It’s one of the first things I think about when I’m finishing up a newly-written song: “Does this suck?”
Sure, once in a while I’ll confidently crow, “This rocks!” But usually, even if I’m happy with the results of my songwriting labors, even if I don’t say it out loud, there’s a little voice in my head that squeaks, “Does this suck?”
I call this feeling, or this judgment phase of the songwriting process, the “Does this Suck” factor.
The “Does this suck?” factor can be based on lots of issues — some rational, some irrational, some reasonable, some silly.
Some issues I personally face when weighing the “Does this suck” factor of my new infant lyrics/melody:
1. Are the lyrics lame?
I feel like this one is pretty rational — after all, I take pride in my lyric-writing, so I want to feel confident that I’m not resting on a sea of cliches and that I’ve edited my song so that it’s lean and tight.
2. Is the melody memorable?
Also on the rational tip, in my opinion. After all, I certainly don’t want to sing a song with a melody that meanders into a boring abyss. On the other hand, I don’t want a melody so memorable that it makes people think of another song with the same melody. Oops!
3. What will my family think?
This is silly. I know it is. First of all, I don’t think my family is objective about my songwriting at all. My six-year-old nephew Denis, for example, dances wildly to any upbeat song I write and I think the lyrics could be lacking on every level and he wouldn’t care. And my parents tend to “kvell” (Jewish term meaning “proud with emphatic hand gestures”) over almost anything I do — except for that one time I wrote the song with the four-letter-word in it.
4. What will my songwriting friends think?
Well, this one’s a toss-up: On the one hand, I have a lot of friends who are songwriters whose opinions I respect, so of course I want them to think “Wow!” and not “Ooooh….ow” when they hear my new song. On the other hand, my songwriting friends write in so many different styles — some of which I like and some I don’t so much — that a response can come down to a matter of taste, not suck-i-ness.
5. What will my cats think?
This is beyond silly. Winnie and Cleo think everything sucks except for catnip, sunbeams, aluminum foil balls and my husband, Shannon.
The point is, the “Does this suck?” factor is a natural reaction to creating a new piece of, well, anything. We all want approval for our efforts and if we take songwriting seriously, we want to feel good about the fact that it objectively meets some criteria of non-suckiness.
But it’s essential that you don’t take the “Does this suck?” factor too seriously: It can hamper your creative output. Worry too much about whether your song sucks, and you’ll never write anything new. Your inner insecure voice can really work you over, so don’t let it get too loud. Just say “ssshhhhh…” and go on to write anything you want. Then, ask yourself the hard questions: Is the melody strong? Do the lyrics say what you want to say in the way you want to say them? Any editing you can do to tighten things up?
Then, if you want some feedback, share the song with some songwriters you respect, who can offer some constructive criticism in a way that’s not belittling. Then, fix it up, try the song out at an open mic or a gig, and move on to the next one!
