The Magic of Songwriting with Francesca de Valence

Recorded live at the 2025 Whitsundays Songwriter Festival in Airlie Beach, Chris Sebastian joins Francesca to reflect on artistry, cultural influence, and the balance between vocal power and emotional restraint in songwriting.

About Chris: Chris Sebastian found his voice and love for music at a very young age. This passion has never left him, and today Chris has honed his craftsmanship of songwriting alongside the industry’s best. Writing for major artists and labels, Chris has created his own unique style, with his 2016 EP Runaway, and a new album to be released in 2019.

Chris receives an overwhelming response everywhere he performs; in his homeland of Australia, and around the world. Chris has toured as support to some of the world’s best, packed out his own headline shows, and more recently performed with Aussie electronic music duo, Peking Duk.

As a finalist on the first series of The Voice in Australia, Chris was nationally recognised for both his talent and his character. A highly entertaining performance, striking vocal technique, and a passion for his audience. This is what you can expect from an experience with Chris Sebastian.

Contact Chris: Facebook / Instagram

Find out more and contact us at I Heart Songwriting Club & Francesca de Valence.

Ready to deep dive into songwriting? Join our 10-week online intensive course to write 10 new songs with lessons, personalised mentorship and practical tools to refine your craft. Learn more at iheartsongwritingclub.com/songwritingcourses.

Get your creativity, confidence, and songwriting output flowing. Join The Club and receive the support and structure to write 10 songs in 10 weeks and get feedback from a private peer community. 

Just getting started on your songwriting journey and need more hands-on support? Establish a firm foundation and develop your musical and lyric skills with our Beginner Songwriting Courses. 

Don’t struggle to write your next album - write an album a year with ease! Watch our Free Songwriting Masterclass. 

Get songwriting insights from I Heart Songwriting Club: Instagram / Facebook / YouTube

Be inspired by Francesca on socials: YouTube / Facebook / Instagram

Theme song: “Put One Foot In Front Of The Other One” music and lyrics by Francesca de Valence 

Join our 2026 Festival

If you love this episode, please subscribe, leave a review and tell everyone you know about The Magic of Songwriting.

At the 2025 Whitsundays Songwriter Festival, songwriter and artist Zipporah Corser-Anu joins Francesca for a conversation about writing from instinct, blending dance and voice, and how culture and lived experience shape the songs we create.

About Zipporah: Fresh off the release of her new music but backed by years of live performance experience, Zipporah is a seasoned and magnetic performer who knows how to command a stage. Her recent highlights include appearances at the Brisbane Lord Mayor’s Christmas Carols, Dream Aloud (MC), Melbourne Fashion Week and the National NAIDOC Awards in 2025, following standout sets at Blak Powerhouse, AFL Gather Round, Port Fairy Festival and WOMADelaide in 2024. In 2023 alone she featured at the GQ Awards, Mushroom Music’s 50th Anniversary Concert, NGV Gala, BIGSOUND and triple j’s Like A Version with Ziggy Ramo, building on earlier major moments such as the NITV 10th Anniversary Concert and First and Forever Festival in 2022.

Find out more and contact us at I Heart Songwriting Club & Francesca de Valence.

Ready to deep dive into songwriting? Join our 10-week online intensive course to write 10 new songs with lessons, personalised mentorship and practical tools to refine your craft. Learn more at iheartsongwritingclub.com/songwritingcourses.

Get your creativity, confidence, and songwriting output flowing. Join The Club and receive the support and structure to write 10 songs in 10 weeks and get feedback from a private peer community. 

Just getting started on your songwriting journey and need more hands-on support? Establish a firm foundation and develop your musical and lyric skills with our Beginner Songwriting Courses. 

Don’t struggle to write your next album - write an album a year with ease! Watch our Free Songwriting Masterclass. 

Get songwriting insights from I Heart Songwriting Club: Instagram / Facebook / YouTube

Be inspired by Francesca on socials: YouTube / Facebook / Instagram

Theme song: “Put One Foot In Front Of The Other One” music and lyrics by Francesca de Valence 

Join our 2026 Festival

If you love this episode, please subscribe, leave a review and tell everyone you know about The Magic of Songwriting.

