The Art and Business of A Songwriter by Eve Williams 2019

THE ART AND BUSINESS OF A SONGWRITER: EVE WILLIAMS
THE ART AND BUSINESS OF A

SONGWRITER
Discover How to Write, Publish and Market Songs Like
a Professional Songwriter
www.singinglessonsni.com
www.evewilliamsmusic.com
© Eve Williams 2019

Contents
How I Became a Songwriter and How to Use This Book 3

Getting Started with Songwriting 5
Developing Lyric Ideas 7
Hooks 25
Writing a Memorable Melody 27
Songforms 31
Which Comes First, Music or Lyrics? Trying
Different Approaches to Songwriting 32
Collaborative Writing 35
The Producer/Writer 39
Preparing to Record a Demo 43
Marketing Your Music 45
Music Publishing 61
Making the Most of Conferences, Courses 68
and Seminars
A Real Life Experience of the Lifestyle of a Songwriter 73
Appendix: Dealing with Rejection as a Musician 77
Appendix: The Songwriter’s One Sheet 79
Useful Links 80
More Resources from the Author 81
Thanks to… 82

How I Became a Songwriter and How to Use

This Book
Welcome so much to this book/course on songwriting. You can use this book whatever way
you want, as a structured course or by just dipping in and out of the bits you would like to
work on… it’s about developing your own particular skills as a songwriter, whether you are
just putting together your first song or you have been writing for years.
At this point I should really introduce myself. My name is Eve Williams and I’m a
professional songwriter, but only after long years of being a semi-professional songwriter
and before that a non professional songwriter and before that a beginner songwriter and
before that a singer who needed to be able to send out demos without infringing anybody’s
copyright. I suppose the start of my songwriting journey was when I was maybe 5 or 6 and
my grandparents bought a Casio keyboard (I’ve still got it. It’s now an antique) and my
grandmother decided to try and teach me to play. She gave up in the end and I was sent to a
very scary person who slapped me with a yellow ruler if I played a wrong note. In the
meantime she compelled my sister and me to sing for company, usually my great aunts, and
taught us the folk songs of our native Northern Ireland and war time hits. My grandfather,
like my grandmother, communicated emotional sentiments through music. ‘I don’t know
why I love you like I do, I don’t know why I just do….’, I remember him singing. In that time,
music became the language of family life, especially when my father was hit by a drunk
driver when I was 7 and sustained a brain injury. He was in a coma for 6 weeks and in
hospital for months, during which time we lived with my grandparents. I made my first
attempt at writing a song at that time on the old Casio.
In school, I became a competent singer and a terrified pianist (the whole ruler thing),
eventually forging my mother’s signature to give up piano. I learned in my 20s when I was
old enough not to put up with assault (not that you should put up with being slapped at any
age, but at 11 I just accepted that you played a wrong note and there would be
consequences). I studied voice and then vocal pedagogy and really wanted to pursue a
career as a singer. For this I needed to record demos and I didn’t want to produce cheesy
covers. Then, like many other professional songwriters I have worked with when asked why
they started to write, I got to the point where I had things to say and a story to tell. I also

had a CD collection (if that doesn’t give away my age) of about 2000 CDs and was well
versed in pretty much every genre of music. I was ready to create my own sound.
I started writing using my voice, adding the chords later. It may sound strange to those of
you who are primarily instrumentalists, but my chief instrument was my voice so that was
where I started. I wrote on my own in my own house, and sometimes in car parks if an idea
came to me. I had absolutely no way of telling if what I was writing was well constructed or
made sense lyrically to anybody but me. For this reason, I started co-writing with fellow
students whilst studying for a degree in English.
After (and unfortunately not before) releasing my first EP I decided to go and learn about
songwriting by attending the UK Songwriting Festival hosted by Bath Spa University in 2007.
I later studied for a Master of Music degree in Songwriting at Bath Spa in 2011-12. I learned
the things I should have learned before pitching my music to the industry: things like song
forms, wireframing…. Basically, the evolution of Western popular music in its many genres
and how to write for an audience, not just for myself. In the words of very successful
songwriter, Cathy Heller, ‘If you write for yourself, that’s a hobby. A business is radical
empathy.’ You are not just telling you own story, you are allowing your listener to hear their
story and so to feel understood.
As I write this, I have just flown home from Nashville where I wrote, recorded and
performed music. I have 2 singles about to be released by a Norwegian artist, my music has
been used in documentaries and advertising, I have 3 songs in the running for Eurovision
2020, I work with 4 publishers and have been named One to Watch twice by Nashville
Songwriters Association International. I write everything from pop and trap to country and
folk. I also teach songwriting, which is a bit more like mentoring than conventional teaching
in that it’s about helping students find their own voice and communicate their message in
an effective way and not at all about churning out writers who sound like me, or like
whatever is in the charts (although professional songwriters music be aware of commercial
trends). I have also worked in A&R (Artists and Repertoire… the people who sign singers,
bands and songwriters) for a music licensing company.
Whatever point you are at in your songwriting journey, and wherever the destination is for
you, you will also have a music related tale to tell. This book is to help you get that story out
there.

Getting Started with Songwriting
Everybody who writes songs writes differently. Some people write lyrics first, some people a
whole tune or maybe a hook or chord sequence to build around, some start with a title they
have in mind. In this chapter we are going to look at identifying the way you currently
approach songwriting and your musicological influences.
Which instruments do you use to write? It’s ok to include software and loops and your
own voice in this category.
Which artists have most inspired you? What are your earliest musical roots and how have
you developed on from these?

Now, let’s play with that a little….. Take a chord sequence from a song you love, for
example Em D G from Bob Dylan’s Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door. Change the rhythm or the
tempo and create something new. At this point we are not looking to develop a whole
song, just a verse or chorus melody and a lyric idea.
Now, let’s think a little bit about that song. How similar/different is it to other things you
have been writing? Think about you songwriting ‘defaults’… do you always seem to stay
about the same tempo? Do you gravitate towards certain keys? Remember, an EP or album
where the key doesn’t change much between songs (for example the first song is in G and
the next one is in Em) leads an audience to feel that the collection sounds repetitive. Does
the vocal range of your songs differ from song to song? Everybody’s got habits, the same
way we do when we drive or cook. Some of these may help create a signature sound, some
may be less helpful. Try to deliberately break out of your limitations this week.

Developing Lyric Ideas
A song is in essence a story. It has a central theme and character or characters. It should also
have a definite beginning, middle and end; the singer or other character(s) should have
changed in some way during the course of the song or the situation should reach a
conclusion. The language of the song should be geared to the target audience, for example
Eminem and Jessie J are bound to have very different linguistic styles!
Something that beginner songwriters tend to do is write songs that make great sense to
them, but if you don’t happen to know them as well as their best friend or their mother you
can’t understand the song. I’m not saying make your lyrics too generic, but you need to
think about whether or not what you are writing can be easily understood. My tutor (who
had gone double platinum with some Brit Awards under his belt) once commented that ‘a
good song makes the audience feel they are listening to the singer’s story. A great song
makes them feel they are listening to their own story’. People emote when they can relate
and, according to Alfred Hitchcock, cannot emote when they are confused. So clarity and
coherence are big aims, even if you are deliberately trying to write something mysterious or
open to interpretation.
Regardless of whether you tend to start with a lyric or a melody, here are a few tips on
developing your lyric writing.
There are some lyric sheets included at the end of this section. These illustrate some great
things to bear in mind when writing lyrics.
1. Show, Don’t Tell (The Beatles, She’s Leaving Home)

Instead of writing, ‘there was a girl who decided to run away from home and it made
her parents sad’ this song describes the actions of the girl, such as closing the
bedroom door and leaving a note. The result is very moving. Remember, a picture
can paint a thousand words. Compare this to a song I know which contains the line
‘then you died, oh how I cried.’ I think we can agree that sometimes the direct
approach comes off as cheesy or clichéd.
At the start of the song we’re told that it’s Wednesday morning at 5 am. This
immediately tells us something unusual is happening to these characters. The verse
then goes on to give us a picture of the story, ‘silently closing her bedroom
door/Leaving the note that she hoped would say more.’ Another great image is

‘clutching her handkerchief’, which suggests with a picture that the girl is anxious.
Then we get the glorious, ‘Turning the backdoor key/Stepping outside, she is free’.
Keys are a potent image of empowerment and being able to move on.
In the next section we get the parents’ point of view: ‘[we] sacrificed most of our
lives.’ This gives us some suggestion of what the problem in the relationship is
without laying it on the line for us. This is expanded upon in the lines ‘How could she
treat us so thoughtlessly? How could she do this to me?’
The story of the daughter’s departure is then expanded in her parents awakening.
The second verse starts with father snoring and mother putting on her dressing
gown and finding the letter. There is a lot of pathos in the line ‘standing alone at the
top of the stairs’. Perhaps we can now start empathising with the mother.
The song concludes with the daughter meeting a man from the motor trade and
having a good time. She has escaped. This verse begins with ‘Friday morning at 9
o’clock’ which perfectly contrasts ‘Wednesday morning at 5 am.’ You’ll note the
progression in the song: setting up the situation, giving us the other perspective,
concluding the story and showing us what the daughter ran away to do.
The major sentiments of this song are sometimes expressed directly, e.g. ‘our baby’s
gone’, ‘she is free’, ‘she is having fun’ but the vast majority of the emotional heavy
lifting is done using imagery and through having a clear story progression (more on
that later).
Other songs that are good examples of ‘Show, Don’t Tell’ are Ed Sheeran’s
Supermarket Flowers and Sara Melson’s I Feel It Coming.
2. Lyrical Economy (Joni Mitchell, Big Yellow Taxi)

Remember, when it comes to words less is more. The first verse and chorus contain
only 25 words total. It’s good to revise your lyrics, removing any unnecessary words
or words which don’t scan properly. The words should not have to be ‘jammed into’
the melody, pulling the phrasing out of sync. Also, watch out for scansion issues for
example placing a word to be sung as wind-OW instead of WIN-dow.
The very first line of this iconic song hits us with punchy alliteration, ‘They paved
paradise/ Put up a parking lot.’ Notice it’s not ‘and put up a parking lot.’ There are no
non essential words but we have a short, punchy delivery of a complex theme,
ostensibly the destruction of nature and our capacity for destruction but this
ofcourse later unfolds into something much more personal.

The second verse may appear to say much the same thing, but it’s actually taking it
further: now nature is being destroyed and we are actually being charged to see it,
it’s being both broken and exploited. The phrase ‘tree museum’ is an excellent
example of lyrical economy. It’s a horrifying concept very succinctly described and
also making great use of imagery.
In the next verse she is giving us a picture of the Eden like vision of nature she longs
to return to, ‘Give me spots on my apples’ etc. ‘The birds and the bees’ hints at the
coming curveball in that it’s a phrase that we associate with sexuality, e.g. ‘I told my
son about the birds and the bees’.
Then the real point of the song, rich in imagery, story progression, relatability and
lyrical economy. It only takes 2 lines, not a whole verse to create the biggest
emotional moment in the song:
Late last night I heard the screen door slam
And a big yellow taxi carried off my old man.
The chorus follows and now has a completely different resonance as we understand
what the character is really upset about when we hear the words ‘Don’t it always
seem to go/ that you don’t know what you got ‘til it’s gone’. We’ve been on quite an
emotional journey in a series of highly emotive, pictorial soundbites.
Other songs with great lyrical economy include Ring of Fire and Jolene. It’s well
worth reading the lyrics and taking note of the use of imagery and scansion.
3. Using Metaphor (The Eagles, Hotel California)

Metaphor can be a powerful tool in telling a story. In Hotel California the consistent
image is of a glamourous but threatening place, representing the world of celebrity
drug taking with its veneer of chic. The lines ‘And in their master’s chamber they
gather for the feast/ They stab it with their steely knives but they just can’t kill the
beast’ is an allusion to injecting drugs (the ‘steely knives’ are syringes. Note the great
use of alliteration: ‘feast, ‘beast’, ‘stab’, ‘steely’). Adding a little metaphor now and
then is ok, too, if you don’t want to write completely in metaphor. A good example
of this is the key in the door in She’s Leaving Home which symbolises the character’s
escape not just from a house but from a way of life.
The difference between metaphor and imagery (and metaphors ofcourse contain
imagery) is that an image is just part of the story, for example in She’s Leaving Home
when we are told the mother is wearing a dressing gown, that is just to describe that
it’s the morning and she’s only just got up. When we are told that the daughter is
turning a key, however, that could both mean she is literally turning a key and that
she’s opening up a new phase of her life.

The song opens up, like Big Yellow Taxi, with alliteration that sets the mood: ‘on a
dark desert highway’. It’s dark indeed and slightly creepy, then we suddenly have a
’shimmering light’, an almost spiritual, heavenly image which is reinforced with ‘I
heard the mission bell/ and I was thinking to myself, this could be Heaven or this
could be Hell.’ So, the character has some spiritual aspirations which are contrasted
sharply with, ‘Her mind is Tiffany twisted/ She got the Mercedes Benz’ which implies
a pretty materialistic set of values in the people he encounters. Interestingly, Janis
Joplin used ‘Mercedes Benz’ as the key image and title in her great morality song on
the theme of materialism.
This materialist, celebrity lifestyle is shown for something even darker in the lines
‘Mirrors on the ceiling, pink champagne on ice/ And she said, “We are all just
prisoners here of our own device” ‘.
This hotel is clearly not a nice place: a hotel is meant to be somewhere you stay for
only a short period of time, but the narrator has discovered that it is infact a prison.
The famous final lines, ‘You can check out any time you like but you can never leave’
suggest that you can commit suicide, basically, or die from your addiction but you
cannot by force of your own willpower break the power of this lifestyle. It has huge
emotional impact, perhaps more so than if it has been written in a conversational
style.
Something to note about the metaphor in this song is that it is consistent the whole
way through, although some might argue that it mixes metaphors by adding the
‘Heaven and Hell’ and ‘master’s chambers’ concept of spirituality, almost depicting a
Satanic rite. Infact, some have accused the song of embracing Satanism and have
argued that the line ‘we haven’t had that spirit here since 1969’ refers to famous
Satanist, Anton LaVey. (You can read The Eagles’ Glenn Frey’s thought on the
meaning of the song here.) This is extremely unlikely as the song does not deviate in
its subject matter which is the hollow nature of a celebrity lifestyle and addiction,
which may be compared to an occult/ cult-like hold over the characters but certainly
doesn’t make this lifestyle seem appealing. It does demonstrate the fact that when
you write in metaphor, rather than in a conversationalist style, your song is perhaps
more open to interpretation. Audience members bring their own background and
understanding to the lyric, which is not necessarily a bad thing in most cases.
The African American spiritual Deep River also uses metaphor powerfully, as does
Sway, made famous by Dean Martin. It’s a device that has been used for centuries
and is still in the charts today. Try Googling these lyrics and noticing the emotional
impact of the consistent metaphor. What is the deep river? And Is Sway really about
dancing?

