“When people talk listen completely. Don’t be thinking what you’re going to say. Most people never listen. Nor do they observe…
You should be able to go into a room and when you come out know everything that you saw there and not only that. If that room gave you any feeling you should know exactly what it was that gave you that feeling.”
— Ernest Hemingway
That quote from Hemingway stopped me in my tracks the first time I read it. It’s not about songwriting, but it absolutely is about songwriting.
Because songwriting isn’t just about rhymes and chords. It’s about paying close attention to what’s being said, how it’s being said, and what’s not being said at all.
Let’s talk about why active listening might be the most underrated skill a songwriter can practice.
Most People Don’t Really Listen (But Songwriters Have To)
Hemingway nailed it: most people listen just enough to be able to jump in with their own story, their own opinion, their own take. But as a songwriter, that’s not enough.
You’re not just taking part in a conversation, you’re collecting emotional data.
You’re listening for the line in someone’s voice when they talk about someone they miss. You’re noticing the pause when someone answers “I’m fine.” You’re catching the half-second of silence that falls between two people who don’t know how to say goodbye.
That’s where the songs lives.
Listening Is More Than Just Hearing Words
One of the most powerful things Hemingway says in that quote is that you should know what you felt in a room and why.
That’s where your real songwriting power kicks in.
Say you walk into a room and something about it makes you feel unsettled. Instead of brushing past it, pause and ask yourself:
- Was it the lighting?
- The mess?
- A broken clock?
- An echo in the silence?
If you can pinpoint those details, you can write lyrics that feel real, because they’re built on something real. And more often than not, the audience won’t even need to know why a lyric hit, just that it does.
Songwriters Are Emotional Cartographers
Listening helps you map human emotion.
You might be writing a song about heartbreak, but how is that heartbreak showing up? Through endless cups of tea going cold? Through a bed that hasn’t been made in a week? Through a voicemail that hasn’t been deleted?
By paying attention to these specific markers in your own life (and in others) you write songs that resonate deeper. That’s what Hemingway meant when he said:
“If that room gave you any feeling you should know exactly what it was that gave you that feeling.”
In other words, name the trigger. The song starts there.
Train Yourself to Listen Like a Songwriter
Hemingway offers this challenge:
“Try that for practice. When you’re in town stand outside the theatre and see how the people differ in the way they get out of taxis or motor cars.”
So here’s the question: how often do you sit still and just watch the world?
Try these simple practices to sharpen your songwriter’s listening:
- Eavesdrop responsibly — listen to people in cafes, trains, or queues. Jot down phrases that grab you.
- Write a “Details Journal” — note three things each day you noticed that others probably missed.
- Watch old films on mute — try writing a scene based on what you see, not hear.
- Listen for silence — sometimes what’s not said is more important than what is.
It’s all songwriting. You’re building up a mental archive of humanity such as tone, tension, humour, love, grief, hesitation, all of it.
My Final Thought: Think of Other People
Hemingway ends that passage with something beautiful:
“And always think of other people.”
Active listening isn’t just a songwriting tool. It’s an act of empathy. And when you write from that place of understanding, of attention, of care, your songs have a better chance of actually connecting.
And really, isn’t that the whole point of writing songs?
