I have three songbooks. They are not completely filled. In fact, many of the songs that I have written in them are not complete. It's easy coming up with one line or a verse or two, but writing a complete song that's good can be a challenge.
I need to be able to judge my own lyrics. I don't want to waste time on a song that's never going to gain anyone's interest or that no one will be interested in performing.
With most of them it's quite simple-I'll write a lyric, feel really excited about it, then look it over the next day and realize that it's actually pretty bad. Now that I'm at a point where I want to work to see my lyrics turned into songs that are recorded and performed I want to focus on the lyrics that actually have potential. I have a special technique for deciding if a song is worth it. I sing it to myself over and over again. I'll usually do this for about an hour. When I'm finished if I still feel excited about the lyrics I know it's a project that I have enough passion for to follow through on and that I have the confidence to keep going if I face criticisms or rejections along the way. If I start to lose faith in it or get bored after singing it a few times I know its not worth the time and energy.
~Eliza
