I would consider my first songs as ditties.

Learning the piano meant spending a lot of time seated behind the keys cultivating musical skills as well as the disciplines of focus and tenacity. Eventually, there needed to be some relief and my idea of fun was to remain where I was and explore.

Many of my early ideas came from making mistakes. Misreading what appeared on the page but loving what I heard with my ears. 

That split moment would be heightened, I would feel it physically, like goosebumps, a heart flutter or an excited restlessness. 

I maintain that as a barometer for my work to this day and I always, always say 'Thank you'.

Whether it is finding that elusive lost chord to create an emotive progression or the succession of words that elegantly express and illustrate the idea, if I cannot see/feel it nobody will ever hear it. 

In my lifetime. 

I am also very particular about how I write.

These conditions are most probably not necessary to producing any work but I like certain things to be a certain way. It lets me know that we are in work mode. 

For example...

 

Notebooks. 

These need to be within a particular colour scheme (hot pink  to purple), hard backed, A5 and ideally lined. I think I prefer spiral bound but my last few book have been regular binds and I have coped. 

This has evolved from my very first notebooks that were reporters pads covered in stickers and also included the voice recorder on my iPhone. 

 

Pens.

I love pens. Pens are my friends. Without them there would be no means of me writing my ideas down. Yes, I am aware that we are in the digital age and fully embrace it but capturing you ideas with a good fluid pen cannot be surpassed by any technology. 

 

Pencil case. 

A necessity to me and not just a hangover from childhood. Where is it written that the use of a pencil case should cease once you leave full time education. I usually have a selection of pens, highlighters, pencils, USB drives, SD cards with me. Imagine fishing around a bag looking through all of that! 

Also education should never cease but I digress. 

 

Thesaurus. 

I love words and am highly aware that I know so few of them. It took me many years to buy a thesaurus because I felt that it was cheating and not coming directly from me. What foolishness! It it a tool for work. Nobody calls a window cleaner a cheat for using a ladder. 

There is still a lot of thought and discernment required and at times possibly more. Choice can overcomplicate a simple decision. I still rely on my feeling to know if my selection works. Sometimes basic expression is enough but everything has been said/sung so many times before. 

 

Rhyming dictionary. 

I am still searching for a good app version of this and would appreciate any tips. Before I bought my physical copy I used to write the alphabet down the margin and attempt to find a word for each letter. It often worked but the book I found is better as it  allows you go into syllable rhymes and the words you encounter along the way can be used later. 

 

Silence.

It used to be that I would need to physically remove myself from noisy environments to sit in silence and write. Now I carry the silence with me. I can be in my own creative space anywhere. 

 

Inspiration. 

That elusive good idea. Or is it really such a mystery?

Everything around us was once an idea so surely a thing will produce more of itself? For me there is always something to think about, meditate upon, so therefore I am perpertually inspired. I have never experieneced writers block jsut periods of time when I was not in 'that space',  trying to force work and then feeling guilt and frustration about it.

I now know to remain open to trust that what is for me will always find me and when the time is right to let the idea grow and to know when to let it go.

Learning not to overwork an idea in the quest for perfection is my newest challenge.

Until the next...

 

Love Yourself! 

Cx

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