4. Story Progression (Johnny Cash, Folsom Prison Blues)

A song that uses imagery, metaphor, lyrical economy and demonstrates perfectly
how to create a story progression that has impact is Folsom Prison Blues. In its
opening lines
I hear the train a-comin’
It’s rolling round the bend
And I ain’t seen the sunshine since I don’t know when.
the song establishes its key theme (incarceration) and its key metaphor: the train is
moving while the man is stuck in prison, unable to go anywhere. The train represents
the concept of longing for freedom for the rest of the song. Also note the use of
language: it’s conversational, like the prisoner was talking to a visitor and it’s
appropriate vocabulary for a prisoner in the US, ‘I ain’t seen…’ You can certainly use
imagery and metaphor powerfully without waxing poetic, as in Hotel California
which sounds quite literary. Conversational vocabulary can help us to empathise
with a character.
So, moving on from the opening verse which has established the situation, verse 2
lets us know how he ended up in prison, giving us a bit of backstory in the infamous
killer line, ‘I shot a man in Reno just to watch him die’. He is now becoming a bit
more emotional than in the first verse, ‘I hang my head and cry’.
In verse 3 the scene changes once more as he imagines the people on the train,
whom he perceives as having a pretty great time, ‘I bet there’s rich folks eating in a
fancy dining car’. He then lays the emotional point of the song on the line, ‘I know I
had it coming I know I can’t be free/ But those people keep a-moving and that’s
what tortures me.’ We see remorse but still a longing to be free, and more than a
hint of jealousy at the people on the train who are able to take journeys and move
freely.
Verse 4 is a definite conclusion: ‘If they freed me from this prison.’ What would he
do? ‘Let that lonesome whistle blow my blues away.’ It seems a little upbeat for a
depressed character, but it’s up to the listener to decide whether or not he will ever
realise this dream. The sense of hopefulness is uplifting, though, and creates
empathy for the murderer.
Basically, the progression has gone something like this:
Verse 1: He’s in prison, the train is moving. The situation has been established.
Verse 2: He’s in prison because despite being taught right from wrong in his
childhood, he shot someone on a whim. In other words, we get the backstory.
Verse 3: He imagines what the free people on the train are doing in the present.

Verse 4: He imagines being a free person on the train. It may not be a firm
conclusion, but he is imagining a conclusion.
There is no dull repetition of the same facts in each verse, which marks a song out as
amateur.
Be a Pro and Have a Plan… Wireframing
So, let’s say your song is about has an ABAB structure (verse-chorus-verse-chorus). You can
use a little flow chart like this to plan out how it will develop. In this example, my song is
called Geek Goddess. It is the story of a boy who is in love with a girl but he just doesn’t
inhabit the same world as her. Wireframing lyrics is what we do in commercial cowriting
situations and is a skill you will need to work with publishers. It helps give the song a
coherent structure that takes the listener on a journey, rather than simply repeating the
same idea over and over again in every verse or worse still every section.
Geek Goddess
Verse 1
Setting up the situation: The singer

describes the girl the song is about and
what has made him fall in love with her.
Chorus
The main point of the song: singer

can’t get the geek goddess to notice
him because he isn’t a geek himself.
Verse 2
Developing the story: Singer lists the things he

would do to capture the geek goddess’ heart…
learn to speak Elvish, travel to Tattooine etc.
But then again, would she change for him?
(this could be in the verse or in a separate
middle 8)
© Eve Williams 2019 Chorus

Mind Your Language

We touched a little on conversational tone in looking at Folsom Prison Blues. The use of
language let us know that the character was American and suggested a certain social class.
The tone was entirely in keeping with conventions of country music, and I would argue if
you had never heard the song and just read the lyrics, even though it has ‘blues’ in the title,
you would know it had country overtones.
Let’s have a little look at a couple of songs and see if we can detect from the lyrics
A. What genre of song do you expect to hear?
B. Who is the target demographic of the songs? What are their age, location, gender and
interests?
The first song is Garden Valley released by Cara Dillon, originally written by Dougie
MacLean.
Verse 1
This is really not my home
Oh, where are you, my lovely Johnny?
I'm afraid and all alone
There is no peace for me
Verse 2
I'm sitting in the stranger's room
Playing at the stranger's table
Shining empty like the moon
Chorus
But in the darkness struggle cold
I think about a garden valley
Gentle as the leaves unfold
Singing out across the bay
Distant and so far away

There are definitely lyrical conventions of the folk genre coming into play here, for example
the focus on nature, which is something that as a Celt I expect to find in our folk music. The
sea and exile are major themes of Irish music. However, it’s not just the imagery that is
telling us this is a folk song. Phrases like ‘my lovely Johnny’ aren’t likely to be found in hip
hop! ‘Gentle as the leaves unfold’ is also a very folk/traditional line. It’s quite literary and
non conversational, as we would say, ‘The leaves are unfolding gently’ but within the folk
tradition, often linked to poetry, it is ok to start the sentence with the adjective.
So looking at the questions in this task:
A. What genre do you expect to hear?
Did you expect to hear any other genre than folk? If so, why? What aspect of the
lyric did you use to form a conclusion on the genre of the song? Ofcourse, if you
already knew the song you can still consider why the lyric works in a folk setting.
B. Who is the target demographic of the songs?

My perception (and yours may be different) would be that this song is not
particularly written for a youth market, although young people can definitely love
folk music. If I were to hazard a guess, I would say the perceived audience for the
song would be aged over 35, there may be more female listeners than male (I base
that from having attended Cara Dillon concerts!), and that they are based in the
British Isles or are part of the Irish/Celtic diaspora.
Let’s look at a very different song now, Lose Yourself by Eminem (Marshall Mathers)
Yo
His palms are sweaty, knees weak, arms are heavy
There's vomit on his sweater already, mom's spaghetti
He's nervous, but on the surface he looks calm and ready
To drop bombs, but he keeps on forgettin'
What he wrote down, the whole crowd goes so loud
He opens his mouth, but the words won't come out
He's chokin', how, everybody's jokin' now
The clocks run out, times up, over, blaow!
Snap back to reality, oh there goes gravity
Oh, there goes Rabbit, he choked
He's so mad, but he won't give up that easy? No

He won't have it, he knows his whole back city's ropes

It don't matter, he's dope, he knows that, but he's broke
You’ll notice that this song is very wordy, and that would be completely what you would
expect from rap/hip hop. The use of language clearly identifies the character as American,
and presumably from an inner city, for example ‘yo’, ‘Mom’s spaghetti’ rather than ‘Mum’s
spaghetti’, ‘he’s dope’. These phrases also suggest a young character, presumably a
teenager or in his early 20s. This lyric has actually got a very clear sense of both the
narrating character and the target audience.
So, let’s look at those questions again.
A. What genre do you expect to hear?
Did you hear these lyrics as working in another genre apart from rap/ hip hop? If so,
why? If not, why?
B. Who is the target demographic of the songs?
I would hazard a guess that song is intended to inspire young American men,
especially those who have faced disadvantage. It’s written with vocabulary and
imagery (Mom’s spaghetti, dropping bombs though I’m sure not literally, ‘the whole
crowd goes so loud’. Older people, to make a sweeping generalisation, don’t
generally love loud, crowded entertainment venues) that would connect most easily
with that target group.
Lyrical Hooks
Hooks are essential if your eventual aim is to get a publishing deal, not just musical hooks
but lyrical hooks, too. Lyrical hooks are a word or catchy phrase that is repeated in the song
that encapsulates its emotions. Lyrical hooks are often also titular hooks, in other words
they are the title of the song set in music and repeated in a way that a listener can easily
pick up what the title of the song is. Afterall, people can’t request your music on the radio or
search for it online without knowing what the title is which is why I recommend trying to
steer clear of ‘clever’ titles which are a little abstract and use a phrase not contained within
the song.
A really well known lyrical hook would be the word ‘Hallelujah’ in Leonard Cohen’s song of
the same name. It’s a powerful emotional statement which is repeated in the refrain leaving
the listener in no doubt as to what the title is or to the emotion of the song. Before this song
gained popularity, the term ‘Hallelujah’ in a musical context was most associated with
Handel’s Hallelujah Chorus where it is also repeated, but as a big, joyful statement of praise.

Cohen here subverts that by doing the opposite: he lowers rather than raises the pitch of
the melody in the refrain (it’s a refrain rather than a chorus due to its length of only 2 lines)
and places the word in a lyrical framework that describes shattered expectations and a
sense of despondency. This is known as negative prosody: the word is joyful but the music is
reinterpreting and subverting it.
Another recognizable lyrical hook is Rihanna’s We Found Love in a Hopeless Place. The
chorus simply repeats this titular/lyrical hook. Some people disparage pop music for using
this method, arguing that it’s lazy. I would argue conversely that the phrase is such a
powerful emotional statement that it requires no augmentation. It’s singable and relatable,
in that love in a hopeless place is either something the listener will have or aspire to have.
Task
Have a look at the last lyric you wrote. Does it contain lyrical hooks? Is the title clear to the
listener? Are the words which describe the key emotional concept punchy and easy to pick
out of the lyrics?
Pay Off Lines
A pay off line is a similar idea to a lyrical hook in a way. It’s the last line of a section, usually
the chorus, that the rest of the section has been building up to, such as ‘You can check out
any time you like but you can never leave’ from Hotel California. We’ve been working up to
that point for the whole song. ‘Hallelujah’ in Hallelujah also acts as a payoff line. I Walk the
Line by Johnny Cash has a great pay off line. Coldplay’s Violet Hill has a great pay off line in
‘if you love me, won’t you let me know’.
If you construct a chorus and the last line doesn’t have a punch it can be disappointing for
the audience. We’ve been taken on a journey and we want to arrive somewhere!
Task
Find a final line to act as a pay off line for this. Write 2 lines if it works better:
We wandered in the garden
As the old trees were freezing.
You were holding my hand,
I listened to you breathing.
The hour was late when we reached the gate.

You turned to me and said:
_________________________________________________
Intertextual Writing: Getting Ideas from Other Artworks

There are some pictures included in the resources section for this chapter. Create a story
around these pictures: who is in the picture, or just outside of the picture? Why are they
there? What are they going to do next? You can search Google images by topic, so for
instance if you are writing about teenage crushes try typing ‘young love’ or ‘teenage crush’.
You can use other forms of art to help kick start a lyric. For example, you can browse
www.poetryfoundation.org by topic, keyword or author. Use words and phrases but don’t
breach copyright by using too much of other people’s work! For example, a cowriter and I
used Tennyson’s poem In Memoriam with is famous phrase ‘tis better to have loved and
lost/ Than never to have loved at all’ to create a song called Oblivion (memoriam meaning
something consigned to memory, and oblivion meaning something totally forgotten, so
creating a sort of opposite to the original poem). The first line is ‘They say it’s better to have
loved and lost/ I don’t believe that to be true’. The original poem was old enough to be out
of copyright. So, what are your favourite words, ideas and phrases from literature, film,
television and music? Would any of these make a good title/lyrical hook?
Rambling
Once you have found your song idea, write down the words and phrases that come to mind
in a notebook. Read over what you have written and choose the words that really stick out.
Place these into your wireframe. David Bowie famously used the ‘cut up’ form of lyric
writing where he put together ideas and phrases then he cut up the paper and randomly
picked up pieces, putting the lyric together like a puzzle from the collection of ideas and
placing it within a coherent structure.
Some Structures to Practise

List Songs: The song My Favourite Things creates a memorable lyric by simply listing things
the singer loves, such as raindrops on roses, whiskers on kittens, bright copper kettles and
warm woollen mittens. Notice the use of descriptive words!
Mirror Imaging: A song I cowrote called The Rock (https://soundcloud.com/evewilliams/i-

need-a-rock) uses an images of sandcastles that are washed away in the first verse, and a

stone fortress which can stand up to the incoming waves in the second to highlight the
difference between two characters. This use of similar but opposite imagery is called mirror
imaging and ensures a song has movement and contrast between verses.
Resources
www.poetryfoundation.org
www.rhymer.com (rhyming dictionary)
www.thesaurus.com
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio2/soldonsong/guide/song_lyrics.shtml (Sold on Song guide to
lyric writing)

‘Show, Don’t Tell’ How could she do this to me?
She’s Leaving Home – The Beatles She

(We never thought of ourselves)
Wednesday morning at five o'clock
Is leaving
As the day begins
(Never a thought for ourselves)
Silently closing her bedroom door
Home
Leaving the note that she hoped would
say more (We struggled hard all our lives to get by)
She's leaving home after living alone for
She goes downstairs to the kitchen (Bye bye)
clutching her handkerchief So many years
Quietly turning the back door key Friday morning at nine o'clock she is far
away
Stepping outside she is free
Waiting to keep the appointment she
She
made
(We gave her most of our lives)
Meeting a man from the motor trade
Is leaving
(Sacrificed most of our lives)
She
Home
(What did we do that was wrong?)
(We gave her everything money could
Is having
buy)
(We didn't know it was wrong)
She's leaving home after living alone for
Fun
(Bye bye)
(Fun is the one thing that money can't
So many years
buy)
Something inside that was always denied
Father snores as his wife gets into her for
dressing gown
(Bye bye)
Picks up the letter that's lying there
So many years
Standing alone at the top of the stairs
She's leaving home
(Bye bye)
She breaks down and cries to her husband
Songwriters
Daddy our baby's gone
LENNON, JOHN WINSTON / MCCARTNEY,
Why would she treat us so thoughtlessly? PAUL JAMES

The Mirror Technique Verse 2
I Need a Rock by Dominik Boncza- I don’t say the words ‘I love you’,
Skrzynecki/Eve Williams I carve them into stone.
The wind and rain might fade them
Verse 1 But they are never gone.
You don’t say the words ‘I love you’, All I’m building here is a fortress
You write them on the beach. To keep me safe inside
The tides returns to claim them To guard me from the water
And drags them out of reach. And help withstand the tide.
The walls dissolve in hours
Leaving shells beneath the water Pre-Chorus
That once adorned your towers. How can I read the writing in the sand?
Words neither in water nor on land.
Pre-Chorus
How can I read the writing in the sand?
Words neither in water nor on land. Chorus
I’m sinking,
Chorus Sinking on your ground.
I’m sinking, I’m drowning
Sinking on your ground. In words that make no sound.
I’m drowning I can’t stay here,
In words that make no sound. The shifting tides will never stop.
I can’t stay here, Darling, you’re quicksand
The shifting tides will never stop. And I need a rock.
Darling, you’re quicksand Darling, you’re quicksand
And I need a rock. And I need a rock.
Darling, you’re quicksand
And I need a rock.

Lyrical Economy
Big Yellow Taxi, Joni Mitchell Till it's gone
They paved paradise They paved paradise
And put up a parking lot
With a pink hotel *, a boutique
And a swinging hot spot And put up a parking lot
Don't it always seem to go They paved paradise

That you don't know what you've got And put up a parking lot
Till it's gone
They paved paradise
And put up a parking lot © Siquomb Publishing Company
They took all the trees

Put 'em in a tree museum *
And they charged the people
A dollar and a half just to see 'em
Don't it always seem to go

That you don't know what you've got
Till it's gone
They paved paradise
Hey farmer farmer

Put away that DDT * now
Give me spots on my apples
But leave me the birds and the bees
Please!

