what to do when inspiration dwindles?

[mattdubois]

But you can have lots of happy accidents that way.

I am a huge fan of happy accidents! and love when the happy accident ends up spawning a whole new direction and eventually a solid new addition to your portfolio

when inspiration dwindles for me I like to get completely away from producing and be creative in another medium but in a very relaxed and non-demanding way...I usually find this via my day job as a cook/chef as culinary arts is a passion but one not as intense as music....I used to find it with poetry and prose but words/language got to be too confusing and imprecise for expression as music/sound became my medium of choice....

reading a favorite poem or quote or personal mission statement or watching a certain movie/scene from a movie or hearing a song from a genre I never work in are usually dependable ways to get little spurts of determination and inspiration going....like tonight I heard that track by Eminem that was used in "8 Mile" where he talks about there only being one chance to make it and you have to take advantage and fully live the moment and the music, and it made me want to get to work on my music as soon as I could (I was at work).....

or lately, I just watch cartoons and drink beer till inspiration knocks again...

[dirty_bass]

When inspiration dwindles, what the hell are you doijng trying to make music?
Stop, go do something else, today is not the day to make music, accept it.

Don`t make music just for the sake of it, don`t try to force it, and if you are randomnly hitting shit to try to get something good, ugh.

Sometimes it is simply much better for everyone to just walk away.

Otherwise, you can invest loads of time into a heap of crap, and then because of the time you have invested in it, you will treat it as valid.

Writers, painters, all artists have this discussion, and pretty much the conclusion all of them (I read a lot of biographies and interviews with artists from all areas, being a pretencious arty type myself) comes down to "Just walk away"

Go smoke a joint, have a drink, read a book, watch a movie, play some really loud music (not techno), go out, go have a conversation, watch some porn, but don`t just make music for the sake of it.

[Jay Pace]

hmmmm, disagree

Wouldn't call it "randomly hitting shit hoping for something good"

A random pattern generator is never going to make anything good. It will make something random. A person can take an idea from a random pattern and make it into something good.

Once you've got something down, you can shape it, mould it, come up with new ideas, ditch old ideas and end up in a completely different place to where you started.

Don't make music if you're not in the mood, sure. But sometimes you want to make stuff, but don't know where to start. I rarely have ideas in my head that I want to commit to music. Much more interested in sitting down and seeing what happens, and shaping it as I go along.

And if you don't like the result, abandon it and move on. You learn something everytime you sit down and make a track. What not to do next time, a nifty little trick, maybe try something new etc. If you don't work at all you aren't improving or developing.

[eyeswithoutaface]

i never run out of inspiration. Im that good

[Tyrisia]

well, I've just had a week off an it does work, and yeah @dirtybass, I can see you've got a good point, investing time in an idea does make you "want" it to work too much, I've defo had that problem in the past.

@Scott, I wish we were all that good, techno would definitely be a better place for it hehe

[rounser]

Writers, painters, all artists have this discussion, and pretty much the conclusion all of them (I read a lot of biographies and interviews with artists from all areas, being a pretencious arty type myself) comes down to "Just walk away"

I've observed differently - the ones I've read tend towards "get your requisite daily work down, it doesn't matter how you feel about it at the time." e.g. Frank Herbert, looking back, can't tell the difference between work he did when he was "inspired" and when he hated the very idea of writing something and had to force himself. Bryce Courtenay's only piece of advice to writers is two words, "bum glue". A published ex-girlfriend of mine always sticks to her X-thousand words a week, come hell or high water. There are others, but I can't bring them to mind.

Although a stroll in the countryside (Rudyard Kipling) or endless games of patience can allow time for the subconcious to work on the problem, I'm very suspicious of the "walk away" advice. Different strokes for different folks, though.

[dirty_bass]

I've observed differently - the ones I've read tend towards "get your requisite daily work down, it doesn't matter how you feel about it at the time." e.g. Frank Herbert, looking back, can't tell the difference between work he did when he was "inspired" and when he hated the very idea of writing something and had to force himself. Bryce Courtenay's only piece of advice to writers is two words, "bum glue". A published ex-girlfriend of mine always sticks to her X-thousand words a week, come hell or high water. There are others, but I can't bring them to mind.

Although a stroll in the countryside (Rudyard Kipling) or endless games of patience can allow time for the subconcious to work on the problem, I'm very suspicious of the "walk away" advice. Different strokes for different folks, though.

Bad examples man, Frank Herberts books got progressively worse, and the fact he forced himself is exceedingly obvious.

You see if you invest time in shit, you lose objectivity, and give value to shit, purely down to the effort you invest. In shit.

I think it`s terrible to look at every piece of music you make as a release. Experimentation can sometimes be just that.

Sometimes, not all the time, sometimes it is better, to walk away.

Obviously there are things you can do to get your juices flowing sometimes, but to walk in the studio, and expect results every time, can lead down a dangerous path.