Category Archives: Muse

These posts are meant to inspire.

Wordplay Thursday #24

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Here’s a writing prompt for you. It’s a simple fill-in-the-blank. You can use one word or several. Feel free to get as crazy, genre-appropriate, or as imaginative as you want. The point is to get the creative juices flowing. And it’s a good thing to dig deeper, so don’t stop at the first idea that hits you. Try coming up with at least five things.

“The road winds like _______.”

I’ll give you two examples to get you started:

“The road winds like a pretzel factory with the bends.”

“The road winds like a mystery novel.”

I’d love to hear what you come up with, so please share in the comments. Oh, and please keep your posts below an R-rating. It’s a family show, after all!

SHOUT OUT!

Thanks to Janet Goodman, Jerry Childers, Matt Martoccio, Jeroen, Nila Kay, Steven, Derek Nyberg, Terry Banks, Willa Thompson, and everyone else for their great additions to Wordplay Thursday #23 (read it here)! Great job!

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God Bless,

Brent

Wordplay Thursday #23

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Here’s a writing prompt for you. It’s a simple fill-in-the-blank. You can use one word or several. Feel free to get as crazy, genre-appropriate, or as imaginative as you want. The point is to get the creative juices flowing. And it’s a good thing to dig deeper, so don’t stop at the first idea that hits you. Try coming up with at least five things.

“The whiskey burned like _______.”

I’ll give you an example to get you started:

“The whiskey burned like a cold shoulder from an old flame.”

I’d love to hear what you come up with, so please share in the comments. Oh, and please keep your posts below an R-rating. It’s a family show, after all!

SHOUT OUT!

Thanks to Russell Wayne Pruitt, Andrew Clayton, Janet Goodman, Jerry Childers, KK, Matt Martoccio, Paul Alvin Harris, Jeroen, Nila Kay, and Cathy for their great additions to Wordplay Thursday #22 (read it here)! Great job!

FOLLOW AND SHARE THIS BLOG

Hey, ya’ll. If you like this blog, then make sure you don’t miss a single post. Subscribe by entering your email address in the “Follow Man vs. Row via E-mail” box either in the top righthand corner or down below. And I love it when you share this blog through facebook, Twitter, and wherever! Thanks!

God Bless,

Brent

Wordplay Thursday #22

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Here’s a writing prompt for you. It’s a simple fill-in-the-blank. You can use one word or several. Feel free to get as crazy, genre-appropriate, or as imaginative as you want. The point is to get the creative juices flowing. And it’s a good thing to dig deeper, so don’t stop at the first idea that hits you. Try coming up with at least five things.

“Without a map, they were as lost as _______.”

I’ll give you two examples to get you started:

“Without a map, they were as lost as an Easter egg on Independence Day.”

“Without a map, they were as lost as a child sitcom star’s chance at a normal life.”

I’d love to hear what you come up with, so please share in the comments. Oh, and please keep your posts below an R-rating. It’s a family show, after all!

SHOUT OUT!

Thanks to dju316, Roger Vines, Matt Martoccio, Janet Goodman, DPLblog, Willa Thompson, Samary, TopazThyme, MG, Karl Brandt, Paul Alvin Harris, and Julie Malewski for their great additions to Wordplay Thursday #21 (read it here)! Great job!

FOLLOW AND SHARE THIS BLOG

Hey, ya’ll. If you like this blog, then make sure you don’t miss a single post. Subscribe by entering your email address in the “Follow Man vs. Row via E-mail” box either in the top righthand corner or down below. And I love it when you share this blog through facebook, Twitter, and wherever! Thanks!

-Brent

Wordplay Thursday #21

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Here’s a writing prompt for you. It’s a simple fill-in-the-blank. You can use one word or several. Feel free to get as crazy, genre-appropriate, or as imaginative as you want. The point is to get the creative juices flowing. And it’s a good thing to dig deeper, so don’t stop at the first idea that hits you. Try coming up with at least five things.

“His cowboy boots are as beat-up as _______.”

