Grab a writing implement to suit your writing taste and write the alphabet down the left hand side of the page. Leave some lines after each letter. Maybe two or three.
Now leave that for just a moment, stand up and close your eyes. Take three very small steps, so as not to bump anything or hurt yourself, and then open your eyes and fix your eyes on the first thing that your brain recognises and sees.
Hop, or jump back to your writing page (express yourself), and start writing about this thing you saw, beginning each line, description, story, poem, single word etc with each letter of the alphabet.
The key is: don’t think too much about it, don’t try to make each word and line you write the best thing thats ever been created. Just write it, as quickly as you can, Go Go Go!!!!
So,
When I just did it, I saw my stereo speakers, so:
A – All stood up straight, with it’s hair falling to the side, black and fuzzy with sound waiting inside.
B – Black!
C – Creeping, quietly, fusing electricity in to sound, I don’t totally understand it, but they do it some how.
D –
etc.
So, I’ve done two weird things there: the first one makes no sense, my speakers do not have hair. But, that’s just what came out, back off!
And somehow I kind of made them both rhyme. Stuff I write doesn’t always rhyme, but I do usually try to make it rhyme, and I try to pick words that you don’t expect. There are obvious rhymes in the world, and some that just creep up on you and surprise you with their similarities:
“in to sound” and “Some how”, doesn’t exactly rhyme, but the flow of that sentence feels right and kind of rounds off with a gentle kind of rhyme. And that’s my favourite kind.
Give it a go.
It feels more comfortable to sing to me.
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So, now you’ve done your exercise, re-read an review as usual. Underline your favourite bits.
Do any of them totally spark your heart and mind and make you want to pursue it further???
IF so, write them out again and follow your automatic writing exercises till your hand hurts and your brain is empty.
Again, underline some favourite bits and have a go at making a melody out of these musings.
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My favourite step of ANY of these song writing exercises is that when you’re finished and you’ve written stuff and sung stuff and you found it either worked or didn’t work, is to stop for a second and think about what the song is about. Are you writing a metaphor for a feeling or a thing or a place or a person. Is it all literal? Is it love or hate, happy or sad, nothing or everything?
Write your meaning down. It may be different tomorrow or in a year or 10, but this is today’s meaning.
Meaning makes it all worthwhile. Otherwise you’re just looking at a page of Cr-azy.
Give it an anchor, a heart, an intent.
Good luck!