A Songwriting Conversation With John Braheny – Part 2

John Braheny is a consultant for songwriters and the author of “The Craft and Business of Songwriting”.  Learn more about him at www.johnbraheny.com.

In Part 1 of our interview with John Braheny, he talks about the importance of mental preparation, current opportunities and demo production strategies.

In Part 2 below, John gives some great tips on getting the most out of your songwriting sessions, the value of re-writing, and learning how to communicate better with your audience.

6. What are some common mistakes you see songwriters make?

A. Assuming the first thing they think of will be their best idea.

B. Settling too soon just to get it finished. Have a check list you go through on each song you write so you keep up your own standards.

C. Deciding not to write any more until you get your songs demoed, published etc. That’s a good sign you’re not writing because you love to write. Most successful writers have written hundreds of songs before they get their first cut. That’s certainly not a rule, but as Malcolm Gladwell observes in his great book “Outliers,” most people who are successful at anything have spent at least 10,000 hours practicing their art or trade. In songwriting, it took Diane Warren 10 years to get her first cut after writing several songs a week. I can attest to that work ethic after hearing about 150 of the songs she wrote when she was 15. Check out her site at www.realsongs.com.

D. Listening to friends and relatives who tell them they can’t do it because: “You’ll never make any money,” “It’s a waste of time,” “What makes you think you have talent?” If you let yourself internalize those comments as negative self-talk, it becomes the voice of a destructive inner critic that’s poison to your creativity.

E. Refusing to re-write. Re-writing is how you learn and grow.

F. Not investing in classes, workshops, critique sessions to learn the craft that will better serve your imagination and creativity.

G. Giving up  when other priorities compete for your time. Even with a day gig and a family, if you want to write songs, write songs. Hang in there and make things happen.

H. Not getting help when you need it. For example, if you’re a great guitarist/singer but need help with production, you should seek the help of a knowledgeable producer.

7. What are some simple exercises songwriters can do to immediately improve their craft?

Write for 10 minutes every morning about anything that occurs to you. Julia Cameron, author of “The Artists’ Way”, calls it Morning Pages. Berklee songwriting professor Pat Pattison calls it “object writing” because you start by picking an object then just free associating. Don’t stop to worry about grammar, style and don’t rewrite. Just let it flow. Stop at 10 minutes. It gets so your subconscious knows you’ll be doing it and you find that during your day you’ll make a little mental note of what you’re going to write about. You’ll have a reason to pay attention. You’ll have to think about how you feel about things – how you’d describe things. You’ll write more clearly and deliberately, even when you free associate. Practice describing what you feel in detail in sensory detail.

You might invest in some Jump-starters. My friend Lisa Aschmann has a great book called “1000 Songwriting Ideas” that will give you that little shove to get the ball rolling. Another book like that is Barbara Jordan’s “Songwriters Playground: Innovative Exercises in Creative Songwriting.” Also, Robin Frederick’s “Shortcuts To Hit Songwriting” is full of great tips and exercises. It’s like a companion workbook to my book, “The Craft And Business Of Songwriting”.

On the music side you can do the same thing. Pick up the guitar or get with your keyboard for 10 minutes once a day. Try to just come up with a new chord progression, melody line or guitar riff each time. Record every session. Just sing nonsense. If you’re primarily a lyricist it’s very important to get used to focusing on the melody, otherwise you may have a tendency to get too wordy. Every time you get something started and come up with an actual lyric line, while recording, try out 4 or 5 more variations of the melody line.

8. How often should songwriters re-write?

As often as you need to make it as good as it can be. Although there are songs that come out pretty much finished the first time around, they’re very rare. In Nashville, the pro writers say “You don’t write songs, you re-write songs.” Jon Ims did 32 re-writes for his Songwriters Hall Of Fame hit, “She’s In Love With The Boy.” I asked him to chronicle that process for the “Rewriting” section of my book. It’s a great lesson.

