Image via soundfly.com for #SongwritingWeek

This article is being published jointly on Sonicbids and Soundfly in celebration of #SongwritingWeek.

My pursuit to become a songwriter started shortly after learning to read words and music 20-something years ago. Throughout my quest to become better at what I love doing, I've studied a wide range of writing styles – both musical and linguistic. Here are five lessons that really stuck with me.

Image via flypaper.soundfly.com

This article originally appeared on Soundfly.

The summer of 2012 was pivotal for my husband and me. We had loved living in Boston, but the time had come to move on. Between the two of us, we had a pair of music school degrees, decades of instrumental experience, résumés that were useless outside of the entertainment world, and a handful of enticing prospects that weren't particularly lucrative. We discussed Los Angeles, Toronto, San Francisco, and Nashville. Maybe it was because he's a big Seinfeld fan, or because my Alicia Keys phase still had a big influence on my life, but we finally decided on New York. Being musicians in a new place was tough – I still consider sprinting back home to California every winter – but thanks to fate and some sage advice, we've adapted nicely. Here are some tips for musicians settling into new cities.

Image via otago.ac.nz

This article originally appeared on Soundfly.

For a brief few years in college, I got to treat music as a full-time job, devoting 40+ hours a week to musical improvement. I lived 10 minutes from the practice rooms and had very few responsibilities, so I could practice as much as sleep and school would allow. Now that I'm a full-fledged grown-up with a real job, that reality has faded. It takes work to turn your living room into the perfect practice space, and fighting the distractions of the real world can take serious work, but I've learned to find time to continue honing my craft. Here are a few tips that can help you do the same.