Recorded beside the turquoise waters of Airlie Beach at the 2025 Whitsundays Songwriter Festival, Francesca sits down with two-time Golden Guitar winner Brad Butcher to talk about songwriting, collaboration, and learning music by listening deeply growing up in regional Queensland.

About Brad: Brad Butcher is a Central Queensland born independent singer-songwriter and musician. A two time Golden Guitar Award winner for New Talent * (2018) & Alt Country Album of the year ** (2020). He was the 2018 Q Music Award Winner for Best Country Song and an APRA Professional Development Award Finalist (2013). He has release 4 studio albums ~ Travelling Salesman ** (2019), From the Bottom of a Well * (2017), Jamestown (2015) and the debut self titled release (2012). Butcher has earned himself critical acclaim and recognition nationally as an independent artist and has crafted a career and unique style of songwriter that mixes the working class grit of Springsteen and the tender expression of Ray LaMontagne. Touring Australia extensively and the United States multiple times. Butcher has showcased at Nashville's premier Americana Fest, Toronto's NXNE Festival, performed at our own iconic Country Music Awards of Australia multiple times and myriad of national festivals and venues.
Contact Brad: Website / Facebook / Instagram 

Join our 2026 Festival

Ready to deep dive into songwriting? Join our 10-week online intensive course to write 10 new songs with lessons, personalised mentorship and practical tools to refine your craft. Learn more at iheartsongwritingclub.com/songwritingcourses.

Find out more and contact us at I Heart Songwriting Club & Francesca de Valence.

Get your creativity, confidence, and songwriting output flowing. Join The Club and receive the support and structure to write 10 songs in 10 weeks and get feedback from a private peer community. 

Just getting started on your songwriting journey and need more hands-on support? Establish a firm foundation and develop your musical and lyric skills with our Beginner Songwriting Courses. 

Don’t struggle to write your next album - write an album a year with ease! Watch our Free Songwriting Masterclass. 

Get songwriting insights from I Heart Songwriting Club: Instagram / Facebook / YouTube

Be inspired by Francesca on socials: YouTube / Facebook / Instagram

Theme song: “Put One Foot In Front Of The Other One” music and lyrics by Francesca de Valence 

If you love this episode, please subscribe, leave a review and tell everyone you know about The Magic of Songwriting.

Adam Kidd and Josh Gunnels, aka Summer in the Attic, have been making music together since their college days in the 90s. Now based in Boston and Nashville, they collaborate online through I Heart Songwriting Club, challenging themselves and each other in inventive ways. In this episode, we explore their songwriting process—from Josh’s unconventional singing style and Adam’s intuitive understanding of his partner’s musical intentions, to the crucial role of production and recording in bringing a song to life. They share how songwriting transcends technical singing ability and how their creative energy thrives both in quick demos and polished tracks. Listen in as we dive deep into the making of the track ‘Mumble and Peg’ off their latest album, and the lessons it holds for every songwriter.

About Summer in the Attic: Indie rock duo out of Boston/Nashville.  No idea what we are doing but trying to enjoy it along the way. 
Contact Summer in the Attic : Spotify / Instagram

Song Credit: ‘Mumble and Peg" - Written by Josh Gunnels and Adam Kidd. Performed by Summer in the Attic 

Find out more and contact us at I Heart Songwriting Club & Francesca de Valence.

Ready to deep dive into songwriting? Join our 10-week online intensive course to write 10 new songs with lessons, personalised mentorship and practical tools to refine your craft. Learn more at iheartsongwritingclub.com/songwritingcourses.

Get your creativity, confidence, and songwriting output flowing. Join The Club and receive the support and structure to write 10 songs in 10 weeks and get feedback from a private peer community. 

Just getting started on your songwriting journey and need more hands-on support? Establish a firm foundation and develop your musical and lyric skills with our Beginner Songwriting Courses. 

Don’t struggle to write your next album - write an album a year with ease! Watch our Free Songwriting Masterclass. 

Get songwriting insights from I Heart Songwriting Club: Instagram / Facebook / YouTube

Be inspired by Francesca on socials: YouTube / Facebook / Instagram

Theme song: “Put One Foot In Front Of The Other One” music and lyrics by Francesca de Valence 

If you love this episode, please subscribe, leave a review and tell everyone you know about The Magic of Songwriting.

