom of free writing. It’s the best way to exercise your writing muscle — just like you might do at a gym — especially if you combine some of these other methodologies. Squibler.io is a nice place to have fun. Obviously, if a cool idea for a song lyric or title arises, I capture these every time. They are gold.

6. Blogging — I love blogging. While I don’t use it as often as I used to, writing for an audience is a great habit to be in. Knowing that someone was likely to be looking at my blog (even if only one person was out there) is a great way to capture shareable ideas whenever they arrive. I find I write better for a blog than when free writing. Capturing blog ideas is very similar to capturing new song ideas. 

7. Freeplaying — This is my musical own musical habit and is the equivalent of freewriting. When I started really enjoying my time freewriting, I realized I was missing the opportunity to exercise my musical muscles. So I started a similar thing — just jumping on the piano each day for 15 minutes and playing anything. Often a great musical idea will just pop out. And, of course, I capture everything that’s worth keeping. 

8. Practicing — It may sound more like work but spending some time on your chosen instrument:

• It makes you a better musician

• It takes you to different places from a songwriting perspective, and 

• It opens up a new set of skills that you might actually use during writing, recording a work tape, or even demoing.

9. Pivoting — Part of being a songwriter is using experience in song lyrics but writing them in several different ways:

• Taking specifics into general ideas 

• Painting emotions into the music

• Turning personal into universal ideas

This is what song maps are all about, set out in my book, Song Mapping. This is a way of pivoting ideas in different ways - simply writing the story of the ideas being written in whichever Song Map you wish to use. And it’s fun as a creative habit, just to see where it goes. 

10. The Bible — What better place to start when writing songs? I love this because there are so many creative aspects that come together – honesty, history, poetry, and truth all at the same time. I love the idea of Psalming that my friend, Krissy Nordhoff, introduced me to in her lovely book ‘Writing Worship: How to craft heartfelt songs for the church’. It’s also golden stuff.

Questions

Here are a few questions: 

• What is your own favorite creative habit? 

• Have you tried any of the above techniques?

• Are there any other creative ideas that you’ve found? Let me know!

Hope this helps!

Simon

www.simonhawkins.com

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We all have busy lives and schedules. Even pro-songwriters have a million reasons to fill up their diaries full of un-writing hours. So how do songwriters find time to write?

My co-writing friend, Gina Boe, told me about her routine a few years ago. At one point, she had a full-time job, and four kids homeschooled, and she still found time each week (Thursday evenings) that was her sacred moment for writing songs. She's now a Dove award winner with #1 songs in various genres, and that would never have happened without keeping her sacred moments work. I still use her "sacred moment" idea to help with my own writing.

By the sacred moment, I mean a particular time set aside exclusively for songwriting. It doesn't have to be a great deal of time, but it should be regular and uninterrupted — social engagements, chores, phone calls, and anything else will have to wait. Moments are only sacred if you make them work. 

Ten ideas to make your sacred moments work

Here are ten ideas:

1. Save it in your calendar — It doesn't need to be Thursday evenings; it can be any time, any day, or days. I'm grateful for the time I have in my studio. And it's essential.

2. Guard that time jealously — It's important to have some kind of agreement, especially if you are working around your family. Without that, there will always be another thing you will be dragged into. Guard this time jealously. Not in a horrible way. But without guarding it, it's always easy to have a million other things going on. And that would take you away from your calling: songwriting.

3. Give your right brain some quality time — Being a songwriter doesn't mean you have to spend every second of your sacred moment finding rhymes or deciding song structures. Listening to different music, reading, taking in inspiring films — this can all help. But they have to be all about writing a song at the end.

4. Fill the well — Every now and then, it's helpful to take a break from your writing to see the world from different eyes. Sometimes you need to get out there to take in the world and fill your creative well. Take a walk along the beach, view some art (either at an art gallery or online), read poetry, and consume some theatre or literature. There's always a title there somewhere.

5. Set a time for creative habits— For me, first thing in the morning is best for creative pursuits, like writing. But there are a million other creative habits that could work for you – I mention more about these in part III of my book The Organized Songwriter.

6. Schedule everything else — There are a million other things that would stop me from writing songs (or anything) — work time, family time, chores, social time, you name it! So what do I do? I schedule all of those things, too, as best I can. While my family is incredibly supportive of me as a writer, there are a million other things that we could do as well, so blocking time with the family is the best way for the family to help you block time for writing.

