In our lyrics, most of us tend to write about the same things over and over. We all have our themes: love, romantic love, romance, sexual love, sex, loss, commitment, betrayal, optimism, skepticism, joy, anger, inspiration, heartbreak, mortality, even obsession itself… among many others.

Our obsessions seem to embed themselves in our songs no matter how we try to guide them otherwise. This can be part of having an identity as a songwriter, a ‘style’, a ‘voice’. 

If the songs are products of my obsessions – themes that haunt me, taunt me, and insist on being written about until they’re out of my system – then that’s good, maybe inevitable. I need not fear them, or be ashamed of them… whatever they may be. I can welcome them.

Most great writers seem to have their obsessive themes.

But some themes repeat out of mere habit, which can lead to a boring repetitiveness and predictability. These lyrics get written because they’re the first thing that comes to mind, because they’re the path of least resistance. Anyone who knows your work can practically predict the next line.

If this is the case, if your habits are unproductive and lead to dullness, you can begin to push past them to write songs outside your comfort zone.

At the other extreme, you can commit to your obsessions – double down and ride them until you lose interest and you’re ready to move on.

Most of us spend the majority of our songwriting time somewhere on a spectrum between those two extremes. Occasionally, though, we may find ourselves at one end or the other… which can offer a challenge… and also a great opportunity for growth.

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