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Originally Posted by Ballard
So I was sitting in chemistry today, busy not paying attention, and I came up with a verse. It might just be the coolest thing I've ever written. My problem is, I can't think of a single word to accompany it. I'm having the worst case of writer's block..
I was hoping someone might be able to point me in the right direction. I have so far..
And when that train pulls out of town
It's lost and nowhere to be found
It travels on down the beaten path
And it never looks back.
"And it never looks back" might be replaced with "And it never turns around."
Any ideas would be mucho appreciated.
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Ballard--
This is a great start...one thing about songwriting is that it's just plain not easy. Well, it seems easy for some people, but for the vast majority of us, it just plain is not!! Like lcjones says, 'writer's block' is just another way of being negative about accomplishing that which you
know you're capable of.
So, with that in mind, you might prepare yourself to learn more about the craft. Think about how you go about getting inspiration, for example. Learn mechanisms that writers use to get past stumbling blocks.
How I like to go about writing lyrics is usually by sitting down and deciding what it is that I'm writing about. Maybe I've just come up with an inspiration like a possible chorus section, like you just did. Or maybe it's an idea I want to write about. Whatever, what I like to do is to just sit and write anything that comes to mind about it. Pour out all my thoughts on the subject. I'll write out a couple of pages of what I'm thinking about. Some call this brainstorming.
If I've written a possible chorus section, like you have here, then I'll try and decide whether or not this idea I've written is better as a chorus or a verse--or maybe a bridge or pre-chorus????
Quote:
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Originally Posted by Ballard
And when that train pulls out of town
It's lost and nowhere to be found
It travels on down the beaten path
And it never looks back.
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This sounds like a possible chorus to me. Not only because it sounds like you're summarizing your thoughts by beginning with 'and', but because
if you wanted this as a chorus, your last line sounds like possible hook material. I think you should work with that line if you want that as your hook. Consider making it catchier. Maybe by being 'ethereal', (one of my favorite hook mechanisms! Probably because I'm on old '70's hippee), as in 'And always bleeds the color black', or being more descriptive about HOW it never looks back. Maybe, "And screams down that track". That's probably not the best suggestion for the line, but whatever it takes to draw in the listener so they hang on that line...
Another suggestion if this is a chorus is to repeat that last line, or add another one that describes it. If it's, 'And it never looks back', you might follow it up with something like, 'Cause it's always about the track'.
But maybe this is all or part of a verse. If you do the brainstorming exercise, you'll know...If it's a part of a verse, then maybe the sub-hook in the verse is something like what you have, 'It's lost and nowhere to be found'. But you could also make this sub-hook more descriptive.
It very well could be that this might also be the main hook of the song (and therefore possibly the title). You'll know it when you hear it.
Anyway, just some random thoughts. Have fun with it.
Steve