7. Find alternative references — If you are writing commercial songs, it's important to know as much as you can about the genre you are writing. References are brilliant ways to find ideas for your genre, especially if they are great songs in alternative genres. Spending time on references is part of this special time.

8. Spend time with your own worship — If you are a worship writer, it's great to spend time worshiping on your own. Even if it's being quiet in your space, spending on your instrument or singing Psalms or other Scripture verses in your craft is a golden thing to do. My friend, Krissy Nordhoff here, talks about this more.

9. Spend special times in your Sacred Space — Having your own Sacred Space is amazing, but it can be incredibly frustrating if you are unable to spend quality time in your space. This is how to fix that.

10. First time = quality time — Whether you are an early riser or a late nighter, the best quality time is often the first work we do each day. For me, it's actually at Nashville co-write time: 10 am each morning. But either way, you feel at your best when you’re scheduling it for your craft. The craft deserves your best Sacred Moments. 

Questions

Here are a few questions for you: 

• When do you write your best songs, mornings? Evenings? After lunch?

• What time do you need to actually finish a draft song? 

• Are you spending enough time on your craft? Are you filling your creative well?

• Do you have sacred moments scheduled to make the most of your sacred space?

Hope this helps!

Simon

www.simonhawkins.com

When I first went to Nashville to co-write songs, I realized something important about where we wrote. Sure, we would often turn up at the publisher's office or maybe at a coffee shop to chat before we'd write. But, when we arrived at the special place in the publishers' writing rooms at Brentwood Benson/Universal Music, it made a huge difference to be writing in a cool place. Somehow, it made us feel like we wanted to focus on our creative work better. And the results were often better songs. Cool. 

So, now that many of us write and co-write from our own homes (especially through and after COVID), what would make our own spaces feel cool like they do in Nashville? This is what I call sacred space. Here are twenty ideas to create your own sacred space at home.

20 ideas to make your own sacred space

Different writers have different approaches to their work, but here's what I ended up having in my workspace:

1. A separate physical space — A separate room where my favorite stuff, my writing, my instruments, and my studio, can be kept. And secured.

2. A comfortable chair — Actually, I have four: 

1. A piano stool, which is probably the most expensive chair in my space, and, yes, it's for playing the piano!

2. An office chair for me to do work stuff at one of my two desks (see below), 

3. A very comfortable sitting chair where I read, meditate, listen to music, and research stuff on my iPad/iMac.

4. A fourth chair, which is an upright chair for my writing room, where I am right now. 

3. Cool lights — There are several lights here in my studio. The most important ones are my LED strips that tell me when to start and finish my work: at 8:30 a.m., my LEDs kick on to say "time to work," and I (normally) get straight to work. At 6 p.m., it turns itself off, and that's when I generally go find the family. 

4. Candles — Essential. I've got so many various aromas that my supply will last for a year or so. I'm back in Nashville because it always smells nice in the writing rooms at Brentwood Benson/Universal. (Plus, each October, it tells me when Christmas is coming.)

5. Art — I'm not really into buying expensive art, but I do have some art my daughter painted, and I still love it. 

6. Quiet — My studio is a lovely quiet place, which serves two different purposes. First, it's a vocal space with noise dampers, two doors, and a bass trap, which means I can make whatever noise I want to make. It's important the whole house doesn't hear everything! 

7. A dedicated writing area — My desk has space to write by hand as well as several computers and keyboards, and other instruments, including nice monitors and speakers. Important stuff.

8. Solitude — I need my studio to be a private space within my house so I can leave my workaround without fear that anyone will take a look, move anything, or tidy up. It's always there when I come back to it and a safe place to do the best work of my craft. 

9. Sacred stuff — This is important for me: if I'm writing worship songs, I want this place to feel like it's for worship, so I find a small cross and candles to make it feel even more sacred than it did before.

10. A place to play — I need a space to explore and throw around ideas, no matter how crazy, before I can hone them into something credible and finished.

11. Favorite instruments — I keep all my favorite guitars, keyboards, mandolin, and plugins close at hand. While I have a lovely Yamaha C5 Grand Piano, for some reason, the most productive keyboard is my old beaten-up Studiologic TMK88 midi controller that I bought second-hand in Nashville.