Till it's gone
They paved paradise
Late last night

I heard the screen door slam
And a big yellow taxi
Took away my old man


Using Metaphor And still those voices are calling

from far away,
Hotel California, The Eagles Wake you up in the middle of the
night
On a dark desert highway, cool Just to hear them say...
wind in my hair
Warm smell of colitas, rising up Welcome to the Hotel California
through the air Such a lovely place (Such a lovely
Up ahead in the distance, I saw a place)
shimmering light Such a lovely face
My head grew heavy and my They livin' it up at the Hotel
sight grew dim California
I had to stop for the night What a nice surprise (what a nice
There she stood in the doorway; surprise)
I heard the mission bell Bring your alibis
And I was thinking to myself,
"This could be Heaven or this Mirrors on the ceiling,
could be Hell" The pink champagne on ice
Then she lit up a candle and she And she said "We are all just
showed me the way prisoners here, of our own
There were voices down the device"
corridor, And in the master's chambers,
I thought I heard them say... They gathered for the feast
They stab it with their steely
Welcome to the Hotel California knives,
Such a lovely place (Such a lovely But they just can't kill the beast
place)
Such a lovely face Last thing I remember, I was
Plenty of room at the Hotel Running for the door
California I had to find the passage back
Any time of year (Any time of To the place I was before
year) "Relax, " said the night man,
You can find it here "We are programmed to receive.
You can check-out any time you
Her mind is Tiffany-twisted, she like,
got the Mercedes bends But you can never leave! "
She got a lot of pretty, pretty
boys she calls friends
How they dance in the courtyard,
sweet summer sweat.
Some dance to remember, some
dance to forget
So I called up the Captain,

"Please bring me my wine"
He said, "We haven't had that
spirit here since nineteen sixty
nine"

Story Progression
Folsom Prison Blues by Johnny Cash
I hear the train a comin'

It's rolling round the bend
And I ain't seen the sunshine since I don't know when
I'm stuck in Folsom prison, and time keeps draggin' on
But that train keeps a rollin' on down to San Antone
When I was just a baby my mama told me. Son

Always be a good boy, don't ever play with guns
But I shot a man in Reno just to watch him die
When I hear that whistle blowing, I hang my head and cry
I bet there's rich folks eating in a fancy dining car

They're probably drinkin' coffee and smoking big cigars
Well I know I had it coming, I know I can't be free
But those people keep a movin'
And that's what tortures me
Well if they freed me from this prison

If that railroad train was mine
I bet I'd move it on a little farther down the line
Far from Folsom prison, that's where I want to stay
And I'd let that lonesome whistle blow my blues away

Developing Lyric Ideas: Who, what, when,

where, why?

Hooks
If you are at all interested in writing chart music or getting a publishing deal in any genre, or
indeed writing a song that people remember, you must be able to master the art of the
hook. The hook is the part of the song that reels people in, the most memorable bit. Think
of the instantly recognisable guitar riff from Smoke on the Water. A hook and a riff are not
always the same thing. A riff should be a hook but a hook is not necessarily a riff. What do
you hear when you read the words, ‘No Woman, No Cry’? Can you hear the hooky Bob
Marley tune playing in your head? That’s what happens when you hear an effective hook. It
implants itself in your memory. We can easily interchange the words ‘catchy’ and ‘hook
based.’ There are several different types of hooks.
Instrumental Hooks
I already mentioned Smoke on the Water as an instantly recognisable instrumental hook/
riff. Another great example is the well known guitar riff from Eric Clapton’s (or Derek and
the Dominos’) Layla. The riff is used as an introduction, between verses and as instrumental
backing in the chorus. Although Clapton released a successful acoustic version of this song
which did not contain this riff, it is possible to argue that the song is not the same song
without it. The rest of the music has been built around it.
Task: Can you list 5 songs that are built around instrumental hooks?
Melodic/Lyrical Hooks
We’ve already mentioned No Woman, No Cry. Suzanne Vega’s Tom’s Diner is another good
example of a melodic hook. Lady Gaga’s Bad Romance has an instantly recognizable melodic
hook, used as a vocal riff. The words keep changing to the same singable tune. In both these
cases, the hook is part of the verse of the song rather than a separate entity as is the case
with a riff. The hooks are also repeated in several sections of the song giving the audience
something familiar and memorable to latch on to which makes the songs ‘catchy’.
Task: can you list 5 songs with melodic hooks?

Secondary and Rhythmic Hooks

A secondary hook is another catchy part of the song that basically isn’t quite as prominent
as the main hook but is also repeated in order to sustain the listener’s interest.
A rhythmic hook takes place in the drum or bass part of the song and is a catchy repeated
phrase.
A great example of a song with strong hooks, secondary hooks and rhythmic hooks is Soul II
Soul’s Back to Life. The melody sung on ‘Back to life/ back to reality’ forms the main hooks
with ‘however do you want me/ However do you need me’ forming the secondary hook.
There is a rhythmic hook in the drum part that drives the song along.
‘Back to Life’ also forms a titular hook. The song is in essence a collection of hooks.
Task: Listen to one of the songs we have discussed. Can you hear a secondary hook? What
part of the song contains the secondary hook?
Hook, Line and Sinker: Writing a Catchy Song

Task
As mentioned before, having clearly definable hooks is going to be essential to writing music
that connects and a hookless catalogue is not likely to find a publisher. So, let’s start by
coming up with a simple one line hook. You can use piano, guitar or another instrument or a
DAW (NOT a loop) or your own voice.
Add lyrics to create a lyrical/melodic hook. If this doesn’t work, leave it instrumental.
Now craft a chorus around this hook.
Resources
Wikipedia article on hooks: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hook_(music)
Billboard’s Top 25 Pop Hooks: https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/pop-
shop/6731053/greatest-catchiest-pop-hooks-ever

Writing a Memorable Melody
Let’s face it, you can have the best production in the world and hire the most accomplished
musicians, you may even write a lyric worthy of Shakespeare, but if your song doesn’t have
a good tune then an audience is not going to be impressed. What makes a good melody is
very subjective; there are no formulae but here are a few tips and suggestions.
There Are Exceptions to Every Rule!
Bold Intervals
Melodies which repeat the root notes of chords or use intervals of a second or third too
much tend not to work too well. Think of the chorus of the Beatle’s A Little Help from my
Friends. The rise and fall of the notes makes it an energy filled melody and gives the listener
the sense of going somewhere rather than being rooted in one note! But there are ofcourse
exceptions… Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Don’t Cry for Me, Argentina is a popular melody which
frequently repeats one note.
Tension and Release

Melodies often have a pay off line, for example Elvis Costello’s She (‘the meaning of my life
is she’, the move to the lower register and lyrical content makes the last line of each verse
the pay off line). We are trying to build tension and release, so the verse will build up to a
big chorus, for example Alannah Myles’ Black Velvet, Snow Patrol’s Chasing Cars. Songs
which are in AAA form (.i.e. which have no chorus), such as folk songs, must achieve this in
only one block of music, for example She Moved Through the Fair (see ‘Songforms’ section
of this book).
Placing the chorus at a higher pitch or modulating into the relative major from a minor verse
helps to make the chorus hit home.

Repetition, Repetition, Repetition

Repeating hooks and/or lines can help build a melody, for example Avicii’s Hey, Brother and
Pink’s Just Give Me a Reason. Chart music often begins with a fairly wordy verse using a
limited number of notes and chords, then repeats one simple theme in a more complex
melody in the chorus, for example we found love in a hopeless place from the Rihanna song
or we don’t need your money, money, money in Jessie J.’s Price Tag.
Adding a Pre-chorus
Giving a little musical cue that we are moving into the chorus often makes a melody more
predictable, and listeners like melodies to be predictable. One example is the everybody
look to the left, everybody look to the right moment from Price Tag. ABBA’s Dancing Queen
gives us the cue the chorus is coming in ‘you’re in the mood for a dance/and when you get
the chance...’ We know something big and catchy is coming from the cue the pre-chorus
provides. It helps to build tension and release.
The Drop or the So-Called ‘Pop-Drop’
There has been a bit of a trend in the late 2010s to have relatively long pre-choruses
(example: Rita Ora Let You Love Me) and drops rather than big choruses (Sia’s Chandelier
has a big chorus and then a drop). In 2016, Billboard noted that ‘This is the year of the "pop-
drop," the post-chorus musical interlude that blends techniques from electronic dance
music to hip-hop, and it's taken the chorus' place in pop music. The pop-drop is the new
climax of the song, right where we would expect to hear the chorus, and it is absolutely
everywhere.’ The article gives a lot of examples of this phenomenon, most notably The
Chainsmokers’ Closer (see full article here:
https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/pop/7625628/pop-drop-sound-of-2016-
chainsmokers-justin-bieber-switched-on-pop. ) If you write or intend to start writing in the
pop or electronic genres or you want to write for the charts, it’s a good idea to study the
concept of the drop.
Everybody’s Favourite Interval… The Fifth

The human mind loves fifths. They’re a nice, predictable jump, neither boring us with
semitones or tones nor stunning us with octaves. The very memorable Theme from Star
Wars draws us in with a big, bold fifth right at the start.
Melody and Lyric: Creating Prosody

Prosody is when the music and lyric work together in tandem to achieve the same effect.
For example, writing the word ‘high’ on a high note. The notes, chords and words should all

contribute to the same atmosphere. A good example is Rogers and Hammerstein’s

Something Wonderful. The song is about a character who makes the singer uncomfortable
and perplexed, yet she loves him and is comfortable with her discomfort! This is achieved
through using discordance (chords include G#/E and Amaj7b5/E) then resolving into
standard major chords (i.e. A - G#/E - D = comfortable-uncomfortable-comfortable) and
through using counterintuitive intervals such as a diminished 7th descending as part of the
phrase He will not always say/what you would have him say.
Songwriters often create prosody by placing the important words of the song on longer
notes, for example in Price Tag the words ‘world turn’ and ‘price tag’ are on longer notes
than most in the chorus. Rihanna’s We Found Love in a Hopeless Place also does this by
repeating the words ‘hopeless place’ on elongated notes.
Negative prosody is the opposite, for example a sad tune in a minor key with happy, hopeful
words gives us the idea that the singer is not aware of the sadness of their situation or that
something sad is going to happen and so creates pathos. A good example of this is Leonard
Cohen’s Hallelujah. The word ’hallelujah’ is usually an expression of joy, e.g. Handel’s
Hallelujah Chorus, but the mournful melody and use of both major and minor chords
portrays the storyteller’s dejection. A famous example in classical music is Puccini’s Un Bel
Di from Madame Butterfly, where the singer describes her hopes of her lost love’s return,
but the mournful melody lets the audience know it’s not going to happen.
Creating a Melody: Things to Consider
 Generally most of the story of the song will be contained in the verses and the
chorus will describe the main theme of the song. Bearing in mind the old adage
‘don’t bore us, get to the chorus’, does your verse melody allow for lyrical
development? Do you need to add a pre-chorus?
 Prosody: do your words and music gel together to achieve the same effect?
 Tension and release: is your chorus melody sufficiently different from the verse? Is
there a natural ‘lift’ in the chorus melody?
 Where is your pay off line? Can you identify the hooks in your melody?
 Realistically, if you have used daring intervals, how well can you sing the vocal
melody?
 Countermelodies: is there potential for a vocal harmony or countermelody in the

instrumental parts?

 Copyright: have I inadvertently ripped anything off? (rare but it does happen)
 Singability: does the melody stay in your head?
There is a chapter on songforms coming up… it’s important that your melody follows the
structure appropriate to the genre.
Resources
http://www.musictech.net/2015/01/songwriting-3/ (Andy Price on melody writing)
http://www.taxi.com/music-business-
faq/songwriting/melodyandprosody/writinglyricsprosodyandmeter.php (article on prosody
and metre)
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio2/soldonsong/guide/song_melody.shtml (BBC’s Sold on Song
melody writing tips)
https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/pop/7625628/pop-drop-sound-of-2016-chainsmokers-
justin-bieber-switched-on-pop (Drops in Pop Music)

Song Forms
AAA Form
(verse verse verse)
In this form the same block of music is repeated, i.e. there is no chorus. Folk songs often use
this form, for example Black Velvet Band and Wild Mountain Thyme where the chorus and
verse melodies are the same, or She Moved through the Fair which has no chorus. Listen
here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Z_kwFPyBlw (Ed Sheeran performing Wild
Mountain Thyme)
Just as a little extra information, folk can have what is known as a refrain which is a bit like a
chorus except that it’s normally only 2 lines lone. If there is a refrain, it still counts as AAA
form.
AABA Form
(verse verse bridge verse)
Here there are usually two verses, then a middle 8 (bridge) followed by the verse melody,
usually totalling 32 bars and 2 minutes in length (and so it is common to repeat the song
from the bridge or the start to make it longer). This form is associated with jazz and swing
songs, such as Sway and Dream a Little Dream of Me, and 1950s classics such as Will You
Still Love Me Tomorrow by Carol King. Listen here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-
Eoy3sDwVN4 (Sway performed by Dean Martin)
ABAB or (ABABCB) Form
This is the verse-chorus-verse-chorus-(middle 8 or instrumental)- chorus familiar in much
chart and pop writing. When you begin writing it is likely that your earliest songs will be in
this form. Examples include ABBA’s Gimme Gimme Gimme, Miley Cyrus’s Wrecking Ball, Let
It Go from Frozen and many others. This form is referred to as the Nashville Formula.
Listen here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XEjLoHdbVeE (ABBA performing Gimme

Gimme Gimme
A more in depth article on song forms is available here:

http://www.musictech.net/2014/10/sw-1/ (Andy Price writing for MusicTech)

Which Comes First, Music or Lyrics? Trying Out

Different Approaches to Creating a Song
How you approach writing a song will very often be based on what your principal
instrument is, for example guitarists are likely to come up with a riff or chord sequence and
draw the melody from there. This is how Donovan writes (Mellow Yellow). People who are
primarily vocalists will often write melody first, just using their voice, then add chords
afterwards (this is how Bono writes, though he often uses a chord sequence played by other
band members). There is also a form of writing called toplining where a producer will create
a track and a topliner will add the melody and words. Kylie Minogue writes like this and was
nominated for a Novello Award for it. Many writers, especially in dance and electronica,
write using software and loops.
A professional songwriter will want to be able to write in many different ways. This week try
writing in a way you’ve never written before. Choose from one of the following:
Starting with the Hook

Create a hook, whether it is a riff, a strong line of melody or a lyrical hook. Base your song
around this hook.
Put Down Your Instruments

If you write on guitar or piano, try leaving the instrument aside and just singing. Then add
harmonics and words to your melody.
Stealing a Chord Progression

If you tend to work in melody rather than in terms of chords, find the chords to one of your
favourite songs. Change the harmonic rhythm and create another tune. You can transpose
the chords of you need to. A diagram of the circle of fifths is included to help you do this.

