My method

In a theory thread on what should come first, chords or melody, I said I'd post my songwriting method here, so here goes... complete with an example.

1. Get an idea and write it down. Example: I was at a funeral, and people were talking about how lucky they were to have known the woman (the mother of a friend). That night I jotted down 'funeral, celebration'... among a dozen other short impressions of the day, two of which have now turned into songs.

2. I let it sit for a while, then I ask 'what is this about'. Answer - dying. Pretty dismal. Not a lot of tunes in that vein. Then I ask why not... answer - because they're sad. Can I write it as a happy tune? I jot down 'uptempo, major key'.

3. It sits some more. Then I get out a thesaurus, and I look up funeral. I jot down all the words that might fit. Next, I look up all the words on my page in a rhyming dictionary, and I jot down all of those that catch my eye. I go back and forth until I've got a couple hundred words, and a few short phrases that popped into my mind while looking up the words.

4. I let it sit some more. All these pauses (days, weeks, months, sometimes years) are by design, and part of my process. I've heard too many singer-songwriters over the years come up with 'woe is me' type tunes... I want enough distance from events so I'm writing a story, not living a cathartic experience. The next time I pick it up, I key in on a word or phrase - in this case, "Bound for Glory". I write out two-four lines to establish a meter, and come up with a melody for them. The original two lines almost never survive to be part of the song, but now I have a framework.

5. A bit more time passes, and then I roll up my sleeves. I decide today this will be a complete lyric, and I get to it. Sometimes it takes me an hour, sometimes all day. I pay attention to meter, and jot down ideas for a contrasting setting. I usually do the verses first, then come back for chorus and bridge. The whole thing should tell a story, start to finish.

6. About a week later, I re-read and revise. Here's the result of the funeral (about the first 1/3 of the finished tune), which is a fast bluegrass type piece:

I was standing on the platform / I was waiting on a train
When the sky turned dark and cloudy / and I thought it looked like rain
Then came a clap of thunder / from way up in the skies
And suddenly an angel / stood right before my eyes

I was in shock I was amazed / this doesn't happen every day
And I waited in suspense to hear / what he might have to say
He began to speak / and then things went from bad to worst
I've got good news, I've got bad news / which one do you want first?

I hate to have to tell you this / your earthly race is done
No more lazy summer days / lying underneath the sun
But looking at the bright side / you've been lost and now you're found
Sing Hallelujah son, you're glory bound

I'm glory bound
I'm glory bound
Tell mamma I'm not coming home
Today I'm glory bound

(it goes on as a morality tale of sorts, about not wasting time, telling the people you love how you feel, etc.)

At that point, with a complete lyric, I'll sing different melodies over it until I've got one I'm happy with... that takes a week to a month, usually. By then, I know how the tune is going to sound, and it's just a matter of setting down a chord progression and any guitar riffs, which pretty much write themselves.

Oh yeah, legal stuff - those lyrics are part of "Glory Bound", copyright 2004, Tom Serb