First Born Sun, the musical project of Canberra songwriter and producer Dave Cina, is a true unsung hero of the music world. Over four years, he’s crafted four albums in the Club, each one a fully realised sonic world. In this episode, we explore his latest release, Monkey Paw, a Spaghetti Western-inspired album that’s both lighthearted and dark. Dave opens up about his love of producing over performing, and the challenge of hearing his own singing voice in recordings. Tune in for a conversation celebrating the quiet brilliance of an underrated artist and the worlds he creates through music. 

Song Credit: “Dimming Light" - Written by David Cina. Performed by First Born Sun. 

Ready to deep dive into songwriting? Join our 10-week online intensive course to write 10 new songs with lessons, personalised mentorship and practical tools to refine your craft. Learn more at iheartsongwritingclub.com/songwritingcourses.

Find out more and contact us at I Heart Songwriting Club & Francesca de Valence.

Get your creativity, confidence, and songwriting output flowing. Join The Club and receive the support and structure to write 10 songs in 10 weeks and get feedback from a private peer community. 

Just getting started on your songwriting journey and need more hands-on support? Establish a firm foundation and develop your musical and lyric skills with our Beginner Songwriting Courses. 

Don’t struggle to write your next album - write an album a year with ease! Watch our Free Songwriting Masterclass. 

Get songwriting insights from I Heart Songwriting Club: Instagram / Facebook / YouTube

Be inspired by Francesca on socials: YouTube / Facebook / Instagram

Theme song: “Put One Foot In Front Of The Other One” music and lyrics by Francesca de Valence 

If you love this episode, please subscribe, leave a review and tell everyone you know about The Magic of Songwriting.

In this luminous conversation, Francesca de Valence speaks with acclaimed songwriter Abbie Cardwell about her newest album Love is an Amplifier. From van-life touring days to a creative rebirth through I Heart Songwriting Club, Abbie shares how her perfectionism softened, how love and loss shaped the sound of her album, and how she and her partner-producer Matthew Engelbrecht found their way back to each other through music. For anyone navigating creativity, heartbreak, or healing — this conversation is a reminder that the world needs you to do just what you love.

About Abbie: Abbie Cardwell, award-winning songwriter and performer, returns with Love Is An Amplifier, a heartfelt album exploring love’s transformative power. Blending electronic textures, dreamy pedal steel, and rock influences, Abbie’s music is shaped by personal loss, introspection, and resilience. She’s performed at WOMAD, Splendour in the Grass, and shared stages with legends. 

Contact Abbie: Website / Facebook / Instagram 

Song Credit: “Just What You Love" - Written by Abbie Cardwell. Performed by Abbie Cardwell. 

Ready to deep dive into songwriting? Join our 10-week online intensive course to write 10 new songs with lessons, personalised mentorship and practical tools to refine your craft. Learn more at iheartsongwritingclub.com/songwritingcourses.

Find out more and contact us at I Heart Songwriting Club & Francesca de Valence.

Get your creativity, confidence, and songwriting output flowing. Join The Club and receive the support and structure to write 10 songs in 10 weeks and get feedback from a private peer community. 

Just getting started on your songwriting journey and need more hands-on support? Establish a firm foundation and develop your musical and lyric skills with our Beginner Songwriting Courses. 

Don’t struggle to write your next album - write an album a year with ease! Watch our Free Songwriting Masterclass. 

Get songwriting insights from I Heart Songwriting Club: Instagram / Facebook / YouTube

Be inspired by Francesca on socials: YouTube / Facebook / Instagram

Theme song: “Put One Foot In Front Of The Other One” music and lyrics by Francesca de Valence 

If you love this episode, please subscribe, leave a review and tell everyone you know about The Magic of Songwriting.

In this episode, WA artist Tanya Ransom shares the stories behind songs born from remote places, slow seasons, and long creative journeys. Her third album, The Significance of Time, captures the landscapes between Broome and the South West of Western Australia, and explores how place, patience, and timing shape her music.

