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lyric wrighting basics?


metal666ry

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Originally posted by metal666ry

hey guys, im a guitar player but i also want to get into wrighting lyrics. I know this may be a stupid question but how do u guys start wrighting lyrics? How do i bring my emotions or thoughts into words? any help would be appriciated

 

Hang out with other songwriters.

 

 

Seriously Dude, that's how I became a songwriter.

Lucky me, I became friend with Philo from Driven, a young, local Rockband...influenced by Queen, Dire Straits, Beatles, but yet very creative and self-defining.

He's a great writer. Try it! Not only your lyrics will get better, with a little bit of luck, you'll also gain new friends. :)

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"Writing Better Lyrics' by Pat Pattison is probably the best book I know of on the subject of lyrics.

I have read many, many books -by various authors, and this one really stands out by helping you to develop your own style while using language effectively.

Try your local library-or you can buy one at amazon.com

 

-B

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If you've never written before, start. Just start writing, and don't worry about the quality. Just try to find your voice. After you've written dozens of songs (yes, dozens) you'll start to be able to decide what works for you and what doesn't.

 

Don't worry about whether your songs are liked by others, just please yourself. Be critical about what you do, go over your stuff and find what you like and don't like about what you write. Step outside yourself and try to judge your songs with a critical ear. Lastly, listen to lots of music, and analyze what others do that you like and don't.

 

It's like any other endeavor in life. The more work you put in, the better you'll like the end result.

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First off get a spell checker. It will cut down on all the replies about misspellings. However if it's going to be sung then spelling really doesn't matter.

 

Next pick up a pencil and paper and write something as though you were talkng to a friend on the phone. Don't think about it, just do it. Try to keep it to one topic per sheet of paper. Answer these questions:

 

what is it I want to say?

why does it matter?

who do I want to know about this?

when did it happen?

where is this going on?

 

Here are your first topics. You make up the next two. If these were songs this would give you half a cd.

 

That girl is giving me signs but she's with that guy

My best friend just moved out of town

Last night I had a nightmare about....

 

Warning - do not read books about writing until you've done some of it first.

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Originally posted by richtor

First off get a spell checker. It will cut down on all the replies about misspellings. However if it's going to be sung then spelling really doesn't matter.


Next pick up a pencil and paper and write something as though you were talkng to a friend on the phone. Don't think about it, just do it. Try to keep it to one topic per sheet of paper. Answer these questions:


what is it I want to say?

why does it matter?

who do I want to know about this?

when did it happen?

where is this going on?


Here are your first topics. You make up the next two. If these were songs this would give you half a cd.


That girl is giving me signs but she's with that guy

My best friend just moved out of town

Last night I had a nightmare about....


Warning - do not read books about writing until you've done some of it first.

 

 

Good point, but some books about writing have great starting exercises in them....like "assignments" a workbook.

-B

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Originally posted by BryanMichael



Good point, but some books about writing have great starting exercises in them....like "assignments" a workbook.

-B

 

You know that, and I know that, but if spealing is symptomatic then the book might be intimidating for day one. Just trying to get an initial read on it. No pun intended. :)

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When I get into a songwritting phase I start by reading poetry. It gets my head in the right place.

 

The kind of stuff that relates best to rock lyrics for me are the beats and the people they influence such as; Allan Ginzburg, Jack Karouc, Jack Micheline, Gregory Corso etc.

 

Sometimes a word or phrase from one of these sources will get me started on a entire idea of my own.

 

Also, stream of consciousness books like Dr. Sax by Jack Karouc are great.

 

I find reading other peoples lyrics, even the greats, dosen't help me too much, most song lyrics don't read well, they need the music.

 

Remember song lyrics don't have to make sence when you're writting them, sometimes I try to make the song be about nothing and when I'm done I realize what it's about and think, "oh, so that's what's on my mind".

 

Lastly, I like writting on a computer better than by hand. My hand writting alway's looks dumb. But on my computer I can put my words in a cool font and the lyrics look better, which gives me more confidence, so I write better.

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Originally posted by orourke

When I get into a songwritting phase I start by reading poetry. It gets my head in the right place.


The kind of stuff that relates best to rock lyrics for me are the beats and the people they influence such as; Allan Ginzburg, Jack Karouc, Jack Micheline, Gregory Corso etc.


 

 

Those are some pretty interesting influences for your work. Very impressive and a neat idea to get your head right. Hadn't thought of that before but it makes perfect sense.

 

I couldn't compose on a computer until I started working for a newspaper and had no choice about it. Never went back. Handwriting seems so slow and clunky now (btw, only one "t" in writing).

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