I believe that it’s never too late to be what you might have been and to chase your songwriting dreams. I was in my mid thirties when I started trying to write professionally. A friend of mine just landed a starring role (Her first) in a movie with some...
Early on in my songwriting career I had enough bad/weird co-writing experiences that I acquired vast database of material to draw from for co-writing no-nos. So here is my list of things NOT TO DO in a co-write... 1. Write down ideas that your co-writers throw out so you...
Here are some writing exercises I do when I want to sharpen my songwriting skills and just have a good time with it, putting no pressure on myself. Ready for some songwriting fun?!? Thumb through a magazine looking for song ideas. Sometimes when I'm on an...
There are some simple steps you can take to improve your songwriting instantly. Try these steps to see a dramatic improvement overnight: Write with someone who is strong where you are weak. Years ago, my mentor told me to identify my strengths (honestly) and to let him know what I thought...
Pitching songs that are not ready or that are not in the ballpark for the artist you are pitching to is one of the fastest ways to burn bridges. In fact, doing either of those things is effectively pouring gasoline on the bridge. Way too many people pitch songs...
Most of us songwriters are happy-go-lucky types... We waltz into a co-write with lofty dreams and aspirations and then we boogie our way home with smiles on our faces because we just wrote another "hit" that could change our lives. That's a fun way to approach life for sure. But,...
The longer I write songs, the more I realize the importance of keeping your songs fresh and mixing things up from time to time. Here are some ways that I do that: 1. Booking 2-way co-writes with my regular co-writers. Then, I always look for new 3rds to add to...
Here are the best ways I know to increase your chances of getting a songwriting staff writing deal with a publisher: Get to know music publishers organically. If there's a publisher you are interested in and you are able, go to writer's nights where they are featuring their writers. Buy them...
If you've been hanging around SongTown for a while, you've heard Clay and I talk about the idea that "The Song Is King". When we say that, we mean that, when we write, we are there to serve the song, NOT to serve our own interests....
There are a lot of songwriting sites out there. We appreciate you stopping by our "town". If you are new to us, we want to let you know a little bit about who we are and how we are different from the rest. The SongTown Difference begins with we walk...