Writing a Hook and Making it Work

Get FANTASTIC RESULTS! – Download “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” 6 e-book bundle and START WRITING GREAT SONGS! ____________________________ Hooks are many things to many songwriters. For some, the hook is that neat little rhythmic/melodic idea that gets stated at the beginning of a song, and then keeps on keeping on. Think “Smoke on the […]

How Do I Know if My Song's Structure is Working?

You can write a lot of songs without even thinking about “structure.” But if you’re not at least giving a passing thought to how the various elements your music are organized, you could be unintentionally confusing listeners, and ultimately turning them off. Structure, also known as form, governs everything from the overall formal plan (verse, […]

Introducing AppsForSongwriters.com

Download “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” 6 e-book bundle for only $37, and get back to writing better songs! I’m happy to announce that this week AppsForSongwriters.com went live. It’s a convenient online portal for browsing the various musical products I’ve been offering for more than ten years. In addition, I’ve been working with the […]

Dealing With Emotion in a Lyric is Tricky

Ultimately, what causes the connection between a song and a listener is the emotional response of the listener. The listener needs to hear something that makes them go, “I’ve been there before..”, or “I can imagine that happening to me..” That kind of empathy is important; if the audience isn’t putting themselves in the shoes […]

What You Need to Know Before Writing Your Next Melody

Download “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” 6-book bundle, and learn to write better songs! We usually think of good melodies as having a distinctive shape and a climactic high point. It may surprise you to know, however, that it’s possible to have melodies that use very few notes, almost no distinctive contour, and seem to […]

The Relationship Between Tempo and Chord Changes

Download “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” 6-book bundle, and learn to write killer songs! How frequently your chords change in your song is called the harmonic rhythm. In general, there should be a consistency with this throughout each section of a song. Chord progressions help to establish the feel and mood of your song, and […]