Writing to a Loop
If you have access to recording software, try writing to a loop.
Writing to a Brief
Professional songwriters often write to briefs. Choose one of the briefs below, adapted from
an industry newsletter.
TV production company seeks upbeat country songs on the topic of money for sit com. Must
be no slower than 110 bpm. Male or female vocal.
Production library seeking dark dance/techno tracks in the vein of Kasabian’s Clubbed to
Death.
Resources
http://www.musictech.net/tag/songwriting/ (Andy Price’s guide to songwriting)
http://www.applebeam.co.uk/blog/what-is-topline-writing (introduction to toplining)
http://www.musicradar.com/tuition/tech/how-to-write-a-hit-hooks-536740 (what a hook is
and how to create one)
www.looperman.com (free loops. Just be careful that your antivirus software is up to date!)


Collaborative Writing
I found myself in Norway for three days this year writing in a different team each day for the
same artist. She was newly signed and the goal was to help her find her message and then
her sound. That’s what I love about songwriting: the human connection of helping get
people’s stories out there. An ignorant person I once met commented that, ‘I don’t know
how you do what you do for a living, I couldn’t cope with the crass commercialism.’ Actually
songwriters need a particularly high level of emotional intelligence… but tell that to the boy
with more than a million streams I once cowrote with who changed lyrics I’d written when I
went to the toilet and sat all day on his Mac. When I asked to see what he was writing, he
replied ‘Why would you need to?’ I made frequent cups of tea.
So co-writing can be life enhancing or torture. Many of the songs which are commercially
successful have been written by more than one writer (try looking up songs currently in the
charts online and counting the number of writers. Major labels often employ writing teams).
The history of popular music is full of successful partnerships, all of whom worked slightly
differently. For example, Lennon and McCartney split their work 50/50, words and music. In
the case of Elton John and Bernie Taupin, Sir Elton writes the music and Bernie writes the
lyrics. U2 split the royalties for all their songs equally. They are usually composed by the
instrumentalists creating riffs and chord sequences and Bono improvising a melody and
words over the top (toplining). Katie Melua is an example of an artist cowriter, an artist who
works with a songwriter to come up with her own sound.
There are many benefits to co-writing songs, including
 Learning new skills from experiencing how other writers work

 Improving opportunities for writing with other writers and artists in the future
 Broadening your writing beyond your own artist profile (for example Chris Martin
from Coldplay writing for Rihanna, Gary Lightbody writing with Taylor Swift)
 Working in a team environment
 Creating a sound which differs from your individual work
There is one thing that must be done before you enter into any partnership, even an
informal one and that is CREATE A COWRITERS’ AGREEMENT AND PUT IT IN WRITING. I

cannot stress this enough. If there is even the slightest possibility that you will monetise the
songs even by putting them on YouTube, you must decide how much of the song each of
you owns or you might run into trouble later.
The Musicians’ Union supplies template cowriting agreements to members.
A Short but Important Note about Copyright

It is a good idea to join a PRO (Performing Rights Society). Joining PRS in the UK (Performing
Rights Society) as a songwriter/composer as soon as you have work available online or are
performing in public. PRS collects money and distributes it to the writers when a song is
broadcast or performed. If you are singing your own songs at venues which have a PRS
license (and you should never play at a venue which does not), you log your set list into PRS
and receive royalties for these performances quarterly.
Other PROs include IMRO (Ireland), ASCAP, SESAC and BMI (USA), TONO (Norway). PROs
have international agreements between eachother but it can sometimes take up to 2 years
for international royalties to be paid (sigh… don’t I know it).
There are 2 different sets of copyright affecting songs, one is the rights relating to the actual
songs i.e. melody and lyrics (it is not possible to copyright a chord sequence), and the other
is the rights referring to a recorded version of a song. When you log a song with PRS and
name all the cowriters, you assign each cowriter a percentage of the mechanical rights
(rights over the recording) and performance rights (rights over the song, usually when sung
live). The person who arranges and/or pays for the recording of the song usually owns the
copyright to the recording. It’s generally easier to go 50/50 where there are 2 writers, or to
divide the works evenly among all the writers of the songs where there are more than two.
Sometimes an artist may change a line or lyric of the song and then claim a writer’s credit,
but as a wise old musician once said ‘it’s better to own 50% of something that sells than
100% of something that doesn’t’.
So, who should I write with?
 Collaborators with complementary skills, for example if you are a singer you could
work with a guitarist
 A more experienced/prominent songwriter who can help develop your skills and/or
advance your profile
 People who use different songwriting techniques to you, for example if you are a
singer/instrumental songwriter you could try working with a producer songwriter.
 Bandmates or people with similar musical influences
 An artist who is a non writer
 A vocalist whose particular sound influences the style of writing

Try to avoid working with, or being, these people:
 The prima donna

 The person who doesn’t listen to other people’s ideas
 The person who sits in the corner and goes along with everything
 Someone with no sense of professionalism who is always late and doesn’t put in
their share of the work
 The person who can’t emotionally let go and gets upset if their ideas are criticised
 The strop thrower
 The person with no plan
 The one on the group who just doesn’t care as much about the song as everybody
else
Methods of Cowriting to Try

As discussed, there are several ways of co-writing a song. You need to play to the strengths
and weaknesses of your songwriting group. Try some of the following:
 One person provides lyrics and the other writes a melody based on them (Robbie
Williams and Guy Chambers)
 One person writes a melody and the other creates a lyric to it (Elton John and Bernie
Taupin)
 One person creates a chord sequence/riff and the other writes the melody (U2)
Another form of co-writing is called the critical eye, where the writers of a song will bring in
another writer or producer to comment on and change what they have written with fresh
ears.
When you cowrite, it is unwise to just meet up with a blank page. It is good to have a bit of
the tune or a riff or title to begin with, or at least to know what kind of song you are
planning to write.
How to Find Cowriters
 Online via sites like Soundcloud and Music Gateway. NSAI (Nashville Songwriters
Association International) has a directory of its member where you can read profiles
and ask people to cowrite.
 At conferences, courses and events.
 Just emailing and asking!
 If you are signed, your publisher will arrange cowrites but it’s still good to find a few
yourself.
 At songcamps (see upcoming chapter on songwriting events).

Resources
www.prsformusic.com (Performing Rights Society. Royalty distribution and copyright advice)
http://www.internetmedialaw.com/articles/collaborator-songwriter-agreements/ (creating
a cowriter agreement)
http://andreastolpe.berkleemusicblogs.com/2007/10/26/how-do-writers-co-write/ (how
they cowrite in Nashville)

The Producer-Writer
Producer writers are the current darlings of the music industry. Not only can they write but
they can produce their tracks without the expense of going into the studio or hiring a
producer to mix the tracks. Quite often they use recording technology to inform their
writing. We tend to think of producer writers as writing electronica and pop, such as Calvin
Harris, but writers in other genres can be informed by music production technology.
Usually when we record a song we edit as we record, changing words that don’t scan or
chords to alter the mood of the music, so arguably even if you are not a loop or DAW based
writer per se, recording technology will have an impact on your songs.
Here is a little introduction to 4 of the most popular programmes used to produce music:
1. Logic
https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/logic-pro-x/id634148309?mt=12
Cost: £149 (but only runs from Macs, and you will need a good one!)
Logic Pro X is industry standard software at an affordable price. It is fairly user

friendly but still takes some time to master. There are many training videos available
on YouTube. It creates a high quality sound.
2. Pro Tools
http://www.avid.com/US/products/pro-tools-software
Cost: £238 for the student version of Pro Tools 12. Between £299-£548 for non
students depending on version. Requires Avid interface such as MBox2 although I
use a PreSonus AudioBox iTwo and it works fine.
Pro Tools was the industry standard until Logic caught up. It is complex technology
and takes some time to master, although there are many training videos available on
YouTube. This is important to know as Avid charge £80 per annum for support
services! The sample sounds which come with the student version are of a fairly high

quality, apart from the strings but decent string samples are the Holy Grail of music
production.
Another thing is you cannot record straight onto your hard drive from Pro Tools. It’s
possible but it’s not recommended so you will need to invest in a decent sized
external hard drive.
3. Cubase
http://www.steinberg.net/en/products/cubase/start.html
Cost: £69-£239 depending on version and plug ins.
Cubase has become less popular than Logic and Pro Tools but still offers high quality,
user friendly recording. Many professional producers use Cubase.
Here is a track of mine recorded on Cubase, produced by Andrew Giddings of Jethro

Tull. You will note it has very good string samples!
www.soundcloud.com/evewilliams/oblivion-remix
4. Garageband
https://www.apple.com/uk/mac/garageband/
Cost: comes free with some Mac Books and iPads
Garageband was Apple’s primary sound recording software before Logic. It has a
decent instrument library and is very user friendly. If you are new to music
production, it’s a good place to start. I actually love it: it’s fun to play around with
because it’s so much more straightforward than some other DAWs.
The kind of Garageband you get on an iPad or phone as an app is probably not going
to give you a broadcast standard result so it’s really useful for demos, although
Garageband from a MAC can give a good result.
Hardware for Starting Out with Music Production

As well as your chosen software, to make home recordings you will need:
 Microphone, stand and pop filter with XLR cable (XLR to XLR or XLR to quarter inch
jack, depending on interface)
 An interface to connect your computer into which you plus your instruments/mics
 Jack leads

 Midi keyboard
 Midi leads
 High quality earphones
 Decent studio monitors
Acquiring all this kit takes time and money!
How These Programmes Can Help Us as Writers

As well as enabling songwriters to make high quality demos of their work or to produce
whole albums themselves, the programmes above offer several tools which can contribute
to the writing process.
Loops
It is possible to find a loop and create a melody over the loop, adding in
instrumentation and harmonies.
Programming Beats
Programming beats using plugins such as Boom which comes with Pro Tools allows
the writer to create a rhythm and an atmosphere which they can use to build a piece
of music.
Toplining
A producer may create a fleshed out track and ask a songwriter to create a melody
and lyric over the top of the production.
Mastering
If your aim is to have your tracks played on the radio, to sell them on CD or as
downloads or to seek synchronisation for your music (placements in advertisements,
TV or film), your tracks must be mastered. Unless you are an accomplished producer,
it’s best to pay for this service. It can be expensive (up to £3000 for a 12 track album
in some cases) but an unmastered track is not broadcast quality. CD Baby offer quite
good rates for mastering which keep changing so I can’t quote them here. More
information here: http://members.cdbaby.com/mastering.aspx

Landr.com masters your tracks to an algorithm. You get 2 free tracks a month
mastered to lo res mp3. It’s £9.99 for a WAV. You can preview the mastered track so
it might be worth playing on it to see if you like the results but it is obviously not
comparable to a proper mastering house.
If you are putting together an EP or album and want consistent sound levels and
signals, it may be worth investing in Izotope’s Ozone programmes ($199-$499 USD).
You can find information here: https://www.izotope.com/en/products/ozone.html

Preparing to Record a Demo
It’s time to choose which pieces you would like to record on your demo. Some of you may
be old hats at this, with whole albums to your name, but hopefully the following hints and
tips will still be of some use:
 Get honest feedback on which are your best songs, don’t just choose your personal
favourites.
 Accept criticism. It’s the only way to improve your craftsmanship.
 Try to pick tracks which give you a coherent sound (.i.e. not a country track, a dance
track and a music theatre track) whilst showing your versatility as a writer and artist.
 When you have chosen your songs and are making plans with the producer, be as
specific as possible about the sound you want. Remember to write directions in
chord sheets such as ‘slow rock ballad’ or ‘sounds like Let It Go’. Where possible give
the tempo and speed, and write down what instrumentation you would like.
Remember, you want a recording which captures your sound in only 2-3 tracks so
you need to give as much input as possible.
 Think about who will be hearing this recording. If your aim is to have more live
bookings, consider a ‘live’ feel. If you would like to aim for airplay, the song must be
mastered and produced to broadcast standard which may cost more.
 Count the cost! If you decide later to record an album etc. charges to bear in mind
are production costs, session musician fees (usually £30 per hour), travel costs and
CD duplication.
 Design your YouTube channel and Soundcloud page with bios and photos which
match the sound you are producing.
Finding a Producer
If you have production skills, perhaps you plan to record the release yourself. If not, you
may be thinking about finding a producer. One of my students came to me this week having
paid a producer to record a guitar based singer-songwriter track. It came back as EDM. She
was gutted. There are a few things to think about in this cautionary tale… firstly, put some

research into the producer. Listen to artists you love and find out who produced them. Does
this person have a track record of working in your genre? Some producers can pretty much
work in any genre but some specialise.
It really helps if you can provide the producer with a reference track or with a clear
description of what you want, for example, ‘I want it to start with drums and guitar and
build using piano and vocal harmony’ or ‘I like the production on First Aid Kit’s Silver
Linings.’ Producers can’t be blamed for going off your original plan if they weren’t given a
brief.
The other thing to consider is the cost. Do they charge per hour of per project, or ask for a
writer’s cut in exchange for their work? The latter is only likely if you already have a degree
of commercial success. It’s usually better to agree a price per project with more charged if it
goes way over time. You should be given the stems (individual parts of the song such as the
piano and guitar tracks) and a mastered WAV of the track as part of the price. A reasonable
charge would be £200-£300 per song depending on the success of the producer and how
complicated the track is… if it has a Gospel choir and a live bagpipe band, it will obviously
cost more. Session musicians can expect to be paid around £200 per day so consider what
instruments you need and who will play them carefully.
When budgeting for the project, don’t forget to include CD duplication/replication, cover art
and promotion. If you plan to sell CDs in stores, you will need a barcode and ISRC codes to
be paid performance royalties (these are separate to writing royalties. All singers and
instrumentalists who are members of PPL in the UK will be paid). CDBaby can provide you
with these as can other online services.

Marketing Your Music
So, you’ve lovingly crafted your masterpieces. Now you need to get people to listen to
them. Marketing your music yourself has become easier than ever before but it can be time
consuming. The most important thing to consider when getting your music out there is this:
Who are my audience? And where do they hang out?

This means online and offline. There is no point joining a lot of country groups on Facebook
if you write heavy rock! You are likely to know where the people who like your style of
music are to be found because you love that music, too.
Social Media
It’s becoming essential for artists and writers to have a social media presence, especially on
Facebook, Instagram and possibly Soundcloud. Platforms which offer benefits to musicians
include:
 Facebook: Most people who use the Internet have an account on Facebook. It has an
advertising system which allows you to engage specific groups quite cheaply.
Remember to open a musician/band page rather than using a personal profile.
You can pay for followers on Facebook but be aware that if you have 11000
followers and only 10 people are engaging with each post, it looks disingenuous to
professionals who may be checking out your social media presence. It’s better to
have a natural tribe of engaged followers.
Promoting albums, tour dates etc. is easy on Facebook using their Facebook ads
system. You can target people by location, age and interests which means your posts
are likely to be seen by people who are actually interested.

