How's everyone's first FAWM going?
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@frank Feb 2022
I'm feeling successful, so far and I'm on track to finish, but I'm quite a bit more stressed about this than I thought I would be.
How are you guys and gals doing? -
@humantornado Feb 2022
I’m with you! I’m just on pace to finish but I wish I could interact more. I feel like I can’t give enough comments.
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@elesimo Feb 2022
This is not my first FAWM, but I felt exactly that way on my first one! It was hard to finish, and I interacted very little with people, mostly commenting back on people who commented on my songs. I remember how exhausted I was at the end of the month, and I couldn't keep up with the forum.
For me it became easier after a few years. I stopped being so perfectionist, and started experimenting more and allowing myself to have fun and do silly things (now the only time when I'm perfectionist is when I'm collaborating). I made friends and started doing the different FAWM challenges.
Not saying that that's how you should do FAWM, it's just my personal experience. I think one of the great things about FAWM is that each person defines their goals and does FAWM their own way, and we're all here to support each other for that. -
@syneryder Feb 2022
First FAWM here, and I'm totally stuck! I'm feeling more Resistance than ever before (in the Steven Pressfield "War Of Art" sense), so I'm really in awe of everyone else's workflow that makes them so prolific.
I'm generally confident in my technical & recording skills, and I've got plenty of music gear / toys, so it's interesting to discover that it's my songwriting muscles that are the most atrophied. At least I'm in the right place to give them a workout!
I actually meant to do the RPM Challenge instead, and signed up for FAWM almost by accident. I wasn't sure if FAWM was for me because I like to work solo & I'm not big on socializing. But FAWM has been very friendly and comfortable and I'm finding it more helpful than RPM.
It feels like I'm passing up a great opportunity if I don't make the most of FAWM this month, so I'd better get back to songwriting! -
@kable Feb 2022
1 / 14
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@berty38 Feb 2022
I think I'm really benefitting from the pace. The idea that we're just throwing out 14 songs so quickly has prevented me from perfectionism. There isn't time to go back and fix stuff. I'm going to try to do this kind of thing for my day job, where I often hit blocks for the creative aspects.
That said, it's day 9, and I only have 4 songs, so I'm slightly behind pace... -
@jtsteam Feb 2022
I had no idea how it would go because I thought I didn't have any ideas but it turns out I'm having enormous fun and might be neglecting my day job a bit... I don't think it can last but I'm going to keep writing things down while the ideas are coming! This community is great, I wish I 'd tried earlier!
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@skylermf Feb 2022
I'm feeling really happy with my baseline quality, it's really showing some improvement from last year in my opinion (even though quality isn't necessarily the goal here!)
Seconding @humantornado that i wish I had more time to comment - between college classes, booking practice room time, and actually recording the dang songs I hardly have time to listen to anything! My goal is 10 comments a day but I'm not sure I'll be able to keep it up. Worst case I'll come back in March!
I'm trying to make time for songwriting/recording, and right now it's working, but I'm not sure how long I can keep it up for. Google Chrome is telling me my FAWM password is compromised... if anyone wants to hack my account and write some songs for me I'd greatly appreciate it! -
@slusk Feb 2022
Unfortunately the outside world is interfering. Otherwise all good.
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@whispermouse Feb 2022
I remember being surprised by the amount of effort required my first year, and kept looking at the calendar thinking "one song every two days..."
I think now I've got a better sense for what the right pace is, and I do a lot more challenges and skirmishes, which helps. -
@frank Feb 2022
Oh man. Skirmishes seem SUPER intimidating to me. I realize you don't have to do a demo in that time, but It takes me SO much time to write lyrics. I don't think I could get a whole song done in one hour.
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@jtsteam Feb 2022
I've been really amazed at seeing what people come up with in skirmishes. I guess it takes practice! I'm hoping to be brave enough to have a go at one before the month is out.
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@potentialspam Feb 2022
This is super fun! I have been surprising myself with what I am coming up with and it might be cheating using old musical ideas occasionally but it feels satisfying, kind of like recycling.
