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Recently, I stumbled onto a YouTube video of Pat Pattison describing the online Lyric Writing: Tools And Strategies class he put together for Berklee College of Music. I have been trying to jumpstart my own creative process, especially where words are concerned, and was immediately captivated by Pat's description of the class. It didn't take much thought before I knew that I wanted to take the class and, as luck would have it, the new term was starting in only a few weeks.
I have now been taking the class for 6 weeks, and it's been an amazing and rewarding experience. The class focuses on tools you can use to get from a raw idea to a finished set of lyrics. We've learned a great deal about structure, rhyme schemes and how the overall assembly influences the character of your song. But, the key element for me, object writing, began on day 1 and has continued throughout the class. It's been the secret to getting me immersed quickly again and has served to funnel my creative juices rapidly into new songs.
Starting that first day and every day since then, we've been expected to do object writing. This was an entirely new process for me. Essentially you start with a word and then proceed to develop words, thoughts and phrases that are drawn from that word. We try to focus on all the senses, and the results can vary greatly in how directly they relate to the original word. Sometimes the writing immediately diverges from the original word, never to return. In other cases the writing stays locked solidly on the word.
We use a timer and vary our writing from 90 seconds, to 5 minutes and as long as 10 minutes. Each day of the week is a different word, and many days vary in duration. Berklee gives us the words via an online tool, so we don't know the word until we're sitting down doing the assignment. I typically do my object writing early in the morning, right after I wake up. I find that really helps to keep my brain from getting too intellectual and helps make sure there's a smooth creative flow.
After each object writing exercise, all students submit their work and we all have access to everyone's writings. One of the keys to the success of this class (and I consider it one of the best classes I've ever taken) is how interactive it is. All of the students are involved in reviewing each other's writing. It works in a fairly organic way, there are no rules or instructions about who should review what, but this group of students is great about keeping up with each other's writing and providing regular constructive feedback so that we all get lots of input.
There are websites that help you with your object writing routine; objectwriting.com, greatsongwriting.com are examples. However, if you have any opportunity to do your object writing with friends, family or peers, I highly recommend it. It's a really great experience to take turns picking seed words and then sitting together to do the object writing. When the timer runs out, you can all read each other's work. I think you'll be surprised at how sometimes everyone ends up with completely different results and other times there are common themes, even similar phrases shared in everyone's work. Doing your object writing together with others also serves as a great springboard for songwriting collaboration and is both fun and rewarding.
I've gone from struggling to generate just a few words to being genuinely confident that, even under time pressure, I can crank out ideas and song lyrics in both good quantity and self-satisfying quality. Although, the many techniques from this class have helped me hone my lyrics, I really have to give all the credit to object writing when it comes to getting the ideas flowing in the first place. If writing creatively, regularly and under pressure is a goal for you, I highly recommend that you try object writing for yourself. Establish a daily routine and stick to it, then look back at it after a few weeks and then again after a month or two. Let me know how that affects your creative process, and your satisfaction with the results. And then, if you still want more, check out Berklee's online course catalog.