A question was brought up on a bardic group about writing process, and output. I mused over mine and decided to write my thoughts here.
“Question of the day, highly subjective: What do you expect of yourself in terms of output? Or, perhaps, what do you deliver? Do you try for a new piece a season? A month? A week? Someone once said, “I can write better than anyone who can write faster, and faster than anyone who can write better.” How long does it usually take for you to produce a piece you’re truly satisfied with?”
The majority of my work is an attempt to give a voice to some kind of emotional state. It could be inspired by my own emotions, or by another’s emotions. Sometimes it is just a flash.
So I don’t set a quantity goal for my pieces, I write them as they come.
I seldom write songs which tell a story, which is a different craft I think.
I am primarily a muse-channel writer. Songs tend to come nearly finished, completing themselves in a matter of minutes (seldom hours.) Poems are similar, if it’s something like a sonnet or free verse.
However, there are notable works which have taken Time but that’s been Time researching – the actual writing is like a cloudburst – I’ve seen the clouds gather and grow and darken and loom and when it hits, I write it down.
If a piece is taking time, I leave it. Really leave it. It’s not baked yet. I walk away. Sometimes I return to the idea and poke it with a toothpick, and if it’s ready, it will write itself.
But I also tend not to write “story” songs – my songs are more about a specific feeling, or a time
Proper period poetry styles (which I only do in English, as I know no other tongue) take more time – but hours though, rather than days.