My time to record is limited to late at night so I haven't been able to do a skirmish or a collab. Those are definitely goals though. I really like the vibe of the community though and I'm trying to listen to as many different songs as possible. So many FAWMers have serious chops! -
@sunnysays Feb 2022
Im late to the party but hoping to try and hit the goal of 14 songs!
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@griffith10 Feb 2022
A first timer and having trouble with music, not the lyrics. Feeling good about the days ahead if I can just get some tunes going. A lot of my song ideas are from notes from the past but writing new stuff is coming along. We all write in our own way.
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@robheron1 Feb 2022
Terrific! Listening to others FAWMers songs is a real joy. I'm getting songs done that I'm happy with. I wanted to do all acoustic guitar and vocal songs but then I was so inspired by other people I'm doing some pieces with other instruments.
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@thelocksmiths Feb 2022
My first FAWM. I normally take a long time to write trying to get things "perfect". I'm hoping to try and get better at working the writing muscle. It's hard for me to submit things I don't think are "finished".
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@raspberry33 Feb 2022
My first FAWM, too. It's chewing up WAY more time than I expected, and I'm trying to budget time to listen and comment on other contributions. There's a ton of good stuff out there; some of it incredibly professional, and others where the music shines through despite minimal production. On track so far, but next week this thing called "work" is truly going to interfere.
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@musicbymichelle Feb 2022
I'm enjoying my first FAWM but it's definitely not easy. I find myself constantly trying to think of something to write. New melodies are spinning in my head all day long, but never long enough to make it on to the page. Hmm sounds like I'm on my way to writing my next song. I've really enjoyed the one collaboration I did and am looking forward to doing more. It's so fascinating to me to be able to work with people from all around the world.
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@carleybaer Feb 2022
@frank you can do it! The reason why skirmishes are so great is that they force you to write lyrics quickly. At first it’s intimidating, and the urge to get it “just right” or even “good” is really powerful. However, there’s freedom in knowing a bunch of people are scrambling too, so if it’s not your best work, no one’s judging you. Then, as you do more and more of them, you start to be able to access that “good” corner of your songwriting brain more quickly. It just takes practice.
Oh also, and this is for @jtsteam too, you can give it a whirl a time or two and then just not post the result, if you want some off-the-record practice. But I say just go for it, don’t overthink, post your results and see the support, and you’ll realize you didn’t die and you might even like it enough to try it again :) -
@fantasywriter42 Feb 2022
I think my first FAWM is going rather nicely. I'm slightly ahead of schedule (7 songs in 9 days), and I've got inklings of a few other songs.
And, I'm writing songs that would be like... in-world songs for the books I'm writing, and the last song I wrote (an annual tradition type of song) actually lines up with what aim planning as the first chapter of my next book, so I'm thinking I'll actually be able to include a few lines when I get there. :) -
@whispermouse Feb 2022
@carleybaer nailed it!
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@esc4p3 Feb 2022
I'm really enjoying my first FAWM. I've no idea if I'll manage 14 songs, I didn't even sign up for FAWM until a couple of days into the month. I can see how it kinda takes over your life, I'm going to spend the rest of the month either doing it or thinking about doing it. I've done 3 tracks so far and will aim to do 14, but I'm not stressed about the number, I'm having so much fun that however many tracks tumble out of my head will be an amazing thing....
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@fantasywriter42 Feb 2022
That is one thing that is surprising me about all of this: This whole experience has been a blast so far.
And like... there is definitely something to the whole "once you start doing something more often, it gets easier to do it consistently" thing. Like, it gets your brain into a certain mode, and you start becoming more aware of opportunities. -
@chinacat Feb 2022
I'm really happy so far. The first five songs just kinda "poured" out, heard the next song in my head before finishing the previous one. When #6 wasn't there, I just turned up the distorted guitar and banged out an instrumental in basically one take. #7 flowed out nicely after that.
Now I'm a little stuck, 3 or 4 ideas floating around but they aren't finishing themselves quickly as the first 5 did. Still feel good about the direction on those and hope to finish 1 or 2 up before the weekend.
Definitely have streamlined my recording, mixing, & mastering process and trying not get too caught up in that. My goal is really to get the 14 songs out there and still have a week plus to maybe clean up some of the recordings, maybe add a "middle 8" to a couple of songs, and perhaps polish up some other lyrics that aren't quite sitting right with me.