12. A right-brained, creative space — This is a dedicated part of my studio that is a fun place to be. This space wakes up the right side of my brain instantly. 

13. A left-brained, logical space — A separate area that serves as my office. It's where I do business stuff, like planning trips, doing courses online, making connections with other creatives using social media, working on my website, and anything to do with the left side of my brain. 

14. A trophy area — I have a wall and a shelf for trophies, certificates, awards, nominations, and even inspiring quotes by important people in my life. Not just musical things but other awards. The journey is sometimes better than the destination.

15. Good background for video calls — Given people uses video more than ever these days. It's important when I'm video co-writing to make it feel like my partner can be invited into my workspace, even if they're 4,000 miles away. 

16. Inspirational reading — From time to time, I find having something I can hold in my hands to be much more inspirational than reading on my Kindle. On my bookshelf, I find it especially useful to keep notes from courses and workbooks. My favorite book is Sammy Cahn's Rhyming Dictionary, which is something my late father gave me a long time ago.

17. Natural light and air — I find both of these elements extremely inspiring when it comes to writing time. Since I live by the sea, as soon as the weather gets warmer, I always open the door to get the sea air to fill my space! Natural light is also important, especially in the spring and summer. 

18. Rugs — Here in the UK, winter can be a time when I just close everything up and live in candlelight in my space. I always have a few lovely rugs close to my writing chair, one I can pull over myself when it's a little cool.

19. A cupboard for everything else — I confess I've acquired quite a lot of gear for my studio, especially as technology has moved things forward over time. If I'm not using them, I still love keeping some items somewhere, so having a cupboard for everything unused is important to keep this space as minimal as possible. 

20. Clock — My parents gave me a lovely little carriage clock that is now tick-tocking on the shelf of my own writing room. This just makes me feel at home in this Nashville-like sacred space. And tells me when I actually need to spend time with the family too!

Questions

Here are a few questions: 

• Where do you write your best work as a songwriter?

• Have you anything else you need to support your work?

• Are you feeling good about the space you write songs in? 

• Is it a sacred space for you?

Hope this helps!

Simon

www.simonhawkins.com

In my latest book, The Organized Songwriter, I suggested that it’s sometimes cool to have two parts of your physical space: 

• A left-brained logical space (my office), and

• A right-brained creative space (my studio)

And this worked well for me for a long time. 

However, I’d been thinking more and more that I need an additional right-brained creative space exclusive for writing lyrics and books. In reality, I had been spending more time at home than ever, especially during the last 18 months of this COVID pandemic. And being in an office has not been so great for writing creatively.

Nashville inspired

Whenever I’ve been to Nashville, there have been super-cool areas at publishers and studios for co-writers to write. Not just spaces to meet, but dedicated spaces that writers want to write in, with comfortable chairs, lovely carpeting, natural daylight, air-conditioning (sometimes), etc. Arriving in a Nashville writing room has always made me want to write more than ever. So, a few months ago, I thought, let’s do something about this.

I made my own writing room 

It took a while for me to figure out what this space should look like, given it is just for me, not for co-writers (at least not for right now). As time went on, I realized that a new space might help me be more productive. 

What I was looking for

Here’s what I think I needed:

1. A ‘booth’ feel, so I have no other distractions (my old studio cupboard, everything thrown out or stored somewhere else)

2. A wooden desk (IKEA’s NORBO wall-mounted drop-leaf table, birch would be great)

3. A good computer (Mac mini, wall-mounted, everything out of the way)

4. A good monitor (Apple cinema screen)

5. A Bluetooth keyboard (Logitech solar keyboard)

6. Nice lights (LED backlight USB lighting, smart light bulb, WiFi smart LED dimmable)

7. Great music (stereo Apple HomePods are fine)

8. Candles (IKEA, Sainsbury’s)

9. Comfortable chair (IKEA HENRIKSDAL with cover)

10. A shelf for plants, clock, books, pictures etc. (IKEA LACK)

The Result

Here’s what it looks like right now:

The reality is: this is a cupboard. It also used to be a loo! But, having spent a few months with my new writing room to work in, it’s given me a space to work without any distractions. No pianos. No guitars. No DAW. No mics or plugins. Just me, a basic computer, fresh air, and daylight. And that’s been incredibly helpful so far.

