Writing exercises for songwriters. Catch a stray line and find the next one.
Bellows is a toolkit for songwriting, poetry, and any creative writing that has stalled. When writer's block hits, pick an exercise: cut up old lyrics into new lines, freewrite against a timer, write an object through the senses, or pair words on a word ladder.
TOOLS
- Cut-Up Technique. Slice text into fragments and recombine them into lines you would never have written straight through. The Burroughs and Bowie trick for breaking your own habits.
- Song Structure. Build a song one section at a time. Start from a common layout or your own, then fill in the words section by section.
- Freewrite. A timed, no-editing write to quiet the inner critic. Turn on No Backspace and keep moving until the timer ends.
- Object Writing. Write one concrete object through the seven senses to pull specific, vivid detail into your work.
- Constraint Game. Spark a verse under playful limits: a hand of given words to work in, plus an optional banned letter. A constraint is easier to answer than a blank page.
- Antonym Writing. Write the literal opposite of what you mean, then flip it back. A reliable way to find a fresher angle than the obvious one.
- Word Ladder. Jeff Tweedy's trick: name a job and list what it does, then list what is around you. Shuffle the two columns into pairs and write from the collisions.
- Notebook. A fast place to catch a title, a thought, or a stray line before it slips away. Capture quickly, then file it into a notebook.
CATCH IT FAST
- Jot an Idea widget. Put it on your home screen and one tap opens a fresh note, so a line that arrives at 2 a.m. gets caught before it fades.
- App shortcut. Long-press the Bellows icon to jump straight into a new note.
YOURS
Everything you write stays on your device. No account, no sign-in, no ads. Export any piece as Markdown or plain text whenever you want it somewhere else.
Neuigkeiten
Fixes: starting a Freewrite timer opens the keyboard, Word Ladder columns stay lined up, and the Cut-Up buttons fit on larger font sizes.