Suggestions for ALL Lyricists!

Lyric Writers-

I don't consider myself to be a lyrical god, or a prophet, but I would like to suggest a few basic guidelines that (obviously) no one has to listen to or follow. But, recently looking through this "Lyrics Review" section of the forum (which I am finding to be very cool) I am discovering that there are some really horrid songs, and lyrics. I have held back several times with simply replying "Yuck." To regain a positive attitude, I created this thread.

1. Be creative. This is the most important suggestion. Invent new ideas, or a creative twist to old ideas. A Good Example of a Bad Thing: "Love Tragedy". Why do I want to listen to (read) your break up story over Chris Carrabba's (Dashboard Confessional), or the millions of others who have written love songs? Not that love is a bad topic, but it takes an extra amount of creativity to avoid being cliche, or typical. This leads me to the next point...

2. Avoid the use of cliches. They give me a stomach ache. A Good Example of a Bad Thing: "I was head over heels." While it's usually a good idea to avoid using cliches, they aren't always terrible; sometimes if they are used in an instance where it is atypical, it can add flavor to your lyric.

3. Rhyming isn't everything. A song doesn't have to rhyme at all. It's very easy to limit yourself by trying to hard to rhyme something. For example- I read a song that was "exposing" the American government in wars. One of the phrases said, "There being slaughtered by the hundreds/
And all the government does is eat their crumpets". He probably could have created a better rhyme that would actually fit, but the point I am making is that sometimes it doesn't make sense to rhyme.

4. Write based on your experience and your knowledge. Drawing on the previous example- that person who said the government was probably eating crumpets, knew nothing about the government, and that was painfully obvious. Write based on what you know, and it will make the whole process much smoother, and a lot more comfortable.

These are just some of the major points that crossed my mind. Feel free to add to this. I'd love to see what other have to say.

Thanks

thealexbaron,

Those are excellent suggestions for authors who want to create poems/lyrics that can appeal to a wide audience. While I agree that some of the submittals are principally an outlet for the author's pain rather than "true" poetry, we shouldn't discourage their attempts "capture the moment". I would encourage submittals to be at least a second or third draft if the author truly wants constructive commentary.

To your list of suggestions I would add that the author should remember that the reader wasn't there, so we need additional help from the author to visualize and "feel" the same experience. Thus, the potential need for additional drafts.

oom can you look at my lyrics please. you seem to have a lot of knoledge on this stuff. plus i need a really hard critic