I’ll give you an example to get you started:

“His cowboy boots are as beat-up as OJ Simpson’s reputation.”

I’d love to hear what you come up with, so please share in the comments. Oh, and please keep your posts below an R-rating. It’s a family show, after all!

SHOUT OUT!

Thanks for your great additions to Wordplay Thursday #20!  You can read everyone else’s contributions HERE! Great job!

FOLLOW AND SHARE THIS BLOG

Hey, ya’ll. If you like this blog, then make sure you don’t miss a single post. Subscribe by entering your email address in the “Follow Man vs. Row via E-mail” box either in the top righthand corner or down below. And I love it when you share this blog through facebook, Twitter, and wherever! Thanks!

-Brent

Going Nowhere

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Do you have cowriters that are going nowhere and taking you with them?  You can’t drag a cowriter or potential artist across the finish line.  If an artist or songwriter isn’t willing to do the hard things it takes to be successful, you can’t make them.  It’s frustrating to watch people with a ton of potential waste it, but that’s their choice to make- not yours.  It’s time to let go so you can have more time to partner with people as motivated and hard working as you are.

God Bless,

Brent

FOLLOW AND SHARE THIS BLOG

If you like this blog, don’t miss a single post!  Subscribe by putting your email in the “Follow Man vs. Row via E-mail” section on this page.  It’s either in the upper righthand corner or down below.   Also, please share this blog with anyone you think would benefit from it.  I appreciate it when you share it on Twitter, Facebook, and anywhere else.  Thanks!

Brent’s Twitter: @Razorbaxter

Brent Baxter Music:  http://www.brentbaxtermusic.com

Wordplay Thursday #20

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Here’s a writing prompt for you. It’s a simple fill-in-the-blank. You can use one word or several. Feel free to get as crazy, genre-appropriate, or as imaginative as you want. The point is to get the creative juices flowing. And it’s a good thing to dig deeper, so don’t stop at the first idea that hits you. Try coming up with at least five things.

“His kiss is as honest as _______.”

I’ll give you two examples to get you started:

“His kiss is as honest as a politician selling used cars.”

“His kiss is as honest as a deathbed confession.”

I’d love to hear what you come up with, so please share in the comments. Oh, and please keep your posts below an R-rating. It’s a family show, after all!

SHOUT OUT!

Thanks to Roger Vines, Samary, Andrew Clayton, Terry Beck, Wally Henderson, and Janet Goodman for their great additions to Wordplay Thursday #19 (read it here)! Great job!

FOLLOW AND SHARE THIS BLOG

Hey, ya’ll. If you like this blog, then make sure you don’t miss a single post. Subscribe by entering your email address in the “Follow Man vs. Row via E-mail” box either in the top righthand corner or down below. And I love it when you share this blog through facebook, Twitter, and wherever! Thanks!

-Brent

Ignorance Is Bliss… And Sometimes Helpful

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“My song is just as good as the stuff on the radio!”  Beginning songwriters everywhere have said it, and I was certainly no exception.  And, like beginning songwriters everywhere, I was WAY wrong.  Not only did I not know I was wrong, I had no idea just how wrong I was.  And I’m glad I didn’t know!  If I had realized just how far I had to go, I might’ve been so embarrassed by my bad songs and so intimidated by the journey ahead, that I might’ve put the pen down for good.

If you have that “I’m almost there!” mindset along with a strong work ethic and willingness to learn (these are hugely important), you might eventually get as good as you originally thought you were!

God Bless,

Brent

FOLLOW AND SHARE THIS BLOG

If you like this blog, don’t miss a single post!  Subscribe by putting your email in the “Follow Man vs. Row via E-mail” section on this page.  It’s either in the upper righthand corner or down below.   Also, please share this blog with anyone you think would benefit from it.  I appreciate it when you share it on Twitter, Facebook, and anywhere else.  Thanks!

