Songwriting Is a Muscle

Every committed songwriter shares the same quiet (or not-so-quiet) ambition: to write songs that last. Songs that move people. Songs that outlive us in some way.

But here’s the truth: songwriting isn’t magic.

It’s muscle.

And like any muscle, it gets stronger the more you use it. The more you stretch it, strain it, challenge it, and occasionally let it ache.

If you want to get stronger, you have to train.

Here’s how.

1. Map Out Time to Write

“Inspiration” is wonderful — but it’s also unreliable.

Even writing as an exercise can produce something beautiful. When you commit to regular creative time, you’re telling your brain, We do this now.

Set aside time to:

• Learn
• Create
• Explore
• Analyze

Book songwriting sessions with yourself the way you would a meeting. Schedule co-writes. Protect that time like it matters — because it does.

Consistency builds strength.

2. Inspiration Is Everywhere. Go Find It.

You have a superpower as a songwriter: everything is material.

Every bird warble.
Every rustling leaf.
Every engine rhythm at a stoplight.
Every overheard conversation in a coffee shop.

Collect it all.

Record voice memos. Save phrases. Capture rhythms. Hoard melodic fragments like treasure. These bits become starting points — the kind that rescue you when you sit down to write and think, I’ve got nothing.

If you move through the world with a songwriter’s lens, you’ll be amazed at how much material you gather in a single day.

I have thousands of ideas in my phone — phrases, titles, melodic scraps, rhythmic hooks — all backed up to the cloud. (Always back up your stuff. Trust me.)

And sometimes? I ignore all of it and start with a brand-new guitar lick that appears out of nowhere at the top of a session.

It doesn’t matter where inspiration comes from.

It only matters that you’re paying attention.

3. Tools, Tricks, and Creative Curveballs

Your creativity has no ceiling — but it does love a challenge.

Try new songwriting approaches. Break your own patterns. Use constraints. Write from unusual prompts. Change keys. Switch instruments. Flip the point of view.

There are incredible tools that can spark ideas:

• Rhyming dictionaries
• Thesauruses
• Online platforms like MasterWriter
• Creative systems like Oblique Strategies (created by Brian Eno and Peter Schmidt, and famously used by David Bowie)

Study how great songwriters think. Borrow techniques. Then bend them to your own style.

Muscles grow when they’re challenged.

So challenge yours.

 4. Rewrites and Critiques

Here’s the unglamorous part: rewriting.

Your first draft is rarely your best draft. Revision is where craft lives.

And sometimes you need less self-expression and more objectivity.

Find trusted listeners. Join critique groups. Work with mentors. Be brave enough to expose your work — and strong enough to hear feedback without letting your ego run the show.

Your goal isn’t to be right.

Your goal is to get better.

5. Build a Team (Training Partners Welcome)

Songwriting can be solitary — but it doesn’t have to be.

Join a songwriting circle. Start one. Co-write with people who push you. Collaborate with musicians who think differently than you do.

Co-writing, especially, is a masterclass in growth. You’ll learn new structures, new rhythms, new ways of thinking.

Iron sharpens iron.

So do songwriters.

6. Output: What Are Your Goals?

What are you training for?

Radio cuts? Sync placements? Personal artistic expression? A catalog? Live performance?

Your goals shape your development.

Set clear targets. Then reverse-engineer your growth:

• What skills do you need?
• What habits must you build?
• What weaknesses need strengthening?

Decide. Commit. Adjust. Repeat.

To Recap

1. Map out time to write.
2. Move through life as a songwriter.
3. Challenge yourself with tools and creative experiments.
4. Rewrite relentlessly and welcome critique.
5. Build community.
6. Set clear goals and train toward them.

Your songwriting muscle won’t grow by accident.

It grows because you show up.

Again and again.

Elana Harte is a member of the Sling Sisters and is a Canadian songwriter and recording artist whose musical career is rooted in storytelling, collaboration, and a deep sense of place

Website - elanaharte.com