Estimated reading time 5 minutes
Table of Contents
Introduction
Do you find yourself falling into ruts in your songwriting, making your song lyrics boring or repetitive? Help is on the way! In today’s post, you will read about the best lyric writing tools for you to buy.
This article uses literary terms. For definitions, see the Glossary at the end of the post.
Lyric Writing Tools for You #1: A Dictionary
The first lyric writing tool for you to put on your shopping list: a dictionary.
The dictionary needs no introduction. It has so many uses beyond just checking spelling, such as: pronunciations, parts of speech, and word origins. Of particular use to songwriters, you can check the syllabification of the words when transcribing your song into sheet music format. Also, you can check the stress marks in a word to see if you have good prosody.
For help with prosody issues read:
Book
Online
Lyric Writing Tools for You #2: A Thesaurus
The second lyric writing tool for your list: a thesaurus.
Repeating the same word too often? A good thesaurus will help you find synonyms (words with similar meanings) and may even list some antonyms (words with different meanings) as well.
Despite sounding like an extinct species of dinosaur, a thesaurus will be one your most useful resources. I own Roget’s 21st Century Thesaurus. However, Merriam Webster Online also has a thesaurus feature.
Book
Roget’s 21st Century Thesaurus
Online
Lyric Writing Tools for You #3: A Baby Name Book
The third lyric writing tool for you to get: a baby name book.
You will find baby name books really useful for coming up with character names. Not only can it help you find interesting names, but these books will also list name trends. This helps with picking timeless names or obscure ones depending on what you want. Also, phone books can serve the same purpose.
Book
100,000 + BABY NAMES: The Most Complete Baby Name Book
Online
Lyric Writing Tools for You #4: Checking for Unique Song Titles
The fourth lyric writing tool you can use for free online: Google. You can’t copyright song titles, and most of the good ones have already been used. This means you need to dig deep if you want to have a truly original song title.
- For example, I first searched for a really common song title: “I love you (song).” Google returned: “About 2,640,000,000 results (0.70 seconds).” This search came up with oodles of exact or very near matches, some of which were really well know songs.
- Next, I tried a title I thought would be more original: “Your Amber Eyes (song).” Google returned: “About 22,200,000 results (0.58 seconds).”
- I didn’t think I’d come up with an exact match on this one. Nope, wrong. I found five people on the first page of search results who’d written a song with that exact title.
- Finally, I searched for a title I thought would be unique: “You are the Putty in The Armpit of My Soul (song).” Google retuned: “About 1,080,000 results (0.41 seconds).”
- However, I found no exact matches on the first page. I picked this title because I felt certain that no one in their right mind would call a song that. This time I chose right. Clearly, you’d want to pick a better title than that, however.
The main point: try to make titles that stand out of (not get lost in) the crowd.
For tips on coming up with song titles read the post:
Online
Lyric Writing Tools for You #5: A Voice Recorder
The fifth lyric writing tool on your list: a voice recorder.
A voice recorder can be a really useful way to get your ideas down quickly so that you don’t lose them. This goes double for when you have a melody in your head. I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve heard someone say, “I’ll remember it,” only to forget it later.
You can get a physical device, but online versions do exist.
Device
Online
Lyric Writing Tools for You #6: A Notebook & More
The last lyric writing tool for you to buy: a means to write down your ideas.
- If you want to write songs and song lyrics, you need something to write them on. If you don’t get a voice recorder, you should buy a notebook that you can carry around with you everywhere so you can write down ideas. Also, you can use the notebook to compose your lyrics.
- However, many people prefer to write them on a device of some sort. Even though it’s not perfect, Microsoft Word remains the standard text editor for a staggering number of businesses in a wide range of industries. Also, it includes spell check, a thesaurus, and a find option, which can be useful for checking for passive voice words.
Book
Software
Free Online Version
Lyric Writing Tools for You #7: A Rhyming Dictionary
Of course, what lyric writing resource list would be complete without a rhyming dictionary.
Book
Online
Conclusion
The examples above include some of the best lyric writing tools for you to invest in. Generally, they don’t cost too much, especially if you use the online versions.
Keep in mind, this does not constitute an endorsement of any particular product mentioned in this post. Instead, I’m recommending general types of products. Because these types of products will make your writing process quicker, easier, and more efficient. Have fun writing!
© 2022 Geoffrey Keith
Join me for online or in-person lessons today!
Glossary
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Harmony is Tone Color
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Songwriting – Let Her Scream
Do your lyrics lack powerful emotions? Do you want to learn how to write using stronger images? Take Mark Twain’s advice, “Don't say the old lady screamed. Bring her on and let her scream.” The first of Twain’s sentences uses abstract language, but the second uses concrete images instead. Simply put, when you describe a scene, you need to show it rather than tell it. "Songwriting - Let Her Scream" shows you how. Estimated reading time 3 minutes.
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How Does Your Brain Learn to Play the Piano with Two Hands?
How does your brain learn to play the piano with two hands? Daniel Coyle, in "The Talent Code," tells us generally how the brain acquires skill, and I’ll give you specific tips for two-handed playing. Read more to find out how it works. Estimated reading time 4 minutes
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