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steps on creating music from scratch?? Do I start with a beat?

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Topic steps on creating music from scratch?? Do I start with a beat?
I have been using Reason 3.0 for a few months now and have completed my first three complete tracks. (One that I am very proud of!!!!!) My problem is that I dont know the proper steps a composer would normally follow. Do I make the physical music before the vocals? Vocals first? Drum beat and tempo first? Does it matter?

I know that the final product is all that really counts, but I seem to get stuck lately. I make a beat that I kinda like but nothing to flow with it. Or the body of the song is great, but no beat to match its integrity. I seem to abandon the song and try to create a different one leaving me with dozens of unfinshed tracks.

Any advice for someone new to the scene???
2
theres not really an order that your supposed to go in its just whatever you feel, i made a track yesterday and started with the actual instrumentation and then moved into the beat at the end and it turned out fine, in fact i usually do it in that order, the only time i really make the beat first is if i find some wild drum samples and i can premeditate what im going to do with the beat as soon as i hear them. it also depends on your style, me i do my own instrumentation sometimes but alot of the time i work around samples so i cant really lay down a beat untill i chop my samples and figure out what i want to do with them then i work the beat around the samples. but i do find myself having those "mental blocks" at time sometimes they last a few hours, sometimes they last a few weeks, but what helps me is just to take a break and listen to some of my fav. artists to get inspiration or just practice one of my other hobbies instead and come back to it later, because forcing yourself to finish will just lead you to feel unsatisfied with the end result.... or at least thats how i see it. :/
3
YES! Get out of your studio!
I've been doing jingle and audio / video work for years...
When I start getting stuck like that it's time to take a break and do something else..
When I first started writing music / It would pour out of my head - everything sounded great -
Now - it's more difficult... I find myself second guessing things like "Oooooo Someone won't like that because the chord isn't technical enough!"...
Sometimes the best music is tri-chords and a jammin beat...

I guess what I'm saying is, sometimes let your first impression go a bit and it may slip into something you really enjoy...

Hope this helps...
Hope it's not too philosophical too...
4
I appreciate the advice :) THX
5
Just to let you know a lot of my music comes in different forms...

But usually my first idea comes as a tune or a melody line...
I then lay drums next with bass...
Then I start fiddling with expanding the idea / then the words come....

I guess it doesn't matter how the ideas come as long as you can make sense of them and do something with them...