Good point Chris.
I tend to twiddle the melody, to make sure it sounds about right, then straight from the beginning think about chords and therefore which row to play the note on. Then once it's starting to get going, have another think......
I'm finding it is always an ongoing project. Even when I think I'm about right, I take a look at someone and perhaps re-think a note/chord combination.
It seems to be the way, once you've got the rough basics, you can concentrate on the detail, once the detail's sorted, you can pinpoint a phrase to sort.... each tweak getting smaller and smaller. I find that even with tunes I started to play fairly well a while ago, i'm learning something new in a new tune and it gets fed back, a retrospective tweak if you like, sort of updating the tune bank!
I'll take a look at 'both ended' chords. That sounds like a good learning thing, especially as it challenges my right hand and also chord knowledge.
Hmmmmm actually that sounds like a good learning tool, thanks!
cheers
Q