[Andy Howell]

There are a number of ways in which new songs come to me., but the most basic thing is that you have to have something to say or an emotion to convey.

For me, most songs start as tunes but the tune may well invoke an idea or a story. Sometimes I have a story or message at the back of my mind and it comes forward when a tune seems right.

When playing around with a tune it sometimes stands our as either being an instrumental or as being a song. Instrumentals tend to be more varied or complicated musically, but not always.

Be prepared to play around with ideas. A few years ago I was playing around with a tune on the guitar. It was a bit celtic like. At some point I decided it was a song. I then thought it sounded a little Irish. I thought of my favourite part of Ireland — West Cork in the SW of Ireland. This part of Cork was famous for emmigration and has been once again since the financial crash. I went to Google and put 'emmigration Cork' in — out came the story of Annie Moore who was the first migrant to be processsed through Ellis Island. I then started researched Annie's life and a song was born!

On another ocassion I was stranded on a railway station late at night in Stockport in the North of England. It was the coldest night of the year. I posted on Facebook that I was 'Stranded Here in Stockport', A friend replied that it sounded like a song — so it really had to be done.

Some periods can be very productive while others less so. But I always continue to play and often a new tune suggests a subject or a story to me, something that might have been in my mind a few weeks ago or some years ago.

I think you have to be curious in terms of your own creativity! Songwriting courses or programmes can be helpful in that they prompt you to explore things you may not have done so.

In any course if you take one or two simple ideas away it will have been useful.

A few years ago I went ona songwriting workshop for political song. I am wary of political songs as — aside from the great ones — I hear many that are dreadful. But the workshop was being run by the UK's Robb Johnson who is both a great political writer but a tunesmith of some real talent. He told us when thinking of an issue not to looo at the obvious. Look to your own family and its history and you will find very ordinary people dealing with extraordinary odds. My grandparents came to mind and a song based on their life struggles always goes down well.

So, be curious and keep playing.

Finally, another suggestion that has worked for me is to spend time immersing yourself in the work of another songwriter and seeing where that takes you. I have a couple of songs written this way — they may not sound like the artuists I was focussing on but the inspiration is certainly there!