It usually just happens.

You’re sitting there and something pops into your head, a lyric or a sound or an idea.
And then it just pours out onto the fret board and paper. It usually happens fast,
so if you’re not near an instrument, the inspiration can disappear as quickly as it comes.
Very frustrating!

Also frustrating is an abrupt stop in the transmission.
You have half a song and you hit a wall or maybe the bridge is missing
and you can’t cross over to the end. I’m sure there are countless studios with
half finished songs, paintings or pottery.

I think for most songwriters, the writing process can’t be done deliberately
or manufactured. Songs that are deliberately written, in my experience, are usually
quickly forgotten and don’t resonate with anyone.
Like a pebble hitting the water, there’s a splash, some rings and it’s gone.
You have to connect with the song emotionally. That’s just the way it is.
Think of, to name a few artists, Springsteen, Indigo Girls, Ben Harper,
Neil Young, Bruce Cockburn, Ani DiFranco, Pete Seeger.
These are examples of people who sing and play their songs with genuine
emotion and conviction making their music timeless.
People love them and their songs because of this essence they share.

I bet they’ve never forced a song out.

Now think of the “Nashville” writing machine.
Cookie cutter songs that have a catchy beat,
but are forgotten so quickly that I can't even think of an example.
Then, they’re re-released 10 years later to another generation that
don’t remember their parents listening to them when they were kids.
I guess that makes the songs timeless in their own way ~ unfortunately
(and how your mother knows all the words)!