If you wish to not only learn how to play guitar solos, but master your own compositions then you’ll need a plan. There’s an old saying that is as useful here as it is in any area of life ‘If you Fail to Plan you Plan to Fail’. If you want to create a guitar solo that is able to move everyone who hears it, then putting yourself in the right mindset and environment when in the writing stage can really pay off. Now, from playing guitar myself for 20 years I know that music just flows, and you can’t really explain where it comes from but it’s just in you – this is true. What I’m talking about is outside of that and works in conjunction with your existing talents, the technique with the inspiration if you will.

I will share 7 ideas here that will help to put you in the right frame of mind, and give you the best chance at getting
inspired and capturing the moment when it arises, and believe me the more you do this the more you will want to do…

Environment – If you’re learning how to play guitar solos it doesn’t matter too much where you are because you’re just replicating someone else’s work. When creating your own on the other hand, it matters a lot. To create you need to feel creative, so find an atmosphere that enhances that side of you.

Improvise – You need to practice techniques regularly and master the fret board by knowing the notes it consists of, but in the creation phase it’s time to be free flowing. There are a few ways to achieve this such as starting with a start & end note and let it flow, but to start I would suggest knowing the progression that you’re playing over and picking common notes and root notes in the chords and incorporating them somewhere, until you get an idea of where you want to take it.

Chunk Down – Break your ideas down into small sections that you can practice individually. This helps you to create
common themes and eliminate and change anything you don’t like at a very focused level.

Record Your Ideas – When practicing this step is not necessary but when writing you’ll find that you come up with so many ideas that you haven’t got a hope of remembering it all. Record it all and you can go back over it after.

Create Themes – I mentioned this earlier, but creating a small section that repeats and hooks the listener back into
something they recognize is a great way to sound professional while creating a memorable piece. Cover bands are popular because they play what people know, and a theme that repeats and flows through not just the solo but the song, can have the same affect.

Try Alternate scales and Modes – When you have found something that you think sounds good but could be better, try the same pattern in a different scale or mode. Sometimes just one note change from doing this can make all the difference to the mood and feel.

Stay in Touch – With the music that is. Get inspiration from wherever you can on a consistent basis whether that means going to gigs, subscribing to band websites and newsletters, videos, magazines, guitar workshops etc… The important thing is to know what is out there and take an active role in your scene.

Be yourself, play what is in you and not just want others want you to play and you’ll do well. Add these 7 steps and learn how to market yourself and you’ll be unstoppable!