Once I have a song that I am happy with...a chord progression, some melodies, reasonable lyrics etc...then I will work away on it happily and have lots of ideas for arrangements and so on.
However, it's coming up with these starting points that I am having trouble with. I still only have a handful of fully fledged songs. I have a folder on my PC which is jam packed with bits n bobs of ideas for riffs that I have never really been able to find a home for...normally because I have brushed them aside for being "not good enough".
More often than not, when I sit down with my guitar, I will start playing a few progressions for a while that I think sound alright...but then I get this voice in my head that says "Nah, this is a bit too simple" or "I've heard this somewhere before", which then results in me getting in a strop, putting the guitar down and having a coffee and a cigarette instead.
I want to know if there is anyone else that feels like this sometimes and, if so, how do you overcome it? If I start to get a bad feeling about a song or chord pattern, should I stick with it, add to it and see if it turns into something worth hearing, or should I be feeling really good about it from the outset for it to ever turn into a decent song? Perhaps I am expecting too much from my songs at an early stage?
Not sure whether I have articulated this very well, as it is late and I'm a bit tired. Let me know if that doesn't make a whole lot of sense!