Posts by Marty Dodson
Why Do I Need A SongTown?
Clay and Marty share the story behind why they started SongTown and what SongTown is all about! They also talk about the benefits of joining a community of passionate songwriters from all over the world and the importance of surrounding yourself with other supportive songwriters. Write better songs faster! Clay & Marty’s 10-day video series…
Read MoreHow To Connect Better With Your Songs
Marty and Clay share their insight from a collective 50 years of songwriting experience and answer the popular question, “How can I better connect with my audience through my songs?” Write better songs faster! Clay & Marty’s 10-day video series will help you level-up your songs and finish them faster. CLICK HERE to begin! SongTown Press Books:…
Read MoreHow to be a Bad Co-writer
With a combined 50 years in the music business, Clay Mills and Marty Dodson have enough stories to write a book about ways they have BEEN bad co-writers and about bad co-writes they have experienced. Tune in to learn how NOT to be one yourself. Write better songs faster! Clay & Marty’s 10-day video series…
Read MoreWhat’s The Big Idea: Developing Song Ideas
In this episode, we talk about developing song ideas and deciding who your intended audience is for the song BEFORE you start writing. You’ll learn tips for writing songs for yourself and for pitching to other artists. Write better songs faster! Clay & Marty’s 10-day video series will help you level-up your songs and finish…
Read MoreArguing For Your Limitations: Are You Keeping Yourself From Getting That First Song Recorded?
I’ve been reading a book called “Big Magic” by Elizabeth Gilbert, the author of “Eat, Pray, Love”, that was given to me by SongTownian Lance Sims. In the first few pages of the book, Ms. Gilbert writes… “If you argue for your limitations, you get to keep them.” That hit me squarely between the eyes.…
Read MoreThe Different Types of Songwriting Publishing Deals
There are two common types of songwriting publishing deals that publishers make with writers. But, you don’t have to limit yourself to those two options if you can think outside the box. Here are the two common types of deals plus some ideas for creative options: 1) Staff Writer Writes exclusively for one publisher. Has…
Read MoreThe Story Behind The Hit Song: Must Be Doin’ Somethin’ Right
My biggest song so far (by far) has been my Billy Currington hit “Must Be Doin’ Something’ Right”. The song also has an interesting story. My co-writer, Jason Matthews, and I had been working for two days on another song idea. By lunchtime on the second day, we still hadn’t made any progress. Not even…
Read MoreWhat Should A Song Demo Cost? A Songwriter’s Guide
WAY too often, I run into people that have been taken advantage of in regard to paying for a song demo. So, I wanted to give you all the info you need to answer the question of what should a song demo cost. Here are several demo scenarios you might find yourself in… You write…
Read MoreSongwriting Economics 101 – Song Splits
We get lots of questions here in “town” that relate to the economics of songwriting. I’m going to break down some of the basics of song splits and help explain WHY things work the way they do. Song splits in my pro writing world work like this… We always split the song equally among every…
Read MoreWhy Did You Start Songwriting?
I believe that it is good for all songwriters to stay in touch with what made them want to write a song in the first place. For me, here were some reasons that I put pen to paper and created melodies: I had a crush on the girl down the street and wanted to write…
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