After writing songs for the past 25 years, and, more importantly, having taught songwriting for the past decade or so, I’ve come to realize that a career as a professional songwriter is built on some magical combination of genuine inspiration and rock solid craftsmanship. A songwriting friend of mine once told me, “Every once in a while, you’re going to screw up and write a great song,” and there’s a lot to that. What I believe he meant was that, on occasion, you’ll write a song fueled only by pure inspiration. However, 100 percent inspiration-fueled songwriting hasn’t shown itself to be the kind of thing you can rely on if you're hoping to live the day in and day out life of a professional songwriter. This is where attention to your craft becomes so important.
<iframe width="620" height="349" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/yCmlP-iR5Fc" frameborder="0" allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen></iframe>
While I truly feel that the creative spark itself can’t be taught, I do believe that everything else that goes along with it to write great songs is a teachable discipline. In this piece, I’ll mention a few of the typical songwriting educational approaches and give you some arguments for and against in the hope that you’ll make more informed decisions about what works best for you.
Songwriting Books/Classes
Songwriting books and classes are generally designed more for the beginning songwriter. There is no shortage of online lessons and podcasts or local courses that aspiring songwriters can find to familiarize themselves with some of the basics of the craft.
Benefits: In my opinion, the biggest reason that songwriting books and classes are of value is their emphasis on songwriting as a craft that can be mastered. So much about songwriting early on seems impossibly mystical and some nuts and bolts discussions about things you can do to improve your songs can be hugely useful. By thinking about songwriting as a discipline, songwriters will slowly develop a toolbox with which they can approach their art instead of simply standing by and hoping a good song will come to them.
Challenges: The risk in relying solely upon education and/or information is that songwriters can lose their individual voice and inspiration by trying to follow too many rules or programs. At its best, all of the study and education will serve as the bedrock of a consistent songwriting approach but will disappear when it comes time for creativity to shine.
Professional Song Critiques
As songwriters get a few songs under their belts, both beginners and intermediate songwriters might consider a professional critique. These can come from either a local professional songwriter or any one of a number of virtual sources as offered, for example, by Taxi.com.
Benefits: Early on in a songwriter’s journey, it can be hugely helpful to have a veteran songwriter or industry executive listen to your songs. There is real value in knowing what tends to work in a commercial market and in learning what beginners’ mistakes or pitfalls you can avoid once they’ve been pointed out. At their best, song critiques simply provide a baseline understanding of common songwriting conventions.
Challenges: My biggest issue with professional song critiques, however, is that as a beginning songwriter, it doesn’t take much to become discouraged by a negative critique. A seed of a great song may never be given the chance to grow if a more experienced songwriter makes a comment that isn’t flattering. I make it a point when giving critiques to tell my clients that my goal in critiquing their songs is either to have them agree that my comments will help them improve their songs or disagree with my comments and give me the reasons why. It helps to be reminded that songwriting is art and, ultimately, no one can tell you whether your art is good or bad. That’s up to you as the artist to decide.
Songwriting Groups
Songwriting groups work for beginners and intermediate songwriters looking for a collection of their peers. You might find these groups through a local music store, open mics, writer’s nights, an online community or, in the absence of any one of these, you might consider starting one of your own.
Benefits: If you’re considering joining a group of local songwriters, I’d say that the greatest benefits come in the mutual accountability and support that a songwriting group provides. Just the requirement to show up each regularly with new material to show the group can be a powerful motivator. Similarly, having a peer group to commiserate and celebrate with can make the relatively solitary life of a songwriter a little less lonely.
Challenges: At the same time, songwriting groups are often filled with songwriters who don’t have the accumulated experience to critique constructively. This can result, again, in budding song ideas being crushed before they’ve had a chance to become fully finished songs. My recommendation would be to always remember to take any comments (either negative or positive) with a grain of salt so that you’re not overly discouraged, or encouraged, by what is discussed among your peers.
Teaching Songwriting
For more experienced songwriters, there often comes a time when you’re in a position to consider sharing some of your hard-won experience and teaching then makes sense.
Benefits: One of the first things I noticed when I started teaching songwriting and songwriting workshops was how wonderfully validating it was to take my years of trial and error and help younger or less experienced songwriters gain some insight into what does and doesn’t work in their writing. Teaching can also raise your profile in the music community and help with broadening your network. Finally, teaching can generate some additional income when things are a bit slow on the royalty front.
Challenges: While teaching can be a great way to spread the wealth and give back to the songwriting community at large there is always the risk that it can take time away from your own songwriting. Learning to balance your teaching and consulting with the time you set aside for actually doing the thing you’re teaching is exceptionally important if you’re hoping to keep yourself motivated and enthusiastic in your career.
In the end, the dichotomy between inspiration and education is often referred to in terms of art and craft. This relationship is a delicate one to balance but both sides are essential to writing consistently effective songs. As you progress down the path of a lifetime of songwriting, it might be helpful to remember to let the craft serve the art and not the other way around.
Good Luck!
(Cliff Goldmacher is a songwriter, producer, session musician, engineer, author and owner of recording studios in Nashville, Tenn. and Sonoma, Calif. Goldmacher is the author of The Songwriter’s Guide To Recording Professional Demos and offers tips and techniques on songwriting and the music business through his blog, eBook, and online courses at www.Lynda.com/CliffGoldmacher.)
See A Full List Of Song Of The Year GRAMMY Winners
