Sage Christie - Mentorship

One of my greatest joys is mentoring fellow songwriters.

As an experienced music teacher, two-time Kerrville New Folk finalist, traveling artist, and song contest judge, I provide safe and supportive mentorship to anyone interested in honing their songcraft. I am an ideal fit for songwriters whose work might be categorized as “f0lk” or “indie folk,” but I am happy to work with writers in any genre.

Frequently Asked Questions:

Q. What does “songwriting mentorship” include?

My approach to mentorship varies by mentee, focusing on each mentee’s goals. This can include:

getting started, in which I guide you toward writing your first song or help you tackle writer’s block;
polishing, in which I help you bring existing drafts to completion & refine your work;
songwriting “counseling”, in which I help you find & nurture your unique voice as a writer; and/or
DIY musician guidance, in which you “pick my brain” about the business of being a performing songwriter.

Q. Where? When? How much $?

Mentorship sessions are offered online, via Zoom. (I'll host!)

Scheduling is flexible; we can work together to find a time that works.

Pricing is as follows:

Individual hour-long sessions: $60 per session
Six-week mentorships, with one hour-long session per week for 6 weeks: $300 (paid upfront; $50 per session; save $60 in total) — if you're considering doing a 6-week mentorship, we'll start with a free 10-minute consultation to see if I'm the right fit to help you with your goals

Q. but dude seriously how do i know you're legit

because people i've mentored have said stuff like this:

“Sage brings a rare and precious ability to see straight through any artifice and into the nucleus of a song—to discern some truth or meaning you may not even realize is staring you in the face. When that ability is married to the wise, analytical eye they also possess (the kind that songs need to go from good to great), what you get is the platonic ideal of a songwriting mentor.”

—Lauren Oxford, singer-songwriter (Sevierville, TN)

“Sage Christie is one of the best songwriters I’ve ever rubbed elbows with! They also shared honest, impactful, and very productive ideas and insights with me when I consulted them on songs I was writing. I highly recommend participation in any situation where songwriting, learning, and Sage Christie are all involved!”

—Richey Bellinger, singer-songwriter (Portland, OR)

Book a Session with Sage

P.S. You can also sign up for my weekly songwriting prompt email. It's the shortest, sweetest email you'll ever get: one writing prompt + one haiku, once a week, no reply necessary, $0. Sign up by clicking the button below, or shoot me an email at sage@sagechristie.com and say, “Sign me up for song prompts!”

Sign up for Weekly Song Prompts

You are Safe: Songwriting blog

Below, you'll find articles I've written about songwriting as both an art form and a self-care practice. In these posts, I outline my philosophy of songwriting, methods and techniques I use, and habits of mind I've found helpful. I hope you'll find my advice useful and inspiring.

Compost Your Darlings

Compost Your Darlings!

or, why & how to get comfy with cutting out the parts of our songs that don't work

“Kill your darlings!” Have you heard this advice? I first heard it in English class. Google says it’s commonly attributed to Faulkner.

“Kill your darlings” means, get rid of the stuff that doesn’t strengthen your song. Even if you love that stuff. Even if you hate the idea of deleting it.

For example, say you’ve got a song with four verses, and one of them doesn’t quite fit with the rest of the song.…

Good Places

Songwriting Will Take You Good Places

or, damn it, my friend Matt was right

or, seven things to remember when what comes out of your pen scares you

Songwriting can become quite harrowing when our inner voices begin to speak freely. These voices often say things we ourselves would never say out loud. Sometimes they might advise us to address problems in our lives, or even to change our lives drastically.

That happened to me. In this article, I’ll tell you how my life changed after I began to take writing…

The Tough Stuff

The Tough Stuff

or, five ways to approach writing when it becomes emotionally painful

In the last article (“Practice Your Instrument”), I compared songwriting to an instrument that improves with daily practice. I also shared how I got rusty after I stopped writing every day.

Was I being lazy? No. In fact, I don’t believe in “laziness.” When we resist doing something (like writing), there’s usually a deep-seated reason that deserves our attention.

My reason? Writing terrified me. It forced me to encounter an…

Practice Your Instrument

Practice Your Instrument

…or, eight steps to get (back) in the habit of writing every day

Confession time?

I’ve gotten rusty at songwriting. I don’t write as much as I should, and I can tell.

Back in 2019, I read Pat Pattison’s book Writing Better Lyrics. Then I began to write every single day. Not whole entire songs; just poetry, prose, and observations. But I also began to write songs more often. And within just a few months, I was writing better songs than I ever had. By a long shot.

But at some point, I…