About Tanya: Tanya Ransom brings together the raw emotion of folk, blues, and alt-country, crafting rich narratives within delicate yet powerful melodies. Her vocals, balancing both strength and vulnerability, draw listeners in, while her laid-back rhythm guitar provides a solid yet understated foundation to her sound, creating a deeply resonant musical experience.
Contact Tanya: Website / Facebook / Instagram

Song Credit: “Lone Wolf” - Written by Tanya Ransom. Performed by Tanya Ransom: Acoustic guitar, vocals. James Newhouse: Drums, Electric guitar. Dave Mann: Pedal steel, electric guitar, vocals. Sam Liddon: Bass. Tone Bourke: Piano, harmonium, Wurlitzer. Tilly Kelleher: Vocals. Co-produced by James Newhouse, Dave Mann and Tanya Ransom. Mixed and Mastered by James Newhouse

Find out more and contact us at I Heart Songwriting Club & Francesca de Valence.

Ready to deep dive into songwriting? Join our 10-week online intensive course to write 10 new songs with lessons, personalised mentorship and practical tools to refine your craft. Learn more at iheartsongwritingclub.com/songwritingcourses.

Get your creativity, confidence, and songwriting output flowing. Join The Club and receive the support and structure to write 10 songs in 10 weeks and get feedback from a private peer community. 

Just getting started on your songwriting journey and need more hands-on support? Establish a firm foundation and develop your musical and lyric skills with our Beginner Songwriting Courses. 

Don’t struggle to write your next album - write an album a year with ease! Watch our Free Songwriting Masterclass. 

Get songwriting insights from I Heart Songwriting Club: Instagram / Facebook / YouTube

Be inspired by Francesca on socials: YouTube / Facebook / Instagram

Theme song: “Put One Foot In Front Of The Other One” music and lyrics by Francesca de Valence 

If you love this episode, please subscribe, leave a review and tell everyone you know about The Magic of Songwriting.

When life becomes full and creativity starts to slip through the cracks, it can feel hard to find your way back to songwriting. But as songwriter and artist Katie Harder reminds us, returning to your creative flow doesn’t require perfect conditions — it simply asks for presence, trust, and a bit of structure.

About Katie: Katie Harder, a singer-songwriter based in Mparntwe/Alice Springs and mother of four, is known for her heartfelt, authentic, and soulful music. With a 20-year career that spans folk, roots, and alt-country, her sound resonates deeply, combining raw vulnerability with strength and humor. Her music explores life’s complexities—love, motherhood, and the quest for balance—set against the vivid backdrop of Australia’s red centre and lush southern landscapes. Her songs are deeply personal yet widely relatable, drawing listeners in with her disarming honesty and warm, intimate sound.

Contact Katie: Website / Facebook / Instagram

Song Credit: “Birth Day" - Written by Katie Harder. Performed by Katie Harder: Acoustic Guitar, Drums, Bass, Vocals, Billy Black: Electric Guitar and Jared Hascheck: Hammond Organ, Wurlitzer

Find out more and contact us at I Heart Songwriting Club & Francesca de Valence.

Ready to deep dive into songwriting? Join our 10-week online intensive course to write 10 new songs with lessons, personalised mentorship and practical tools to refine your craft. Learn more at iheartsongwritingclub.com/songwritingcourses.

Get your creativity, confidence, and songwriting output flowing. Join The Club and receive the support and structure to write 10 songs in 10 weeks and get feedback from a private peer community. 

Just getting started on your songwriting journey and need more hands-on support? Establish a firm foundation and develop your musical and lyric skills with our Beginner Songwriting Courses. 

Don’t struggle to write your next album - write an album a year with ease! Watch our Free Songwriting Masterclass. 

Get songwriting insights from I Heart Songwriting Club: Instagram / Facebook / YouTube

Be inspired by Francesca on socials: YouTube / Facebook / Instagram

Theme song: “Put One Foot In Front Of The Other One” music and lyrics by Francesca de Valence 

If you love this episode, please subscribe, leave a review and tell everyone you know about The Magic of Songwriting.

Even the most seasoned songwriters hit creative walls and Scottish singer-songwriter Findlay Napier knows that feeling all too well. In this candid and funny conversation, Findlay opens up about how perfectionism once stalled his songwriting and how leaning into play, co-writing, and community helped him rediscover the joy of creating.

