The Power of Quantity
Art making is often thought of as “talent,” some universal magic has blessed the sacred few to write down our stories and sing our songs. The dominant theory will have you believe that songwriting or art making of any kind is simply a gift you are born with. But that is not true. Art making is a skill.
I believe this theory of divinely anointed talent translates to how many of us think about inspiration. Inspiration visits us in fleeting moments and must be captured before it flies away until it decides to miraculously visit us again. It is this exact theory which prevents many of us from truly succeeding. This theory makes it so that many of us write very few songs over the course of our lifetime. If this is how you think about art, I encourage you to cast off this notion.
Increasing the quantity of your output is what will lead to success. Inspiration is not something that chooses to visit us, it is something that we can foster. Let me explain how to do so.
I often enoucrage writers to write daily. Make writing a habit, a practice, and a way of betterment. You can write in journal for 10 minutes each night. You can brainstorm 10 titles in the morning that you put into your notes app. You can schedule sessions for 7 days a week. Whatever the specific task may be, the overarching mission is to write and be creative everyday. In this way, the quantity of what you create increases.
By increasing the quantity of your output, you will better learn the mechanics of songs, increase the size of your catalog, and hopefully iron out a few kinks. The greats that came before you tended to write prolifically - surely there must be more than a little benefit to such practices.
I think the best part about writing regularly and in great quantities is that you will end up with a greater number of songs. In doing so, you will increase the number of great songs that you have. Not be a total capitalist about this, but skill building in art is a numbers game. The harder you work to output songs the more likely you are to write something that you and others around you will love.
Stop waiting for inspiration to strike and instead make writing your number 1 habit.
