Posts by Marty Dodson
Pro Songwriting Terms Defined
In the ever changing world of the music business, many terms get thrown around in ways that are confusing. If you are interested in playing in the “big leagues” as a “pro” writer, it’s important to know what people in the music business are talking about when they use these words: Pro The dictionary defines…
Read MoreEtiquette For Songwriting (and life)
Our pitch to publisher webinar on Thursday reminded me of several points that I think bear bringing up every now and then. Almost everyone involved in the song submitting process behaved professionally. One or two did not. One of those people e-mailed us after the event claiming that we must not have listened to their…
Read MoreGood News For Songwriters: Hard Work Beats Talent
Some of you have heard me tell this story before. Early in my writing career, I had enjoyed all the family activities I could stand and I needed a little break. So, I went to our publishing office to work on some ideas and plan my strategy for the upcoming year. The music business in…
Read MoreLyric Sheets: Which Songwriter’s Name Goes First?
My first publisher, Kim Williams, was an inspirational person in many regards. He taught me many powerful lessons about writing AND about life. Kim had been an electrical engineer and had been burned over most of his body. He spent over a year in the hospital and wasn’t given much chance at survival. When I met him, he…
Read MoreSongwriters: Don’t Turn Around Now!
In the past week, I’ve had conversations with several SongTownians who were thinking about quitting songwriting. They were on the verge of never writing another song. Their frustration at their lack of commercial success had proved to be a crushing blow to them. In every case, they had turned over their joy to the fickle…
Read MoreCritique Your Own Songs: 6 Songwriting Questions That Can Teach You How!
My #1 goal in doing mentoring sessions is to help people learn how to critique their own songs… I’m trying to work my way out of a job, in a sense. If writers learn to critique their own work, then they don’t depend on me or anyone else to tell them when their songs are…
Read More3 Creative Ways For Songwriters To Make Money With Music
These days there are more ways to make money with music than you might imagine. These are not always huge money makers, but they can provide significant income if you get enough songs recorded in these areas. 1) Internet soap operas. I have a friend who made several thousand dollars in one day by selling…
Read MoreThe Truth About Pitching Songs (Revised 2021)
One of the biggest areas in which Clay and I see songwriters being scammed is in the area of pitching songs. There are untold numbers of services that will GLADLY take your money to “pitch your song”. But here is the truth about pitching songs… There are two big reasons that this pitching songs arena…
Read More4 Rookie Mistakes Songwriters Make
Act Like You Know! In the music business, your best bet is to try and ACT like you know what you are doing, even if you don’t. You want to come across to people like you know how things work in the big leagues even if you are just trying out for the farm team…
Read MoreSongwriters: Should You Pay Your Co-Writer To Demo Your Song?
5 Songwriting Scenarios… Recently, we had a lively and awesome debate in the private SongTown Masterclass page on Facebook about whether or not a “track guy” (Or girl) should charge their co-writers for building a track/demo for their song. There truly is no one right or wrong answer to that question. There might be times…
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