About the block thing, think yin/yang. When you can't get over a 'block' by hitting it head on, try another angle. Sneak around the sides or surprise it from behind.

I've tried to write about a certain subject and got no-where. It's because if the song needed to be writen, it would sort of start itself going. The 'why' comes before the 'what'. Why do you want to write the song? What is it about the subject that inspires you.

As for tunes, I've actually found I'm better on melody instruments. I hear the chords/harmonies in my head anyway. I know just enough guitar for it to limit me. Fiddle is OK, but I have to set it down to write or type the notes. I bought a cheapie keyboard, and the melodies come easier on that. The best tunes (sans words) I've written have been done solely on computer, with me thinking, "What happens if I stick a quarter note here?" With both the keyboard and the computer, I feel more free to experiment, but I don't know why.

What's hardest for me is that, although I can write words, and I can write tunes, it's a real bugger for me to write tunes to words or words to tunes!