Lyrics 101 b: Picking Words

OK, say you have a basic idea of what words you want in your song... but how do you decide WHICH words? Here's one very, very useful hint from personal experience: DO NOT LOCK YOURSELF into your originally selected words... Be flexible. After you have written the music and start fitting the lyrics syllables into the music (see earlier blog Lyrics 101a), test the words to be sure you or someone else can actually sing them with that music. Be willing to change them if needed. Surely some other wording can get across the same point?

Remember those old tongue-twister riddles of your childhood? "She sells sea shells by the sea shore"? Well, some word combinations are just as hard... especially when you try to fit them into music. A practical example from my current song in progress, "Amniotic Rest":

ORIGINAL WORDS, in 4/4 time showing one measure per line (eight 8th notes), where an underscore shows a half-count rest note:
"Mark __ 9's ex-am-ple that God
un-der-stands my ques-tion-ing __"

Those are great words, referencing a cool story in the Bible, in Mark 9:24 where Jesus didn't zap the guy for saying he didn't quite believe Jesus... Jesus simply healed the man's child. Sadly, my head disagreed with this wording for the lyrics as I tried to sing this-- even in a rather slow song. I had just a half-count to breathe before starting the next line, even if I managed to shove all of those syllables into two measures without stuttering.

RE-WRITTEN WORDS that are far easier to sing;
"Mark _ 9's __Word __God __
un-der-stands my doubts __ __ __"

This says the same and basically misses only one word, "THAT God understands..." In our common language, our head will hear that word anyway, so there's a needed rest by deleted an unnecessary little word "that." And don't be afraid to change your lyrics at the last minute: So often I've gotten to the studio to record a song and found myself tongue-tied trying to get out a line that seemed to work at home during practice. Hey...it's your song, you get to enjoy making any changes you want!

By the way-- ONLY you can change the lyrics if you've copyrighted your song.... see future blogs for hints from personal experience. Much Joy in Easy Songwriting to you!
©2011 DianaDee Osborne.com