From Observation to Song
Great songwriting begins with keen observation. For Jeanette Wormald, living on a farm in the Northern Mallee provided an endless source of inspiration. The daily rhythms of farm life, the characters encountered in small rural communities, the ever-changing moods of the landscape—all of these elements find their way into her songs.
Her background in journalism shaped her songwriting approach. Just as a journalist seeks the essential truth of a story, Jeanette searches for the emotional core of her songs. This training helped her develop an economy of language—saying much with few words—and an ability to capture specific details that make stories come alive.
The Journalism Connection
Before dedicating herself fully to music, Jeanette worked as a journalist, travelling widely and gathering experiences that would later inform her songwriting. This background provided valuable skills for crafting compelling narratives in song form.
Journalism Skills Applied to Songwriting
- • Observation of telling details
- • Interviewing and listening
- • Finding the human angle
- • Clear, direct language
- • Story structure and pacing
Musical Elements
- • Memorable melodies
- • Acoustic guitar arrangements
- • Folk and country traditions
- • Storytelling verses
- • Emotional choruses
Sources of Inspiration
Inspiration for Jeanette's songs comes from multiple sources. The Australian landscape itself is a constant presence—the red earth, the twisted Mallee trees, the evening mist, the driving dust. But beyond the physical landscape, her songs draw from:
People & Stories
The characters of rural Australia—farmers, station hands, boundary riders, rural women—provide endless material for songs. Their stories of hardship and resilience, love and loss, become universal through music.
History & Heritage
Australia's colonial past and Indigenous heritage offer rich themes. Songs connect present-day Australians with their ancestors and with the traditional custodians of the land.
Learning the Craft
For aspiring songwriters, institutions like the Songwriters Hall of Fame and Berklee College of Music offer resources for developing craft. However, as Jeanette's career demonstrates, the most important lessons often come from life experience and immersion in the musical tradition.
The Australian folk and country tradition has its own rich history of songwriting masters—from Banjo Paterson and Henry Lawson to contemporary artists. Learning from this tradition while finding one's own voice is the challenge every songwriter faces.
The Performance Connection
For Jeanette, songwriting and performance are intimately connected. Songs are refined through live performance, where audience reactions reveal what works and what doesn't. The stories told between songs—the yarns and anecdotes—often become the seeds of new songs.
This live testing process ensures that songs connect with real audiences. A song that moves people in a Tamworth pub or a Mallee community hall has proven its worth in the most demanding crucible—the live performance space where there's nowhere to hide.