Question

Not everyone needs a writing room. See Gina Boe’s brilliant take on this ‘Face The Window’. But, wherever it is, where do you write your best work, music, and lyrics? I would love to know.

– SJLH

www.simonhawkins.com

Here’s a true story

When I left my corporate day job to be a full-time songwriter, I knew I needed to have a goal. Not a normal thing for songwriters, maybe, but I knew how to write a business plan, so I thought I ought to do that for this new career. I gave myself five years from leaving my day job as a high-flying investment banker to achieve my dream. If a major music publisher hadn’t signed me by then, I would go back to my old post again, if they’d have me. 

After a lot of work (with the help of Berklee Music et al.) I was signed by a Nashville publisher, Brentwood Benson, part of Sony Music (now part of Universal Music). I had achieved my goal! I was thrilled to be working in my dream field, and I got plenty of congratulations from my former day job colleagues. 

But there’s more to this story.

A call

Just after I was signed, I got a call from someone from my former corporate day job. This colleague had a friend of a friend (actually a friend of his daughter at school) who was trying to accomplish the same thing, but he was a lot younger than I was. Since I’d had done a similar thing and made it work, he wondered if I’d listen to a CD of his songs and give my honest feedback. Of course, I agreed right away — on my journey, I’d been given a lot of help from people along the way (for which I’m still hugely grateful), so I was only too happy to do the same.

A few days later, sure enough, I received a CD and a letter from the father of this young songwriter, asking for whatever help I could give. As promised, I gave it a listen. 

This was his first CD, one that he’d recorded at the house of a friend who was keen to help, just like I would have done. The songs were… well, OK. They were never going to make it in the charts, but there were a few pointers I gave to help him on his way. He was still in his mid-teens and so still under pressure to do well in his exams at school. Plus, he didn’t have exactly the kind of look the charts would have been looking for: he was a young, chubby boy with messy ginger hair, wearing baggy jeans, a T-shirt, and a hoodie.

However, several things made him stand out from other musicians:

• He left school at the age of 16 to follow his songwriting work.

• He spent a lot of time gigging in London even though he didn’t have money to afford it. 

• He treated songwriting as his work, not a hobby.

• He realized he needed to be different from other artists.

• He spent as much time as he could to move his work forward. 

So, after I had given him whatever my suggestions were on his songs, his father kindly emailed me to say thank you for that. 

Now, can you guess the identity of this young up-and-comer?

Ed Sheeran.

Here’s my very own drawing!

Despite the success he ended up achieving, at the time, I knew that when I heard that first CD, it was not great writing. And I knew that there was a lot of work needed to move from writing OK songs to top-charting songs. But that’s just what he did: he worked, and worked, and worked. Not just once a week but pretty much every hour, every day he could. Not just his craft, but he worked his network and his technology, as well. 

And after more work than most people would even think about spending on songwriting, it paid off, big-time. 

As of October last year, Ed Sheeran was the 17th-highest-earning British musician, with a net worth of £160 million. From 2006 to 2019, he went from just OK to that kind of success.

By now, it should be clear that if you put enough time and energy into your songwriting work, it can turn into something special. So if you love your craft, like all things: never, ever give up on it.

Nurturing the spark

In his autobiography A Visual Journey, Ed said:

"I’m proof that people aren’t born with talent. If you listen to my early recordings, I can’t play the guitar and can’t really sing or write music very well either. It’s all come through practice; everything comes through practice. You start off with a little spark, and it’s whether or not you nurture that spark. You have to expand it and work on it." –Ed Sheeran

Is Ed’s success due to me? Probably not. Even though I love to think it would have helped him along his way, but that’s not why I write books anyway. I write books about how to write songs because anyone on their journey is on the same journey as I am. I’ve been helped so much by other people on this journey; if I can help in any way, then it’s a privilege to be able to do that. We are all nurturing our spark, whether they are a glimmer or a flame. 

So, how can we nurture that spark, to turn our ideas into finished, cut songs? That’s what The Organzied Songwriter is all about. And more.

Simon.

www.simonhawkins.com

What is success? Zig Ziglar famously said,

"Success occurs when opportunity meets preparation."

For songwriters, this rings especially true. In a world saturated with music, the ability to organize your creative process separates those who dream from those who achieve. It's about creating a system that allows you to harness inspiration, refine your craft, and capitalize on opportunities. 

