Tips from Rob Roper

As a beginner songwriter, you may set high standards for your first
song, or songs.  Then, when you have trouble writing great lyrics, or
composing great music, you get frustrated and quit, thinking you're just
not "cut out" to be a songwriter.  If you suffer from the disease of
perfectionism--as I do--you will almost certainly have this problem.  I did.

But think about how unrealistic and absurd that is.  If you pick up a
basketball for the first time, do you expect to make 3-pointers?  No,
you stand under the basket and try to make a 3-foot shot first.  If
you're learning to ski, do you go on the steep black diamond runs on
your first day?  No, you stick to the green runs.  If you were beginning
any other art form--sculpting, oil painting, photography--would you
expect to create a masterpiece on your first attempt?  Of course not. 
So why do we expect to write a great song on our first attempt, or
attempts?

The truth is, songwriting is an art form and a craft, like other art
forms.  You have to crawl before you can walk, and walk before you can
run.  You have to write bad songs before you can write mediocre ones,
and mediocre ones before you can write good ones.  Sure, you might have
beginner's luck, and write a pretty good song for your first.  But
that's actually a curse.  Because then you think it's easy, and when you
go to write your second, third or fourth song, you struggle, and you
don't know why.  Afterall, that first one came fast and easy, why don't
the others?

Like any art form, craft or sport, with songwriting, you have to
*practice*.  You can attend seminars, read songwriting books, visit
songwriting websites like this one--all of which I recommend--but mainly
you learn by *doing*.

So, if you're a frustrated beginner songwriter, I recommend that you set
realistic goals.  How about this:  make a goal to write 3 really bad
songs;  3 songs that are complete crap.  Lyrics like, "Baby, baby,
you're so find / And one of these days / I'm gonna make you mine".  I
mean, really awful garbage like that.  Can you do that?  Sure you can. 
So do it.  "What's the point?" you ask?  Why write something I would
never play for anyone?  Answer:  it's practice.  Why would you ski a
boring beginner run?  Why does a baby crawl?

When you write those crap songs, you'll learn a lot about how to write a
song--the process, the methodology, the discipline.  Things that you can
use to later write good songs.  And who knows?  Maybe while trying to
write a bad song you'll screw up and write a good one.

-Rob  Roper
April 29, 2007
 
www.robroper.com   www.myspace.com/rroper