Brent’s Twitter: @Razorbaxter

Brent Baxter Music:  http://www.brentbaxtermusic.com

Wordplay Thursday #19

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Here’s a Thanksgiving-themed writing prompt for you. It’s a simple fill-in-the-blank. You can use one word or several. Feel free to get as crazy, genre-appropriate, or as imaginative as you want. The point is to get the creative juices flowing. And it’s a good thing to dig deeper, so don’t stop at the first idea that hits you. Try coming up with at least five things.

“I’m as thankful as _______.”

I’ll give you two examples to get you started:

“I’m as thankful as a sinner saved by grace.”

“I’m as thankful as a turkey pardoned by the President.”

I’d love to hear what you come up with, so please share in the comments. Oh, and please keep your posts below an R-rating. It’s a family show, after all!

SHOUT OUT!

Thanks to everyone for their great additions to Wordplay Thursday #18 (read it here)! Great job!

FOLLOW AND SHARE THIS BLOG

Hey, ya’ll. If you like this blog, then make sure you don’t miss a single post. Subscribe by entering your email address in the “Follow Man vs. Row via E-mail” box either in the top righthand corner or down below. And I love it when you share this blog through facebook, Twitter, and wherever! Thanks!

-Brent

Wordplay Thursday #18

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Here’s a writing prompt for you.  It’s a simple fill-in-the-blank.  You can use one word or several.  Feel free to get as crazy, genre-appropriate, or as imaginative as you want.  The point is to get the creative juices flowing.  And it’s a good thing to dig deeper, so don’t stop at the first idea that hits you.  Try coming up with at least five things.

“She’s hotter than  _______.”

I’ll give you one example to get you started:

“She’s hotter than a habanero on fire.”

I’d love to hear what you come up with, so please share in the comments.  Oh, and please keep your posts below an R-rating.  It’s a family show, after all!

SHOUT OUT!

Thanks to Samary, Steve, Nila Kay, Roger Vines, Scott Wesley, Cathy, Andrew Clayton, Wally Henderson, Justin Heath, and Matt Martoccio for their great additions to Wordplay Thursday #17 (read it here)!  Great job!

FOLLOW AND SHARE THIS BLOG

Hey, ya’ll.  If you like this blog, then make sure you don’t miss a single post.  Subscribe by entering your email address in the “Follow Man vs. Row via E-mail” box either in the top righthand corner or down below.  And I love it when you share this blog through facebook, Twitter, and wherever!  Thanks!

-Brent

Oh, Canada!

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I got word yesterday that the song I wrote with Byron Hill and Gord Bamford and recorded by Gord just went #1 on the Canadian country chart, to be published later this week.  It’s both a great and a strange feeling.  “Great” because it’s a #1 song- my first!  “Strange” because “When Your Lips Are So Close” is a hit in another country, so I haven’t even heard it on the radio yet.  There’s an odd kind of unrealness to it- almost like Byron and Gord could just be pulling my leg.  But it IS real, and I’m thankful for it.

I’m sharing this because I want to publicly thank Byron who brought me in on the cowrite (and coproduced the album), Gord who already had a great thing going and didn’t have to write with me but did, and the Lord, who is the ultimate source of this blessing.  Thank you.

I’m also sharing this to remind myself and you that the musical world is bigger than just Nashville and Music Row.  There are opportunities around the world for songwriters with great songs.  It’s easy to only look at Nashville, but Nashville isn’t all there is.  Now, don’t get me wrong- I’m not turning away from Nashville by any means.  But I think it’s wise to be open to “Nashville-Plus.”  Nashville plus the rest of the world.  Good luck, ya’ll!

God Bless,

Brent

www.gordbamford.com

www.byronhillmusic.com

 

 

FOLLOW AND SHARE THIS BLOG

If you like this blog, don’t miss a single post!  Subscribe by putting your email in the “Follow Man vs. Row via E-mail” section on this page.  It’s either in the upper righthand corner or down below.   Also, please share this blog with anyone you think would benefit from it.  I appreciate it when you share it on Twitter, Facebook, and anywhere else.  Thanks!

Brent’s Twitter: @Razorbaxter

Brent Baxter Music:  http://www.brentbaxtermusic.com