Page 9 - Write Away November Issue

Trevor Dimoff
Turning Good Lyrics Into Great Lyrics
problems in the “Free World,” creating a fresh
perspective on the following chorus.
Verse 1: I see the problems but I don’t know what to
do… “So I try to forget it, any way I can.”
Chorus 1: Keep on rocking, even though the system
is broken and there are enemies out there.
Verse 2: Observing the horrors of drug abuse, a
mother choosing drugs over her child.
Chorus 2: Keep on rocking, even though people are
desperate.
Verse 3: Politicians distracting emphasizing
consumerism instead of the needs of others or the
environment.
Chorus 3: Keep on rocking, even though politicians
are obscuring the problems instead of solving them.
Now, Let’s Put These Insights Into Practice!
Decode the Emotional Journey: Exercise
Listen to one of your favourite songs. Identify the
emotional journey in one of your Find the key phrases that emphasize the emotional
favourite songs. Write down the
emotional states in the verse,
pre-chorus, chorus and bridge.
Repeat with other songs and
look for patterns.
Borrow an Emotional Journey:
Exercise
Write lyrics that parallel the
emotional states of a song you’ve
analyzed.
Trace an Emotional Journey:
Exercise
Analyze the emotional journey
from another medium. Movies,
television programs, plays and
novels all contain emotional
journeys that follow a similar
format. Choose one that you love and entering your email address.
and make notes on the highlights
of the emotional journey.
www.writeawaymagazine.co.uk
Write From an Emotional
Journey: Exercise
Create an emotional journey and write lyrics to it.
Start by choosing two (or more) emotional states,
decide which emotional state to use in each song
section (verse, pre-chorus, chorus, bridge) and write
a song.
Emotional Journey Feedback: Exercise
Share the lyrics from one of your songs with a friend
with trustworthy musical instincts and taste. Ask
them to figure out the emotional journey in your
song. Their interpretation doesn’t have to be exactly
the one you wrote, as long as you’ve created an
interesting journey in your song that they
understand.
Study Power Phrases: Exercise
states (and the changes between emotional states)
in a song you love. What is it that makes these lines
powerful? How can you emulate them in your songs?
Keep a list of your favourite power phrases for
inspiration and to emulate when you’re writing you
own lyrics.
Summary:
Focus on the emotional story, the emotional journey,
you write into your songs. Balancing the tension
between different emotions gives you more to write
about. Increase the appeal and impact of your songs
by directing your audience through a well crafted
series of emotional states.
Trevor Dimoff is a songwriter and songwriting
teacher at epicsongwriting.com
Learn how to write a song chorus by clicking this link
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