Do not mistake lyrics for poetry. They seem to be the same, because they have many features in common. They both use language and have rhythm and rhyme schemes. In addition, they both focus on creating images, using poetical devices, and they often both tell stories. However, poetry stands by itself as an independent art form, while the words in a song don’t.
In other words, the words in songs work hand in hand with the music to make an artistic statement. For this reason, the song text can’t be as dense as poetry text. To be precise, the lyrics need to have a far fewer number of words than a poem, because you need to leave space for the music.
This does not mean that the skills for poetry do not overlap with writing song text. They do. If you’ve been writing poetry, you have a good jumping off place for getting into songwriting.
The Craft of Songwriting Blog focuses on writing quality songs. Songwriting is a skill that can be learned. Half of the job of songwriting revolves around crafting the lyrics. Sometimes one writer writes the music and words. However, songwriting teams, where one writer writes the music and the other writer writes the words, have a time-honored place in songwriting history.
Whether you specialize in music, words, or both, you’ll find The Craft of Songwriting Blog packed with useful information.
Songwriting Posts on Lyric Writing:
See the posts below for full descriptions.
– Geoffrey Keith
© 2022 Geoffrey Keith
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Do you ask yourself, “What in the world is point of view anyway?” Does your audience sometimes get confused about who is singing in your songs? You may have problems with your point of view. Read more to learn about the narrator’s point of view in your songwriting. Estimated reading time 7 minutes.
Are you confused about how rhyme schemes work? Do you want to get away from using the same old rhyme scheme on every song? You’ve come to the right place! Read more to learn how to create songwriting rhyme schemes. Estimated reading time 5 minutes.
Ever wonder if writing a hit song means you’re selling out? When pitching songs, do you worry about losing creative control? The question of art vs commerce has only been with us a relatively short amount of time. Read more to find out what changed.
Estimated reading time 6 minutes.
Do you want to add depth to the characters in your songs? Writing about a celebrity or historical figure can be a great way to get the lyric crafting juices going. Read more to learn how to use archetypes in songwriting.
Estimated reading time 2 minutes.
Are you stuck in a rut like the guy in the picture above? Do you want to know how to come up with vivid and memorable titles? Most of the songwriting experts agree that you should first write your hook, which often ends up being paired with your title. This means you need your title at the beginning of the songwriting process. Read more to learn how to go about brainstorming your song titles.
Estimated reading time 4 minutes.
Have you ever had trouble coming up with songwriting ideas? A creative dry spell can be one of the worst things for a songwriter to have happen. Read more to learn how to jumpstart the creativity in your songwriting.
Estimated reading time 4 minutes.
Want to write better songs? Want to have your listeners sit up and take notice? You need to develop your skills if you want to write effective songs with compelling music and strong lyrics. Read more to learn the elements of writing well crafted songs.
Estimated reading time 5 minutes.
Do you want your song to be catchy? If people can’t remember your song, you’ve got a problem. Therefore, you need know how humans remember things. Read more to understand the connection between memory and songwriting. Estimated reading time 4 minutes.
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Do you want to add more zing to your lyrics? Want words that pop off the page? It’s not just what you say, but also how you say it. Read more to understand how to capture the music of words in your songwriting.
Estimated reading time 3 minutes.
Do you have a problem with mis-accented syllables in your lyrics? Learning about prosody will help you deal with the issue. Read more to understand prosody in your songwriting.
Estimated reading time 5 minutes.