Songwriting - "Queen of the Night"

I have come to the conclusion that the art of songwriting, is one of the most difficult arts to master, in the world.

I have had little song "fragments" lying around for absolutely ages. Little snatches of music that I really like, some with verses of lyric, or a chorus idea. But how do you write a complete, three minute, melodic pop song?

Once you have your seed of an idea, how do you develop it? How do you know what journey the song wants to take musically, and in what direction you should take it?

Very, very occasionally a song almost writes itself. If you are lucky enough a song presents itself to you like a gift from the ether or like a message from God.

I have a song that I am working on at the moment called "Queen of the Night" which has a bit of music and melody that I really love, but I can't find the rest of the song that is as good as the bit I have, but different enough to be the next verse or chorus. The melody is strong as is the lyric imagery.

I wanted to use the imagery of a nocturnal flower to represent the lifestyle of a shy and retiring human being who only comes out and shines amidst the darkness. What you might call a wall flower, but wallflowers are not nocturnal.

I found the perfect plant to use as my metaphor - something called the "Arizona Queen of the Night" otherwise known as "Cereus Greggii" or the "night blooming cereus". This plant looks dead and withered and brown for most of the year. It is a form of cacti. However, for one short night only, once a year in June, this dead-looking cactus, produces a really beautiful, white flower. People have been know to wait around to witness the blossoming of this flower as it is such a spectacle.

So I am using this flower metaphor to represent a human being who occasionally shines really brightly and blossoms if only for a very short time. This represents a shy and retiring individual who needs coaxing and encouragement to live and be beautiful.

I will battle on with this song idea as I think it really works as a metaphor for life and I like the bit of music, melody and lyric I have. Maybe I just need to listen to the song more to hear it tell me where it wants to go.