Ever sit down with your guitar, ready to write something epic—only to end up staring at your fretboard, completely blank? Yeah, me too. The good news? There’s a way to kickstart inspiration on demand and turn even the most uninspired moments into riffs worth keeping.
Let’s be real—sometimes it’s hard to feel inspired to write new music. You pick up your guitar, mess around for a while, and it just feels like nothing’s clicking. That blank space can be frustrating.
But here’s the cool thing: I’ve found a way to “switch on” inspiration whenever I need it (well, most of the time). It’s not magic—it’s more like a method I’ve trained myself to use.
The Process
Here’s how it usually goes: I’ll throw on a drum track or a bassline that I really vibe with. Nothing fancy, just a groove that gets me moving. Then I jam. I don’t overthink it, I just play whatever comes to mind. At some point—sometimes in 5 minutes, sometimes in 30—something pops up. A riff. A melody. A little spark that feels like, okay, that’s worth keeping.
That’s the moment where I make sure to capture the idea. Doesn’t matter if it’s just a short lick or a sloppy take—I record it, because otherwise it’s gone. Ideas are slippery like that.
Once I’ve got it down, I’ll start looping it, playing it again and again, letting it breathe and evolve. Pretty soon I’ll have a couple of slightly different versions of the same riff. That’s when it gets interesting. Those variations can turn into a solo, the backbone of a song, or even inspire an entirely new riff I didn’t see coming. Sometimes one little spark is all it takes to light up a whole session.
And the best part? You can actually practice this. The more you do it, the easier it gets to summon that inspiration on demand. Some days I’ll even just put on a random backing track and go all in—no pressure, no plan, just letting it rip. More often than not, something cool comes out of it.
For me, inspiration rarely shows up as a single idea. When I hit that flow state, I usually end up with multiple completely different riffs or melodies in one session. That’s why recording myself is such a huge part of my process. Even when I’m just noodling around, I hit record—because every once in a while, one of those throwaway jams turns into something really great.
Here’s a little Preview from one of my last Jam Sessions where I’ve added Bass and expanded the Ideas I had a little:
What you can do
That’s what I call my Inspiration Machine. It’s not flawless, but it keeps me from getting stuck, and it makes sure I never leave a good riff behind. And honestly, half the fun is not knowing what you’re going to stumble into next.
So here’s my challenge to you: build your own Inspiration Machine. Throw on a groove, jam without pressure, and see what comes out. Record everything, chase the sparks, and let those ideas evolve. Before you know it, you’ll have a pile of riffs, melodies, and song seeds waiting to grow into something bigger.
Now go fire it up—and make some killer songs!