How to Write Lyrics: Better Words for Your Songs, Second Edition, Revised and Updated

by Rikky Rooksby

Lyrics sheds light on all aspects of writing lyrics for music and will make lyricists and songwriters feel more confident and creative when they tackle lyrics. It's perfect for all those who don’t like their own lyrics and find lyrics difficult to write, experienced writers looking for a creative edge, and those offering lyrics to set to music in a partnership.

The book discusses channeling personal experiences into lyrics, overcoming writer's block, the right lyrics for a bridge, the separation between lyrics and poetry, exploring imagery and metaphor, avoiding clichés, and more. It also offers tips on the various styles of lyrics, from protests, spirituals, and confessionals to narratives and comic songs.

New to this edition are artist and song references throughout to reflect musical history to date. Also, a new section provides examples of taking lyric ideas right through the drafting process, illustrating development and re-drafting and using a handful of contrasting approaches.

Genres: Music, Nonfiction

304 pages, Paperback

First published April 28, 2006

Reviews

[Dan Becker · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic resource for songwriters - worth it just to have the *amazing* 60 page taxonomy/sourcebook of hundreds of possible song subjects and the thousands of examples at the end; pushed into full five-star territory with insightful, useful interviews with songwriting royalty from Jerry Lieber to Chuck D, Andy Partidge to Aimee Mann. And the rest of the sections are also quite actionable.

This is exactly the kind of book you can pick up when you’re starting your writing session for the day and nothing comes to mind immediately- flip to a random page, and pick something. Go write!