Facebook Live has been a great innovation for musicians. You might post a Spotify
link and your readership are in the dentist’s or at work and can’t listen. They mean to
listen later but forget. The immediacy of Facebook live (if you pick the right time to
go live) means that people want to be there as the action happens and are actually
more likely to listen so long as you don’t do it so often that people think ‘I’ll catch
the next one.’
A good example of a music Facebook page is The Staves with a mix of music, events
and personal news: https://www.facebook.com/TheStaves/
 Twitter: a good place to engage with fans using hashtags which makes it easier for
people to find you in searches, for example #NIMusic, #celticmusic. Twitter is great
as a search engine. Try searching ‘record labels Northern Ireland’. Just remember, if
you want to engage with music professionals you find on Twitter go to the websites
listed in their bios and email them. Don’t post tweets asking people to listen to your
demos. It doesn’t look good on your profile to professionals or fans!
Twitter relies heavily on engagement. If you have been talking to someone, they are
more likely to see your tweets and from this point of view it can be time consuming.
My problem with it is that it’s harder to follow the stream of a conversation than on
Facebook and it often breaks up into tangents which is fine if you have enough time
to keep multiple conversations going.
Twitter also has an advertising service, if you can coalesce your fans by posting at
certain times and using hashtags carefully you can pay so that ore of those people
actually see a specific tweet.
The anatomy of an attention grabbing tweet usually contains a bold image, a small
amount of text and 3 hashtags. A long row of hashtags is off putting.

 Soundcloud: the musicians’ hang out online. Post tracks for comment by the
Soundcloud community or use it as a hosting service. Collaborate with other
musicians. Find work. Build a fanbase.
Soundcloud has sadly stopped hosting groups which were a great place to find new
music. Like Spotify, it has playlists and featured artists every week and getting onto
these lists will up your play count exponentially. To achieve this, you basically have
to become an active member of the community. People are more likely to listen to
your tracks and comment on them if you show some interest in their work. Also,
write a detailed enough bio that people can chat to you about it.
I have collaborated with people I have met on Souncloud and it’s definitely a useful
tool in terms of networking.
Its other useful feature is that you can set tracks to private to send out as demos.
Most A&R reps prefer streaming links with the track made downloadable than
having their inboxes jammed with large files. You can also use Soundcloud to post
songs on your website and on social media.
 YouTube: most people looking for music online go to YouTube which is the second
biggest search engine online after Google. You can download stock footage from
YouTube or Pixabay and make videos for your tracks, such as this one:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k557MpLGaf0 . YouTube is a visual medium
and posting still images with lyrics will not keep the audience’s attention. I have a
training video on how to make a cool and free YouTube video here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DnQljjO2Wm8
The YouTube algorithm serves up your video as a suggestion to music fans based on
several factors, but one of the most important is viewer retention. You want to try
and keep viewers watching for over 50% of the video which means giving the
audience the suggestion something cool will happen at the end. Be sure to embed
the ‘subscribe’ icon as a watermark in the YouTube creator studio (there are many
videos available to show you how to do this). Another way of getting more views is
to use end cards where YouTube will suggest a video to the viewer based on their
usage or you can promote your latest video here.
Hashtags are important in making your videos discoverable. Try tagging artists who
you think you sound a little like. Also, if you create your own hashtag (mine is
#evewilliamsmusic), YouTube may suggest other videos with that hashtag to the
viewer, keeping them on your channel longer.
You can monetise your YouTube channel when you reach 1000 subscribers and 4000
hours of watch time within a 12 month period.
It is possible to pay for YouTube advertising campaigns via Google AdSense and
outside services like Sprizzy. Just be a little careful because a lot of views with low

audience retention for each view won’t help your channel’s standing. What happens
with AdSense ads is that the video plays before the video that someone has tuned in
to see and they are likely to click ‘skip’, although if you can come up with a great 30
second trailer for your music it could definitely help get your sound out there on
YouTube.
 Instagram
I attended a music industry conference recently where the point was made that if
you want to engage an audience under the age of 30, Instagram is the right platform.
Younger people don’t want to hang out on Facebook where their parents are.
Instagram has some great benefits: people will click on stories as they are time
limited and they don’t want to miss out, the discover tab serves up alot of useful
(and some not so useful) content, you can post one minute videos, either recorded
or live takes to promote your music and learning to use hashtags so that you come
up in people’s Discover tabs and searches is relatively easy. The disadvantages are
not really being able to post links (we have all read that irritating phrase, ‘link in
bio’….. then gone to the bio and not found the link), only being able to post one
minute videos unless you use the carousel option but that breaks the flow (update:
you can now post longer videos using IGTV), needing to have very high quality, eye
catching images to stand out and the high number of trolls and spammers.
There is a lot of training available online in the use of Instagram, but I think the
secret is just getting started. It is connected to Facebook so you can start by inviting
your Facebook friends then following successful musicians in your genre to see what
they are doing. I follow Dolly Parton which brings me endless joy…

Do’s and Don’ts of Social Media
There are some issues of etiquette and common sense that apply across platforms.
Do
 Work out which platforms you really need to be one. Take on too many and you will
spend your life on social media instead of making music.
 Have a specified musician’s profile separate from private accounts.
 Create content which drives people to the music and don’t post tracks every day, e.g.
blogs, interviews, pictures
 Use media: large blocks of text are off putting. Research shows that video is the
medium which encourages most interaction on Facebook and Instagram.
 Reply to comments
 Ignore trolls
 Join groups, such as Northern Ireland Musicians and Songwriters on Facebook but
don’t just use the groups to post your tracks and run. Network with people!
 Link to your website and update it regularly.
 Have consistent branding across all platforms: your sound and images should give
the same messages.
 Post only high quality profile pics
 Think about what time you post. Research suggest that people are most active on
Facebook in the morning before work and at 5pm and later when they get out of
work. You can schedule posts on social media platforms so that they get to your
audience when they will be seen.
Don’t
 Insult individuals or whole groups, .e.g. people of specific ethnicities, religions, sexual
orientations etc. Positively aim for the right audience rather than negatively ruling
people out. I was once added on Facebook by someone I met at a seminar. The next
week he was ranting in what I felt was a quite ignorant way about a demographic I
happen to belong to which didn’t make me feel inclined to work with him. Another
point from this story was that he added me to his personal profile. It’s better to give
people your music page, but if you do end up adding professional contacts to your
own personal profile and you have a tendency towards personal overshare or
political ranting, just remember who might be reading it. I’m not saying don’t live
your online life the way you want to but consider the consequences of certain posts.
 Ignore interactions. Fans will be pleased if you thank them for commenting. You may
lose followers if people feel they are spending time trying to support you and you

don’t engage with them. Also, interaction creates more interaction and on Facebook
it means more people will see your posts.
 Post material too frequently or too infrequently. I just unsubscribed from someone’s
mailing list this morning because they email every day. On the other hand, if you
only hear from someone once a year it’s hard to feel informed about what they are
doing with their music.
 Add people to groups without permission.
 Go into streams of consciousness and start sharing your life in inappropriate detail.
 Post only songs and nothing else whatsoever. People want to connect with a human,
not a marketing machine!
 Post in public what should be emailed. A twitter feed which reads ‘please listen to
my tracks’ over and over again aimed at every presenter on Radio 1 is not going to
cast you in the best light.
 Use low quality profile pics, e.g. you falling out of the pub with your mates, blurry
selfies.
Creating Content
Music
Needless to say you want only high quality sound out there so make sure what you post has
been mixed and mastered to a high standard. You can use Spotify and/or Soundcloud to
post audio to social media.
Video
Free video editing software such as Windows Movie Maker or iMovie will do quite a lot, but
I personally upgraded to Filmora for PC (Camtasia and Final Cut Pro for Mac get good
reviews, too). The software cost £60 and has been a good investment as with it you can add
layers which you can’t in Movie Maker so I can add my own watermarks etc.
Lyrics videos with still images are deadly boring on YouTube and unless you’re well
established people won’t be searching for them. I use Pixabay for free stock footage which
you can add to your own footage to make a story (example: my song Don’t Anchor Me:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5iZ3SlUkSeY). I like to use a letterbox effect to make my videos
look more cinematic.
Sites like Pond5 offer affordable footage which can make your videos look more
professional at low cost.
You can ofcourse get a professional videographer to record your live gigs if it’s in the
budget. I must admit I do post phone footage but I make sure to label the video ‘fan

recorded live footage’. If anything it shows that you are out there gigging. Just take care if
there is alot of background noise in the video… a lot of people talking through your
performance won’t give a good impression, even though it happens to everyone.
Pictures
There are myriad photo editors available at the moment so you can adjust
sharpness/focus/colour add filters etc. Unless there’s a good reason for doing otherwise,
you want to post high resolution photographs only and make sure the photo is clear and
well composed. Instagram in particular is a visual medium and you’re competing with artists
who have maybe put quite a bit of money into their visual image.
I cowrote with the very musically talented Louisa Marie who basically got her record deal
through building up her Instagram, so I’m posting a link to her channel as an example of an
effective use of images: https://www.instagram.com/louisamariemusic/ Now, it certainly
doesn’t hurt that she’s gorgeous but also note the use of storytelling: she’s somewhere
exciting or she looks like she’s going somewhere exciting and letting you share her day. She
uses a consistent filter that you come to associate with her channel. In other words, the
content she posts is on brand. There is a section on creating branding coming up. You’ll note
she only has a couple of thousand followers but their level of engagement was what
impressed the label.
Paying for Social Media Interaction
Ok, this subject may be a little icky but I am informed by a reputable media lawyer that
major labels do this all the time, especially on YouTube. Heck, I’ve done it and I’m not
ashamed to admit it. The trick is to do it ethically and sensibly.
The reason I did it is that if you want followers, you have to have followers. If a YouTube
video has 5 views and the channel has 3 subscribers, that doesn’t shout quality to the
prospective listener, in the unlikely event they actually find the song. The same applies for
Spotify.
You should NEVER pay for a service where they basically get bots to ramp up your play
count. You won’t reach any real people and it will also look pretty dodgy. I visited a
Facebook page recently that has 11K likes but each post was only getting about 5
interactions. Similarly, I found a YouTube video with 20k plays but the channel only has 200
subscribers. So, what did paying for those plays achieve? If you are going to use a service,
use one that promotes your channel/videos/music organically infront of real people. This
runs the risk of getting dislikes, but they only prove real people saw the content. For
example, there are many services where you buy Spotify plays but a more useful service is

one that submits your song to Spotify playlists to be heard by real music fans. There should
be some kind of quality assurance process: the service provider must only work with songs
that are professionally mixed and mastered. Check out any playlists your tracks are added to
on Chartmetric, a service which gives you detailed stats about artists, playlists, curators and
albums on Spotify and Apple Music. If a playlist has doubled its followers in a week, those
aren’t likely to be real people.
When searching for a service, beware of companies whose websites are in broken English or
who promise 10K plays in 24 hours (that will make the algorithm suspicious). On YouTube,
remember that view duration is important to being discovered by the algorithm so if you get
a lot of 20 second plays it could hurt your channel. Conspicuously spamming the system
could get your content taken down on both YouTube and Spotify.
If you have time, check out this helpful and also quite frankly hilarious article. The guys from
Noisey Denmark recorded a song they knew to be truly atrocious, paid to have it listed on
Spotify by a third party distributor then got it 10k plays at low cost. They were paid royalties
for these streams. The article points out that money is made from streaming and that
‘hacking’ the system by paying for plays actually hurts legitimate content creators by taking
up ‘a share of the pie’.
Email Lists
According to CDBaby, email remains the most effective way of reaching people online
(http://diymusician.cdbaby.com/2014/06/12-ways-build-email-list/ ) The most popular html
email service online is Mailchimp (www.mailchimp.com) It enables you to send emails full
of links and images, to keep lists and monitor who is opening your emails and who is clicking
on the links they contain along with a whole host of other useful stats. Importantly, it gives
subscribers an unsubscribe option in every email which keeps you in line with data
protection legislation.
You can choose music related templates for CD launches, tour and calendar dates etc. You
can post sign up forms on your website and social media or ask fans to sign up at gigs. It’s
nice to offer an incentive, such as a free track or an exclusive video. In 2018 I released an EP
that was only available to my mailing list. First, I sent a Dropbox link to my mailing list
amigos, as I call them. Then I set up an automated email so that when someone subscribes
they automatically receive the email with the Dropbox link to the tracks as a thankyou.
Try not to email too frequently or you may be reported for spam, but not so infrequently as
people forget about your music. Once a month is a good aim, or when you have really big
news you want to share. Try to keep these emails light and conversational and include
pictures and links. Nobody wants to read a list of dates.
GDPR applies to musicians, although some don’t seem to realise it. If you are emailing
people in the EU, they need to double opt in (Mailchimp handles that) and you can never,

ever, ever add someone to your list without their permission. You must also never share
their personal information or add them to a different list without their express permission.
Musician Websites
It is pretty much essential to have your own website where you can gather your bio,
calendar dates, tracks, videos and news in one place. Social media does not really let you do
this. In your own website, you are in control of the visitor’s experience. All the images you
use, the choice of font etc. should be in keeping with your style of music. Use consistent
images from your website across your social media platforms so music industry
professionals who have linked to or searched for your website experience consistent
branding and know they are in the right place.
There are several services you can use to put together a website. I use Hostbaby for my
music website and Wordpress for my teaching website. I pay $20 a month for Hostbaby and
get an email account with that. Wordpress has several plans. If you want a modern, mobile
responsive theme and you want to use plugins you will probably need a paid service but
there is actually quite a lot you can do for free, depending on what you want to do with your
site.
Your Artist Bio

The biggest mistake musicians make on their website is to have long, rambling bios. Keep it
to about 10 lines and hit the high notes! Also, don’t write things like ‘their music has been
described as awe inspiring’. By whom? If you don’t tell me who said it, it sounds like you’re
saying it about yourself and that doesn’t come over well. If you can, use press quotes to
pepper your bio. If you don’t have any yet, ask gig goers or people who have bought your
tracks for a few kind words. As the actual Bible says, although it should also be in the music
marketing Bible, ‘let someone else praise you and not your own lips’. Apart from quotes by
other people, keep it factual. What gigs have you played? Have you had any radio/TV play?
Do you have qualifications in music? Have you worked with anybody cool? (Ask them first!)
What is your unique selling point (USP)? In other words, what makes you different from the
other artists out there in your genre?
What to Include
Your website is your place to do what you want, but it should include the following:
 A simple menu with only about 4 options. You can use submenus to add further
information.
 Your bio
 Calendar of gigs, interviews etc.