I only have a handful of originals that I really like, the first one having been written in 1987. I already see at least 3 of my new songs ending up on that list, so feeling good about that. -
@anthonykapfer666 Feb 2022
i'm really enjoying this. this is motivating me to write brand new songs and also it's helping me to finish developing ideas i've had kicking around for the last few weeks. and i'm discovering lots of really talented people i would have otherwise never had a chance to listen to. i don't want february to end!
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@n24 Feb 2022
Yeah, I think there's clearly a value in just getting stuff out there, and the community is so positive that you don't have to feel self-conscious if you know it's not exactly how it sounds in your head, I like that the upload section literally says 'demo' that takes the pressure off a little!
This is my first FAWM, I was introduced by my cousin and I was quite anxious about it in the run up. I haven't written anything for about 5 years, really fell out of love with playing music but, from the first song I wrote and posted I just fell in love with it. I love how warm and supportive the community is, I've written more in the last week than I have for ages and it's really brought a lot of joy back into making music for me. I think FAWM is the best online community I have ever taken part in without a doubt and I'm pretty sure it's going to become a yearly event for me! -
@theicylakes Feb 2022
It's going great! I'm doing one song every day, and then some! At 15 now and I'm gonna get 30 done!!! I love how I'm just getting in the zone, drop all second-guessing and analytics and just going with the flow, being in the moment. All of my songs have been written in somewhere between 5-15 minutes initially. Of course, I go back and rewrite the lyrics, change a chord or two perhaps, but largely, it's what you hear. I'm loving it! Quantity over quality rules!!
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@nancycunning Feb 2022
I'm loving this. It feels like a huge Mardi Gras party for introverts. I gave myself to just post lyrics, since that's the much easier place for me to go. I did a Skirmish (again just lyrics) and at first I wasn't going to post what I'd written, but I liked it so much I did another one, and I did post that one, and went back and posted the old one a day late too.
I try to comment on five songs for every song I post. I figure if everyone did that, life would be great.
I love the Zongs list (once I figured out that Zero comments didn't mean people were asking for zero comments). It's such a sweet way to make sure songs don't get missed.
Oh, and I did record some music after all. Not for one of my lyrics, but @arthurrossi posted some German lyrics that I loved, and I figured not that many people here probably know German, so what the heck. I just picked two chord progressions in Hookpad, then put the chords into Band in a Box - picked a style that reminded me a little of German pop songs from the late 1980s and sang along to the chords.
People are all so gentle and lovely, and if I give up on being disappointed not to get to meet them all, and just tell myself I'll see them next year, I'm good. -
@hazydave Feb 2022
This is going pretty well... I've kind of figured out my usual songwriting system has been massively underused. I write down everything I think of but only finish a couple of songs a year. I'm already to eight, and planning to work on some chords, melodies, and maybe recording over the weekend.
A real set goal absolutely helps. I was concerned that I'd freeze up, creatively, but I guess I should know better -- I've always been one to work well under pressure. And it's a nice community, though I'm just starting to interact here! -
@kcc Feb 2022
Holy Shamoly! I just woke up! it's the middle of Feb Already?! I haven't begun writing side one and I should be flipping the record over?
This is going to require some collabing!
KCC -
@jp123 Feb 2022
I'm a day or so behind, but I'm happy with most of what I've written, so far. I'm a little stuck at the moment and life is definitely getting in the way of having enough time to write. I'll do what I can and be happy with whatever I get that may wind up being a keeper, knowing that one just has to keep writing... "pop them out like waffles, the good ones and the awfuls- a new one every day." (from "My Swan Song" by Dave Frishberg) Happy FAWMing, all.
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@redhauer Feb 2022
I think it’s great! My husband has done FAWM for years now, and he’s amazing. I’m not musically talented, but I’m trying my hand at writing lyrics. I just started today, and have already posted two songs…well, lyrics, anyways.
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@kyrla Feb 2022
I did NaSoAlMo last year so I've had some practice but for songs longer than two minutes, this is a much harder challenge- currently 6 tracks in and on pace for 10½ even though i would be well on pace for NaSoAlMo (33:02/29:09)
Need less social media time I think -
@thelocksmiths Feb 2022
I'm 2 songs in with 2 on the burner. It's halfway through February and I don't think I'm getting to even 7 songs. And finding time to sit and record even a bare bones track is difficult. But we soldier on.
