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I just finished reading a book on songwriting called "Head, Heart and Hands" by my friend Clive Ridgeway. Clive is a songwriter, producer, and teacher in South Africa. He is the director of Cape Town School of Songwriting. I hope to conspire with him in the not-too-distant future. Clive and I see songwriting the same way. Here are the two biggies I learned from his book.
Dear Mary, I am extremely conscious of my own limitations. How do I gain confidence to write songs and perform them? Who encouraged you?
Dear Mary, Alanis Morissette recently commented that she found the songwriting process cathartic, but not healing. Your thoughts?
Dear Mary, How do I get beyond the editor/critic who says nobody wants to hear my truth?
Dear Mary, Please tell us about your guitar. At first I was thinking "she needs to get it fixed," but I reckon there's story there?
Dear Mary, My best mate sadly passed away this year. When grieving and feeling lost, how do I find that crucial emotional headspace to write a song? I used to have lots of resilience, but these days it seems to be slipping away.
I watched one of your streams recently and you mentioned that you don't want to sit down to write when you're happy. I know that sad songs bring hope in their own way (they're my favorite) but have you ever tried to intentionally write a hopeful song?
Dear Mary, Have you ever written songs about family members that reveal things they might rather keep quiet about? How do you deal with that?