 Some tracks (but not whole albums!) and YouTube videos of live performances.
Record labels will want to know what you sound like on recordings and live.
 News
 A sign up form for your email list
 Links to your social media
A few examples:
http://evewilliamsmusic.com/
https://thedivinecomedy.com/
https://jenniferknapp.com/
Emailing Music Industry Professionals

I know quite a few musicians who have wrecked opportunities and relationships by sending
out unprofessional emails. Whether you are contacting music journalists, A&R reps,
bloggers, radio presenters etc. there are certain rules to writing a professional email. You
may have met the person you are emailing at a conference or other event, but most likely
you have found them through Google and they have no idea who you are. Here are a few
tips to help encourage them to listen to your music. Most industry professionals are very
busy – I get some 30 emails a week asking me to listen to tracks. You need to make a case
why the person should listen to you with umpteen similar emails in their inbox and limited
time.
 NEVER send generic emails. Address the person as Dear Eve etc. rather than
beginning ‘Hi. I’m a songwriter from…’
 Use what you are offering in the subject line. If I have a brief to find a dance track
and I have 100 emails with ‘submission’ in the subject line but one saying ‘electronic
tracks available to license’, I am going to open the one that sounds like it just might
be what I am looking for.
 Research the company and make sure they work in the right genre. No point sending
a country track to a metal label!
 Read the submission policy on the company’s website. I get emails all the time saying
’how do I submit a track?’ when this is clearly explained on the website. It gets me
off side as it shows the person has not bothered to read the website and find out
about the company before submitting.
 Find out what a standard contract contains. I offered a contract to a songwriter who
did not get a lawyer and read the contract herself. She asked could I offer her
something ‘less exploitative’ when in fact the contract was industry standard. I found
this not only rude, but showed that she had not bothered to become informed about
the field in which she was aiming to work. Another good point from this story:

remember that the person reading your emails may not know you well, and people
don’t come over in writing as they are in person sometimes. Don’t use phrases which
may be construed as rude.
 Never rant regarding a response/non response. Rejection is a big part of the
musician’s world. Plus, the person you are ranting at may not want to work with you
now but they might in the future.
 Keep it short: I don’t have time to read 10 page biographical emails. Give me your
top achievements, and any quotes about your work you may have from an industry
professional.
Branding
We Have touched a bit on the subject of branding, i.e. keeping your images, sound and
written communications consistent. Look at your favourite artist’s social media and website.
Do the pictures let you know what their sound is like? What messages are being
communicated?
Exercise
List three words which describe you as an artist, for example I might pick elegant, spiritual
and contemporary. Choose an image which conveys this and also decide what is not in
keeping… if I want to be elegant, I am going to avoid cute kittens which give another
impression. I might instead choose to use Celtic images but not images which suggest
traditional music by being touristy or old fashioned. I would choose traditional fonts such as
Times New Roman and avoid comic sans or anything comical or childish. You don’t have to
draw your image unless you want to!
Remember as you carry out this exercise to bear in mind: Who is my audience?
Where do they hang out?
My logo, by way of example:

I’ll leave you to judge how effectively I’m achieving this, but this is the thinking behind my
logo (which you will find on my stationery and business cards, website and used as my
YouTube channel art, Soundcoud and Facebook banners, back of my CDs etc.) The silver is
ethereal and the leather is earthy, so you don’t expect ‘three chords and the truth’ country
or electronic dance music but something acoustic. Then silver apple tree is because I am
called Eve and the fronts are classic rather than edgy. I didn’t want anything cartoonish or
with bright, neon colours as that wouldn’t represent my particular style as an artists. The
brief I gave the graphic designer was: elegant, classic, spiritual, Celtic, earthy, relatable,
storytelling, memorable.
I got this logo designed on fiverr.com very cheaply. I am sure some other people might have
something a little similar, but the apple tree (which I specifically asked for) is completely
unique. I then called my label/publishing division Silver Tree Music and am going to use a
much simpler variant of this logo.
To be honest, and this is something to think about, it doesn’t always print out the best from
my own printer and so I have to have copies of my one sheet (the songwriter’s equivalent of
a CV/résumé/bio) printed professionally.
I went with a tagline of ‘Singer and Songwriter’ It may not sound very exciting, but it tells
people what I do. Also, note I am not a ‘singer-songwriter’ which suggests a certain genre of
music which isn’t really the total of what I do. You can put something a bit more descriptive
here if you want, but just don’t blow your own horn or limit yourself by creating narrow
expectations.
Marketing your Music Offline

Basically, anywhere that you are that you’re talking about your music, you’re marketing for
example when you’re playing at a gig or chatting after a gig, at a conference or meeting or
training day or even chatting about what you do at a dinner party. If you’re drawing
attention to the fact you make music, you’re marketing your business. In essence,
marketing is all about forming relationships so a lot of the same rules for being easy to get
on with that apply online also apply offline.
We’ll look a little later at how to find and make the most of music industry events and
conferences, but there are a few things you can do if you know you’re going to be
somewhere where people will be interested in music/your music. Firstly, have copies of
your music they can access. Not everybody likes CDs (although some people love them), but
it’s good to have a few and also have music on Spotify, Soundcloud or YouTube. People will
feel you’re wasting their time if you talk about your music and then there is nothing for
them to hear. I know it sounds simple but I have actually met people who haven’t got a
single song recorded and yet go to industry conferences and try to make connections.

It’s still a good idea to have business cards. People tend to swap Instagrams or LinkedIn
accounts but business cards are a good back up. Make sure they have up to date contact
details and adhere to your branding. It’s also a good idea to have a photo on them so when
someone finds it 3 weeks later they remember who you are. At conferences you tend to get
a lot of business cards and afterwards you don’t always remember who gave them to you.
Mine looks like this:
I’ve got a quote about my songwriting and a quote about my voice, to cover the bases of
what people might want to contact me about. I have also adopted a font which is in keeping
with the fonts I use on my website and my overall vibe.
I have a separate card for teaching
It’s basically a mini flyer and gives a brief description of what I teach and who to with an
offer (free first lesson) and my website, email and phone number so that anyone who wants
to book a lesson can do it easily.
I have separate branding for my music business and my music teaching business; they are
basically separate entities and so each card reflects the branding and colours associated
with that division of what I do.

Printed Media
Blogs and online publications may be advancing rapidly, but there is still kudos to being
included in printed media publications, from your local and regional papers to specialist
music publications and even national press. What I did at one point was to find a couple of
artists in the same niche as me who were doing well, check out the Press pages of their
websites to see who was reviewing them then I pitched to all the same people which
worked for about 85% of the publications I targeted.
Journalists get requests for reviews all the time and they are quick to pick up press releases
that are just looking for free advertising. If you want a review, check out the publication’s
submissions policy and stick to it. If they only review albums and you are pitching an EP, it
isn’t going to happen. Also be aware that you may not always be reviewed favourably. Once
you put your art out there, some people won’t like it. In the end, though, people are unlikely
to remember a scathing review unless it was really catastrophic. They are more likely to
recall they have heard of you which is basically the aim. My talented fellow writer got
reviewed in a national paper in her part of the world. She is usually favourably reviewed and
has so many 5 stars on her website her press page looks like The Sky at Night. On this one
occasion it didn’t go so well. She posted the negative review on Facebook with a personal
note to her followers saying she wasn’t sure whether to post it or not. It provoked a frenzy
of outrage form her fans, denouncing the reviewer as a fool with no taste. It was a risky
strategy but it got people talking about her and sharing her music.
The way NOT to react is to swear and vituperate. You might cut off your relationship with
the publication and not be able to send material in future, and you run the risk of coming
across as a bit of a twerp to your readers.
If you have a story, and only if you really have a newsworthy story, you need to craft a
bespoke press release for the publication(s) you are targeting. This should include a
descriptive title, for example ‘Newtownards Singer to Appear at Edinburgh Festival’
(specific) rather than ‘Local Girl Done Good’ (too vague). Write a 2 line synopsis of your
story, and then answer Who, What, Why, When and Where. What is happening, how did it
come about, when and where will/did the event take place? Then add a teensy smattering
of background info, an awe-inspiring quote and all your contact details. Your press release
should not be no longer than a page.
On a couple of occasions I’ve had press releases I wrote printed verbatim, simply copied
and pasted by the journalists who like to save time. For a really great article on how to put
together a press release, see here https://www.procopywriters.co.uk/2015/09/how-to-write-an-
effective-press-release/

Final Article:
Original Press Release:
Bangor Songwriter Named One to watch by Nashville Songwriters Association

International
Eve Williams, a singer and songwriter from Bangor, has been named One to Watch by
Nashville Songwriters Association International.
NSAI is a worldwide professional development body for songwriters in all genres, not just
country, and includes many successful writers in its membership.
The song which helped Eve achieve this accolade is called Illumination and can be found at
www.soundcloud.com/evewilliams/illumination-acoustic .
In October, Eve will be heading to Nashville with fellow Bangor songwriter Amanda Agnew
to attend an event hosted by NSAI. Before that she will be running songwriting workshops at
this year’s Sea Bangor Festival on June 27th and 28th.
Notes to Editors:
Nashville Songwriters Association International runs a service called EARS (Evaluation and
Review Service) for its international membership. Each month a small number of
songwriters who submit songs for evaluation and feedback are named One to Watch or
recommended to have their music pitched to a publisher. More information at
www.nashvillesongwriters.com.
You have probably noticed there are very few differences between my press release and the
article published in my local paper in 2015.

Resources
http://www.musicthinktank.com/blog/7-music-marketing-truths-all-musicians-should-
know.html (Music Think Tank are one of the best business resources on the web. Great
guide to branding and content marketing)
http://members.cdbaby.com/websites-for-bands.aspx (CD Baby’s music website provider.
Costs around £17 per month or $20 USD but very user friendly and high quality product with
good support service)
http://diymusician.cdbaby.com/2011/02/7-tips-for-building-a-more-user-friendly-music-
website/ (CD Baby website design tips)
http://diymusician.cdbaby.com/2013/03/social-media-for-musicians/ (CD Baby guide to
social media marketing)
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100008561920638 (provisional contact for The
Space NI, who are compiling a database of music contacts which is free to use)
www.cdbaby.com (distribution on CDBaby, iTunes and Spotify amongst others for a set fee)
www.bandcamp.com (people download your music for a ‘suggested donation’)
http://www.youtube.com/yt/artists/ (YouTube guide for musicians)
https://evewilliamssinging-songwritingtuition.teachable.com/p/online-songwriting-course (my
online course, Pro Songwriting: The Art and Business of a Songwriter)

Music Publishing
I am asked to define what music publishing is all the time. In essence, publishing simply
means to make public so as soon as you share a song on Facebook you have published it. A
publishing deal is obviously something very different. In this chapter we’re going to look at
the different types of publishers and publishing deals and how and when to find one.
Types of Music Publishers
Traditional Music Publishers

These are the people who get your music to artists to record and/or used in TV, film
placements etc. They collect your royalties for you and earn their living by taking a
proportion of these royalties (more on that later). They arrange cowrites with artists and
other songwriters and on occasions the recording of your songs. Like record labels, there are
major and independent music publishers. Majors include Universal, Warner and BMG and
successful independents include companies like Nottinghill Music, AVG and Tileyard Music.
Music Licensing Agencies

These specialise in finding placements for your recorded work.
Copyright in music consists of 2 different elements, the performance rights which pertain to
the song as in the lyrics and melody, and the mechanical/master rights which pertain to a
recording of the song. Usually the person who arranged or paid for the recording owns the
master (mechanical) rights, although this may not always be the case. You should never
pitch a recording for licensing placement to which you don’t own or can’t quickly clear the
rights because music supervisors work on tight deadlines and if you cause delays they may
not work with you again. These kind of placements include TV slots, films and trailers,
games, chain store playlists…. anywhere where music is required. Music licensing agencies
can only use music that is mastered and recorded to broadcast standard. Fees for these kind
of placements can range from a couple of hundred pounds for a local radio ad to $100,000
USD for a movie trailer, with royalties also been paid each time the song is aired (these are
referred to as ‘back end payments’).

Music Libraries
Services like Pond5, Audiojungle and Audiosparx let you upload music to be bought by
other content creators, for example people making a YouTube video or a documentary.
Prices per license tend to be low at around $20 USD so it’s a numbers game: trying to create
music in keeping with what you currently hear in ads, reality TV etc. The kind of tracks
available in catalogues will tend not to be songs so much as 15, 30 and 60 second
compositions. This is called stock music and is usually instrumental. You need to describe
and tag your music to get it to the right people. Sometimes you can get quite big gigs from a
library service, for example a car commercial.
Music libraries are different than sync agencies in that they do not promote your music to
content creators: your music is in a library and potential licensees search for it.
Pay careful attention to the terms and conditions when signing up to music libraries.
Audiosparx requires that you sign your music up in perpetuity, reasoning that it damages
their catalogue if potential purchasers return to a track to find it has been taken down.
Never submit anything you might want to pitch exclusively elsewhere. Most music libraries
offer non exclusive deals so you can work with as many as you want. Stockmusician.com
recommends having your music available in as many libraries as possible.
Types of Music Publishing Deals
Exclusive and Non Exclusive

You may be offered an exclusive or non exclusive deal. An exclusive deal means that only
the company you have signed with my exploit the rights of the song and you can’t use it
elsewhere, whereas with a non exclusive deal the song can be pitched to other publishers or
you can pitch it to artists and music supervisors yourself.
Single Song Agreement (SSA)

This is when a publisher works with you on one song only, or one song at a time. You may be
asked to sign single song agreements (SSAs) at songcamps, for example (more on
songcamps in the next chapter). A publisher is likely to want to see if your material sells
before considering you as a staff writer (permanently rostered writer). Some writers, such
as myself, prefer to move around publishers on single song deals rather than sign with one
publisher on an exclusive basis. I feel this gives me more options in pitching my catalogue
but being a staff writer has benefits too.

As with ESAs, in an SSA the publisher takes around 50% of the earnings of the song then the
rest are split between the writers.
Exclusive Songwriting Agreement (ESA)

This ties you in to working on an exclusive basis with a particular publisher. You cannot pitch
the songs written under this contract to anyone else and in some cases they will own your
entire catalogue for up to 10 years. Americans call a writer on an ESA a staff writer.
Exclusivity sounds great and it is if you sign to a well established and well known publisher.
Before you sign such a deal, you need to be sure the company you are signing with can
monetise your catalogue. Contact other writers on their roster and ask how happy they are
with their deals. The plus points of being a staff writer are that the publisher will fund you to
go to international songcamps and to write with artists. They will send you tip sheets of
music they are looking for and they will regularly pitch your work. Not everything written on
an SSA ends up being pitched and the same true on an ESA but there is a slightly higher
chance.
You will usually be paid an advance to retain your services. This can be up to £150k but
beware, if you do not earn this money back the publisher can recoup it so don’t be tempted
to spend it.
It is possible to be a staff writer for several publishers although material written for each
publisher belongs to that publisher.
If you are offered this type of deal, it is essential to have it checked over by a media lawyer
as you could be tied into it for several years. Media lawyers charge around £200 an hour but
if you are a member of the Musicians Union in the UK you can use their legal service for a
preliminary check over of the contract which will raise any issues.
It’s due diligence to check the company on Companies House to make sure they are solvent
and what their turnover is to be sure they are having a decent level of success and can
actually afford to pay you.
Development Deal
Development deals rock. The publisher pays for you to go to international songcamps and
write with established writers, usually for about 3 years. If after around 3 years you show
promise and you’ve had a modicum of commercial success, the development deal may be
extended to an ESA. This is the most likely outcome because otherwise they’ve wasted the
money they invested in training you. It’s a bit like an apprenticeship, in essence.

