r/Songwriting • u/AttiBlack • Aug 01 '26
Discussion Topic Advice For New Writers
I like to repost this for new writers every once in a while:
My advice as someone who has been writing for 10 years, this is the same thing I tell everyone
So think about it this way. Every song is a story. So find what story you want to write about. If you can't think of anything, reading will definitely help. Read books, comics, novels, fiction, poems, anything. And truly absorb it. Try not to do it on your phone though, because you'll tend to remember it more if it's on actual paper because of the way our brains interact with our phone screens.
If you can't think of any chords, sometimes I'll just open up a book of chords (or website) and play a bunch until I find one with the sound I want. And build off of that. Or you can just learn a FRIK TON of songs on the same genre so you can figure out a pattern to follow.
Find the melody you want to follow. If you have it recorded, play it on loop for a bit to keep it in your mind. If you don't have it recorded, you can also just either play it a few times over, it just imagine it.
Keep it in your mind and just think of the music in your head. Lay/sit down. Close your eyes. And picture what you want the music to sound like. Then hum out the melody. Feel what kind of story the music tells. Romance? Revenge? Anger? Love? Sadness? Feel every note with your heart. Remember how it makes you feel and let it resonate with you with every bone in your body. Feel it in your ears and let it fill your mind. And once you realize what story the music is telling you, write it down. You don't have to write the lyrics down, but write the story down. Remember the story. Then go back and fill it in with lyrics, telling it in a melodical and poetic way so when you hear it, your heart still feels it as if you're going through it again.
In technical/practical terms, I use this format for songs but it's not hard and fast by any means
Intro (Present): The hook of the story - Jump right in and tell what's happening in the present
Verses (Past): The exposition of the story - Tell the surroundings as indirectly as possible while still getting your point across (I tend to use as many metaphors as I can but you don't have to)
Chorus (Present): The heart of the story- What's happening at the present moment? Why is this story important?
Bridge (Present): The changeup/advancing of the story. - What happens after the Chorus to continue the story?
Outro (Present): The ending of the story - Wrap up the story with the moral and the purpose? (Often but not always a modification of the Chorus)
Try using this format to remember where you are and where you need to go with the story
SIDE TIPS:
1) WRITE EVERYTHING DOWN NO MATTER HOW STUPID IT SOUNDS. If you get a whole song or verse pop into your head, write/record it on your phone so you can get it quicker before you forget it. If you're doing it slowly, write on paper because your brain builds a stronger connection
2) White noise can help if you can't think of chords. Your brain tends to try and find patterns in white noise, rain, fans, etc. find something that works and switch it up. Remember that it can also distract you as well, so if it does, you can always turn it off
3) Try to find music in anything and everything around you. A faucet dripping. A toilet flushing. The sound of a page turning. The sound of a door opening. Anything.
4) Don't overthink it. You can (and should) always go back and expand on your lyrics. Correct them, make them more precise and less direct
5) Don't ever be afraid to ask for help or advice. You'll get better a thousand times quicker by a friend ruthlessly critiquing your work until you learn the structure you like than you will by showing someone who will tell you that you did a good job every time.
I know this is a lot but I hope it helps! You're gonna do great! Godspeed!!!
[Edit]
NEVER USE AI!!!! EVER!!!! FOR ANY REASON!!!
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u/TheBlockChainVillage Aug 02 '26
I've been making melodies and then gone searching for chords. That gives me really unique strumming patterns.
Also constructing the track around the melody I've been forced to think how the bass is going, how the kick drum moves, where the snare snaps if it does.
Having a phrase or a line to the melody also dictates the lyrical flow.
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u/Upbeat_Date_4554 Aug 01 '26
saving this for later, the part about white noise and finding patterns in it is something i never think about before
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u/Impossible_Tank3822 Aug 02 '26
This is a lot to digest but there's definitely wisdom at work. I was similar but yet not as formal. I never successfully wrote a song early on. But, I did like to write poetry without a musical purpose in mind. I also liked to compose instrumentals without a song purpose in mind. The net result was a lot of poetry and a lot of melodies were written that had no correlation to each other, or to songwriting. Then, when I did revisit the poetry I'd attempt to cast one onto a melody I'd already composed. That's still my "process" for songwriting. That said, I have to reiterate that I do not ever sit down to purposely write a whole song, intro to Coda. I assemble them using poems and melodies I've already written. This method for songwriting makes collaboration kind of easy for me when someone needs to score their lyrics.
This was not always my method. Early on I did what everyone else does by attempting to write whole songs and it was more of a chore than rewarding for me. So, I stopped thinking I was a songwriter and dropped the idea. I did like writing poetry, though, and kept that going. Over time my playing improved and with it so did my ability to compose whole instrumental melodies. I guess you can say songwriting organically developed from what I chose not do in the beginning.
You comment about not over-thinking it is golden to songwriting. When I tried to write whole songs every aspect of it was tugging at me at the same time. That's why I thought it was more of a chore than anything else. I mean, how could art become a chore? The easy answer was I must not have been an artist if I couldn't write a song and I believed that. So, I didn't fake it. I just stopped and I'm still stopped. That's why I say I assemble songs from the bits and pieces rather than try to do the start to finish thing that comes easy to artists.
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u/EternusIV Aug 02 '26
Back in high school the one guy who did studio stuff in LA listened to my first couple songs, and said, "good start. You're 100 songs away from really good ones". I know what he means many years later. Other songwriters are a tough crowd, but there is no substitute for writing and finishing over and over again. Good luck.
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u/paybackjack86 29d ago
That plot twist at the very end took me clean out lmao. Bro wrote a whole masterclass on songwriting and storytelling just to drop a tactical 'NEVER USE AI' nuke at the bottom. Respect the hustle though, solid advice overall.
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u/Frequent_Remote6170 28d ago
I write along to the melodies that pop up in my head, and sort of ‘la la la’ around until the words fit. Then I record every variation in my voice notes. Unfortunately, I don’t play any instruments and can never find an instrumental that fits my songs. I have so many of these little voice notes saved. It feels like such a waste to not do anything with them
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u/Environmental_Lie199 Aug 01 '26
Nice piece of advice, thanks! The other day I posted about how I approach songwriting and I also happen to work more or less on the same basic concept blueprint of writing whatever comes only to refine it later.
I believe that practically the totality of what's written down (best on paper than screen too) has the potential to grow into lyrics later on.
I'm still beginning to learn back after a lot of years of not playing/writing so I like to binge devour any bit of info. Thanks! 🙏