In the spirit of Halloween, I figure now is a good time to warn you about a few of the ghouls who prey upon unsuspecting songwriters. Beware of…
VAMPIRES
There are people out there who will suck the life out of your dreams. Dwelling in (and on) the darkness, these predators never see the bright side or the silver living. Little by little, their biting comments slowly bleed you of your hope and optimism (“What makes you so special?” “Oh, the music biz is rigged- you’ll never make it.”).
They might look like your friends, but they are dead inside. Avoid these vampires- once their negative, pessimistic attitude sinks its teeth into you, you start to become one of them.
ZOMBIES
They are among us, and their number is legion. They shuffle off to their soul-sucking day jobs like a mindless herd. They never dream. They just respond to whatever happens to be in front of them. They stagger back home and sit mindlessly in front of a TV or computer screen for hours feasting upon whatever catches their eye (“lightsss… sooo… preeetttyy…)
It’s easy to turn into a zombie because being a zombie means doing the easy, numb, thoughtless thing. Spend too much of your time with the zombies and you’ll wake up one day to realize you’ve been sleepwalking through life- just like one of them.
WEREWOLVES
If you want songwriting success, you must avoid running with a pack of werewolves. These are folks who only “turn into” songwriters about once a month. The majority of the time, you’d never suspect they have that hidden side. They think they can just go about “normal life” for a few weeks, then suddenly unleash their inner songwriter for a night or two and somehow make a killing in the music business.
No, the music biz is not so easily tamed. You can’t just go into beast mode on rare occasions and create a career. You need to run with a pack that is ALWAYS hungry and ALWAYS hunting. Don’t be a werewolf. Be a REAL wolf.
What about you? What are some songwriting ghouls that you have encountered? I’d love to hear from you!
And if you’d like to hear more about these monsters, Johnny and I dive into this topic on the newest episode of The C.L.I.M.B. podcast. It’s available on iTunes and at TheClimbShow.com. Check it out!
Happy HOWLoween!
Brent
Brent Baxter is a hit songwriter with cuts by Alan Jackson, Randy Travis, Lady Antebellum, Joe Nichols, Gord Bamford, Ray Stevens, and more. He’s written a top 5 hit in the US and a #1 in Canada… so far.
Ah, ha, ha, ha, ha! Agreed and so true. Well said Brent! I have to watch out for writing in the ghostly past as well. I try to keep my radio dial and ear tuned into newer, brighter, less haunting stuff as much as possible. I’m a sucker for good ‘ole school George, Jennings, and Jones, but find that it’s a bit less scary out there if I’m trying to write for today’s market. Sure, I go get in my “dark place” now and then for three cords and the truth time, just for me. -Lol! But like you said, “It’s not all about me.” And we do wanna’ sell songs, right? By the way……the podcast is SUPER! You guys keep it up!
Thanks! “Ghosts of the past!” Love it!
This is great! Super analogies! Thanks for sharing Brent.
Great advise.Well I guess I could be part Zombie and part Werewolf.I do go to a job everyday and wish I could just play music for a living and I tend to write and then there’s a break until I find something or get inspired to write.I find when I don’t force it I write better songs because it’s more emotional.Need to find someone to co-write with.
Well, just cuz you have a day job doesn’t mean you’re a zombie. It’s when you STOP dreaming and STOP being passionate that you’re a zombie.