It’s so difficult to come up with a unique idea that you owe it to yourself and your song to make it as good as possible. That’s how it is for Nashville writers and others who write for hit artists. They know those songs will go through a lot of scrutiny before a label will decide to invest a million dollars in producing and marketing a song. On another level, if you’re an artist who writes for yourself, you’ll become known and appreciated for the unique way you express yourself.

You want to take as much time as possible to hone your songs to reach into those listeners, your potential fans, and express their feelings as well as your own. Don’t be pretentious. Tell the truth. They’ll like you and identify with you because they feel they know you. So let them know the real you. Don’t obscure your feelings and attitudes by writing lyrics that are deliberately (or unconsciously) uncommunicative. Consider your songs to be conversations with your listeners. Don’t talk nonsense to them.

There are many creative, unique, poetic, profound and even somewhat abstract ways to express yourself. You rewrite with your imagination, art, and craftsmanship to achieve those goals, to communicate clearly and to entertain your listeners whether you’re delivering a message, expressing your feelings or just making music that makes them shake their butts and forget the world.

9. Truly successful songwriting depends on finding a receptive audience. With that in mind, how important is it for writer-performers to connect with their audiences? What can they do to improve their efforts?

Practice alone and with an audience every chance you get. When you practice alone, visualize an audience. Use a mirror or use a cheap video camera to record yourself and study it. Keep a daily journal of funny stuff you observe or think about in your normal life. Be honest. Work on developing those funny personal stories and sharing them with your audience in a regular blog and between songs at your showcases and gigs. No matter what your personality is, you’ll draw an audience who likes and identifies with it. Don’t forget that you’re not on stage just to express yourself – you’re there to entertain your audience and make them feel good that they invested their precious time coming to see you.

I see way too many artists just get up and stumble through their songs, apologizing, “Sorry I’m out of tune” (Just shut up and tune or learn to tune as you tell them a story.) “Sorry I’m not at my best/ I didn’t get much sleep” (This one better be accompanied by a VERY funny story!) “Hey I just wrote this today and I haven’t quite got it worked out yet.” (Don’t inflict it on them. It’s like saying “You only deserve to see me at my worst.”) They don’t care!! They didn’t come to see you at your worst! Don’t apologize! You don’t exactly have to put on a suit and tie (Unless you’re Michael Buble), but wear something that shows some respect for your audience. Comb your hair. Look like you care – like you’re going to meet your girlfriend/boyfriend’s parents. Well, that might be a little extreme but you know what I mean.

As a singer, make sure you’ve written lyrics that represent your true feelings, convictions, experiences and that you personally connect emotionally with every line you sing. Quantum Physicists are finding that there is an actual transfer of energy that takes place. It’s why you see some American Idol contestants who hear from Simon or Kara “You’re just not inside the song.” when they’re thinking about how they’re singing and how they look etc. and not what they’re singing. There are singers who can fake it and audiences who will buy it. There’s a famous line of David Lee Roth, if I remember correctly when asked by Johnny Carson what was the secret of his success, he said “Sincerity, Johnny, and if you can fake that you’ve got it made.” It’s much better, however, if you are sincere.

10. What can people do to keep their connection to an audience once they establish it?

Get their e-mail address. Make sure they can reach you. If you’re playing a club, persuade the doorman to use a stamp with your website on it so they can go to their iPhone or computer and enter it. Then send them something every week. Tell them about your next gig, video yourself and send them a link. Send them a newsletter, do a blog on your site, let them know with a Facebook message or a Tweet. Try using a site/service like www.Reverbnation.com that will let you post your songs on you fans’ sites so they can promote you. There are lots more of these things. Check Ariel Hiatt’s www.arielpublicity.com and Bob Baker’s www.bob-baker.com for great self-marketing info.

In Part 3 of this interview, John gives advice about making a living as a solo singer-songwriter, how to maximize your songwriting output even if you have outside responsibilities such as a job and family, and the best ways to seek out and secure publishing deals.

Related posts:

1. A Songwriting Conversation With John Braheny – Part 1
2. A Songwriting Conversation With John Braheny – Part 3

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