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Writing Better Lyrics?
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I'm a fan of Pat Pattison's book "Writing better lyrics". He has some nice organizational techniques for rhyme scheme and what types of words can convey better emotion/meaning. It's fairly cheap on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Writing-Better-Lyrics-Pat-Pattison/dp/1582975779
It's really hard to write lyrics without a musical context - even if you try to follow (or not follow) a certain structure, until you've given those lyrics a melody (or some other musical context, like chords or a riff or a beat), they aren't lyrics, they're poetry. Even if you go into writing thinking "okay, these are gonna be lyrics this time", without some kind of musical idea to support it and mold it, it's still just poetry. Some people do have luck starting songs by writing lyrics first, and then trying to write a melody that fits them, but personally I've had much better luck starting with musical ideas (a melody, a riff, a chord progression), and a really broad topic for a song (like "this song's gonna be about heartache" or something), and then writing lyrics that fit the rhythmic stresses and topic. Even if you do successfully write a song starting with lyrics, you'll often find yourself tweaking them anyway to fit the music you end up writing (and if you don't, there's a solid chance of your lyrics turning out awkward and forced).
I highly recommend checking out Pat Pattinson's Writing Better Lyrics from your local library / buying a copy if you can - I can't overstate how much it's helped me get into lyric writing in a more intentional way.
If you want to write better lyrics, may I suggest you become a disciple of Pat Pattison, professor of songwriting at Berklee, and start with his book "Writing Better Lyrics". He also travels and does seminars/workshops. I have attended two and came away with a lot of insight on why some of my lyrics are great while others fall flat.
His "sense writing" exercises are well worth the effort as well.
This book was a gamechanger for me. One of the best activities in there is smashing together a list of completely unrelated adjectives and nouns which causes you to start thinking of some metaphors to use
If writing good lyrics is a big goal of yours, I'd strongly, strongly recommend reading <em>Writing Better Lyrics</em> by Patt Pattison. I'm reading it now (among with a bunch of novels) and his explanations for good writing and all of the exercises you can do are really fun and helpful.
Another point I'd like to make is to simply... say, get a nice chord loop going on and ask yourself: "What mood does this make me feel?" If the first thing that pops into your head is "sad" or "melancholy" write that at the top of your note pad or Google Doc or whatever.
Then, write down a list of topics that pertain to that mood. "suicide" "mental illness" "love and loss" "nostalgia" "regrets" Out of this list of broad topics, go with the ones you vibe with the most.
Then, once you've chosen a topic such as "regrets" you write as many paragraphs of text as you can about it. Just let your mind flow. You can tell a story about someone you read in the newspaper who "lived their whole life working for other people." You can take inspiration from your favorite book quotes. You can talk about how you regretted not going out with that cute guy and wondering what you could've had if you did. Don't think. Just write and spill as many ideas as you can. Perhaps set a timer for ten minutes to do this.
Once you have compiled your pile of "regret mental vomit", pick out any "gems" if you can. Don't just limit yourself to telling the story, show it through touch, hearing, smell, and taste. More concrete details will be more mentally engaging to your listener. Especially if they're paired up with instrumentals that suit the tone.
Anyway, I hope this helps. I learned these tips from the book I just mentioned above! It'll take quite a few tries before you get something you're happy with so just be patient. <3
I really like the site rhymebrain.com they have near rhymes as well as exact rhymes. It’s a good place to start for ideas
Also love the book “Writing Better Lyrics” by Pat Pattinson. I need to review it, but the big take away in his rhyming section is understanding how vowels and consonants can be grouped together. Eg open vowels. I highly recommend reading it!
Writing Better Lyrics https://www.amazon.com/dp/1582975779/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_q9AiFbT17G0TV
Edit: Added book recommendation and clarity
Get a book. I used to think it was something you had or didn’t. It’s just something to study like every thing else. I’m still pretty amateurish but I liked this one. there are probably countless other books out there: Writing Better Lyrics https://www.amazon.com/dp/1582975779?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share
I also find myself terrible at writing lyrics. I just started going through “Writing Better Lyrics - The Essential Guide to Powerful Songwriting” by Pat Pattinson and it’s such a fantastic resource. Do yourself a favor and dig into this book.
Totally hear you! I struggle with this sometimes, too.
I have really loved a book by Pat Patison called, “Writing Better Lyrics” . Frankly, any of Pat’s books are incredible. Echoing what others have said about not giving up. And also, remember that judging your work before it is even on the paper will get you nowhere. B-grade is better than no-grade at all. Best of luck to you!
You're making it too hard.
If it sounds good, it is good. Theory is helpful as it gives you more options (especially with regard to substitutions which you can use to "surprise" the listener and sound a little more sophisticated and "fresh").
