Songwriter MeetUp

Hey Jim

As you can probably can guees I think this is a terrific idea.
I've given some thought to doing something similar and after my
recent songwriting session I'm thinking about it again.

Do you have a local Arts Council or Office of Cultural Development?
This could be a great resource and may be able to help with meeting
space and/or venues.

I think you are on the right track with have twice monthly meetings.
Weekly could be too much and monthly could not be enough and
people would lost interest.

I'm not familiar with MEET UP but it looks like a interesting site and
you also might think of posting flyers at local coffee shops, music stores,
or anyplace songwriters may hang out. Borders sounds like a good bet.

Follow the K.I.S.S. principle (Keep It Simple Stupid)

Make sure you keep the number of participants at a controllable level.
If it gets too large you may have separate in to Two groups at different times.

Maybe you should keep it local at first before branching out to OKC.

Many good ideas have fallen by the wayside because the organizers
have gotten overwhelmed.

Don't be afraid to ask for help. Have the other participants make
suggestions and present assignments and host or facilitate meetings.

If you take it all on yourself the greater the chance of burn out.

Well those are some of my thoughts. I hope they are of some help.

John

i'm glad you posted this because i was getting e-mails from people in my area who started a meet-up. then i got a new computer and lost track of the site. anyway, what they were doing was meeting in a place that had an open mic night. the leader of the meet-up arranged withthe owner that the group could have the place for a little while during the open mic time.

Based on my experiences with various groups, I suggest meeting in a public place that still offers a bit of privacy, at least until you have a comfortable core of regular members attending.

People will tend not to go to someone's home unless they already know the person fairly well. New members are often hesitant about joining a group that is meeting in a member's home, as they wonder if they are encroaching on a clique.

A public meeting place also prevents one person from bearing the burden for always having their house tidy on meeting day, providing treats, etc. Rotating meetings at members' homes doesn't always work either, as not everyone is comfortable opening their home to a group of casual acquaintances. Meetings at people's homes also tend to get sidetracked by pets, children, hobby equipment, telephone calls, etc.

I suggest a meeting room at the public library. They are free of charge (at least around here), they are usually centrally located, plenty of parking, etc. Or if there is an arts council building, etc, that would work well, too.

Oh, and free food at the organizational meeting. :lol: Just cookies and juice and coffee.

Margaret

You guys are great. Lots of tips that I had not thought about. I am not sure if there is an Arts Council here or not but I am going to check that out. Also, going to hit the library.

I appreciate the advice, if you think of anything else. Let me know.

Jim

That's an interesting concept. Let us know how it goes, I'm curious.

That's an interesting concept. Let us know how it goes, I'm curious.

I'll sure do that. I started plugging away at it tonight. I created my meetup.com group. I didnt realize it but it cost to create a group. For my "test" I only signed up for one month, which is $19.00. I also placed an ad on craigslist. I dont have a meeting place yet, mostly cause I want to see what kind of interest there is. Plus, perhaps someone that joins will have connections to one of the facilities around here.

I'll post more and keep ya'll up to date.

Jim

Good luck with the venture, Jim.

Hope it all goes well.

8)

Welp, so far I have 5 people signed up for my singer/songwriter jam on June 15th. I am really excited. One seems a tad strange. The others seem really talented. I am really excited about it.

This might be a great way for me to eventually get into a band too. I dont know if I mentioned it here but I am really craving the band experience again. So.. maybe the really talented ones will want an anchor, LOL, around.

Jim

Sounds a great idea Jim, one thing you might like to add is for someone - or a couple of someones - to bring a guitar. Writing lyrics is cool, but you want to know how they sound set to music.....unless you make that a separate assignment amongst the musicians, "come up with some music for this before the next meeting".....

Good luck mate......and kudos (and a few street cred points!) for setting it up!

:D :D :D

Vic

Thanks for the street credos Vic. I need all I can get.

To be honest, I assumed they would all brind an instrument so I appreciate your message because I probably should do that.

In this case, three of the fellow co write with each other already and they are pretty dang good. Dont know the one single fellow much yet. But I will certainly mention the bringing of guitars or keys or something.

Jim

Just an update about my Songwriter meetup.

So far, 8 people have signed up for this coming Fridays Meetup Kickoff, two of those are guests of members. We're going to bring out guitars, eat some hot dogs and burgers, and get to know each other a little. We have signed up 8 members for the group. One of them is the guy that runs the Singer/Songwriter Showcase at Borders here in Norman.

I met with the guy that is going to host this time last Friday. He's a terrific guy and a fantastic bass player. He also customizes his own basses/guitars.

So thats where we're at. I'll post an update afterwards and let everyone know how it went. Hopefully with photos or video.

Jim

Hey can i sign up even though I am too sure that I won't be able to attend the meet-up ? Umm, can provide my virtual presence. :cough:

Good Luck with this new venture. Let us know how it works for you.

Rahul

One seems a tad strange.
Jim
Hey dont start knocking my people now..... :mrgreen: J/K

Sounds like an awsome project and it seems to be doing well. You may see people come and go, alot of times its really great at first then people sometimes loose intrest, but then you see who your core group is.
We have a song writer jam at Garner State Park once a year. They usually have a great turn out for it. My lead guitar player went last year and he said he had a blast.

We had a very successful meetup last night. The food was fantastic.

The night started with some really good burgers and beverages. While we ate we sat around and talked a little bit about our background in music. Each of us, I think, has something very unique to offer to the group as well as something to learn from the others.

Then we discuss what we each had in mind as the future of the Norman Oklahoma Songwriters Meetup Group. To simplify, I believed we all agreed that while it should be a group that allows each of us to grow as songwriters, it should also be a group that is great for networking with other musicians. We want to keep it on a very friendly, casual, and fun level with no room for huge egos.

Four of us took on a project together and will be working on getting something put together as a collaboration. To me, this part is really an indicator of success. I can write, create music, and even record in my own home at some level. However, to be able to do this with others (and quite a friendly group) is what will let me grow and learn. .

I failed in taking pictures, which was a priority, but I will get some at the next meeting.

It didnt really turn out the way I visioned it, but it was atleast as good as I thought it would be. I really cant wait to see how our project turns out as a couple of the guys have a really great home recording studio. Much better than my little rig.

Jim