We talk about everything from songwriting retreats and the power of consistency to goats, spreadsheets, and writing songs that make you laugh just for the sake of it. Findlay shares how joining I Heart Songwriting Club shifted his process and even led to one of the standout tracks on his latest album Outsider The Greatest of All Time.

About Findlay: 
From the Main Stage of Cambridge Folk Festival with folk rock supergroup The Magpie Arc to an intimate acoustic show in the back room of a pub. Findlay Napier is widely regarded as one of the finest performers on the UK music scene. This fact was further highlighted when Napier was the first solo act ever to be nominated for Live Act of the Year at the Scot’s Trad Music awards in 2018. Tirelessly creative he has been touring and releasing music since the early naughties. First with groundbreaking trad folk band Back of the Moon, then with Nu-Folk pioneers Findlay Napier and the Bar Room Mountaineers and most recently as a solo act working under the guidance of legendary songwriter Boo Hewerdine.

Contact Findlay: Website / Facebook / Instagram

Song Credit: “The Greatest Of All Time" - Written by Findlay Napier. Performed by Findlay Napier. 

Listen to Findlay’s Playlist

Find out more and contact us at I Heart Songwriting Club & Francesca de Valence.

Ready to deep dive into songwriting? Join our 10-week online intensive course to write 10 new songs with lessons, personalised mentorship and practical tools to refine your craft. Learn more at iheartsongwritingclub.com/songwritingcourses.

Get your creativity, confidence, and songwriting output flowing. Join The Club and receive the support and structure to write 10 songs in 10 weeks and get feedback from a private peer community. 

Just getting started on your songwriting journey and need more hands-on support? Establish a firm foundation and develop your musical and lyric skills with our Beginner Songwriting Courses. 

Don’t struggle to write your next album - write an album a year with ease! Watch our Free Songwriting Masterclass. 

Get songwriting insights from I Heart Songwriting Club: Instagram / Facebook / YouTube

Be inspired by Francesca on socials: YouTube / Facebook / Instagram

Theme song: “Put One Foot In Front Of The Other One” music and lyrics by Francesca de Valence 

If you love this episode, please subscribe, leave a review and tell everyone you know about The Magic of Songwriting.

Donna Lynn Caskey blends banjo-driven folk with a no-frills songwriting process to capture what’s real. In this episode, she and Francesca dig into how writing fast and often helped shape her album Tiny Victories—and how “Win the Day” rose from a rough voice memo to a defining track.

About Donna: Donna Lynn Caskey, the youngest of ten children from the US Virginia coast, fell in love with the banjo while attending college in the Blue Ridge. She studied at the John C. Campbell Folk School before moving to Southern California in 2001, where she began writing songs and performing. Known for her deft clawhammer-style banjo, pure folk vocals, and evocative songwriting, Donna Lynn blends humor, storytelling, and heart in every song. Her three albums—Tiny Victories (2025), The Love Still Shows (2017), and Nameless Heart (2014)—have received wide acclaim. She lives in Ventura, California, where she combines music, arts, and community service. Contact Donna here. 

Song Credit: “Win The Day" - Written by Donna Lynn Caskey. Performed by Donna Lynn Caskey. 

Find out more and contact us at I Heart Songwriting Club & Francesca de Valence.

Ready to deep dive into songwriting? Join our 10-week online intensive course to write 10 new songs with lessons, personalised mentorship and practical tools to refine your craft. Learn more at iheartsongwritingclub.com/songwritingcourses.

Get your creativity, confidence, and songwriting output flowing. Join The Club and receive the support and structure to write 10 songs in 10 weeks and get feedback from a private peer community. 

Just getting started on your songwriting journey and need more hands-on support? Establish a firm foundation and develop your musical and lyric skills with our Beginner Songwriting Courses. 

Don’t struggle to write your next album - write an album a year with ease! Watch our Free Songwriting Masterclass. 

Get songwriting insights from I Heart Songwriting Club: Instagram / Facebook / YouTube

Be inspired by Francesca on socials: YouTube / Facebook / Instagram

Theme song: “Put One Foot In Front Of The Other One” music and lyrics by Francesca de Valence 

If you love this episode, please subscribe, leave a review and tell everyone you know about The Magic of Songwriting.