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@trebled Feb 2022
Hmmm - a little disillusioned with it all, to be honest. Time to write and record songs on top of full-time employment isn’t easy. And it doesn’t leave much time to listen and comment on others’ songs. And if you don’t listen and write nice things to them, they don’t listen to you. Similar in that respect to most social media platforms, I guess. And churning out songs to a schedule, rather than writing something as and when you really feel it, doesn’t really fit my way of working anyway. I’m glad I’ve given it a go (“don’t knock it till you’ve tried it”), but I’m not sure I’ll be back next year. :-/
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@andrewrusse Feb 2022
I'm having a reasonably good time. I say reasonably good because of what it's done for my songwriting and motivation. Not sure I want to do this again though!
I've always turned down invites to RPM because my "Andrew Russe Band" productions take me about 2 weeks at the LEAST.
Thing is, though, I'm an "old skool" singer-songwriter. Even for band stuff I write with an acoustic a pad of paper and a pen before I even turn a recorder on.
So when I heard of FAWM (on the 5th of February this year) I thought "ok I can do that, even though I'm late"... Didn't realise how easily I could do it, even with the day job - though working from home helps a lot.
I write the song over the course of the working day (today's started before my wife left for work). I've hopefully finished it by the time work finishes (today, both song and work is finished, I've had some food and am psyching myself up for the next bit). Then I do a one mic live recording. That can take a while depending on how hard the thing is to sing and play. I'm learning a new set-up and DAW, and these demos have really helped in that. I also know now that I can QUICKLY create basic song demos that are GOOD ENOUGH for me to be able to write more songs without losing elements of the others. Sat here, I cannot even remember all the Titles of the ones I've done this month! But the demos are on my hard drive and backed up and... YAY!
Anyways, after starting on the 5th/6th of February, I've got 10 up already, 11th on the pad ready to record. I'm on target to finish a week early, I expect to stop then - I've got a whole bunch of old songs I now want to record as demos like this, I want to get onto that project asap.... And then I've got some serious recording to do... Several of these new songs are probably in the frame for that work.
I might, MIGHT, take to writing a song a day anyway, but that'll be for me, not for any external challenge. -
@adambeiter Feb 2022
I'm doing okay! There have only been a few obstacles in my completion process, one is that my MIDI keyboard connection stopped working at the start of February (I've tried downloading every possible driver in existence and nothing has worked) but I can still use my school's keyboard lab to record MIDI instruments. I've been really happy with some of the musical ideas I've come up with though, and also happy about FAWM being such a non-judgmental and wholesome place where people support my music in spite of it being poorly produced/mixed. 10 songs down, 7 days left to finish the last 4 and already have some ideas in the works, so definitely feeling good!
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@radiobenedetto Feb 2022
Musically it’s going better than ever. I set a goal of cohesive quality over eclectic quantity and so far it has worked. I have to say though that I see a lot less reciprocal commenting this year which is a little disappointing. Hoping it just means everyone’s busy and it will pick up at the end of the month. Anyone else find the same thing or is it just my perception?
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@robheron1 Feb 2022
Really happy with it. Will do it again if life permits. I have 13 songs at this point, all of which have been worthwhile to me. A couple are keepers that I will memorize and morph and play in the future. I have done quite a few reviews because I think that's part of the deal -- supporting fellow writers, but this is the first time I've wasted time reading Fawmlings threads, which I guess means I'm starting to relax when I should be writing my last song!
The FAWM website and administration is really good! -
@lenorealdisnow Feb 2022
Very excited to start songwriting again!! Thanks to one of my dear friends (a 3rd year FAWMer), my passion for this is rekindled. Thankful for all the stron support here, along with the lovely comments. Peace and love!
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@edward9thstreet Mar 2022
I enjoyed it. I made it to 3 lyrics, 3 demoed songs and 1 collab. In addition I have several good tidbit starts, a good chorus in waiting , and a few potential titles. I didn't work in a skirmish, which I enjoy, but getting in the 1 collab was cool.