Before You Get Started
First, you should get your workspace organized. Grab your main instrument or you can start with either a guitar or a keyboard. Use your phone to record your session. There’s no need to shell out for anything fancy or anything extra. Your phone will do the job just as well.
You’ll also need something to jot ideas down onto. Use either a physical notebook, loose paper, or a notes app. Also, don’t underestimate the value of recording. You will forget these fleeting ideas and a quick phone recording is a very cheap insurance policy against losing a good idea.
It’s probably a good idea to make sure that you’ve got at least a good ninety minutes, or so, free to yourself. Songwriting is not something you can cram into a fifteen-minute window. Songwriting requires some patience. It’s helpful to be able to think and to reflect upon what you’ve done so far. So, give yourself some room to get stuck, work it out, and actually finish the idea that you’re working on.
If you are driven, then tell yourself this: I will finish a song today. It doesn’t have to be a work of art. Just get the basics down, three parts: (1) a verse, (2) a chorus, and (3) an ending. That’s all you need to focus on today.
Part One: Find Your Starting Point
You are going to need some raw material before you can start building anything. Here are three ways to get that raw material started. Pick the way that feels right to you at the time that you sit down to write a song.
Option A: Start with the Chords
If you sat down with a chord instrument, then just sit there with your instrument and play four chords very slowly. Don’t over analyze it. Just pick four chords that are very comfortable in your hands.
For guitar, G (major) – Em (minor) – C – D is a good starting point. That is the 1 – 6 – 4 – 5 chords in the key of G. For keyboard, try C – Am – F – G. This is 1 – 6 – 4 – 5 chords in the key of C. Or, just go with whatever four chords you like the sound of at that particular time.
Loop them slowly for a couple of minutes. As you loop, pay attention to the mood it evokes within yourself. Does it feel sad, or hopeful, or restful, or restless, or peaceful? Say the feeling out loud and then jot it down. That’s your emotional anchor that you’re tied to now. When writing and experiencing music, feeling is one of the most important things.
Now, see what happens if you try to start to experiment. Try changing the rhythm. Play the same chords in a different order. Try substituting one chord. For example, swap the Em for a Cadd9, or maybe the Am for a Dm.
Spend about ten minutes playing around. When you come up with something that’s really connected to you, then you can stop. This is your chord progression. Now, get that recorded onto your phone.
Option B: Start with A Melody
Put your instrument down and just hum. You can hum anything that comes to mind. Try not to do something that you know is already a song. Just hum a random bit of a tune. It should be something that just pops into your head. Do not worry one about whether it’s any good. This is like the process of Brainstorming. No judgment. We don’t want to judge here, in this stage of the process. Just hum for a minute or so without stopping.
When something catches your ear a bit, then hum it again. Repeat it until you can remember where it starts from. Then grab your instrument and try to figure out the actual notes. I’ll do this, and sometimes, I also will use the assistance of a tuner app on my iPhone. This can be a bit fiddly. You might have to hunt and peck for a bit until you land on the right pitch.
Once you have the melody mapped out to the actual notes, then see if you can find some chords that will fit underneath it. Play a chord and then hum or play your melody over the top. Does it clash or does it fit together? Keep trying different chords until the melody feels like it is at home in your opinion. You want it to sound like it fits to yourself. You might not need more than a couple of chords to do this trick.
Get this recorded.
Option C: Start with A Word Phrase
Think about something that you have felt recently. It should be a feeling and not a story. Frustrated at yourself, missing someone who never calls you, feeling relieved after you’ve finished something really tough, or a restless feeling like you’re not getting enough out of your life.
Write down a sentence that captures that feeling. Don’t worry about trying to be poetic. Just use your plain and simple words. Some examples:
“I keep waiting for things to change.”
“You said you’d call, but you never did.”
“I’m fed up with being the only one who tries.”
“Everything is fine, but nothing feels fine.”
Say it out loud and have a listen to the natural rhythm. Where are the stresses? Which syllables are long and which are short? Now grab your instrument and find a melody that fits that rhythm of this saying. Sing the phrase over a couple of different chords. Keep fiddling around until your words feel supported.
When it does, then get this recorded.
Part Two: Looking at What You’ve Got
Take a listen to the recording. You’ve got a short bit of music with some chords, a melody, and maybe some words. Now you need to figure out what is this bit? Is it a verse or a chorus?
Here’s what to look for:
Chorus characteristics:
It feels like the emotional peak.
