Songwriting: In the beginning

In the beginning, songwriting was as much a source of confusion for me as anyone else. I didn't know music or even play guitar at the time. I did however play bass guitar with a local band and I had big dreams fueling my obsession.

The main obstacle to my being able to learn what I needed was the fact that there wasn't a decent guitar teacher around at the time, much less the internet. I didn't have a real identity either as a person, or any insights on people ... or anything else for that matter.

I was a young man without a clue as to how to achieve any of my goals. My happiest times were spent doing something with music ... listening or playing it with my new friends in "The Jades". I lived for those moments.

My first step was figuring out how I learn best. I needed to look at the faults I deemed to be roadblocks to my moving forward. Man this was difficult for someone who didn't want to see any of them, but that's just what I did. It turns out my biggest issue was with practicing guitar. I wasn't happy in a quiet room by myself. So instead, I decided to sit in front of the TV and quietly force myself into make one chord and then another until I finally had enough tools to begin the writing process.

Knowing and overcoming my weaknesses was the first step of many that followed. I hope my own insight helps someone else along their way.

-DCraig-