There's two parts to writing a song. There's the music, and there's the story you want to tell. Songwriting is about telling stories. If you just want to do instrumentals - maybe you'd prefer composition or /r/musictheory
The hardest thing for any songwriter is to say a universal truth in a way that has never been said before. Your first songs will likely be filled with cliches and what we call "throwaway" lines. Lines that take up space but aren't new or clever. A major trap new writers fall into is to try to be clever by being very very vague. If the listener can't put himself in your song he's not gonna dig it.
Your first song will probably suck. So will your second and your tenth and maybe your hundredth. But every song will lead to a better song next time.
I personally have no trouble writing music but struggle to come up with lyrics. I want to recommend Pat Pattison's book "Writing Better Lyrics". Its a classic. John Mayer has credited this work with helping him improve. Pattison is professor of songwriting at Berklee School of Music. I've attended a couple clinics with him. He really knows his stuff.
This book has helped me immensely. It's written by a Berklee music prof and has great examples of how structure, and rhyming can liven up a song that seems to drag on. It even has a section on clichés. I couldn't recommend this book more.
this is really good man! if you would like this link is to a book that i used to help me write better. it really works http://www.amazon.com/Writing-Better-Lyrics-Pat-Pattison/dp/1582975779/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1331524881&sr=8-1
good luck!
Check this book.
https://www.amazon.com/Writing-Better-Lyrics-Pat-Pattison/dp/1582975779
Also, start doing some listening / watching / reading on the concept of Story - what makes one, what is one.
Here's a good start
https://www.amazon.com/Story-Substance-Structure-Principles-Screenwriting/dp/0060391685/
Consider reading Pat Pattison's Book
There’s a great book from Berklee College of Music that could really really help. Writing Better Lyrics https://www.amazon.com/dp/1582975779/ref=cm_sw_r_awdo_navT_a_VYYDR1MMTMSY79N6AQ4Q
This book was immensely helpful to me as I was learning how to write better lyrics. It gives practical tips and exercises:
https://www.amazon.com/Writing-Better-Lyrics-Pat-Pattison/dp/1582975779
If I had to take one book with me and my guitar to a deserted island, I would take this rhyming dictionary:
https://www.amazon.com/Complete-Rhyming-Dictionary-Including-Poets/dp/0440212057
Writing Better Lyrics https://www.amazon.com/dp/1582975779/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glc_fabc_OPi6FbEG4RQ56
Buy the book Writing Better Lyrics by Pat Pattison off Amazon. Do everything he says. I just finished it, and I found it thoroughly insightful.
https://www.amazon.com/Writing-Better-Lyrics-Pat-Pattison/dp/1582975779
I took a course through Berklee school of music and loved it. The teacher Pat Pattinson has written a book on his process and it's a simple read and easy to put into practice. Here is a link to the $12 book on amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Writing-Better-Lyrics-Pat-Pattison/dp/1582975779 And here is a link to the $10 masterclass he does with videos. It's totally worth it: https://online.berklee.edu/songwriting-master-class-with-pat-pattison
Buy this: Pat Pattison - "Writing Better Lyrics", do the exercises.
> What are some basic structures that I can go off of?
The two most basic songwriting forms in popular music are Verse/Chorus and Verse/Verse.
All of this is going to end up being a massive generalisation because both forms are mutable and can be mucked about with in various ways.
I'm just going to give you the basics because going into detail would require even more of an essay and I don't have time.
Things to bear in mind.
Songs are sung and as such consist of lyrics and music. Although the two mostly work together, the musical structure is not necessarily the same as the lyrical structure.
For lyric-writing tips and improvement I recommend:
Pat Pattison "Writing Better Lyrics";
Pat Pattison "Songwriting: Essential Guide to Lyric Form and Structure";
Pat Pattison "Pat Pattison's Songwriting: Essential Guide to Rhyming".
My default subreddit for lyric-writing questions is /r/songwriting, although (caveat) I haven't visited there in ages so don't know what the quality of discussion is like atm.
Ignoring the comment above about the two being separate entities, I'll assume the two are the same for the purposes of the following.
Verse/Chorus
The verse is the bit where the "story" gets told, and the Chorus is the catchy bit that gets repeated.
Some examples of verse chorus songs:
"She Sells Sanctuary", The Cult
"Go Your Own Way", Fleetwood Mac
"LFT", Quadron
"Just", Radiohead
The story can be an actual story:
Last of the True Believers, Nanci Griffith
or it can be a rambling set of images without discernable narrative:
"Lit Me Up", Brand New
Often additional sections are added.
Intro - introduces the song
Comes before the first verse and sets the tone for the song. It can be quite brief or fairly extensive.
"Don't Let It Bring You Down", Neil Young. The first 0.14" is introduction.
