These lyric writing tips will help you to write more comfortable, natural-sounding lyrics.
A contemporary lyric should sound conversational, and not forced. Here are a few ways to get you started writing better lyrics.
1. Write the story in prose.
Before you attempt to write in song form, write your idea as a short story. Include visual descriptions, things your characters might say, and even their names if you want.
Don’t worry about rhyme or meter. The goal is to tell the story, to say exactly what you want to say.
Stay on the subject you’ve chosen until you have a beginning, a middle and an ending. It doesn’t have to be very long. Remember your song only needs a couple of verses, a chorus, maybe a bridge.
When you’re happy with what you have written it’s time to turn it into a lyric.
2. Write the lyric without rhyme.
Begin writing your lyric, but don’t worry about making it rhyme just yet. Simply tell your story in lyric form. If you’re thinking too much about rhyming at this point, you may not say just what you want to say.
You want to be able to write it with freedom.
Once you have your verses planned out then you can start looking at how you might rhyme them. Use a rhyming dictionary to help you. You can also open your thesaurus to look for just the right synonyms.
And remember, you don’t HAVE to rhyme. Rhymes are very useful for helping to hold the lyric together, and to help us remember the words. And they can sound clever and cool.
But be careful not to make it rhyme just because you think it should.
Don’t risk twisting the meaning of your song just to force a rhyme.
3. Speak it out loud.
Once you’ve finished your song give yourself a pat on the back! It doesn’t mean you’re finished but do it anyway. You deserve it.
Now before you go any further, speak it out loud. How does it sound? Do people speak that way? How does it feel? Are there any parts that are awkward or uncomfortable? I’m not talking about subject matter. I’m talking about the natural flow of the words.
You want your song lyrics to sound as natural and conversational as possible. Once they do, you know you’re onto something good!
I’m Richie Gilbert and I have been passionate about writing songs for many years. I also spend much time in my home
recording studio, and am active in pitching my songs to music publishers.
To learn more about the craft and business of songwriting, please visit my website at http://www.inspired-songwriting-tips.com
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