Believe it or not, people went so far as to suggest that I might not be able to write songs anymore because now I am married. I tried to explain again that there are other things to write about besides boy meets girl, girl meets boy, boy breaks up with girl, girl is sad.

I write the songs, go in and record them, then I listen to everything and decide how it all fits together.

Sometimes I feel like I just open myself up like I'm a vehicle for something coming through me. It's like a meditative state I have to be in.

The more I separate myself from my upbringing, the more I appreciate what it's done for me.

Of course, Im older now. Im in a different place in my life than when I wrote the songs for Car Wheels or Essence or whatever. Different things were going on.

I started writing songs, I guess, when I was about 13 or 14, but I didn't know if they were good enough yet or anything.

It's easier to write songs when you're single.