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Songwriting is an art, but commercial songwriting is also a craft. Ignore the craft portion of your job at your peril because your competitors do not. Here are seven steps that help ensure that your songs succeed in the marketplace.

  1. Write your songs with a goal in mind
  2. Rewrite them
  3. Arrange them
  4. Get feedback
  5. Rewrite them again
  6. Produce them
  7. Keep learning

Writing with a goal in mind should be obvious, but is often a stumbling block for beginning writers. Your  songs must fit in somewhere if you are going to place them. Innovation is wonderful and creative, but you need to demonstrate the ability to fit into existing niches before you’ll get much of a chance to innovate. Make it easy for your clients to like your songs.

Rewriting should be a joy. This is an opportunity to take your ideas and polish them into a gem. Writers say that books are not written, they are rewritten. The same is true of great songs. It is the little touches that come later in the process that make them standout. Not always, of course, but we are talking general rules here.

Feedback provides a sanity check. If you don’t know any pros, there are several professional places you can get high quality reviews and consultations from name writers online, such as at the site of Pat and Pete Luboff. If you belong to an organization like Taxi you even get song critiques as you submit to various markets. Feedback from friends and family is no substitute, even if it helps your ego.

Rewriting again lets you incorporate the feedback that makes sense to you to make the song even better. Remember that at the professional level a tiny improvement can make a huge difference. The devil is in the details.

Producing and arranging, as I pointed out in a previous blog, is essential to capturing the essence of your market niche. If you can’t do this part, work with a producer/arranger who can. After all, you want your client to hear the hit you heard in your head.

Keep learning. There are lots of places to study the craft of writing hits. Seminars are great and interactive. Songwriting circles work for many people. And I am going to recommend one particular book called The Billboard Guide to Writing and Producing Songs That Sell, by Eric Beall that clearly and entertainingly explains a lot that you will want and need to know. There are many other excellent books, but this is current and, in my opinion, exceptional. Being widely read in this area can only help. Other authors with excellent books on the subject are Jason Blume, Jimmy Webb, Pat and Pete Luboff, and John Braheny. I suggest you devour them all. I have profited by multiple readings of all their books.

There is a last step, of course. And although it isn’t on the list, perhaps it is the most important. WRITE THE NEXT SONG.

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About the Author

Ed Teja

edtejaEd Teja is a musician, composer, and book author who writes, arranges, and performs a variety of music.


2 Responses to “Seven Steps To Songwriting Success”

  1. [...] Seven steps to songwriting success | Insider Music Business – Seven steps to songwriting success. Written by Ed Teja. Aug 24, 2009. piano keys. Songwriting is an art, but commercial songwriting is also a craft. Ignore the craft portion of your job at your peril because your competitors do not. … [...]

  2. [...] I mentioned in the blog on The Seven Steps to Songwriting Success, you can use critiquing services to determine if your songs meet commercial standards (“good” [...]

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