The melody is more open, or it’s up higher.
You can imagine repeating it a number of times.
It sounds like the “point” of the song.
If you’ve got words, they feel like a summary or a declaration of the song.
Verse characteristics:
It feels like setup or some storytelling.
The melody is more conversational. It might probably be in a narrower range.
It sounds like it is leading somewhere else.
You’ve got words and they feel like the details or a narrative of a story.
Don’t overthink this. Just decide it. Then, write “VERSE” or “CHORUS” at the top of your notes.
Part Three: Building the Other Section
If you’ve got a chorus, then you need a verse. If you’ve got a verse, then you need to build a chorus. The key thing to keep in mind is that you likely want to build some contrast.
If you wrote a chorus and then you need a verse:
Your verse should feel lower energy than your chorus. Try these tactics:
Drop the melody down a bit in your range.
Use fewer chord changes. Maybe just use two chords instead of four chords.
Make the rhythm of the melody more talky and less singable.
Keep the dynamics quieter because your chorus should feel like a lift.
Play your chorus once, then immediately try to sing and play something that naturally leads into it. The verse’s job is to build up to an emotional release that your chorus will provide. Record your experiments to see what you come up with.
If you’ve written a verse, then you need a chorus:
The chorus is where the magic happens. It’s the payoff that makes all of the built up tension before it worth it. You can try these techniques:
Lift the melody higher. Hit notes that you avoided in the verse to create a sense of release.
Open up the rhythm. Give your singer some space to breathe.
Add more chords or change them more frequently.
Get louder or more intense. Make it feel like you’ve arrived somewhere.
Play your verse once, then start throwing around some nonsense syllables at a higher energy level over your chords. See if you can find a melody that feels like that emotional release you’re looking for. When you do, you’ve found your chorus.
When you’ve found your chorus, go back and record that moment.
Part Four: Write the Lyrics
You’ve got two musical sections now. It’s time to give them some words. Here’s one method that might work for you.
Step 1: Define your song’s core theme
Answer these questions in writing:
In one sentence, what is this song all about?
What emotion do you want the listener to feel?
Is the singer talking to someone, to themselves, or telling a story to a third party?
Step 2: Write the chorus lyrics first
Your chorus is the emotional core of the song. This is what all the tension leading up to it is all about. Please keep it simple and repeatable so it sticks in people’s heads easily. Sing your chorus with nonsense syllables and feel where the accents land. Notice which syllables are long and which are short. That should help you to write words that fit the rhythm without sounding like poetry. Just say what you mean in plain language. Then, you can adjust the syllables to fit your melody.
Your chorus needs at least two to four lines, a hook to grab people’s attention, and words that sound good when you sing them, not just when you read them. Write three different versions. Then, pick the one that feels the most natural to sing or the one that you like the best.
Step 3: Write verse one
The first verse is to set up the chorus. It helps to establish the situation, the setting, or the feeling that will make your chorus make sense. If your chorus is “I keep waiting for you to come home” or something like that, then your first verse might be about you being in an empty house and of you being alone. Use the same method as before: sing your verse with nonsense syllables, then map out the rhythm, then write words that fit to it.
Verse lyrics can be more detailed and more specific than the chorus because they’re setting the scene and they’re likely more “talky.” Use concrete images that people can relate to rather than actually naming abstract thoughts. You want to name real things. Describe your actual moments. Your coffee cup still on the counter is more effective than “I’m reminded of you everywhere,” if that makes sense.
Write the verse. Then, try singing it with your chorus. Does it feel like a natural progression? Does the emotional logic flow? If not, adjust it, and try again.
Step 4: Write verse two
Verse two deepens or advances what the first verse started. Here are some options. You could:
Show time passing: verse one is the immediate moment. Verse two is later on.
Show escalation: verse one is the surface feeling. Verse two digs a bit deeper.
Show a different angle: verse one is one perspective. Verse two is a different perspective.
Just remember, verse two shouldn’t just be a repeat of verse one with different words. It should give the listener a reason to care about wanting to hear the chorus again.
Write it. Sing it. Test it out.
Part Five: Assemble the Structure
You’ve now got a verse and a chorus with words and melody. Here’s a standard structure to follow for your first song:
Verse 1 Chorus Verse 2 Chorus Chorus (or Outro)
That’s a basic, yet effective, structure. Many great songs stick to this. You can worry about the finer details later. For now, just get the song down.