"Wish You Were Here", Pink Floyd. The first 1'15" is introduction.
Pre-Chorus - builds up to the chorus
Comes after the verse and before the bridge.
"The Pretender", Foo Fighters. "Same old story" isn't part of the repeated section that comes before it, and isn't part of the repeated sections of the chorus. It's a pre-chorus.
"Imagine", John Lennon. In this case (and paradoxically) the pre-chorus initially occurs without a chorus. It leads into the chorus from the 2nd verse onwards.
Turnaround - leads back into the verse from the chorus.
(N.B. This is a term I'm sure I read somewhere, but the word 'turnaround' seems to have a different meaning in Jazz).
In the Neil Young song (above) the turnaround is the same as the introduction.
Bridge - usually this is a section where there is contrast from the verse/chorus structure, although sometimes it can function as a transition.
"Refugee", Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
"Country Roads", John Denver
"Message in a Bottle", The Police. This bridge is towards the transition-end of things.
Verse-only
The lyrical refrain comes at the end of each verse, so that instead of an obvious verse/chorus distinction there are just a succession of verses.
"Georgia on Mind Mind", Ray Charles
"Love Letters", Nat King Cole
"Move it on Over", Hank Williams
In folk music this structure is often used to tell long-form stories, often with musical breaks in-between verses for contrast
"Matty Groves", Fairport Convention
"Jack Rowland", Martin Carthy
edit
P.S. Psychedelic rock relies on riffing.
To make it more interesting for the listener you:
Add and remove instruments
Have improvisatory sections over the riff
Use soft/loud contrasts
But - at all costs - you keep the riff going unless you're holding it back temporarily to create more energy in the room by creating a feeling of anticipation in the crowd.
It's a very similar principle in a lot of dance-based music - funk, EDM, salsa
Personally I find this kind of music both very easy and very hard to write.
Riffs are easy to come up with, but writing good riffs that aren't a rip-off of something you've heard before is a headache.
It's easy to get a riff going but then dressing it up so it sounds continually fresh can be an absolute arse, especially if you're writing on your own in your bedroom with no crowd or other musicians to give you that sense feel of ebb & flow that's crucial to the music.
It's very easy to overthink this kind of stuff - because if you're making a track you are going to listen to that riff a lot, but you also have to be critical about what you're doing because it's very easy to just ramble on for ages without going anywhere interesting.
This is a cool and practical book https://www.amazon.com/Writing-Better-Lyrics-Pat-Pattison/dp/1582975779
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Think he had a short course on Coursera
Two things I'm finding extremely useful:
LinkedIn Learning course with Julian Vengard: https://www.linkedin.com/learning/music-theory-for-songwriters-the-fundamentals
Writing Better Lyrics by Pat Pattinson: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1582975779
Some people will say "write from your heart" but I'm learning that great songs have SO much more technique and theoretical wizardry applied throughout the process.
These two resources are just excellent. I've been a musician for 20 years and I forced myself to watch all the videos on the LinkedIn course - I learned useful things I wish I'd known years ago.
This is one of the best things I've done to enhance my lyric writing. If you follow the exercises in this book, you will surely see quick improvement. It will not be all you need, however. You still need to put in hard work before you will be able to write songs you really feel proud of. Good luck mate.
Writing better lyrics by Pat Pattison https://www.amazon.com/Writing-Better-Lyrics-Pat-Pattison/dp/1582975779
Yeah, it's all starts with the lyrics for me.
http://www.amazon.com/Writing-Better-Lyrics-Pat-Pattison/dp/1582975779
Read everything you can get your hands on by Pat Pattison (Professor of songwriting at Berklee). Specifically I would start with Writing Better Lyrics which is a good start.
His Songwriting Without Boundaries is a collection of writing exercises that builds on the first book - its a practice manual. Writing is like a muscle - you have to write often to write well. You do not have to show other people your early rough stuff though. :-)
I'm not trying to be a dick here, I can tell you have a passion for writing. And even though writing lyrics isn't brain surgery, it's still very much a craft. Meaning you have to learn it. And I can tell that you just haven't learned it. Here are a few places to start.
Also check out this book if you can. It's like a bible for many songwriters.
There can be A LOT of thought behind the inner structures. Pat Pattison's book may give you a lot of insight:
http://www.amazon.com/Writing-Better-Lyrics-Pat-Pattison/dp/1582975779/
There's a free online course with him somewhere, too.
Yeah.. keep writing. Study your craft too: http://www.amazon.com/Writing-Better-Lyrics-Pat-Pattison/dp/1582975779
Today I'm feeling lazy. Read this book, it'll fix all the problems with this lyric that I would spend 20 minutes typing up: http://www.amazon.com/Writing-Better-Lyrics-Pat-Pattison/dp/1582975779
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