A Look at Getting Started with Writing Song Lyrics

A Look at Getting Started with Writing Song Lyrics

Human beings go through a gamut of experiences, and our feelings about and reactions to these events are what makes for some great songs. Properly executed, even painful incidents can be transformed into healing ones.

We all know the feeling of chancing upon a piece of music that seems to express exactly how we are feeling at that moment, and perhaps just the knowledge that there is someone else out there who is going through the same thing we are and surviving it is the most important factor. But the ability to capture our feelings properly on paper is one that is available to us all, and can be achieved by the simple act of practicing the art of songwriting.

The concept that this kind of talent is one that we are born with is as widely held as it is mistaken, and songwriting is, in essence, a craft one can learn rather than inspiration from some unknowable place that one has to sit around and wait for. Perhaps your lyrics will never find a place on the Billboard Top 100, but they can certainly clarify your feelings and help you express what’s in your heart. Even if nobody but you ever sees or hears them, you will find that they can help you through a really rough time or allow you to celebrate a wonderful event in your life.

Most of us generally have our smartphones or tablets with us as we go about our days, and these gadgets can be wonderful tools for jotting your ideas down as they come to you. Refine your notes before you get home and can do the work of transforming them into a song, and take advantage of other forms of entertainment when you need a break, like the Android casinos that are so much fun to visit. You can mix up your creative process with some lighthearted entertainment as you please, possibly getting to the point where you can enter competitions with your creations, or win some prize money from a casino game like online blackjack here that you can then use to further your musical aspirations. These gadgets have a number of uses beyond texting and calling, and you can use them to have fun and win money with casinos, hone your songwriting skills, and many other things besides. Enjoy some of the fun and money as a reward for finally finishing that first verse!

Tips for Starting Songwriting

Start listening to the songs you love more attentively, and try to pinpoint exactly what aspect of them it is that moves you. Perhaps your response is primarily tied to the chord progressions and melody of the music you’re surrounded by, or maybe a superbly crafted lyric is what you most appreciate. Whichever of these two elements you find yourself most influenced by is where you need to focus your own attempts at self expression.

One good exercise is to rewrite the lyrics of your favourite song, keeping the melody and timing as set down by the original artist, but shaping your own thoughts for the lyrical content. If the music is more what interests you, simply flip this exercise around and rewrite the chords to fit the same lyrics.

Once this first step has been accomplished, finish off with the remaining half. If you’ve rewritten lyrics, then shape a new melody to fit your own words, if you’ve altered the music, and then try your hand at finding lyrics to suit your new melody.