When to Find a Publisher

If you have only been writing for a year, it’s probably not time to send out demos. You really
need to get to the point where your craft is as strong as that of writers who are releasing
successful material. The best way to know if this is the case is to get feedback from music
industry professionals (promoters, music educators, songwriters, A&R reps). I am happy to
give feedback if you email info@evewilliamsmusic.com.
You should also have undertaken cowrites as professional songwriters quite often work in
teams and you need to show that you are a team player with something to contribute in a
group writing session.
Ideally you should have written for and with other artists, not just yourself.
Commercial Viability Checklist
Here is a commercial viability checklist, put together with input from Carl-Henrik Wahl at
Out of the Woods, Norway (very cool publishers)
You must meet ALL of the following

• Your songs are always written in the appropriate songform (ABABCB for pop/country
pop, AAA for folk, AABA for jazz/swing. ABAB with drop for EDM etc. Avoid postform
in the early stages)
• Your songs contain strong hooks: melodic hooks, lyrical hooks and secondary hooks
(this is the biggie)
• Lyrics: phrasing, no cliché, progression and wireframing, use of
image/metaphor/conversational style. Some publishers don’t like an AABB rhyme
scheme.
• Both lyrical and musical content should be aimed at the target audience. A song that
is so personal to you that no-one else can understand it is unlikely to sell. You need
to tell the listener’s story, not just your own.
• If you want to write for a specific artist, are you familiar with their style? Your song
should sound like their next album, not their last one.
• You should have a catalogue to pitch of at least 20 well produced songs including a
high proportion of uptempo/upbeat songs. If your music is to by synced, a lot of
placements come from advertising and brands don’t want their products to be
associated with people feeling depressed.
• Originality

• On trend/ahead of trend.
• You have positive feedback from credible industry figures.
I want to add a little note here about staying abreast of music industry trends… every
aspiring or professional songwriter should pay for Spotify Premium. The Billboard 100
playlist on there will show what is trending at the moment and you should also keep on top
of the major playlists in your specialist genres. Remember, truly successful songwriters
know what the trends are and push them forward.
How to Find a Publisher
So, you’ve ticked all the boxes in terms of experience and commercial viability. How do you
find a publisher? Well, you’re unlikely to stray across the perfect publisher on Google.
In my case, I had studied for a Master of Music in Songwriting which gave me a pretty great
set of connections. There are ofcourse other ways of forming a network. Attending
networking events and conferences is a good way to go (that’s why I have a whole chapter
on it).
In the UK, the Music Publishers Association Online has a searchable database telling you
which publishers in various genres are currently accepting submissions. Any music sent to a
publisher who is not accepting submissions will be regarded as unsolicited material and
probably never played.
It’s so much easier to email people when there is a connection there. Attending songcamps
can be a great way of meeting signed writers and finding out with which publishers they are
associated. Cowriting generally helps you to pitch to publishers. Are there any artists or
writers you think you sound a little like? Find out who has signed them.
Nashville Songwriters Association International (NSAI) is a professional development body
which allows members 2 pitches to a publisher each year. Membership costs $25 USD per
month and with it you get mentoring sessions and access to their EARS (Evaluation and
Review Service). Your music is listened to and commented upon by an anonymous
songwriter and a selection of songs are chosen every month to be pitched to publishers. You
can also be named One to Watch (I was twice in 2015) in recognition of strong
craftsmanship.
LinkedIn, especially LinkedIn groups, can be a great place for forming relationships with
publishers online. Make sure to have a complete profile and samples of your work available.
You can take out a free trial of LinkedIn premium for a month during which time you can
message people you are not connected to, as long as you do this thoughtfully and with a
strategy. The service costs £50 a month which is quite expensive but you might make
enough progress in a month not to need it on an ongoing basis.

Self Publishing
It is completely possible to find placements and cuts (when artists record your songs)
yourself without a publisher. Just bear in mind that you might not make as much money as
you would if signed to a publisher and that you will need a fairly extensive network of
contacts if you want to be self published. The plus side is that you will retain the full share of
the royalties for the percentage of the song which you own without splitting them with a
publisher.
If you are looking for licensing placements, a very successful songwriter advised me to pick 5
music supervisors (the people who find the music for TV shows, films etc.) and follow them
online. See what tracks they are licensing and become familiar with their bodies of work.
Only at that point, message and introduce yourself. Do not send tracks at this point but
show you know about their work and ask if they have any requirements at the moment.
Sending unsolicited or irrelevant material will do you no favours and could break the
potential of a working relationship. If they are happy to receive tracks, send downloadable
links and make sure the tracks have full metadata embedded (title, composers, date
recorded, BPM, tone and mood). You can use the ‘song info’ tab on ITunes to add this
information. Do not be tempted to send tracks that are a bit like the brief, but not on brief.
At this point I should explain that TV shows and movies use 2 kinds of music: score music is
composed for the film by the production’s composer, for example Howard Shore’s work in
The Lord of the Rings movies. Featured music is found by the music supervisor using briefs
provided by the director and/or producers and is usually songs by other artists than the
composer, for example Enya’s May It Be in The Fellowship of the Ring.
I have found composition work and placements via Facebook and Twitter with some work
coming from LinkedIn. Networking at conferences and events is also a good way to find
work which is why I have devoted an entire chapter to it.
Finding artists placements also involves research. You should be looking for artists who are
up and coming and performing regularly as every time they perform your song live you will
be paid royalties. For that reason I would search YouTube rather than Soundcloud or Spotify
to find out how often the artist performs and if they are a competent live performer. Also
check the calendar on their website and their Facebook page. Once you have found an
interesting artist, email them or their management with your one sheet and describe what it
is about them that makes you want to work with them.
Independent songwriters often use pitching services to find both cuts and placements.
These include Taxi, Music Gateway, Tracks and Fields and Songtradr. I have heard of people
having success on these platforms, but that is a small proportion of their membership most
of whom are paying a monthly fee to have their music submitted to advertised
opportunities. My personal belief is that if the criteria for having your music heard is that
you have paid, there’s no quality assurance going on there. I used Music Gateway for a
couple of years and never completed a single project so in the end I stopped paying.
Basically, there are no shortcuts. You have to do the research and find the connections
yourself in most cases or else sign with a publisher who already has an extensive network.

I will be honest, my best songwriting gigs have been when I’ve been under contract rather
than flying solo but you are not me and it might work for you.
Resources
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MXO8-0zKKPM&t=886s Informative interview with prolific
music supervisor Madonna Wade Reed (Smallville, Reign, Q)
http://www.musicthinktank.com/blog/category/music-publishing Music Think Tank articles on
Music Publishing

Making the Most of Conferences, Courses,

Songcamps, Seminars and Events
How to Find Events to Attend
You may live in a big city where there are gigs and conferences all the time or maybe you
live on a farm with nobody around for 50 miles…. everybody still has to travel for
conferences and events. It matters more that the event is relevant to your genre and market
than it’s convenient, although some regions boast great regional conferences. Scotland
hosts Resonate Scotland in November and in Northern Ireland there is a great conference
called Output in March.
The big international showcases are South by Southwest in Austin, Texas USA and MIDEM in
Cannes, France. The Great Escape in Brighton in England happens every May and is huge…
so big that getting chatting to people might be quite difficult so you need to email them and
arrange to meet first. If you want to have music placed in film and TV, LA Sync Week in Los
Angeles and Norwich Sound and Vision in the UK are a good bet. Basically, work out your
goals then your budget (because these events can cost about £200 to register plus your
travel!)
The next stage is signing up to mailing lists. Many publishers, labels and music industry
development bodies such as Performing Rights Organisations have excellent newsletters, for
example M, the Performing Rights Society’s magazine in the UK. Songwriting magazines and
forums can be also good providers of information on events.
Some publishers such as Nottinghill Music in London and 23 rd Precinct in Glasgow hold
regular networking nights. I’ve had some great results through attending Nottinghill’s
networking night which is on the last Thursday of most months at the Tileyard Complex,
King’s Cross. Over 1000 people attend so it can be difficult to find specific people. You really
need to email beforehand and say, ‘Hi. I’m going to the Nottinghill night on Thursday. Are
you going, by any chance?’

Getting the Most Out of Events
So, you have signed up for a great course or conference and you know there will be industry
professionals there you’d like to impress. Here are a few tips to making the most of events,
and a list of great events in Northern Ireland, the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland.
Be Prepared
This is where being a musician is like being a Boy Scout… you must be prepared!
 Take CD demos of your work with you containing your best 3 tracks with the
strongest first. It’s alright to have silver CDs from Tesco, but try and put a decent
cover on them and make sure they have contact details on the actual disc.
 Bring business cards. It’s a good idea to have your photo on your business card so
the person can look at it and remember who you were! Sometimes you meet a lot of
people at conferences.
 If you are pointing people towards your website on your demo CDs or business
cards, make sure it is up to date and your social media reads well.
 If there is an opportunity to ask questions, don’t be shy if there is something you
really want to know. You might not get a chance to ask this person questions again!
 If you attend demo clinics or songwriters’ circles, some of the feedback may be
critical. Remember this happens to everybody and try to learn from it!
 Even when you are at a conference with great seminars and gigs, remember a lot of
the real business of networking happens over lunch or at the pub afterwards.
 If you email someone after a conference who has expressed interest in your work
and it takes them a while to get back to you, don’t email them every other day
asking for a response. It’s annoying. Sometimes it takes time to listen to all the
demos you pick up at a conference, and then to check out people’s web presence.
 Be brave and say hello! Everyone is there to make connections and somebody there
might be looking for exactly what you happen to be offering.
 Find a wing woman/man like you would in a bar…. Nothing wrong with having the
moral support of a fellow musician and you can introduce each other to contacts.
 Dress to impress, but not to attention seek, It’s about making an impression, after
all.

Events that are well worth it

Here are some events that are well worth it. It may be possible to apply for Arts Council NI
travel grants (Support for the Individual Artist Programme) to attend events in the UK
especially if you are playing. Unfortunately they do not fund travel to the Republic of
Ireland.
Belfast Nashville Songwriters Festival

http://www.belfastnashville.com/
Great and affordable annual songwriting convention. Speakers in the past have included
Jason Blume who wrote for the Back Street Boys and Britney Spears amongst others. Great
seminars, gigs and ‘in the round’ performances. Costs £40 for the convention for all
workshops between Friday and Sunday. Normally takes place in early March.
YouBloom Dublin
http://www.youbloom.com/
Very useful industry convention and festival held annually in Dublin, usually in June.
Applications to play open in February. Attracts top managers, producers, radio presenters
and other industry professionals. Very useful ‘speed mentoring’, where you have 5 minutes
with a host of industry professionals.
Nottinghill Networking Night

https://nottinghillmusic.com/category/network-monthly/
A monthly live gig and networking event run by Nottinghill Music (Madonna, Basement Jaxx
amongst others). Basically, this is where the UK music industry goes to hang out. It takes
place outside The Vinyl Café at the Tileyard Complex, King’s Cross. It is packed with
publishers, songwriters, producers, artists… a lot of collaborations start there.
Norwich Sound and Vision

http://norwichsoundandvision.co.uk/
The best UK conference for anyone interested in synchronisation, i.e. placement of music in
film, TV and advertising.

The Great Escape

http://greatescapefestival.com/
A great festival to showcase new music in Brighton every summer.
NI Screen Worskshops
www.niscreen.com
NI Screen have a remit to train people in Northern Ireland in film related skills, including
music. They recently ran workshops on sound recording and composing for film. Sign up to
the mailing list via the website if you are interested in this area of music.
Output Belfast
http://www.outputbelfast.com/
A great one day conference in Belfast with workshops on diverse topics such as music
publishing, music licensing, touring, Ableton, folk music, songwriting, breaking the county
scene…. I had pitched song for sync before I had coffee at last year’s Output.
Ireland Music Week

https://www.irelandmusicweek.com/
A showcase for export ready Irish acts as well as a conference attended by music supervisors
(the people who fins music for TV shows, films etc.), publishers and labels from around the
world. Takes place in early October.
Songcamps
Attending songcamps is pretty much essential for aspiring and professional songwriters.
These are long weekends (usually) where songwriters get together to write for artists and
briefs such as Eurovision. They are normally run by publishers. Songcamps happen all over
the world. I have attended camps in Norway, Spain and London and there are some great
ones in Sweden, Denmark and ofcourse Nashville. Some are open to applications although
some you have to be invited by a publisher to attend. They can be quite expensive. If you
are signed to a publisher they may pay for your attendance, but if you are self funding
research the camp thoroughly to make sure it is right for you at this point in your career and
has a history of having songs cut.

Some great songcamps include:

Tileyard, London
Out of the Woods, Norway
Las Negras Songwriting Camps, Spain
Chris Difford (Squeeze) Songcamps, England
Songfarm , Norway
Everything from the co-writing section applies with one added extra: it’s residential. You will
not only be writing together but eating together and possibly sharing a room (I always pay
extra for my own room so I can have headspace and watch Netflix at bedtime).
I have had 2 artist cuts this year from attending songcamps and 3 tracks submitted to
various countries for Eurovision. I have also used them to expand my network of music
publishers.

A Real Life Experience of the Lifestyle of a

Songwriter
I really should do this section as a talking head video on YouTube because it could get into a
stream of consciousness… Ok, so you have studied instruments, singing and the craft of
songwriting. You’ve recorded a catalogue of commercially viable music. You have a fanbase
and a network in the industry. You’ve gone out there and become informed about music
marketing and music publishing. You’re pretty sure you’re good to go when it comes to
building a professional career. The big question now is: could you cope with the lifestyle?
Not everybody can. Let me share my experiences and observations.
Songwriters tend to be self employed and like all forms of self employment, songwriting
does not offer the financial stability of a salaried post. It’s much better to stick to your day
job until you can make enough money to cover your needs and chosen activities plus 50%
and you need to be able to sustain this for about a year, in my opinion. You might get a sync
for £10k and feel like you’re doing well, but then another placement doesn’t come along for
2 years. The landscape of music technology is changing and you might find that platforms
that you have done well on suddenly become passé. Recently, a lot of musicians have been
stung by the closure of Pledge Music, for example. If you have children or other financial
dependents, think carefully about how pursuing this career will impact them. It might
actually be great if you look at it from a business like perspective and end up with a
profitable business but that will take time to build (around 5 years in my case). I now earn
more than I once earned as the manager of a disability organisation but it took time to get
there. It’s not uncommon for musicians to be earning less than £10K a year. You will be in
business and you re most likely to make money if you treat it like a business which in no
ways means music won’t still be a passion.
Like most musicians, songwriters usually work a portfolio, in other words they have multiple
income streams so that when certain streams go down, others go up and keep their income
as stable as possible. In my case I also perform, teach, sell online courses and books, write
stock music and engage in music related community work such as playing in nursing homes
for dementia patients.

