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 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.
Tired of writing cliché rhymes in your songs? Want to know more about rhyming? Rhyming in songs seems straightforward. However, a lot more craftsmanship needs to go into it than it seems. “Learn Rhyme and Reason in Songwriting” will start you down the path toward your goal. Estimated reading time 4 minutes.
Do you have lyrics but need a melody? Starting with the text’s rhythm helps you create the melody you need. Read more to learn how to extract a melody from your lyrics. Estimated reading time 3 minutes.
Do people have a hard time figuring out what your song is about? Do your lyrics lack direction? Read The Plot Thickens: Focusing Your Songwriting Story Ideas to learn how to keep your lyrics from wandering. Estimated reading time 4 minutes.
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.
Have you ever looked at a blank sheet of paper and couldn’t think of a single lyric idea? Try these tips for overcoming writer’s block in songwriting. Estimated reading time 4 minutes.