New to writing lyrics.

So for a while I've mostly made instrumental music, and I'm really wanting to make more lyrical music.

 

But I'm kind of stuck.

 

I come up with pretty cool concepts, but I have difficulty putting them into specifics.

 

Are there any books anyone can suggest? Ether lyrical/songwriting technique or poetic technique maybe?

 

Thanks

 

(Sorry if this gets asked a bunch)

Check out any book on songwriting from your local public library. They all have basically the same info, but presented in different ways. Start with something new and maybe get something older, too.

 

If you want to get started right away, take your favorite song and study the lyrics. Look at the rhyme scheme, imagery, themes, point of view, structure, etc. Take that song and use it as a model for your own lyrics.

 

The best songwriting school is writing songs. Just start writing: turn off the internal critic and write. If you don't know where to start, borrow a line from anywhere/someone and start writing. Keep writing till it's finished and then go back and rewrite it. Don't worry about being stupid or cliche or a genius -- that's for someone else to worry about. You just need to write songs.

 

If you need a subject, write about love. Never trust a songwriter who has never written a love song. Take it from Shakespeare ...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Are you still reading this post? Start writing!

Are you still reading this post? Start writing!

 

 

That's it really.

 

 

If you're completely stuck for a way to start then one way to get a feel for it is to take a selection of songs that you like and look closely at them to see how and why they work. Look for things like how the most important words match the emphasis in the music, and how the lyrics tell a story or create a mood. Look at how they build and develop the theme.

 

Then try and re-write them. Start by changing just a single word, then a phrase or two, then a whole line, a verse, and on up to a complete new set of lyrics that fit the same rhythm pattern of the music. Either experiment with singing as you write, or imagine the words being sung to the same beat.

 

Then try a similar exercise with a song that you don't like, but which was successful. See if you can see how the trick was done, and then attempt your own version.

 

This is not how everybody works, but if you're looking for a place to start then you should be able to learn some useful things that way.

 

Chris

The advice to just keep writing is critical. This is an art form unto itself, like playing an instrument, composing, engineering, whatever.

 

But since you ask, check out Writing Down the Bones, by Natalie Goldberg. She suggests a flowing approach of adding thoughts as they come to your blank page, and extrapolating or riffing off these concepts while making connections between them. It's more or less a deliberate, hard copy version of creativity's natural associative thought process. You do this woodshedding prior to actually writing. Then, at the right time, you let it out.

 

It's a Zen approach.

 

I already had my way with writing when I ran across it, but found the technique to be an effective means of getting at what's gestating.

 

Lyrics are special because of the melodic and rhythmic concerns, but I think they need to have their own influence on the whole, and this often adds considerably to the singing performance.

Ever try the exercise where you basically write a 1 page story/essay and then go through crossing out words? It can yield some interesting results at times. I find if I'm writing a piece where I actually have something to say, I tend to make it a little to wordy, and it takes away from the music, so occasionally Ill take the lyrics i've written and take out words that don't flow particularly well, or don't really contribute in a meaningful way.

 

A side effect is these pieces often can sound disjointed, but many artists do it and find a way to make it work. I'm working on a piece that uses this technique. I will post it on it's own thread when I've got the "axed-down" version recorded.

 

Happy writing!

There's this blog I know of.......

Hi, everything above is probably true but the most important thing for a lyric in a song is that it has to have a melody to fit the song. That's the best place to start. if you have a chord structure etc then you need a melody to ride the song. Then you can start to think about lyrics.