Songcraft: Eliminating Distractions from Our Writing

Let’s face it. As the demands and distractions of our modern, ultra-connected existence attempt to claim every minute of our day, it’s often hard to find the time to do what we, as songwriters, want/need to do the most: write.

Texts, email, phone, the web, etc. As important and as necessary as each may be, they can also sometimes act as mini-detours on the road to creative productivity. In efforts to keep our personal creative paths on the straight and narrow, here are some ideas on minimizing distraction:

• Apply three times daily. Instead of leaving your email app open all day on the laptop or reading friend’s tweets every 10 minutes from your phone, try reviewing your email, social nets, etc. only three times a day. Logging on just once in the a.m., once at noon and once before you call it a night should be enough to cover it all, freeing up a boatload of creative time once devoted to intermittent, interweb overindulgence.

• TTYL. If you’re suddenly inspired to write or you’ve set aside time to work on some new song ideas and a call or text comes through, fight the urge to answer on the spot. Emergencies aside, most casual communications can effectively be serviced with a delayed response. Your songs need you more than that bored friend who texts, “What sup?”

• One world is enough. If you’re writing, write. Eliminate all on the periphery that may draw you out of the creative realm. No need to have your TV blazing in the background or that magazine open on the table next to you.

As impractical as it may be, in this day and age, for any of us to drop off the grid for an extended amount of time, we can certainly takes steps toward minimizing some of the white noise. Why not try a few of the suggestions above and see if they help you get down to the business of making your own noise?

Mark Bacino is a singer/songwriter based in New York City. When not crafting his own melodic brand of retro-pop, Mark can be found producing fellow artists or composing for television/advertising via his Queens English Recording Co. Mark also is the founder/curator of intro.verse.chorus, a website dedicated to exploring the art of songwriting. Visit Mark on Facebook or follow him on Twitter.