Have you ever wondered how composers, lyricists, performers or writers know which words to choose when creating a song? How do they channel their concepts into actual lyrics? Where do they get their ideas even when they are not inspired? Is there a way to hasten and improve the writing process? What is the secret formula for connecting to your listeners?
There are many tools available at the library for aspiring songwriters. Sheila Davis in The Craft of Lyric Writing summarizes the techniques utilized by famous lyricists. Michael Pollock in How to Write Funny Lyrics: The Comedy Songwriting Manual provides a how-to methodology from developing a humorous concept to realizing its fruition. Andrea Stolpe in her new Popular Lyric Writing: 10 Steps to Effective Storytelling describes a foolproof path to the final product.
Beginning poets or songwriters often need assistance in finding and rhyming a word. Suggested books include Sammy Cahn's The Songwriter's Rhyming Dictionary, Gene Lees' The Modern Rhyming Dictionary: How to Write Lyrics and Clive Upton's Oxford Rhyming Dictionary. Bruce Pollock's In Their Own Words is a compilation of interviews with 20 noteworthy songwriters ranging from Harry Chapin to Frank Zappa. Jimmy Webb's Tunesmith: Inside the Art of Songwriting offers his unique perspective in the music business.
For those who want to analyze lyrics by contemporary musicians, the library has Complete and Annotated Grateful Dead Lyrics, Lyrics by Sting, Lyrics, 1962-2001 by Bob Dylan and Patti Smith Complete: Lyrics, Notes and Reflections.