As I write this, I am settled in beside a creek in the Catskills of New York, on Wednesday of a week-long songwriting retreat. Our group is vibrant, musically varied, and tenaciously creative. The water flowing down from the snowy mountains is ice-cold, but down here, we are all on fire.

I’m grateful to be so connected to thirty-one other songwriters with whom I share the struggles and triumphs of living a creative life. But being the organizer of the group, I know something they don’t know. I know that come Friday, we will all go our separate ways, riding on the inspiration we have found here that will carry us through the weeks and hopefully months ahead. But I also know that the feelings will tarnish, like the dirty snow in the parking lot left over from last week. Part of our confidence will be torn away, frayed by the distance we’ll feel from one another. There is safety and numbers, and that is no less true for songwriters as it is for gazelles on the tundra.

I would love nothing more than to see every songwriter attending my retreats come back and spend another week with us. But the ultimate value in meeting together is the community that keeps us going during hard times, and continues to remind us of what we do well. When we surround ourselves with those who want the best for us, they continue to encourage the excavation of our music as a reflection of our unique selves. Other writers who can help us pinpoint which songs we sing and play that show us in our best light is invaluable. It is not the goal to become extraordinary musicians, but to become extraordinary examples of our own musicianship. This is why it is not necessary to play every chord in the book, sing with a range of Adele, or master all styles of lyric writing. In a supportive community, we find reason to believe we already have what we need to write our best songs. A little help identifying, and refining, that fertile clay is the purpose and value of a support system.

When coming to our retreat isn’t feasible, I would encourage looking into building your own, by reaching out to other creatives you know and retreating for a weekend together. Maybe it’s two nights at an Airbnb away from the hustle of every day life at home. And if that feels out of reach, maybe it’s shared coffee time for a few hours at a local café a few mornings before work, or evenings set aside specifically for brainstorming. There is great power in carving out time to acknowledge the desire to expand creatively, and give yourself the space to bravely attempt a creative act. If you are an alumni of our retreats, consider connecting with your group and organizing a listening session online or in person. 

I cherish the time spent with like-minded people with whom I share the many-sided mystery of music. I wish you the same opportunity to be involved in a supportive community in your area, with relationships that ease the challenge and amplify the joy of living a creative life.

Stay creative,

PS: I’d love to meet you at one of our songwriting retreats. If you’re interested in connecting with a group of like-minded writers, click here to learn more.