I discuss this in my book, "The Organized Songwriter," which offers practical insights into how you can transform your songwriting journey through organization. 

Here are the key areas I talk about:

• Mindset: This is the foundation of a successful songwriting career. It's about cultivating a proactive, growth-oriented approach to your craft and embracing continuous learning.

• The Song Chain: This concept illustrates the journey of a song from its initial spark of inspiration to a finished, market-ready product. Understanding each stage of this chain is crucial for efficient songwriting.

• The Idea Bank: This is a practical system for capturing, developing, and managing your song ideas. It acts as a central repository, ensuring no inspiration goes to waste and facilitating a smooth songwriting workflow.

• Creative Space and Time: Creating a dedicated workspace and establishing a regular writing schedule are essential for maximizing productivity and fostering creativity.

• Tools of the Trade: Identifying and organizing the essential tools and resources for songwriting, including recording equipment, software, and reference materials, streamlines your creative process.

• Co-writing: Effective collaboration needs preparation, clear communication, and a shared understanding of goals. Learn how to optimize your co-writing sessions for maximum productivity and creative synergy.

• The Song Funnel: This visualizes the process of refining your song ideas, narrowing down from a large pool of initial concepts to a select few that are ready for development and pitching.

• Next Steps: Defining goals, identifying milestones, and establishing a plan for ongoing growth is crucial for sustaining momentum and achieving long-term success in your songwriting career.

The Organized Songwriter approach, as detailed in my book, offers a comprehensive framework for success in the music industry. It acknowledges that while inspiration is essential, it's only the starting point. By embracing organization, you empower yourself to transform fleeting ideas into well-crafted songs, build strong networks, and seize opportunities when they arise.

For a deeper understanding of these principles and practical tools for implementing them, check out the book here. 

Questions

Here are some questions to consider as you embark on your organized songwriting journey:

1. What aspects of your current songwriting process could benefit from greater organization?

2. How can you create a workspace and schedule that fosters creativity and productivity?

3. What are some ways you can leverage technology to streamline your songwriting workflow?

Hope this helps! 

Simon.

www.simonhawkins.com

Many years ago, when I finally left my corporate day job to become a full-time songwriter, I realized a truth about myself: 

The more I knew, the more I knew how much I didn’t know.

It was fun but, to be honest, a little scarier than I was expecting. 

It’s a little like when I first started driving. I remember as a child, I used to watch my father driving, and he made it look easy. Safe and secure. But when I started driving myself, it wasn’t quite as simple as I thought. 

Well, being a full-time songwriter was also way more difficult than I thought. So, just like I needed a course of driving lessons, I had to go back to school to write songs. Berklee College of Music.

The Onion

Sure, before I left my day job, there were many years I’d already enjoyed: the incredible journey of harmony, melody, bass, and rhythm. This was one of the most beautiful journeys ever. But for me, there was another journey I needed to embark on - lyrics. And becoming a full-time songwriter, I had to figure out how to write lyrics. This was the onion.

Here’s what happened:

• When I started on day 1 of my songwriting career, I thought I needed to learn the skills the size of an onion, one I thought I could hold in my hand. 

• Right now, as I look at the size of the world of songwriting, it’s the size of a giant onion I can’t even get my arms around. And I continue to learn more things every time I co-write with my wonderful co-writing friends. 

To give you a feel of what it looks like, in terms of the world of onions, day 1 of my journey with Song Maps looked like this. And it’s still growing now:

Even now, it’s humbling when I still realize how much I don’t know about my craft, but it’s lovely to still be on a journey. 

How can songwriting be like an onion?

Here’s what I’m thinking:

1. There are many layers to learn how to write songs. Just when you feel like you’ve found the top layer, there’s another, more significant layer out there. Each book I consume or course I finish, there is still yet another layer that I needed to understand.

2. Sometimes, when you get to the core of your writing, it can be a painful process to find out what you are writing about. Just like cutting up an onion.

3. For me, songwriting has given my life so much greater richness. Imagine how bland life would be without songs! Imagine how bland life would be like without onions!!

Question

Here are a few questions: Where are you on your journey? How big is your onion? Is it still a bigger onion than you thought?

Berklee Music Online courses are generally 12 weeks. Just sayin’.

Simon Hawkins 

www.simonhawkins.com