I used to write over a hundred songs a year.
I had a system. Whenever I wasn't at university, I would try to sit down every day with my guitar and write. First, I'd write the date in my notebook. In my head, this meant I could no longer back out; I had signed a contract with myself and had to produce a new idea. Usually, I'd find something that I liked on the guitar, then find a vocal melody (with accompanying syllables) to go with it. It felt like both the words and music came together.
Doing this so often, I wrote some great songs. The best ones turned out as catchy indie numbers. Lots of capos. Lots of strumming. Lots of cowboy chords. I had learnt how to write a pop song: sit down and let it flow out onto a piece of paper. Got it.
Though I love some of the things I wrote in this way, I want to make different music now. I remember hearing Ezra Koenig on Tetragrammaton, talking about how all the musicians he loves constantly changed their processes. All the Beatles/Bowie/Radiohead changes in sound were also changes in the way they made music.
Now it's time for me to change my process...