Where to get started in song writing

M

mrje1

New member
Hello everyone. My name is Jeff and I am wanting to learn how to song write, how should I get started? Schooling? Computer Programs? If any, what Schools/programs are good etc.? Has any body used Master writer from www.masterwriter.com?

Thank you,

Jeff
 
Acoustic guitar, pencil and paper.


Then begin writing. See? That was easy.



Seriously, there aren't any "tricks". Just start doing it. Listen to other people doing it, and then do it yourself.


-Casey
 
As a matter of fact, I own Masterwriter. In my opinion, I think it would be the
perfect tool for you to begin writing songs. Obviously you've been to the site.
It does everything that it claims it can do. I've found it to be quite helpful in
putting together real SENSIBLE lyrics. And it's not difficult to use at all.
I generally use my acoustic guitar, keyboard, Masterwriter & a hand-held tape recorder. Usually, I lean towards Masterwriter after composing a tune.
I begin by knowing what kind of tune I'm writing, and after that's done, then I put lyrics together utilizing the software. The price is a bit steep, but for true songwriters, it'll be worth it.

ibanez468
 
No offense, but if Masterwriter does what I think it does, it's the devil. There is no algorithm for art. There is no shortcut to creativity.
 
Supercreep said:
No offense, but if Masterwriter does what I think it does, it's the devil. There is no algorithm for art. There is no shortcut to creativity.
Click to expand...

Actually, it looks like the cliche devil to me.

Your first piece of advice was as good as it gets. Maybe a book like Rikki Rooksby's "How to Write Songs on Guitar" or that Webb guy's "Tunesmith" (I hated it but lots of others here disagree with me) would help.
 
in my experiance there are a few tricks to writing songs...

just writing about girls and love and stuff, thats all well and good. as some one put it "it's the story that no one ever gets tired of hearing" but really you could write songs about ANYthing; from going out to buy a new pair of levis to the impending end of the universe.

some old tricks:

(bob dylan) reading the newspaper and writing songs about people or events
(elvis costello) looking at women and making up back stories for them without ever getting to know them.
(everyone in new york from 1975-79) the experiances of using drugs

the most important piece of advice i think is, start listening closer to music. listen to the lyrics of a song instead of just the melody.

[shrug] it really just takes practice...
 
i know that 75% of songs that i write were ispired by crazy dreams i had. i always keep a pencil and paper near my bed, because sometimes when i'm first laying down and get those first 2 winks of sleep, i'll wake up and my brain is full of ideas haha. or in the morning, after having some crazy dreams, i pick up my pencil and write down my thoughts and make a song out of it. it works pretty well for me, some off-the-wall shit happens in dreams.

and remember that alot of the time, a good song doesn't require that the people listening know what the hell you're talking about. that's why i don't write in "story" form, i usually use words that are more vague so that way the song is more open to interpretation. the more you write the better it becomes. when i started writing i was crappy, but now i'm a little bit less crappy!

:cool:
 
Thank you all for your great advice. Definitely helped. When you write songs do they have to rhyme? I do notice from the stars that they don't really do.
 
no way. i mean a song can be whatever you want it to be. most of the time, on my songs i make them at least "somewhat" rhyme, but alot of my songs have parts that don't rhyme at all. its not really about the rhyme, its about the delivery. a good song doesn't really need to fit any kind of pattern or structure.

:)
 
Thank you zed32. When you say about "DELIVERY" could you give me an example? Have an idea, but want to make sure. Do you use Dictionary's and Thesaurus's to come up with words? Do you think songs need to be a certain length?
 
when i say delivery, i'm talking about the actual performance and singing of the song itself. personally i never use any outside tools to come up with words, i find that if i think too deeply into what words to use, or if i over-analyze the song to try and make it fit a certain outline, then it ends up sounding lame. what i usually do is write out the points i want to get across in the song and the ideas i have, then i re-write it in song form. and NO songs don't need to be a certain length, unless you are making pop song specifically for playing on the radio, then you should make the song no more than 2:49. ;)


also keep in mind that what works for me or others, might not always work for you! you just gotta write down what you feel, and try not to use a thesarus too much or it will sound "manufactured". just don't try to force a song out of yourself and you'll be fine.
 
blowfish was naming some tricks earlier. Here's one of my favorites:

Watch a movie with the sound off and write the soundtrack to it. This works best if it's a movie on a DVD or VCR, so you can rewind to certain scenes that you find inspiring.
 
The advice given about "listening" to the lyrics in the songs you like is definitely a good place to start. While the process can seem overwhelming at times, all you need to remember is that you are the one writing the song, and if what you write conveys your idea, then there is no need to put extra words that you don't normally use into the lyrics. I'm all for looking up words in a thesaurus, but for me it's about expanding my vocabulary so that the next time I get an idea, I'll have more knowledge stored up in my head that I can use to get a point across. I usually start by looking through poetry I've written, and then tailor it to fit into my songs. I think Billy Corgan did quite a bit of that on the "Mellon Collie and Infinite Sadness" album,and it blew me away. As always, the adage of practice practice practice rings true. Good luck!!!
 
Here's another tip from Paul Simon:

Start with a true statement. From there, you can go anywhere you want. But starting with a true statement helps keep you from straying too far and getting pretentious. Of course, this is only one way (there are plenty of great examples where this isn't the case), but it's a good thing to keep in mind if you're in a rut. Here's an example of Paul's words in action, from "Something So Right."

They got a wall in China
It's a thousand miles long
To keep out the foreigners they made it strong

And I got a wall around me
That you can't even see
It took a little time to get next to me
 
Thank you very much everyone for your input and advice. Definitely a good start. I think that is all for now, but I probably will have more for you all later.
 
You can also try not thinking of writing a song. Maybe just take paper and pen, sit down and write your thoughts. Then go back and see what you wrote and which lines work together and so on...Writing songs can come from anywhere. I know someone who just wrote a song from a movie poster's tagline - though his song wasn't very good ;)
 
fraserhutch said:
Actually, I found that falling out of love/getting dumped is a better catalyst for writing great songs (not that I've even been dumped...*ahem*)
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Hey!! I already said that on the first page! ;)
 
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