Play the whole thing from start to finish. Then, record it. Don’t worry if it’s not perfect yet. You need to hear the whole song exist first.
Part Six: Address the Problems
If there is a problem with your song, then you should work to fix it. Your first playthrough has probably raised some issues. Every first draft has its problems. Here’s how to diagnose and fix the most common issues:
Problem: The chorus doesn’t feel like a release
If it doesn’t feel like an arrival, then it’s probably too similar to the verse. Try:
Raising the melody to create that sense of a lift.
Speeding up the harmonic rhythm to create more interest in it.
Singing louder or with more intensity to try to make it feel like more of a payoff.
Simplifying the lyrics so that they’re easier to remember and to repeat.
Problem: The verse is just okay
Maybe your verse is a bit dry, a bit dull. Try:
Making it more specific, so it paints more of a vivid picture.
Adding more detail, so that it feels like a real moment in time.
Experimenting with different melodies, to see if it sparks some life to the verse.
Verses can often feel dull because they’re stuck in one place. Try breaking up the monotony with a few tricks:
A slight melody that begins low and gradually starts to climb up to the chorus feels really good.
Mix up the rhythm between lines so that they’re never marching in lockstep.
Make the chord progression move somewhere. For instance, don’t end the verse on the same chord you started with.
Problem: the lyrics are a struggle to sing
Read the lyrics out loud like you’re having a conversation. Where do you stumble? That’s likely your problem. A few common fixes are:
When you stumble on multi-syllable words, then go ahead and swap them out for something simpler.
If the natural word stress is getting in the way, then just tweak the melody a little bit.
Shorter phrases are almost always easier to sing, so try cutting words if you need to. I definitely implement this tactic on occasion.
You can also cut whole lines or reorder them, as sometimes that could make all the difference.
Problem: the song feels over too soon
For a first song, short is okay, but later, if you want to try to make it longer, try:
Adding a four to eight bar instrumental intro using the verse or chorus chords.
Bringing the chorus back at the end, slightly reworked with something extra to add interest.
Adding an instrumental break between the second chorus and the final chorus. Maybe perform a solo or a bridge. This always adds some nice variety.
Problem: the song’s got no staying power
Try introducing a little variation in the repeated sections. Don’t be afraid to get creative here.
Change one chord in the final chorus.
Add a harmony vocal on the last chorus.
Mess with and vary the dynamics. Try quiet first time, loud second time, and then maybe a little more subdued on the final chorus.
Part Seven: Get Your Demo Down
You’ve written a complete song. It’s time to make a rough recording to refer back to later.
Grab your phone, find a quiet spot, and press record. Play and sing the whole thing all the way through from beginning to end. And, don’t worry if you mess up. The goal is just to get something onto tape, not to make a perfect recording.
Listen back, take some notes, and save the recording. Stick it somewhere where you will never lose it. Label it with the song title and date. Congratulations! You’ve written yourself a real song.
This IAM.com Songwriting Process in a Nutshell (For Next Time)
1. Find your starting point – it could be a chord progression, a melody, or a phrase that just pops into your head.
2. Work out what you’ve got – is it a verse or a chorus, or a mix of both?
3. Add some contrast – that’s where the real magic happens.
4. Write the lyrics – start with the chorus, then get to the verses. Make sure you’ve got a natural rhythm going before you start worrying too much about the words.
5. Assemble your song – verse, chorus, verse, chorus is a good place to start.
6. Deal with the problem areas – figure out what’s not working and sort it out.
7. Get it down on tape – even a rough demo can be super helpful.
This process should work for you every time. It’s the same with your fifth song as it is with your first song. Is it the only way to write a song? Of course not. But, this is one songwriting process that you may put into your toolbelt, now, and pull it out to use it, later.
Notes on Writing an Album
If you’re going for a collection of songs, like an album or EP, here’s how you could do it:
Write a lot more songs than you need. If you’re aiming for ten songs, then write fifteen or twenty. Not all of them will be great, and having lots of options lets you edit and choose the best ones.
Don’t try to edit and create at the same time. Write first. You can judge much later. Keep those two sessions separate if you want to keep the momentum going. And trust me, you do.
Mix it up – if you started with chords, try starting with a phrase next time. Don’t get too stuck into a routine.
Go back to basics every time you sit down to write. Start at Part One, find your starting point. The process is the same, but the songs will be different.
Now go write your first song, then your second. The album’s just waiting for you to pull it out of the air.
