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swimming through fog
February 7th, 2010
It’s amazing to me that, after all these years, it’s still the hardest thing in the world for me to sit down, clear away the distractions and write a goddamn song. I think that everyone has difficulty with the challenge of doing what they love. so here I am, doing what I love — for a living. the funny thing is that it’s STILL hard. I keep getting distracted with business ideas, side opportunities, spiritual aspirations, software, marketing ideas, etc. all these things are important, as are family and friends, but in the end they ALL have to get swept aside if any writing is going to get done. there is always another cool trip to go on, a party someone is calling me about, a day on skis with my kid, a biz deal I can’t turn down, a new idea me or one of my friends has that needs looking into, a novel I can’t put down, a retreat I should do. sometimes I wish I had some boring job that I hated so that all day I could just be burning to get home and write – that I would arrive at my desk as like a hot stone from a slingshot. but this is a fantasy, too, I know.
whether you have a job you hate or are doing what you love for a living, you still have to face the blank page, the bridge that needs writing, the crappy idea that has some potential there buried under twenty hours of re-writing. as Henry Miller said, if you’re waiting for the perfect circumstances to create, then you’re not an artist. some days, I’m just not an artist. but after a while, the old fire gets stirred up and starts to burn again, and then I don’t eat or sleep until there’s something good finally down on the page or coming out of the monitors. it tears me up every time, sends me to bed for a day, makes me a little afraid of the next bout. but I wouldn’t trade it for anything.
February 7th, 2010 | Categories: paulblog | Tags: i love my job, writing songs | Leave A Comment » |
9 Responses to “swimming through fog”
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buy music 
The hardest part is comprehending that, this is how it is. You got that part down. That is why some of us want to encourage you, to do what you love!! XOXOXOX
I totally understand. I feel like I have a harder time writing since quiting the day job to focus on music.. spend more time trying to book shows and market and promote than writing…fuck.
Swiming through fog = Song Title
Blog post + Comments = Lyrics
We all have these days, sometimes more than we want…I know i do. I think the trick is to distract yourself a bit and come back. I find the harder i push the thought are more fleeting. Good days Bad Days We’re just Swimming through the fog.
Paul, I understand about writing. Ideas pop into my head and situations occur when I can work, people bother me. Then, when I get a moment, i’m either to ‘beaten down’ or my ideas are forgotten! Life sucks and then you die, my man! Just remember people depend on your words and voice…
I always find the best thing to do is just take a day off, get out on your own, find somewhere fairly rural and nice (if there’s one close enough) Go early, watch the sun rise, then take a bit of a drive around, before going home, having a bath and putting the feet up. Always clears the mind.
Alternatively, needlessly aggressive music being driven straight through your head for a few hours normally clears your head out nicely
My cousin Leslie said the same thing as James Chapman. The blog is the song & the title!!
You have no idea how apt ‘swimming through the fog’ is for me…. radically different circumstances I know but it still has teeth.
hmm, very cool idea for a song.
thx!
(maybe I should crowdsource ALL my lyrics…)
I never never tryed hard enough to make anything out of my music because I always had a nice life never got that feeling “I’ve got nothing to lose”. I sometimes get the feeling I regret not trying … I do get a real buzz when I make a song. Love your music – I got your 1st cd in 1998. respect.