The Dolls - A Lover's Concerto

7 Quick Tips for Adding Chords to a Melody

If you like to start your songwriting process by working out bits of melody first, one of your biggest challenges might be the adding of chords. How do you work out a chord progression that supports your melody? It’s a bit amazing, when you think about it, that melodies can be so different, but chord […]

Pianist playing chords

Looking For Strong Beats to Add Chords to Melodies

If you’re a chords-first songwriter, it means that you come up with a chord progression, and then try to design a melody that goes with it. What you may not know is that if you’re a melody-first writer, you’re probably also working out the chords at the same time. That’s because our musical brains have […]

Songwriting When You Don’t Feel Inspired

Download “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” 6 E-book Bundle. Kick-start your songwriting career, starting now. _________ I have great admiration for those who write movie scores. They don’t have the luxury of waiting until they feel inspired. Professional productions run on a schedule, and it’s usually tight. That ability to write on demand is possible for all […]

Getting Creative – It May Be Easier Than You Think

Writer’s block is a frustrating thing when it happens. And while there’s lots you can do to help keep it to a minimum, it can happen to the best of us. But getting that creative feeling may be easier than you think, and if you’ve got even just a basic keyboard, here’s something you can […]

Which Chords with Which Notes? Harmonizing a Melody

___________________________ I wish more songwriters would do the melody-first method. Coming up with the melody after endless strumming of chords can often result in a tune that is directionless and uninspiring. What probably scares writers off of writing a melody first is… how do you harmonize it? Getting a bit of understanding with regard to […]