I think that feeling and techniques are not seperate in song writing. Feeling should come first, technical stuff second. Thats my opinion though.
Theory is a good thing, and I think knowing it helps with ones playing. I on the other hand don't my theory that well, so I can't actually preach this. I know that I play fine with out knowing my theory too well, somethings one can know without knowing theories. Pure instinct I suppose.