There are many ways to approach lyrics.
There are many takes on creating lyrics but I find that there is one thread that has the most bang for the buck when working with beginning songwriters.
Namely, play with words.
One of my favorite books is “Not Quite What I Was Planning: Six-Word Memoirs by Writers Famous and Obscure” from Smith magazine, edited by Rachel Fershleiser and Larry Smith.
There are many takes on creating lyrics but I find that there is one thread that has the most bang for the buck when working with beginning songwriters.
Namely, play with words.
One of my favorite books is “Not Quite What I Was Planning: Six-Word Memoirs by Writers Famous and Obscure” from Smith magazine, edited by Rachel Fershleiser and Larry Smith.
Even if you aren’t a songwriter, the book is a fun read.
The idea is simple – but the execution is tricky.
The only rule is only use six words.
You don’t have much room to get too literal. A lot has to be implied.
Six-word memoirs remind me of those zen gardens that are 95% combed sand with a few strategically placed stones.
Six-word memoirs is a bit of a take on feng shui with images rather than words.
It makes you remember feelings and sensations from your past, a needed element of any lyric.
Go ahead, I’m not looking.
Find that yellow legal pad, sharpen your Blackwing pencil, and write a succinct autobiographical statement that only consists of six words.
Some of my favorite examples from the book:
“I asked. They answered. I wrote.” - Sebastian Junger
“Cursed with cancer. Blessed with friends.” - a 9-year-old thyroid cancer survivor
“I still make coffee for two” - a 27-year-old guy who just got dumped
“For sale: baby shoes, never worn” - Hemingway
“Followed white rabbit, became black sheep.” - Gabrielle Maconi
What would your six word memoir be? You can think of think of this as a lyric generator if you feel like it.
I came up with a few for me.
“Three-piece, six strings, eighty-eight keys.
“If memory serves correct, you smiled.”
“Welcome to music. My name's Mr. Holmes.”
"Welcome, Mr. Holmes. My name's Music."
“It happened the way we remember.”
“Remembered the best, forgot the rest.”
Have one for me? Send it my way if you feel like it.
The idea is simple – but the execution is tricky.
The only rule is only use six words.
You don’t have much room to get too literal. A lot has to be implied.
Six-word memoirs remind me of those zen gardens that are 95% combed sand with a few strategically placed stones.
Six-word memoirs is a bit of a take on feng shui with images rather than words.
It makes you remember feelings and sensations from your past, a needed element of any lyric.
Go ahead, I’m not looking.
Find that yellow legal pad, sharpen your Blackwing pencil, and write a succinct autobiographical statement that only consists of six words.
Some of my favorite examples from the book:
“I asked. They answered. I wrote.” - Sebastian Junger
“Cursed with cancer. Blessed with friends.” - a 9-year-old thyroid cancer survivor
“I still make coffee for two” - a 27-year-old guy who just got dumped
“For sale: baby shoes, never worn” - Hemingway
“Followed white rabbit, became black sheep.” - Gabrielle Maconi
What would your six word memoir be? You can think of think of this as a lyric generator if you feel like it.
I came up with a few for me.
“Three-piece, six strings, eighty-eight keys.
“If memory serves correct, you smiled.”
“Welcome to music. My name's Mr. Holmes.”
"Welcome, Mr. Holmes. My name's Music."
“It happened the way we remember.”
“Remembered the best, forgot the rest.”
Have one for me? Send it my way if you feel like it.
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