{"id":1684,"date":"2020-06-11T20:52:57","date_gmt":"2020-06-11T19:52:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.writingroutines.com\/?p=1684"},"modified":"2020-06-11T20:54:15","modified_gmt":"2020-06-11T19:54:15","slug":"isom-innis-interview","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.writingroutines.com\/isom-innis-interview\/","title":{"rendered":"Foster The People\u2019s Isom Innis On Balance, The Elusiveness Of Inspiration, And Being A Student Of History"},"content":{"rendered":"

Who:<\/strong>\u00a0Isom Innis<\/p>\n

Claim To Fame:<\/strong>\u00a0Isom Innis is a multi-instrumentalist, song-writer, producer, and member of\u00a0the Platinum-selling band\u00a0Foster The People<\/a>.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

Where To Find Isom:<\/strong>\u00a0Instagram<\/a>, Twitter<\/a>, Spotify<\/a><\/p>\n

\n

When<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0where<\/a>\u00a0do you like to write? Are you the\u00a0same-thing-every-day kind of writer<\/a>\u00a0or can you write anytime, anywhere?<\/h3>\n

The nature of having to travel as a musician has meant my writing process has become really adaptive. I have an ideal writing set-up, but am usually bouncing back and forth, finding a flow between being creative while traveling and being stationary in LA. A lot of times I\u2019m bouncing back and forth between studios, too. So my laptop is really my homebase.<\/span><\/p>\n

Do you have any\u00a0pre-writing rituals<\/a>\u00a0or\u00a0habits<\/a>\u00a0before you sit down to write?<\/h3>\n

I try to exercise first, but the most consistent ritual is a cup of coffee and clearing my thoughts to where I can approach my work with fresh instincts. For me, this is finding a balance in my life. For example, if I worked on music until 6am the night before, instead of having any musical interference in the daytime, I\u2019ll listen to a podcast or watch a film until I work again\u2014just trying to avoid any other musical stimulation.<\/span><\/p>\n

Have you ever experienced a prolonged\u00a0creative rut<\/a>\u00a0or a spell of\u00a0writer\u2019s block<\/a>? How did you get through them?<\/h3>\n

Yes, usually writer\u2019s block for me comes shortly after the completion of a project and takes me a period of experimentation and research to evolve, successfully emerge and start from square one again. It\u2019s a process of going back and researching musical eras and sounds that I\u2019m inspired by and in some way are leading the sonics of where music production is now\u2014for me, it\u2019s a process of being a student of music history and then deciding where it can go from there.\u00a0\u00a0<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

When you\u2019re writing a song do you typically begin with the lyrics or the music?<\/span><\/h3>\n

I\u2019m a drummer, so a lot of my writing process comes from either playing the drums or making a beat \u2014 and then I\u2019ll usually experiment musically over a beat. If I hit a pocket of inspiration and I\u2019m able to transcend in a kind of moment of hypnosis, then lyrical and melodic ideas will come. My lyrical and melodic ideas usually are channeled as a response to the music I\u2019m hearing 75% of the time.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s your process for editing and refining<\/a> a song? When do you know that the song is finished?<\/span><\/h3>\n

It\u2019s a brutal and essential process\u2014also essential not to overcook and is something that is a never-ending education for me. But I\u2019m a firm believer that art is never finished but abandoned. Usually after a period of really intensively working on something, there\u2019s a period of taking some space from it, and then coming back with fresh ears.<\/p>\n

Any books or writers that have most influenced the way you think and the way you write?<\/span><\/h3>\n

The War of Ar<\/em>t<\/a> by Steven Pressfield helped me push through resistance and come back on a consistent basis\u2014and taught me not to expect inspiration to come all the time. I also have a hard cover compilation of T.S. Eliot works that I\u2019ll crack open as sort of a roulette wheel of lyric inspiration and phrasing. Also, my wife has a vast poetry collection that is great to dive into.<\/p>\n

What is your advice to aspiring writers<\/a>?<\/span><\/h3>\n

Don\u2019t be afraid of failure. Put the time in. Be honest. Also, cherish your pockets of inspiration and ride them out as far as they\u2019ll go\u2014in my experience, inspiration is elusive and it\u2019s a lifestyle of chasing it.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

___________<\/p>\n

Ready to create a writing routine of your\u00a0own?<\/h3>\n

Sign up now and receive our free guide\u00a0\u201c12 Essential Writing Routines To Help You To Craft Your Own<\/span><\/a>.\u201d<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Learn from the routines of superstar authors\u00a0Stephen King, Gertrude Stein, John Grisham, Ernest Hemingway, Neil Gaiman, and many more.<\/em><\/p>\n

Get the free guide\u00a0here!<\/span><\/a><\/h4>\n
<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Who:\u00a0Isom Innis Claim To Fame:\u00a0Isom Innis is a multi-instrumentalist, song-writer, producer, and member of\u00a0the Platinum-selling band\u00a0Foster The People.\u00a0 Where To Find Isom:\u00a0Instagram, Twitter, Spotify When\u00a0and\u00a0where\u00a0do you like to write? Are you the\u00a0same-thing-every-day kind of writer\u00a0or can you write anytime, anywhere? The nature of having to travel as a musician has meant my writing process has […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1685,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1684","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-music"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nFoster The People\u2019s Isom Innis On Balance, The Elusiveness Of Inspiration, And Being A Student Of History - Writing Routines<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.writingroutines.com\/isom-innis-interview\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Foster The People\u2019s Isom Innis On Balance, The Elusiveness Of Inspiration, And Being A Student Of History - Writing Routines\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Who:\u00a0Isom Innis Claim To Fame:\u00a0Isom Innis is a multi-instrumentalist, song-writer, producer, and member of\u00a0the Platinum-selling band\u00a0Foster The People.\u00a0 Where To Find Isom:\u00a0Instagram, Twitter, Spotify When\u00a0and\u00a0where\u00a0do you like to write? 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