It may seem too obvious to say that melodies, like all other aspects of a song, can be improved with work and attention. But I’ve found – for myself and with many other writers I’ve worked with – that developing and improving a melody can be one of the most rewarding, if often ignored, areas of Songwriting.

Any kind of writing is a tricky blend of the subjective and the objective. One way to think about it is that when I’m freely creating (subjective) I wear the ‘writers’ hat’ and when I’m analyzing, judging, evaluating (objective… somewhat), I replace it with the ‘editors’ hat’ .

When the first burst of a song’s melody comes, it often feels like it arrives fully formed and inevitable. That impression can be deceiving,

Before I get locked in to a melody, it serves me well to take the time to listen to it with some objectivity.  In Songwriting, as with so many things, it’s easy to form habits, inhabit comfort zones, etc. 

There’s nothing wrong with tilling a fertile field for as long as it yields. But it’s SO easy to keep writing the same things over and over again; the same words, the same story, the same chords… the same melodies. It can take a conscious effort to move out of that comfort zone.

If I sing or play a melody by itself – no thrashing guitar chords to cover weak spots – I more easily hear its flaws and I often find that my melody isn’t as interesting, memorable, or catchy as it could be. 

But, at first, that ‘revised’ melody usually doesn’t sing as naturally for me.

Sometimes this can mean I’m getting too fussy – simple and obvious can be good. However, it can also mean that I just need to get used to singing the new, ‘improved’ melody. I need to sing it a bunch of times and see if it starts to feel natural. If it does, maybe I have something. If not… I can always go back to version 1 (or 8).

My voice (and the melody-maker in my mind) usually wants to go down its familiar pathways.  But just because a melody doesn’t feel ‘natural’ right away doesn’t mean that it won’t end up sounding inevitable – like it always had to be that way. I have to sing and play it for a while; give it a chance.

With a little work – and taking the time to get used to a new melody direction – I often see that that first draft of the melody was just that – a start, not a finished product.

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