Songwriting Inspiration

My main concern with writing a song of my own was that I doubt not only my own creativity but my knowledge of music, therefore I know that I need a relatively simplistic melody as I am not as confident with my guitar playing as my singing as I only know a small selection of chords which I struggle to synchronise. Initially I thought that I would begin with the lyrics, however I know what I want my song to sound like more than I know what I want to say. Therefore I have begun my research with looking at some more simple guitar songs.

Coincidentally, one of my biggest my musical inspirations is Ed Sheeran, who I consider an amazing singer/songwriter and he also plays his own guitar. I admire Ed because he writes his own material and every song comes from him. His personal experiences and I feel this adds so much more to a song. I instantly thought of Ed because of his track 'Small Bump'. Like many of Sheeran's songs the rhythm melody is simple enough to play on a guitar, I think this is due to the fact that Ed lets his lyrics do the talking, he doesn't need complex compositions to make a hit, but again, this is only coincidentally why Sheeran sprung to mind. 'Small Bump' is about a miscarriage, again Sheeran is writing from a personal perspective about his own close friend who lost her baby. I particularly looked at the lyrics;

"Cause you were just a small bump unborn
For four months then torn from life
Maybe you were needed up there
But we’re still unaware as why"

as the key themes are loss, particularly losing someone too soon. There's also the questioning of why that person was taken and how now we have to live never knowing why that person died. This is particularly resonant to me currently and I know that I want my song to be in memory of someone close to me. Another song of Ed's which holds resonance with me is 'Photograph' and the chorus lyrics which are;

"We keep this love in a photograph

we made these memories for ourselves

where our eyes are never closing

hearts are never broken

and time's forever frozen still."

Again, these lyrics speak to me and they made me realise we can take comfort in the photographs we have of a loved one we have lost.