Another aspect of the life of a songwriter that will certainly impact your family and your
social life is the amount of travel involved. In my case, I live in Northern Ireland which has a
population of 1.7 million people. We have about 2 currently active music publishers that I
know of and so I would never make a living if I didn’t travel to attend songcamps and
cowrites. I have been in Norway twice of recent months, then I went to Southampton, I am
just home from Nashville and I head to Spain in a couple for weeks, followed by London. In
Nashville, a songwriter was playing at the Bluebird who like me was from Northern Ireland.
She told the audience that she had a 5 year old, a 2 year old and an 8 month old baby. Her
eldest child had asked her, ‘Mummy, why do you have to go so far away to write songs?’
The audience had a very mixed reaction to this. Some people clapped when she said
songwriting made her a happier mother which made her a better mother. One fellow
professional songwriter argued that she could have written by Skype. It’s all a question of
priorities: what are yours and will music take you away from them? Might it actually help
you meet your priorities? Nobody can answer these questions for you. You have to make a
decision on each opportunity that arises based on your priorities and values plus your
cirumstances.
As well as the issue of work/life balance associated with travel, it’s actually pretty tiring
although it sounds glamorous. In my case, I have rheumatoid arthritis with type 1 diabetes
so international travel and moving between time zones is complicated for me. The upside of
it is that I have met people who I just wouldn’t have met if I wasn’t a songwriter and some
of these people are damn good friends. I have people I love all over the world. Plus, I have
discovered Norwegian brown cheese and American pretzel bread.
The other difficult aspect of working as a songwriter for me is that only 14% of professional
songwriters in the UK are women. I’m currently a mentor on the Musicians Union
She.Grows programme trying to work out what the barriers are and helping women to
overcome them. When I did my MMus, of 12 residential students only 3 were women. I was
35 and the other two were 21. This could be because of the family commitments of women
in my age range who just don’t see music as a ‘sensible’, financially stable career choice.
Having said that, attitudes do play a part. I wrote with a 20 something male who was doing
rather well on Spotify. His attitude was what could a woman in her 40s possibly know about
commercial pop music? The next day I wrote with an artist and producer who were thrilled
to have a woman on board because they felt it increased the chances of the song being
pitched. They kept buying me apple Danishes all day.
Cliff Jones of Gay Dad, one of the tutors on my MMus, once talked about ‘women in their
30s who haven’t been culturally relevant for years buying CDs in Tesco.’ So, a woman stops
being ‘culturally relevant’ at 30? Because a career that can’t go beyond 30 is a bit limiting.
Fortunately, he knows nothing about being a woman. The fact he felt he could make this
astonishing remark in a university lecture, universities being there to promote learning and
empower students to go into the workforce, does illustrate what we’re up against, however.
I’ve mentioned my health and having a chronic illness or disability can make working in
music harder… carrying heavy equipment, travel etc. but it also works really well for me in
that it’s not 9 to 5 (I often get up at 10 am and sometimes I’m working at 3 am) so I can

attend all my medical appointments and work when I feel well enough to work. Songwriters
work to tight deadlines so on days where I don’t feel the best, I still have to turn in the work
but at least I can do that on my own schedule. Performing with a disability can be more
complicated as a lot of venues simply do not have accessible stages. I had to be lifted down
from one once and was berated by an audience member for drunkenness. She was pretty
embarrassed when she heard I had rheumatoid arthritis. All I all, though, I feel doing
something I love keeps my mind off the pain and also stops me from being isolated and
therefore depressed.
Mental health issues are quite common in the arts, not least in music. Rejection is a huge
part of our working lives plus we work antisocial hours which can sometimes lead to
isolation. Professional jealousy can damage friendships and relationships and the financial
instability can be very stressful. I have encountered many people in music who suffer from
quite severe depression and/or substance abuse issues. Organisations like Help Musicians
offer counselling and mental health support for songwriters and other musicians. I think it’s
sensible for us to have a coping strategy for dealing with rejection (here is an article I wrote
on the topic) and to take steps to make sure we don’t become isolated and have people we
trust to talk to every week. Music is an emotional rollercoaster; there is no way round that.
You can’t let it take up too much of your self perception. There is more to you than your
music. Some people lose sight of this. It’s pretty vital to have other interests apart from
music. I love films, history books and literature, the great outdoors and cats. Netflix is a
pretty major part of my week, too. I also like to eat as much cheese as one person can
without becoming the size of a Volvo. I used to work more than 50 hours a week so now I
actually schedule in time to do nothing.
One positive mental aspect of making a living this way is that I am always learning. I might
be studying a new production technique or a new commercial songwriting trend or
advanced harmonics or learning about an artist I really like. I enjoy the aspect of continual
development as it stops my writing from getting repetitive but also because it keeps me
making new connections, intellectually and with other people.
The absolute best thing about songwriting is the people… my former housemate on my
degree is now a cowriter and dear friend, I play and tour with friends, I wrote in Nashville
with a friend who helped me use music to deal with something major in my life. Songwriters
are empathetic by profession so some of them are fun to hang out with. You do meet the
odd twerp, the odd person with delusions of grandeur and the odd fake person. I just tell
myself I will only be spending one hour/one day etc. with that person when faced with an
exasperating individual. In extreme cases, I play ‘the Twerp Song’ in my head. It’s pretty
important not to have rows with people because this is a relationships based industry. I’ve
made that mistake and damaged important professional and positive personal relationships.
Plus, the stellar human beings outnumber the difficult people in my experience.

The second best thing is being able to do something you love all the time. So few people
have that blessing. I can honestly say I’m happy in my job plus I make a decent living from it.
How many people have that?

Appendix: Dealing with Rejection as a Musician
This is such an important issue I decided to include a blog I wrote about it to encourage to
keep going towards success.
The festival programme came out and I wasn’t on it. I was pretty irked by this, because this
was a festival I had plugged and at which I had sent students to play. I had included it on my
songwriting app.
Having gone to a lot of work for these people, I thought it was downright ungrateful that
they had rejected my application to play. As it happened, I got offered a slot at a major
international songcamp that would have conflicted with the festival anyway.
Rejection is a huge part of the life of the musician. I’ve talked about it before in my blog
on auditioning for TV talent shows, but I felt it was an issue I really needed to address
because we’re only human and rejection stings.
Very talented people get rejected all the time. My friend who is a very successful live
performer was summarily sacked from one of her contracts with no reason given. The best
singer I know didn’t get very far on The Voice (but built a successful singing and songwriting
career anyway). I myself have had so many no thankyous, and even worse non responses, I
can’t even count them all. Ultimately I don’t spend too much time stewing over those
rejections because in the end the right opportunities panned out.
There are some ways of going about things that are just bound to lead to rejection,
though, so you might minimise the chances of being rejected if you avoid these.
 Sending out demos that aren’t of high enough quality to represent your work
 Contacting companies before you are strong enough in your craft to be taken seriously
 Sending discourteous, unprofessional emails with no information about yourself or
massive WAVs which will crash the recipient’s inbox
 Not researching the opportunity. I have known country artists who pitched to a metal
label!

 Applying for opportunities that are oversubscribed. That’s not to say don’t go for The
Voice or The X Factor, but just be aware that the greater the number of applicants, the
greater the effort you will need to put into standing out.
So, if you have studied and refined your craft and gotten professional feedback about
whether or not your music is ready to pitch (check out my video on how to tell if your
music is industry ready) and you are still getting rejections you may be feeling a little down
about it. Here are a few things to bear in mind.
 The company you submitted to may simply have had very specific needs for their roster
and you just weren’t what they are currently looking for. That doesn’t mean you aren’t
talented.
 A&R reps often only listen to the first few seconds of a song due to the volume of demos
they receive. Maybe you just need to tweak the material a bit so it starts with a strong
hook.
 Maybe it didn’t work out this time, but that doesn’t mean you won’t have a working
relationship with these people in the future (so stay polite and don’t lose your cool!)
 A better opportunity may be just around the corner.
 Opportunities often come from relationships, so attend music industry conferences and
festivals and see whom you can meet.
The most sure fire way not to succeed in any field is not to try. So, if you have been
experiencing rejection don’t give up. Seek out honest and professional feedback on your
work, join LinkedIn groups and publishers’ mailing lists and keep on making progress.

Appendix: My One Sheet (songwriter’s résumé as an example of the format)
‘This is quality stuff…a talented artist’ - Americana UK
‘Songwriting is clearly her strength …. Mature writing’ – Maverick Country
‘This is excellent folk music and comes highly recommended’ – Lonesome Highway
‘An inspiring story’ – Belfast Telegraph
Named One to Watch twice by Nashville Songwriters Association International
Eve Williams is a singer and songwriter from Co. Down in Northern Ireland. She has recently released her third
album, Peregreni, and returned from a UK tour. Eve’s music is inspired by her Celtic homeland and set in a
folk/country/ Gospel style. After having to leave work due to a disabling case of rheumatoid arthritis in 2009,
Eve went on to complete a Master of Music in Songwriting at Bath Spa University in 2012 and fulfilled her
dream of becoming a professional songwriter and so much of her music is based on themes of empowerment
and overcoming difficulty.
Eve has written and recorded with Andrew Giddings of Jethro Tull, as well as having written with JC Stewart
and Universal signed writer and singer, Katie Sky and award winning Nashville songwriter, Allen Palmer. She
has written for the debut release of promising Norwegian singer, ËHLĖ with 2 singles schedules for release in
2019.
Other highlights include appearing onstage with Moya Brennan, performing at international festivals including
Celtic Connections Glasgow, Alnwick International Music Festival and YouBloom Dublin, her recent UK tour,
supporting Rackhouse Pilfer at the Water rats in London, airplay in 6 countries and numerous radio
performances as well as press attention in 16 national and international publications for her album. Eve
appeared at the world renowned Bluebird Café in Nashville in 2019 and plans to appear at the 2020 Edinburgh
Fringe Festival.
In March 2017 Eve took part in one of the prestigious songwriting camps at the Tileyard in London having been
selected to represent Northern Irish writing by Generator NI, the Northern Ireland music industry
development body where she wrote with Callum Stewart, Chris Ryan and Joe Cleere. She has written at a
number of international songcamps such as Out of the Woods in Norway. Writing for Eurovision at a song
camp headed by Greig Watts of the BBC and Out of the Woods, Norway is a recent highlight with a writing
camp in Las Negras, Spain coming up in November 2019.
Eve is a member of the Irish Songwriters Guild and of a collective of commercial songwriters led by Cormac
Neeson of the Answer in Belfast.
For more information visit www.evewilliamsmusic.com

Email: info@evewilliamsmusic.com
Songs: www.soundcloud.com/evewilliams

Useful Links
PRS for Music (Performing Rights Society, royalties collection society)

www.prsformusic.com
IMRO (Irish Music Rights Organisation. Similar role to PRS)

http://www.imro.ie/
PPL (royalties as performer rather than writer)
http://www.ppluk.com/
Association of Independent Music
http://www.musicindie.com/home
Musicians Union
http://www.musiciansunion.org.uk/
Incorporated Society of Musicians
http://www.ism.org/
Music Publishers Association (includes a useful search engine which allows you to see which
publishers are open to submissions in your genre)
http://mpaonline.org.uk/

More Resources from the Author

My Music
My Online Courses
Spotify
Singing Like a Pro: Find Your Unique Voice
Soundcloud
Pro Songwriting: The Art and Business of a
Songwriter YouTube
Advanced Singing: Aim for a Record Deal
Website
Songwriting: How to Write Pro Standard Lyrics
How to Make Money from Music

My Blog
Piano for Singers: Quickly Learn to Accompany
Yourself
Music Industry Blog
Teach Music Full/Part Time: Start a Music
Teaching Business Personal Blog
Singing: Music Theatre Vocal Skills
Selling Digital Content for Musicians

Mailing Lists
Music Publishing and Licensing
Education Mailing List
Audition Skills for Singers, Actors and
Musicians Music Mailing List
ALL ACCESS MONTHLY SUBSCRIPTION FOR

My Other Books
£7.20
Postcards from Eden (my memoirs)
Private Teaching and Coaching
Website

Thanks to…..
Richard Parfitt, formerly of Bath Spa University

Allen Palmer of Palmer Global Ink
Dominik Sky of Govardo
Carl-Henrik Wahl of Out of the Woods
Joanne Wright of the Arts Council of Northern Ireland
Danny Matheson of Celtic Music Radio
Lochlann Green of KA Radio
Baxter Labatos of Celtic Music Fan
Bunney at Urbankelt
Stuart Revnell, uniquely himself
Steve Goodie of the Bluebird Café
My mailing list amigos
Everyone who read this book.

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THE ART AND BUSINESS OF A SONGWRITER: EVE WILLIAMS

THE ART AND BUSINESS OF A

© Eve Williams 2019

How I Became a Songwriter and How to Use This Book 3

© Eve Williams 2019

How I Became a Songwriter and How to Use

© Eve Williams 2019

© Eve Williams 2019

Getting Started with Songwriting

© Eve Williams 2019

© Eve Williams 2019

Developing Lyric Ideas

1. Show, Don’t Tell (The Beatles, She’s Leaving Home)

© Eve Williams 2019

2. Lyrical Economy (Joni Mitchell, Big Yellow Taxi)

© Eve Williams 2019

And a big yellow taxi carried off my old man.

3. Using Metaphor (The Eagles, Hotel California)

© Eve Williams 2019

© Eve Williams 2019

4. Story Progression (Johnny Cash, Folsom Prison Blues)

© Eve Williams 2019

Setting up the situation: The singer

The main point of the song: singer

Developing the story: Singer lists the things he

© Eve Williams 2019 Chorus

Mind Your Language

© Eve Williams 2019

There is no peace for me

B. Who is the target demographic of the songs?

© Eve Williams 2019

He won't have it, he knows his whole back city's ropes

So, let’s look at those questions again.

A. What genre do you expect to hear?

B. Who is the target demographic of the songs?

© Eve Williams 2019

Pay Off Lines

We wandered in the garden

As the old trees were freezing.

You were holding my hand,

I listened to you breathing.

The hour was late when we reached the gate.

© Eve Williams 2019

You turned to me and said:

Intertextual Writing: Getting Ideas from Other Artworks

Some Structures to Practise

Mirror Imaging: A song I cowrote called The Rock (https://soundcloud.com/evewilliams/i-

© Eve Williams 2019

© Eve Williams 2019

‘Show, Don’t Tell’ How could she do this to me?

She’s Leaving Home – The Beatles She

© Eve Williams 2019

The Mirror Technique Verse 2

© Eve Williams 2019

Don't it always seem to go They paved paradise

They took all the trees

Don't it always seem to go

Hey farmer farmer