Songwriting Help: Originality is the keyword here. Listeners want to hear something that’s different. Try utilising a common theme, but from a different perspective.

Songwriting Help - Selecting the theme

Originality is the keyword here. Listeners want to hear something that’s different. Try utilising a common theme, but from a different perspective.

Themes that work well are those that people can relate to. Love, heartbreak and relationships are popular as these are subjects that affect all of us, making it easy for us to lose ourselves in the emotions expressed in the lyrics.

Songwriting Help - Choose a memorable title

You want people to remember the title of your song. Think of it as a snapshot that portrays the situation or emotions that you want to express.

But how do you come up with an original title when so many songs have been released? Consider your market; what age group are you hoping to attract, are you writing folk, rap or rock? Once you’ve identified your target market, check magazines or Internet sites for catchy phrases and listen to the way people are interacting. By keeping your eyes and ears open you should easily be able to come up with an enticing title.

Songwriting Help - Write meaningful lyrics

Just as the title paints a snapshot, the lyrics should portray the full picture. Again the secret to success is originality. Your picture should be a unique portrayal of a popular theme.

People tend to think that lyrics should include lots of rhyming words but in fact the opposite is true. Too many rhyming words end up sounding clumsy and detract from the meaning of the song. Rhyming patterns should also be constant throughout. If the first and third lines rhyme in verse 1, then maintain this throughout the remaining verses.

Brainstorm as many thematic words and phrases as possible. This will help you to come up with ideas later. If you’re song is about love, your list would include words like; romance, emotion, affection, heart, etc.

Songwriting Help - Compose the vocal melody

This is a very important stage because your listeners will remember the melody long before they memorise all of the lyrics. The melody should be simple but at the same time creating interest.

Add colour to your melody. By that we mean adding variation. So if the chords are low, sing slightly higher. If the chords are long, make the singing rhythm a little faster. Adding colour to the music and vocals will make the melody richer and more interesting.

Songwriting Help - Carefully plan the arrangement

This area is often neglected and yet that can prove to be a costly error. A poor arrangement can ruin an otherwise excellent song. The average song length is three and a half minutes and if you brainstormed for ideas, you’ve probably got more than enough material to squeeze into that time. So plan what to include, and what to discard?

Keep the intro, short, just 8 or 16 bars is sufficient. Think about how many times you want to repeat the chorus. Remember constant repetition, especially at the end of the song, is using up valuable time that could be better utilised elsewhere. How long will the musical bridge be between verse and chorus? Make sure your composition grabs the attention of the listener right from the start. Then check the flow of your song by listening with a critical ear. Does it have a natural flow, or are there places where you lose interest?

Songwriting Help - Production

The last stage, but definitely not the least in terms of importance, is the production. Production is 50% of the song. Without good production you’re on a hiding to nothing.

The production sets the overall mood for the piece as well as putting the right effects and balance on the instruments. Sounds that taken on their own seem irrelevant can add so much to a song if used correctly.

How many times have you listened to a song and made an instant decision as to whether or not you like it? Your listeners are going to do exactly that. A professional and inviting production is essential if you want people to come back for more.

I hope you found this Songwriting Help of use, leave me a comment with your feedback.

Songwriting Tips - How to write a song with songwriting tips, tricks and articles from active songwriters and musicians.

Jeff’s Songwriting Blog - Thoughts on songwriting and the songwriting process.

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